Well, we didn't make it

Thanks to the first August blizzard in 4 years on Mt Rainier, we did not make it to the summit. We started with rain, turning to sleet, then snow on the way up to Camp Muir. Needless to say, we were a soaking mess by the time we arrived. We'd planned ahead and brought additional dry gear. However, the winds kicked up and the snow started flying. When we left at 1:30am to try to push for the summit, we were in blizzard and white-out conditions. The RMI Guides couldn't even find the route (flags were buried or blown away), nor see the crevasses, so we turned back and arrived at Camp Muir again at 3:30am. The weather didn't clear in time for our window to summit, so we headed down in the snowstorm starting at 8am. Looks like we'll all be trying again, probably in 2 years. Damn!

Here's a link to a video I took of the winds at Camp Muir. This was actually before they got really bad and the snow got worse. Below are some pics we took as well.