3 Mountains 1 Day Part 3

Big Backyard Adventures

I'm fortunate to live minutes away from wilderness trailheads that can lead to adventures big and small. Training and recreating in the Three Sisters Wilderness is one of the biggest perks of living in Sisters, OR. On days I can get into the mountains it’s easy to have very high quality workouts and to appreciate the unique beauty of the Central Cascades.

I started playing in "The Sisters" in 2006 during my first visits to Bend and Sisters from Mount Shasta. I worked full-time on Shasta that summer, so I was eager to see some new terrain by late season.

My partner during that first trip was also a guide on Shasta. It was late in August, and our capacity for moving on volcanic terrain was at an all-time high. We parked at Pole Creek TH and spent the first day figuring out the approach and climbing route on North Sister before returning to the trailhead.

Greg and Adam sorting out the next move, June 2017

Molly B, skinning on the lower Hayden Glacier, June 2018

The next day, we went back to hike and climb North Sister and Middle Sister in a single day. We had a blast. I'm not sure we would have had the time to climb the third peak, South Sister, that day, but we chatted about it.

We packed too heavily to move much faster than we did. We had a small alpine rack, a light rope, and lightweight harnesses to use on North Sister, but we never had to unpack that stuff. We also spent the entire day in our mountaineering boots but only used crampons for 10 minutes.

It was fun, but we'd probably remember it being much more fun if our kits had been lighter.

I started spending a few days in The Sisters, often yearly, mostly skiing on the South and North Sisters.

A few years ago, in June, I had just moved to Oregon when Adam Zok and Greg Cummingham called and invited me on a ski tour of all three sisters. I knew Adam and Greg from Shasta Mountain Guides. These guys are fit and highly skilled, so, "fuck yes, I'll go on a big ski tour with you guys ."

That day was one for the books and was influential in helping me embrace and celebrate the character of the terrain in Central Oregon. It was a tiring day, but we moved well together and took turns route-finding on the way up and making first tracks down each of the three big volcanoes.

I feel fortunate indeed to have some great mountains so close to home. You can have a thousand adventures in the hills around here, and any one of them is an excellent reason to stay fit.

Getting out there regularly to train is crucial and leads to a nearly uncontrollable urge to test yourself with bigger and bigger days. Realistically planning, training, and setting expectations for a significant objective can present challenges. Finding good partners can be one of the biggest challenges.

Recently, my friend Joe contacted me about undertaking a big objective together. In this case, everything lined up at once; a good partner and a big goal within my abilities that I was sure my current training would complement.

Let's keep going! Read part 4 and see it all plays out.