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Mt. Rainier is one of the most coveted and sought after climbs in North America. This dormant volcano offers a physical and emotional challenge on the highest peak in Washington state, topping 14,411 feet in elevation.

Dates

POSTPONED DUE TO COVID-19 PANDEMIC

Fundraising Minimum

$3,500

Requirements

You will need the ability to carry a 50+ pound pack and hike for 6-12 hours continuously.

Fundraising

Each climber is expected to raise $3,500 towards Climb For Hope’s mission of funding breast cancer and MS research and providing life-changing experiences for those affected by cancer.

When you sign up, we will provide a Crowdrise fundraising page, for you to solicit or make donations. We are more than happy to help you with fundraising ideas, email templates, and marketing support, especially if you don’t have a lot of fundraising experience.

Training

Mt. Rainier is technical and requires experience and both mental and physical preparation for what’s to come. Having your body and mind in check is the most important thing to carry with you on the mountain. Climb for Hope provides a 9-week training plan as well as a supporting team-building community on social media.

Costs

Hotel, guide fees, group equipment (tents, cooking gear, fuel) as well as breakfasts and dinners on the mountain are provided by Climb For Hope. Climbers are only responsible for airfare to Portland, lunches on the mountain, energy bars, and meals in town, including the celebratory post-climb dinner.

The Guides

Our longtime partners, the experienced and professional guides at Rare Earth Adventures, handle all the nitty-gritty details of our adventure, so that we can focus on the landscape and our own personal experiences. Not only are they also highly trained to keep us safe and respond to emergencies, but they’re pretty good mountain cooks too!

Team Lead

This expedition will be lead by Andrew Buerger, founder of Climb for Hope. Having both his sister and wife inflicted by disease, Andrew has committed to finding cures for breast cancer and MS.

Take advantage of this climb to understand mountaineering and garner 1-on-1 inspiration from our nonprofit’s founder.

Summit Photos

Itinerary

Day 1 - Arrive in Portland

Pick up from PDX airport (by mid-day), transport to Airbnb or hotel near the city, team dinner and introductions.

Day 2 - Drive to Rainier

Camp outside of the park (at Whittaker's Bunkhouse?), gear check and distribute group gear, team dinner

Day 3 - Climb Day 1

We begin the day at the Paradise Trailhead (5,400’) and head up to Camp Muir. On day one we cover about 4.5 miles and gain 4,660’ to end the day at 10,060’. Expect a full day on the go!

Day 4 - Climb Day 2

Today we’ll enjoy the opportunity to build and refine our mountaineering skills from camp. This day also serves as an acclimation day and an opportunity to prepare for our summit day. We’ll cover the basics of glacier travel, crevasse rescue, crampon use, and self arrest techniques.

Day 5 - Climb Day 3 - Summit Day!!

Today we gear up for a full day and start quite early (think 10pm). We’ll put our glacier travel skills to use as we traverse the Cowlitz Glacier and head up Cathedral Gap. We then climb onto the Ingraham Glacier and up Disappointment Cleaver. Once on the highest slopes of Rainier, we will navigate a series of glaciers and cross the crater to gain the true summit!
After enjoying the summit we still have half the adventure ahead of us as we navigate back down. Though traveling downhill is less physical effort we will still be putting just as much effort into safely navigating crevasse fields and retracing the safest route.
We will end our day at Camp Muir.

Day 6 - Climb Day 4

We’ll end our trip traveling down from Camp Muir to our start at Paradise Trailhead, and return to Portland for a late night flight
Option to depart for home the following morning.
note: our itinerary on the mountain is subject to weather and snow conditions.