The Guardian Peaks consists of climbing and descending the three volcanic mountains that are visible from Portland, Oregon: Wy'east (Mt. Hood), Pahto (Mt. Adams), and Loowit (Mt. St. Helens), on foot in a single push, using a motor vehicle to drive between (or bicycle if multisport). Clock starts upon departing the trailhead at the first peak and ends upon returning to the trailhead of the final peak. Mountains can be climbed in any order.
The standard routes are as follows:
Wy'east (11,249') - South Side Route from Timberline Lodge (6.4 miles round trip, 5,249 gain/loss)
Pahto (12,281') - South Climb from Cold Springs Campground/South Climb Trailhead (12.4 miles round trip, 6,740’ gain/loss)
Loowit (8,363') - Worm Flows Winter Route from Marble Mountain Sno-Park (12 miles round trip, 5,700’ gain/loss), or the Monitor Ridge Route from Climber's Bivouac.
Total:
30.8 miles, 17,689’
This is destined to become a classic single-push link-up the stunning, one-of-a-kind Cascade volcanoes around Portland, Oregon!
For the bike variation one would bike between THs instead of using a car.
For the on foot variation, Christoff Teuscher has laid down the groundwork for route and style by pioneering both Mt. Adams to Mt. Hood and Mt. Adams to St. Helens back in 2014-2015, as such the completion of this on foot variation would be a natural next extension of his groundwork laid back then. The GPX files for this exact route may be downloaded from each of the above separate FKTs. You can reach out to Christof on his website to let him know what you are doing!
Comments
I, Willie McBride of Portland, Oregon, will be making an attempt at the Guardian Peaks 50k on Wednesday, June 24th, 2020, starting at 12:00 pm and climbing Wy'east (Mt. Hood), Pahto (Mt. Adams) and Loowit (Mt. St. Helens), in that order, with the "A" goal of finishing in under 24 hours. This is a supported attempt due to the driving in between mountains; also I plan to have a "pacer" on Loowit and some of Pahto; Wy'east I will climb solo. I will be recording my climbs on Strava for verification and will be posting photos and video at times over the course of the day.
The greater purpose of this attempt is to raise awareness and funds for Black Lives Matter and Big City Mountaineers, two organizations doing essential work to make our world and our outdoors a more just, equitable and welcoming place for all. Please consider making a donation. Thank you!
Here's the ultimate guardian peaks trifeca adventure! A natural progression of previous routes involving Mt. St. Helens, Mt. Adams, and Mt. Hood: the Triple go rooound ‘n’ up ‘n’ between. The route also covers the "Teuscher route, on foot" that is mentioned here.
The "Triple go rooound ‘n’ up ‘n’ between" route was rejected as an FKT route. I'm posting it here so others can be inspired and go after it.