Pair summits three peaks in 24 hours

Casey Glick and Justin Thomas at the summit of Middle Sister. The pair topped all three Sisters peaks in one long and grueling day. photo by Casey Glick For most Sisters area residents, gazing up to the Three Sisters mountains from town is simply a daily dose of taking in the beauty of the peaks. For friends Justin Thomas and Casey Glick viewing the North, Middle and South Sister will forevermore remind them of the adventure challenge they concocted to summit all three mountains within a 24-hour period on Wednesday, September 8.

Thomas, 18, and Glick 20, have spent a lot of time together in the outdoors trail running, kayaking and rock climbing and they thought their idea would be a great accomplishment to share.

The two set out from the Pole Creek Trail Head at 2 a.m., traveling with the climbing gear they would need for the North Sister, which is the most difficult and technical of the three mountains. They traveled light, carrying only a little food and water. Another friend, Nick Yopp, was scheduled to meet them later on Middle Sister with more provisions.

"We hit the north ridge of the North Sister three quarters of the way up the mountain when the sun came up," said Glick. "It was dazzling."

The pair crossed the infamous "bowling alley" -- a dangerous section with a lot of loose, large rocks -- without incident and proceeded to the final pitch.

"We almost turned around at this point, but I saw webbing and other signs of climbers who had made it up before, so we agreed to go on," Glick said.

Glick free-climbed the last 70 feet to the peak and then belayed his friend up.

"That definitely got my heart rate going," said Glick. "There's a 1,000-foot consequence if you slip."

It was nearly 10 a.m. when they hit the summit, which was later than they hoped, so they rappelled back down and traversed south toward Prouty Point on the flank of the Middle Sister and ate lunch. Nick Yopp, who was to meet them there with a water purifier, food and a map, was nowhere to be seen.

He had arrived on time and waited for them, but departed thinking the pair had already moved on.

The climbers, knowing they were behind their self-imposed schedule, had to keep moving, so on they went.

"We felt familiar enough with the Middle Sister to be safe, but were concerned about the small amount of food we had along," said Glick.

Rejuvenated after lunch, the two were at the top of Middle Sisters in less than half an hour.

"There is a lot of scree, but it was a relatively safe climb," Glick said.

Heading toward the South Sister took the young men across glaciers and moraines as they moved clockwise around the mountain.

Glacial water provided safe water to drink. By the time they got to the Devils Lake Trail high on the mountain it was 9 p.m. and quite dark.

It was the moment of truth. Out of food, facing gusty winds, and feeling the effects of moving non-stop for 19 straight hours, a decision had to be made.

"We were in the rock shelter and had a heart to heart talk," said Glick. "We assessed ourselves and the situation and decided to push for the summit."

About an hour and 15 minutes later they made the summit where the wind and cold kept them from lingering.

"We literally just touched the top and headed back down," said Glick.

Making their way down the trail in the dark to the Devil's Lake campground was both painstaking and painful.

"We were incredibly tired at this point," said Glick

"It felt worse than a marathon; our knees were shot and as we neared the end of the trip we were like zombies."

Thomas began to lag behind a bit, so Glick tried to keep him talking.

At one point, Glick reminded Thomas that to reach the campground they would have to pass under Cascade Lakes Highway.

"I wanted him to have a landmark to look forward to since we were both so tired," he said.

When they were still three miles away, Thomas insisted he could see headlights up ahead.

"It turned out to be a deer's eyes glowing from Justin's headlamp," Glick said.

Disappointed, but determined they trudged on.

At 1:30 a.m., after 23-1/2 hours without sleep, they found the campsite another friend, Chris Boyle, had set up for them. Boyle met them with food and water. They had done it.

"There is no question this trip was the hardest thing I've ever done in my life," said Glick, "but what memories we'll have."