Camp Hazard


What could be better than stumbling over boulders in the dead of night? Not much... if the boulders are on the slopes of Mount Rainier, the sky is clear and the moon is bright enough that using a headlamp is a waste of Energizers. The route taken to Camp Hazard on this particular trip was not one of the standard routes, but was chosen for its view of the Kautz Glacier and the summit routes in the area...hmmmm. The Van Trump Park route to Camp Hazard was followed to ~7000', then a long traverse on moraine lead to 8000' on Wapowety Cleaver. Wapowety Cleaver separates the Kautz Glacier from the Van Trump Glaciers and the Turtle snowfield and reaches to the Kautz Ice Cliff at ~11,700. The cleaver is a jumble of loose rocks and pumice and I would not recommend it as a route to Camp Hazard under most circumstances. However, it does offer some great views. One interesting find along the way was the discovery of aircraft wreckage just below Camp Hazard. I descended via the standard route on the Turtle Snowfield and Van Trump Glaciers. If you are venturing to Camp Hazard via any route, be prepared for rock fall hazard, hard snow and ice in addition to the always present risk of ice falling from the Kautz ice cliff.

NOTE: I found out later that the plane wreckage was from a crash around 1980 involving some rodeo cowboys.