Mount Hood, North Face. On July 11,I made a quick ascent of Mount Hood, climbing 5300 feet in 3¼ hours, to take a peek down the north face at the Eliot Glacier Headwall. Conditions were ideal for soloing with clear skies, below-freezing temperatures and firm névé. After dropping 1000 feet down the northwest ridge, a horizontal traverse brought me to the center of the north face and the start of the real challenge. “Styrofoam” frozen névé, water ice from 55° to 90° and an occasional band of rotten rock made up the major difficulties. A 30-foot-high fractured rock chimney and a final 150 feet of easy snow brought me to the summit. It took me one hour from the bergschrund to the summit. I encountered no rockfall on this infamous shooting gallery. [Though the route was not new, the style was.—Editor. ]

Ralph Richardson-Healy, Unaffiliated