White River Glacier | Portland State University | Sean McCormick | Pat Haverfield
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The Melting Point
by Jack BoulwareWhether or not you believe in global
warming, the fact remains that a vast majority of the world's
glaciers are shrinking. •
Photographs by Sean McCormick • Type photographed by Pat
Haverfield
At 11,239 feet, Mount
Hood measures as the tallest peak in Oregon. Inside the offices of
the Timberline Mountain Guides (TMG), Joe Owens and Phil Bowker
introduce themselves to our one-day climbing class. Coincidentally,
both guides are originally from Ireland, and between the two of
them, they have experience scaling summits all over the world. ¶
Our group of 10 sits on benches, decked out in fleece and equipped
with crampons and axes. Mountaineering is one of those activities
that require a lot of gear. We all look extremely
professional.
Early tomorrow morning, we will return to this room and then head
up Mount Hood in the dark. There will be one major difference,
though: While the rest of the class will attempt to reach the
summit, my destination will be the White River Glacier.
White River is one of 11 glaciers on Mount Hood, and according to
data compiled by Portland State University (PSU), it has already
lost 61 percent of its volume. Whether you believe in global
warming or insist that climate change is a figment of Al Gore's
fevered imagination, you need only compare aerial photos of just
about any glacier - including White River - taken over the years to
notice a problem: In the most elemental terms, there's less white
than before.
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