Mount Hood/Reid Headwall

April 10, 2016. We left Timberline at 2:00 a.m., roped up at Illumination Saddle at 5:00 a.m., finished the Reid Headwall at 8:30 a.m., and reached the summit at 9:45 a.m. We intended to follow the left-most route variation but through a series of navigation decisions we ended up climbing one of the center-right variations and topped out on the West Crater Rim.

The snow conditions were good but as we climbed the headwall we were pelted with waves of small pellets of snow and ice. We used pickets to protect the crossing of the sizable bergschrund and ice screws in a narrow couloir near the top but did not need protection for the remainder of the route.