OR OR - Kelly James (dead), Brian Hall, 37, Jerry Cooke, 36, Mt. Hood Climbers, Dec 2006

[Buzz Mills]

Searchers turning back from summit; weather is too severe
All searchers on Mount Hood have been called down the mountain due to severe weather.

"It wasn't the dream picture we had hoped for today," said Deputy Sean Collinson of the Clackamas County Sheriff's Office. He said the search will resume Sunday.

Search officials say an earlier report about the siting of two climbers failed to turn up anything. Officials say they have found no signs of the stranded climbers.

Strong winds and blowing snow have impeded what was to be a major search effort today. The day started off clear, but conditions deteriorated as the day progressed. About 70 searchers headed up the mountain today, some starting their treks as early as 4 a.m.

A C-130 military plane from the Nevada Army National Guard will be conducting an air search tonight. The plane flew above the summit today at 12,000 looking for signs of the men.

http://www.oregonlive.com/newslogs/...e_oregonian_news/archives/2006_12.html#216361

 

[Taximom]

I was really hoping they would find all 3 today.

Thanks for all the updates and pictures.

 

[Ca-Sun]

I was really hoping they would find all 3 today.

Thanks for all the updates and pictures.

Everyone was expecting they would come off the mountain today. Such a disappointment. Hope for tomorrow!

 

[Sundayrain]

Thank you Ca -Sun and Scandi.......because of saying she might have read it, I got those down the side of the eye tears.
I am so, so, hoping they find them. The women are trying so hard to be strong.
Maybe because I spent time at that mountain, that lodge.......I don't know my hearts exact reason.......I feel very deeply for these men. I know we all are......
Maybe tomorrow.......Sunday is always a lucky day for me.......
I hope it will be for everyone......Thank you again for your words......
You are doing a great job showing everyone what is going on. Sunday...

 

[Ca-Sun]

Thank you Ca -Sun and Scandi.......because of saying she might have read it, I got those down the side of the eye tears.
I am so, so, hoping they find them. The women are trying so hard to be strong.
Maybe because I spent time at that mountain, that lodge.......I don't know my hearts exact reason.......I feel very deeply for these men. I know we all are......
Maybe tomorrow.......Sunday is always a lucky day for me.......
I hope it will be for everyone......Thank you again for your words......
You are doing a great job showing everyone what is going on. Sunday...

Thank you, Sunday, for such a heartwarming, beautiful poem. Several family members and friends of the climbers are reading and posting on that site, including members of Brian's family in Germany. I know they will read what you have written.

 

[Buzz Mills]

12-16-2006
Northwest Weather and Avalanche Center
Timberline Lodge, Oregon

http://www.skihood.com/cams/mhmtop.jpg

http://www.localsnow.org/meadows.htm

http://www.kgw.com/livecams/popup_timberline.html

Precip gage not heating 12-15-06

MM/DD Hour Temp RH Wind Wind Wind Wind Hour Total 24 Hr Total
PST F % Min Avg Max Dir Prec. Prec. Snow Snow
6000' 6000" 6000' 6000' 6000' 6000' 6000' 6000' 6000' 6000'
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
12 15 1600 15 97 1 9 32 299 .01 .01 13 83
12 15 1700 15 97 2 10 22 290 .03 .04 13 84
12 15 1800 15 97 1 5 13 286 .02 .06 13 84
12 15 1900 15 97 2 6 12 302 .02 .08 13 84
12 15 2000 14 96 3 9 14 315 .01 .09 13 84
12 15 2100 13 96 4 8 14 323 0 .09 13 84
12 15 2200 12 95 3 7 14 326 .01 .1 13 84
12 15 2300 11 95 2 5 8 336 0 .1 13 83
12 16 0 12 95 2 5 8 339 .01 .11 13 83
12 16 100 12 95 -0 3 5 3 0 .11 13 83
12 16 200 14 96 -0 3 9 52 .01 .12 13 83
12 16 300 14 95 1 6 11 75 0 .12 12 83
12 16 400 14 95 1 7 16 80 0 .12 13 83
12 16 500 15 93 2 9 15 81 0 .12 1 83
12 16 600 15 91 2 10 18 81 0 .12 1 83
12 16 700 15 88 2 8 16 81 0 .12 1 83
12 16 800 14 85 1 7 18 86 0 .12 1 83
12 16 900 15 83 0 6 16 87 0 .12 1 83
12 16 1000 16 82 0 6 18 89 0 .12 1 82
12 16 1100 16 81 2 7 17 90 0 .12 1 82
12 16 1200 16 78 2 9 18 82 0 .12 1 82
12 16 1300 16 73 3 10 20 81 0 .12 1 81
12 16 1400 16 69 2 11 21 80 0 .12 1 81
12 16 1500 17 56 2 11 21 80 0 .12 1 81

http://www.nwac.us/mtnweather.htm

http://www.nwac.us/products/OSOMHM

http://www.nwac.us/products/OSOTML

 

[Buzz Mills]

With white-out conditions, from the winds, at the upper altitudes of Mt. Hood, the C-130 is going to have a tough time detecting anything. I was hoping the winds would die off completely this evening, and give them a better chance of seeing something.

 

[Love_Mama]

I'm Praying So Hard For All Of Them................

Xxxxxxxxoooo
Mama

 

[scandi]

Me too Mama :blowkiss: I wonder what they do when they have to go pp. Only the big caves have a bathroom!

Buzz, I adore you, but for the life of me can not figure out that chart, and it is 5000' too low. Do you know what it is up at the summit tonight. I read at the CC blog that Kelly James is JUST below the summit. To me that means right at about 11,200'.


Scandi

 

[Lurker Steve]

They've got to be running low (if not just out) of fuel by now. You can't eat snow (for long) - it will lower your body temperature.

 

[Floh]

Scroll up/down until Ryland Moore's lengthy post for the uninitiated which gives much positive information as to the chances of survival out there for the three men:

http://www.cascadeclimbers.com/foru...showflat/Number/619026/Main/46907/#Post619026

i apologise if this has already been posted.

my thoughts are with them. i hope sunday's the day they are returned safely.

ETA: Mr Moore has made a further post (equally informative as to what he would expect the men to be dealing with) further up/down the page - i say up/down as this site doesn't apear to respon as i would expect and bring the link to the top of the page - for me.

 

[RoughlyCollie]

www.oregonlive.com/news/oregonian/index.ssf?/base/news/1166329517283160.xml&coll=7

What looks like a piece of climbing equipment was spotted about 300 feet from the top of Mt. Hood.

 

[dark_shadows]

d_s, I was just getting ready to ask you about the C-19's those C-130 pilots were allegedly flying.

Now if we can only get the climbers to leave their foxhole ice caves so that the IR detectors can pick them up. The climbers also need to turn their cell phones on so that IOMAX can pick up the signal, and pinpoint them.

Hello Buzz,:blowkiss:
I checked over my post and it said C-19. I have no clue where that came from and changed it to the right plane.

Please do not :laugh: at me, I have a question for you.

I do not know the sites that zoom in on a place via satellite. I saw a thread about Google Earth in the jury room section. I googled Mount Hood to see if the mountain was shown. It came up google directions. I have heard that a person can view and zoom in on their homes. I do not remember those sites.
Question is; do you know a website that can zoom in on Mount Hood?
Respectfully,
dark_shadows

 

[Buzz Mills]

Me too Mama :blowkiss: I wonder what they do when they have to go pp. Only the big caves have a bathroom!

Buzz, I adore you, but for the life of me can not figure out that chart, and it is 5000' too low. Do you know what it is up at the summit tonight. I read at the CC blog that Kelly James is JUST below the summit. To me that means right at about 11,200'.


Scandi

Scandi, they don't have any gauges that high up, so we are left to use what we have. The readings at 6,000' only give us an idea, of what it is like higher up.

Try this version:

http://www.nwac.us/products/OSOTML

If it is 18 degrees at 6,000' that means it is probably 0 degrees at 10,000' and if the wind is gusting at 20mph at 6,000' that probably means it is gusting at 50mph, or more, at 10,000'. There were white-out conditions up on the mountain today, and it was very cold, and that caused them to call the ground search off early. We can only hope and pray that conditions tomorrow improve somewhat. It does appear to be warming up very slightly.

 

[Buzz Mills]

Hello Buzz,:blowkiss:
I checked over my post and it said C-19. I have no clue where that came from and changed it to the right plane.

Please do not :laugh: at me, I have a question for you.

I do not know the sites that zoom in on a place via satellite. I saw a thread about Google Earth in the jury room section. I googled Mount Hood to see if the mountain was shown. It came up google directions. I have heard that a person can view and zoom in on their homes. I do not remember those sites.
Question is; do you know a website that can zoom in on Mount Hood?
Respectfully,
dark_shadows

d_s, in the Google Search Block type in Google Earth, and then click on Web. It should return a website for Google Earth, which is software that needs to be downloaded onto your computer. Once downloaded, it will enable you to do a Zoom-in on Mt. Hood. I'll do a test run on it as I already have Google Earth downloaded on my computer.

After you get into Google Earth--type in Mt. Hood Meadows, and then Mt. Hood Summit is Southwest of that, so by moving the image, you can then zoom in on Mt. Hood. Because it is snow covered, it almost appears to be a snow-filled hole with ravines runing away from it in all directions.

What I did was go South from the mountain, and then rotate the picture as if I was flying North towards the mountain at about 3,000'. Then you can get an awesome picture of the mountain and actually fly up its South slope, and so forth. I am not a member, so it will not allow me to save the GPS settings for anyone else.

Whoops, I was flying too low, and crashed into the slope.

 

[scandi]

They've got to be running low (if not just out) of fuel by now. You can't eat snow (for long) - it will lower your body temperature.

Hi Steve, I read today that they don't have to eat to stay alive in a circumstance like this. What they do need is water and good air. That is why when anyone is in a snow cave, on a regular basis they add snow to their water bottle. It gives them something to do besides read the tags on their belongings aside them, and gives the snow time to melt and be a normal temp and not freezing temp when they drink it. Then they are OK.

I thought this was interesting, and don't know if it is already posted here:

http://www.oregonlive.com/news/oregonian/index.ssf?/base/news/1166329517283160.xml&coll=7

Now I see above the 'clue' of a piece of equipment has been posted here. I wonder if it was put there on purpose to flag a heli or if it blew away somehow as they were building the cave and leaving for help. It should have been covered with snow, right, if it has been there all that time. I only will look at this as a sign from them as to where they are.

ETA: NIX RC on my reposting your article! LOL I had read what you wrote and not read your link. But it was a very positive article, what with the 'clue', so maybe it was destiny to have it here twice. Shows our PMA {positive mental attitude} about these guys being found and coming off that high mtn.

 

[dark_shadows]

d_s, in the Google Search Block type in Google Earth, and then click on Web. It should return a website for Google Earth, which is software that needs to be downloaded onto your computer. It should enable you to do a Zoom-in on Mt. Hood. I'll do a test run on it as I already have Google Earth downloaded on my computer.

Hello Buzz,:blowkiss:
Thank-you. I appreciate it. Can you let us know if you find anything?
Respectfully,
dark_shadows

 

[Buzz Mills]

Hello Buzz,:blowkiss:
Thank-you. I appreciate it. Can you let us know if you find anything?
Respectfully,
dark_shadows

There are really neat photographs linked into Google Earth by users, and also links to wikipedia. If you become good at using Google Earth, it is possible to ascend Mt. Hood from any direction, and if you know a trail, it is possible to follow that trail, or any other trail, up the mountain.

 

[dark_shadows]

There are really neat photographs linked into Google Earth by users, and also links to wikipedia. If you become good at using Google Earth, it is possible to ascend Mt. Hood from any direction, and if you know a trail, it is possible to follow that trail, or any other trail, up the mountain.

Thank-you Buzz for your help.
Respectfully,
dark_shadows

 

[Buzz Mills]

Here is the latitude and longitude for Mt. Hood

45°21'55.72"N
121°41'52.10"W