ALEXANDER MITCHKO

The most climbed mountain in the United States, by some metric—not sure which one—has this way of bringing serious mountaineers and kooks all to the same parking lot. A classic Hood parking lot hang After a small trip hiccup in Sisters, OR, I was on my way up to Hood for another solo mission before meeting up with the spring Alaska team on Rainier. Arriving in the afternoon, I was met with the splendor of Oregon sunshine, ample parking, and the tangible stoke of ski bums ridi

All rigged up for a 11:30am alpine start The meat and potatoes of my Cascade corn crusade were finally on the table. After a warm-up on Shasta and a little recovery resort riding around Bend, I was itching for a couple of full value days out in the cascades. I left Bend late and headed toward Sisters, that strange seam where the Oregon desert meets the old volcanic glaciers. Everything out there feels transitional—sagebrush giving way to firs, brown dirt giving way to rotting

A classic gear splay As we set out for our two-day rainier mission, it was the end of a 10-day smash & grab corn crusade campaign through...