This is a general list of gear needed for mountaineering in the cascades. You won’t use every piece below for every climb but having all the pieces allows you to pick and choose the best gear for the climb you are attempting. I’ve used the gear below to summit Mt Hood, Mt Adams, Mt St Helens, Mt Baker and a ton of other smaller peaks around Seattle.
Upper Body Clothing
- Base layer t-shirt
- Long sleeve base layer
- Insulating layer
- Softshell jacket
- Parka with hood
- Shell jacket
Lower Body Clothing
- Wicking underwear
- Hiking shorts
- Softshell climbing pants
- Shell pants
Feet, Hands and Head
- Liner Socks
- Climbing socks
- Gaiters
- Lightweight hat
- Heavy hat
- Baseball hat
- Buff
- Light gloves
- Mid-weight gloves
- Heavy-weight gloves
Sleeping & Shelter
- 20 and 0 degree sleeping bags
- Sleeping bag liner
- Sleeping pad
- Tent or Bivy
- Emergency reflective blanket
- Sleeping socks
Hardware Equipment
- 60m dry rope (9mm-10.5mm)
- Climbing harness
- Helmet
- Mountaineering boots
- Crampons
- Ice axe with leash
- 60L+ backpack
- 2 locking carabiners
- 5 non-locking carabiners
- Trekking poles
Avalanche / Crevasse Rescue Gear
- ATC Belay Device
- Pulley
- Prusiks
- Runners
- Avalanche transceiver
- Shovel
- Probes
- 2 pickets
- 1 snow fluke
- Signaling mirror
Food and Drink
- Water bottles
- Water filtration
- Mug (I use this to eat from instead of carrying a separate bowl)
- Spork
- Fuel
- Stove
- Cooking Pot
- Food for every meal + 1 extra day’s food
- Stacks
- Basecamp whiskey
Miscellaneous
- Glacier glasses and goggles
- Compass/GPS
- Altimeter watch
- Cell phone
- Camera
- Quick-drying towel
- Toilet paper
- Trowel
- Sunscreen
- Lip Balm
- Headlamp with extra batteries
- First Aid Kit
- Matches or lighter
- Hand warmers
- Map
- Route description
- Camp shoes
- Compression/stuff sacks
- Knife