I'11 be on Rainier in late May as part of an 8 day mountaineering course. Although many of the veterans who frequent this board seemingly lean heavily on the overly cautious side - I for one have have taken this advice to heart and so should you. My intial plans were to go with a guide service for a summit only bid but realizing my skills were sorely lacking the full on course, for me, made better sense. The knowledge I take with me will keep me safe in my mountain adventures for the rest of my life so it's like an investment and I've saved my pennies accordingly. Enjoying the mountains is downright fun, but also carries with it a certain amount of awareness of the risks involved. However IMO ingnorance of these risks through lack of knowledge/experience is pretty much suicide on a big mountain such as Rainier.
