I have skied around the world, log an average of 80 days of skiing annually and have volunteered as a mountain rescue doctor for 27 years with the oldest mountain rescue team in the country, the Hood River Crag Rats. We lend aid to skiers, climbers, hikers and trail runners on what is likely the most climbed glaciated peak in North America, the lethal Mount Hood. I’ve seen my share of triumphs with rescue missions as well as death, with two climbing fatalities this season on Mount Hood already. It’s never easy to process when kindred spirits fall in the mountains.