Two Pyroxene Basaltic Andesite

 

 

 

And Other Geological Cuss Words

 

 

 

The Lightening Rod of the Cascades

 

 

 

 

Mount Thielsen gets struck by lightening so much that some of the rocks on the spire have melted into a rare mineral called fulgurite.  I didn't really feel like it was going to bother me too much because it was clear skies and I wasn't going all the way to the tip.

The mountain trail changed from old ash from nearby defunct Mount Mazama to broken rock and rock plates.  At this point I started using both my hands and my feet to climb up this thing.  I was tired, very hot and my toungue was starting to feel like 100 grain sand-paper since I had left the water with Linda.  There was no shade at all anymore as the last of the bushes and straggly trees were well below me.  It wasn't that I was rock climbing, it was a full on scramble.

Even the dogs balked at one point, both of them sitting down on the rocks and refusing to go any higher.  I left them and continued on only to have them pop around an arete about 150 yards more up the mountain.  This picture was looking up the mountain at the broken jumble of loose plates and sharp edges.

 

 

 

 

We all went slowly at this point.   The dogs were tired and thirsty.  I was tired and thirsty.  But they were still following me.  Hadn't lost faith in their master yet.  When I did reach the point where I wasn't going to go any farther, I was about 75 feet from the actual pinacle peak.  There was a ledge with another man and his dog.  The ledge was a drop off that is the east face of the mountain.  The other side was the edge of the pinacle.  I felt cramped even though I had plenty of room to move around.  It just looked and felt really uncomfortable. 

I didn't care at this point, though.  I just wanted it to be done with.  Sitting up there on the ledge the idea of climbing Mount Thielsen was better than climbing it.

I don't think I rested at the ledge any longer than I did any of the other breaks I took.  There wasn't a whole lot of enjoyment.  I was really cranky.

The climb to the top just turned into a series of head down climbing, breathing, wind blowing fiercly around me bore.  Interrupted by small rests.

The rest of the way down was better, but I had a pissah of a headache brewing.  My legs were channeling Elvis and I had to do more down-climbing than I thought I was going to.

Linda had come up about halfway and met me.  The water was the best part.  And a handful of gorp.  Of course, once I got some trembling out of my legs and the headache went away, I smiled because I had loved it.  And I will be back again.  I am hoping to get some gear up there and finish it out.