something else, the way rimrocker describes these people is the first impression I got when the story first was being reported. the story about the note in the car about them going to climb the moutain. it sounds like they had a death wish, like it was a spur of the moment decision. I don't know maybe I read to much into that.
From what little I know it looks like they tried to do an "alpine ascent" which is a kind of climbing that Reinhold Meissner (considered the greatest moutainteer ever) popularized. They tried a hard route but mt. hood is not really a tough or high mountain, my dad, a novice, climbed it in his early 50's
I don't think its a matter of how tough the mountain is but how unpredictable the weather is at that time of the year. I was listening to someone on NPR who has climbed all 12 of the highest peaks in the World say he wouldn't climb Mt. Hood in late November or December because the weather is so unpredictable.
