The Tooth/South Face

Climb on Sun Aug 23 with a (fun) mob of 7! Left the parking lot at 6:15, with so much smoke/haze we couldn't see Mt. Rainier. A few whiffs of smoke but mostly hazy. Surprisingly a few running streams around Source Lake but none in the bowl.

First team of three (student tied in with cow's tale near end) led off at 9:00 and made the summit at 10:30. Other mobs came behind us and an independent simul-climbing pair cut in between second and third rope teams. Though they said they would be fast, our final rope team had to wait for them at anchors a few times. Final team made the summit and we began rappelling around noon. The simul-climber pair rapped our first lines (we thought they would be faster) but we ended up waiting on them at anchors the entire descent. All single rope raps. (The first rappel from the summit should target the rap station near the catwalk because the one on climbers' right has a loose tree; been that way for 15 years but still...)

Other mobs showed up after us (another 12 people or so?) so the descent was a waiting game. Everyone pleasant and happy to be out climbing. We still got all 7 down in 2 hrs and made the trailhead around 4. Everyone was comfortable ascending and descending the talus slopes.

The Tooth is such a great first alpine climb for students - the crowds are worth it! Students did great, and the exposure gives them a true feel for alpine climbing, ascent and descent.