Climb South Sister
South Sister is a 10,000-foot snow-covered volcanic peak in the southern Cascades that can be climbed by any reasonably healthy and very determined hiker. You start at Green Lakes in the early morning with a seven-mile hike in front of you. That’s a pretty regular day. But the hard part is, the hike goes up nearly 5,000 vertical feet. That’s almost a mile straight up — and then straight down — in a single day. And that day should be in August or September unless you’re good on snow and ice.
It’s a spectacular hike, though. And tough. Did we say tough? The last 1,000 feet or so is on maddeningly loose scree, meaning you slide down a foot for every two feet you go up, while struggling for breath in the thin, thin air. It’s wonderful in a perverse way. You feel like a real mountaineer when you finally get there. And, in fact, you are.
Hundreds of people make it to the top most summer weekends, enjoying a view that reaches from Washington to the north to California to the south. No kidding.
While the hike requires no technical climbing skills, you should be familiar with mountain hiking and take basic safety equipment, like the Ten Essentials. Keep an eye on the weather. And be sure to leave a cooler with your cold beverage of choice in the car.