Skiing on the 4th of July?

While most of the country was roasting hot dogs and watching fireworks, Aaron Johnson and Rob Whitney were skiing Mt. Rainier. ON THE 4th OF JULY! Here’s their story and some jaw dropping shots of the mountain.

“My friend Rob and I planned a Muir trip for weeks, and a window opened up where we could take a few days off and have great weather for some skiing. We got all our gear together, organized it, distributed weight between packs, and got some good BBQ at the Cougar Rock camping area the night before we ascended to Muir.

On the morning of the 2nd of July, we awoke and jumped into packing camp, loading the car and we headed for Paradise. The sun was warm and bright and I was amazed on how great the mountain looked! It was supposed to be cloudy that day, so I guess it was a blessing!

We were on the trail by 1030 and on the top of the snowfield making camp by 1630. I didn’t think it would take as long as we did, but we did have gear for camping along with our skis and boots! 55+/- packs! Lots of pictures were taken, but we were too tired to ski that night, so we ate, boiled water for the next morning, and then hit the sleeping bags.

July 3rd had an amazing sunrise from the East! I opened my tent door was hit with a great view at 503am. I got Rob up and we took pictures, made breakfast, boiled water for the day and then climbed up to Muir to use their toilets (it’s much easier than blue baggin’ it!). It was cool seeing the shacks and other people up there; it was our first time up so it was kind of a cool feeling! The views up high around 10K showed us views of Mt. Adams, Mt. Hood, and Mt. St. Helens!

We glissaded down to our camp on our stomachs which got the attention of our Summiting neighbors! We got our ski gear on and took our first run, great snow, corn but it was fast! I loved it! We went about 500ft below the Anvil Rock before we turned back for a 25 minute hike. We then took a little rest then built a kicker near camp for a little fun to save some time hiking and more time w/ skis our my feet! We took some more runs to the Anvil throughout the day, warmer air and slushier snow, it was really great!

On the 4th, we packed up camp early, ate and hit Muir for a toilet break and then descended to Paradise. It was great doing a long run, but we had to take our skis off and hike maybe a half mile, but we got to ski right to the trail going to Paradise. I made a wrong turn before we got to the trail and we ended up at the top of a waterfall. We climbed down the side and kept going and were at the car in an hour and a half after leaving camp.

I have to say who ever said “…having beers waiting for you at the car after a long day of skiing…” was absolutely correct! After a couple nights up on Rainier, skiing and enjoying life really is worth it! Plus, skiing in July will always turn heads!”