The hike was 6hrs 20min. We were on the summit for 5mins. For the other 375-minutes, the only thought running through my mind was, “What the hell were we thinking…”
Conditions on the summit were close to -20 degrees, and given wind of around 20-30mph, the wind chill was closer to -50. Before the final ascent, we quickly switched layers and grabbed a bite to eat. While my googles were on my forehead, condensation formed, and before I could pull them back down, I had a thick layer of ice on the inside of the lens. The conditions required them, so I had to hike for 30 minutes with them on (maybe one-foot of visibility) to try to melt the ice. Every time the ice started melting, I would whip out a cloth, and before I could rip the goggles off my face and wipe the lens, the condensation instantly refroze. I practiced the art of profanity heavily over the course of the next hour.
