South Sister Climber's Log

Viewing: 1-20 of 288
mastercoog

mastercoog - Feb 19, 2012 6:44 pm Date Climbed: Sep 13, 2011

Hiked standard route in mid-september  Sucess!

Hiked South Sister after climbing North and Middle a few days earlier in mid September. The temperature was 90 degrees the first day of our trip and was near or at freezing temperatures plus windy at Moraine Lake where we camped the last night. However as we climbed up the mountain, the wind stopped as we climbed past the cloud level at 7500 feet and was very pleasant and sunny on the summit. We spent extra time on the summit because we did not want to go back down to the windy weather down below.
Second successful summit on August 26th, 2012 with party of four. One team member got altitude sickness and almost did not make summit. Started climbing at 4:20am and had mountain mostly to ourselves. The summit was 40 degrees with about 30mph winds which felt very cold for summer climbing. Total climb time was 8h 40min starting from Moraine Lake.

santanoni

santanoni - Jan 13, 2012 11:52 am Date Climbed: Aug 22, 2011

South Side  Sucess!

Camping out at moraine lake we went up fairly early. My climbing companions had not been above 5000 in a long time, but we knocked it out in quick order and with no problems. One broken trekking pole from a boot ski by one of my group, no big deal.

bellinghamclimber

bellinghamclimber - Oct 3, 2011 3:46 pm Date Climbed: Oct 2, 2011

Season's changing...  Sucess!

Looks like summer's finally over. Super cloudy weekend with low vis from the summit. Kinda cool to see the ice formations up top though...

Flanders

Flanders - Sep 19, 2011 10:09 am Date Climbed: Sep 17, 2011

End of the Trip  Sucess!

Long climb, clouded in.

Travler559

Travler559 - Aug 14, 2011 12:01 pm Date Climbed: Aug 13, 2011

we did it  Sucess!

Had a most spectacular climb up the South Sister. Late start @ 11am, but was able to make it to the summit in just over 5 hours, we stopped and took a lot of pictures as this was a first time for my friend. Meet some great people along the way and was amazed at how many kids were on the mountain 8,9 10 year old kids climbing right next to us and usually passing us. Amazing views from the summit. Very grueling the last 1000 feet, but well worth every moment on top. Met up with another first timer, "Florida Matt" we called him, tallest mountain he had been on is 700 feet, if you call that a mountain. He made it to 7800 feet in his moccasins,1 banana, 1 cucumber, some jerky and one water bottle, we helped him out with snacks and extra fluids. This was a tester climb for us as we are going to attempt to scale Mt. Adams in 2 weeks. So we loaded down our packs a headed up. So worth the soar legs today, but nothing a soak in the hot tub won't cure.

RangerMark

RangerMark - Aug 12, 2011 10:13 pm Date Climbed: Jun 24, 2010

Good early climb  Sucess!

Peak was still entirely snowcovered, which meant I didn't see a single person the whole day. Had the mountain to myself, great views.

kdonaldson

kdonaldson - Aug 7, 2011 5:19 pm Date Climbed: Aug 6, 2011

South Ridge  Sucess!

With snow still covering about 50-60% of the trail this late into the season I thought I would give it a go hoping the snow would keep away the crowds. Left the trailhead at 6:20 with my dog, passed about 10 people on the lower section in the trees. Met a guy named Ryan about half way up and we hiked the rest of the way to the summit. Arrived on summit about 10:35 (4hrs 15 min) at a moderate pace. The snowfields were frozen on the way up so you will need good poles and boots, or get over onto rocks. Beauty day - stayed on the summit until noon, eating, talking to others as they came up. Could see all the way to Adams in the north and almost to California to the south. Ryan was heading over to middle so I headed down and hiked with Brent and Becka and their dog Rio. Our dogs got along well. 2:15 minutes down with some exciting glisading on the upper snowfields allowing us to make great time.

srobinson - Jun 29, 2011 6:39 pm Date Climbed: Jun 15, 1997

No Prep  Sucess!

Climbed South Sister with some friends on a very nice day many years ago.

Levi

Levi - Jun 28, 2011 3:07 pm Date Climbed: Jun 27, 2011

Friends first mountain  Sucess!

A buddy of mine was ready to see what this mountain climbing business was about. We had planned to walk in and camp but getting to the TH late we set up the tent there. Snow all the way from the road to the summit. Started at 6am, summit at 1pm, and back to the car at 5pm. Great day on the mountain and from what I know we had it all to ourselves.

funwithdunk

funwithdunk - Feb 27, 2011 10:57 pm Date Climbed: Sep 30, 2010

South Sister Summit  Sucess!

Hike to the top of South Sister

It's a non-technical but very demanding climb of the state's third-tallest peak.

About the Hike: Oregon's third-tallest mountain has a path to its top. Admittedly, the trail up 10,358-foot South Sister is exceedingly steep, long and rugged, but no technical climbing skills are required and the rewards are great.

From the summit - a broad, snowy crater with a small lake - you can see half the state. If this sounds too demanding, here's a secret: the loop to Moraine Lake, halfway up the mountain, is just as picturesque. This lower hike avoids the final trudge up cinder scree, yet still offers views 100 miles south to Mount McLoughlin. What's more, the weather's better here. The summit often generates its own little cloud, complete with whiteouts, wind, and a miniature blizzard

mnpalerm

mnpalerm - Feb 20, 2011 6:47 pm Date Climbed: Aug 6, 2010

Climber's Trail  Sucess!

I hit the trailhead at 6am, ended up passing about 15 people and still wasnt first to the top! Luckily the first party left upon our arrival so we had the summit alone for about 10 minutes. 30 minutes later there were 15+ people on top. Besides the crowd, the climb rocks and the views are outstanding!

belowfellow

belowfellow - Feb 16, 2011 3:23 pm Date Climbed: Aug 29, 2009

pumice  Sucess!

2 months in a foot cast due to a broken foot. I climbed this pile of choss on the first day out of the cast. I will come back again when there is snow.

OOG

OOG - Jan 27, 2011 11:25 pm

Devils Lake  Sucess!

Just a big pile of rocks, good view though. Next time I'll climb it when there's still snow

LadyWawa

LadyWawa - Jan 27, 2011 11:26 am Date Climbed: Sep 17, 2010

Green Lakes  Sucess!

I went up via the Green Lakes variation. Absolutely no people but certainly a faint and difficult trail to follow. It was like a big party at the summit and on the snow field near the summit (people make snow angels and stuff like that!). Fun!

RetroGear

RetroGear - Jan 9, 2011 11:51 pm Date Climbed: Aug 11, 2010

South Ridge  Sucess!

Hiked the standard route with John Seward. Were first on top that day but was not long till the crowds were visible on the descent.

iquest4it

iquest4it - Dec 25, 2010 6:46 am Date Climbed: Aug 14, 2010

Where the hell did you just come from?  Sucess!

Although I have summited South Sister a few times before from the south cow trail, to conclude my Marathon I went straight up the north ridge, which was almost as hard as N. Sister. I crossed three steep glaciers and went up a never-ending 45+ degree scree field from hell, only to face 25 ft. of vertical, rotten, red rim rock. I crawled over the top and the guy standing there said "where the hell did you just come from". I've heard that more than once. :)

letskeepmovin

letskeepmovin - Dec 21, 2010 7:47 pm Date Climbed: Sep 7, 1998

finally did it after making Sisters Wilderness one of my favorite spots in Oregon  Sucess!

Lots of fun. One of my favorite wilderness areas in the Cascades.

runbyu1

runbyu1 - Nov 8, 2010 9:51 pm Date Climbed: Sep 6, 2009

Awesome & Challenging Run  Sucess!

Ran up from the campground (Devil's Lake TH) and what a run it was. Got incredible pics and views of Broken Top, the other sisters, etc. We hit snow with a couple of miles to go which made things very interesting (in shorts & t-shirts) and very fun/beautiful. This is definitely one of the favorite mountains I've ever done. The trail is great and the views are awesome. We bombed/slipped/slid down in hurry and got back in time for a late lunch. VERY cool.

cfast

cfast - Oct 3, 2010 11:36 pm Date Climbed: Oct 2, 2010

with our 9yr old daughter  Sucess!

Our first time on S.Sis. summit. Started at Devils Lake TH and went slow with our daughter and son. She just turned 9 and was a real trooper all the way. Counted 200 people on trail, wasn't too crowded for a gorgeous day. Slippery,sloppy scree from false summit to top, especially coming down. Similarities to Mt.St. Helens summer climb with a lot of bouldering. Glad I had ski poles, knees aren't what they used to be! Difficult but fun for the old folks and youngest, a piece of cake for our teenager!

Troy B

Troy B - Oct 3, 2010 6:03 pm Date Climbed: Oct 2, 2010

South Ridge  Sucess!

Last minute decision to head to the Cascades for the weekend led to a summit of South Sister. Basically this time of year it's a hike up the South Climb route. Left early and passed two groups on the way up to have the summit to myself at sunrise. I was amazed at the number of hikers heading up as I hiked out.

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