Trip Reports » DreamInVertical

Running Down the New Year in Tuolumne

Jan 062012

Last year, I’d already gone skiing twice before Christmas. This year… the difference is like night and day. Despite a record snow year last season (and an accompanying unusually late opening), Tioga Road is still open. It hasn’t been open this late in the last 30 YEARS!!! While this is bad news for the ski season and probably for the California water supply, it does provide a uniquely special opportunity to visit Tuolumne Meadows during the winter (without having to ski in for miles and miles).

Given some rather radical running goals for 2012 (Tahoe Rim Trail 50k and the Evolution Basin Loop), plus my unfulfilled longing to run more in the Yosemite high country, some trail running was in order. A brief search of the interwebs suggested that trail would be reasonably runnable, so off we headed.

For our first run, after a not-so-good night of sleep at the 9000ft bivy, we planned to go from the Cathedral Lakes Trailhead to the Sunrise Trailhead via the Sunrise High Sierra Camp (~12.7 miles). We locked Luke’s bike to a bear bin at the Sunrise Trailhead for the shuttle back to the car (although he was able to hitch a ride). From the very beginning, we encountered a little bit more snow than we expected, but the trail was well trodden until Cathedral Lakes. After that… there was generally one set of footprints, a few sections of snow-free trail, and enough landmarks to use the map to navigate when we needed to. It was a challenging but extremely rewarding run (try running through snow when you’re plunging through crust every step). I put together a little video about it:

Tuolumne Trail Running from Lizzy Trower on Vimeo.

The next day, despite tiredness from running and not sleeping (again) at the 9000ft bivy, we went out on another run, this time an out-and-back from the Porcupine Creek Trailhead to North Dome (~9 miles round trip). There was barely any snow on this run, and it was actually quite warm on top of North Dome.

Luke takes a break from running on top of North Dome.

Silly faces in the woods on our way back to Porcupine Creek Trailhead.

It was a great way to take advantage of the splitter weather (hey, you get to spend more time in the sun when you’re not in the Ditch!) and the miraculously open Tioga Road. I don’t know how much longer it will last, but do be prepared if you go out there, too. Having a map, extra layers, and plenty of food and water were necessities. Above 8000ft, the trail was more often snow-covered than not, and all the creeks we crossed were frozen solid.

Hope everyone is getting after it in the new year!

Lizzy

The Chouinard-Herbert

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Nov 172011

Technically, it was morning but the night was still holding on. It was late October, the end of an amazing season of climbing in Yosemite. Daylight hours were precious and our head lamps illuminated the trail to Sentinel Rock.

Morning Light on El Capitan

Casey 4th classing up the huge approach ramp.

I was on this trail at this early hour three months before, almost to the day. Back in July, twilight was already filtering through the Valley and we were sweating before we even left the car. This day I wondered if we had packed enough jackets because there would be no sun on the Chouinard-Herbert.

We started 5th class climbing here (just to the left of the big pine in the sandy gully)

Casey and I hiked up the climbers’ trail, with the sun helping show the path. The air was crisp and multi-colored leaves covered the hillside. We made our final preparations at the base, sorted our gear, and tightened our climbing shoes. We scrambled up the ramps, quickly working our way towards the route.

Casey on the last chimney before Chessman Pinnacle

We deviated from the topo, taking a more direct and fun variation, but eventually made our way to Chessman Pinnacle. Occasional marks of chalk showed signs of prior parties on the seemingly abandoned route. The Sentinel was ours, the shade and cold our partners for the day.

Casey took the sharp end off the Pinnacle and smoothly onsighted a less than straightforward pitch. The cracks demanded attention as they varied in size and angle before blanking out at the belay. Casey picked his way over the slab, approaching the first crux. As he worked past a smattering of fixed gear, he was looking good until his foot slipped. The crack was barely a finger’s width across.

Casey leads the first 5.10 pitch off Chessman Pinnacle

Casey right before the first crux section.

As I started climbing my confidence was wavered and I had Casey drop a loop of rope to haul the pack. Unencumbered, I worked my way up the tips crux. Foot high, I tried to locate a good spot in the crack. My body tensed as my foot came off, but I recovered. I got my breathing back under control and reset my foot, quickly smashing my fingers into the crack and snagging a good fingerlock. Moments later I too was on the ledge.

Psyched for a chilly but fun day on the Sentinel

The plan was to swing leads for efficiency, so I racked up for a face climbing challenge. Despite having already climbed five hundred feet, I felt rusty or perhaps just tired. The pitch was leaning and I had to transition mentally to the new style of climbing. Pitons guided me up the face. With plenty of gear left, I linked into the next pitch. I moved nervously careful not to pull the wrong way on the hollow and loose flakes. Finally at the belay, I relaxed on the spacious ledge. The two new ASCA bolts instilled some confidence and mellowed my attitude.

Casey links pitches 9 and 10.

Casey swung through and easily climbed the next two pitches bringing us to the base of the my first 5.11 lead. I started up the offwidth, thrutching slightly and spending far more effort than then 5.8 rating implied. The crack narrowed down below a roof and I fought to keep my pump under control. Swinging my legs up over the lip, I slipped. My arm was still wedged in the crack, so I caught my self and struggled to avoid falling. Casey would show me an easier sequence when he followed, but for now I still had more climbing to do. My mind was fried and at the next hard sequence I gave up. The crack thinned out and I could see neither hand holds nor gear placements. I faltered.

Casey make quick work of the long 5.11 corner (pitch 11)

After cleaning out some dirt, I fought my way up, pumped to the max, and eventually clipped the oddly placed anchors. Casey barely struggled, climbing smoothly with our pack to the belay. I tried to regroup, but it seems that my mental energy was gone. The hundreds of feet of climbing had slowly chipped away my armor.

Mandatory shot of Afro-Cuban Flakes (not very big in person!)

The Afro Cuban Flakes were next and I worked up to the traverse. With the picture of Honnold fresh in my mind, I crimped and crossed up into the underclings. The flakes were loose and rotten so I traversed to a better stance and fired in an anchor’s worth of gear. But from here I was faced with the unknown. With my mental energy sapped and my arms filled with lactic acid, I hung. It is so funny how small mental shifts can be the difference between sending and giving up.

Inobvious holds and body positions lead over the roof and eventually I worked my way to the belay, resting on pins and gear to save my energy. I don’t know what I was keeping it for, since the next few pitches quickly flew by. Casey was able to fire the crux with my running beta and we linked and simuled to the top, where we were treated to warming rays of the setting sun. Sadly there was no time to dawdle or soak in the views.

Casey is totally psyched (to finish climbing in the daylight)!

The descent gulley was loose and long, but rarely technical and not as bad as the hype. We made good time and arrived back at our packs just in time for the darkness to surround us once again. Headlamps illuminated our steps as we trudged back to the car.

It’s been a while since I’ve gotten up in the dark and returned to camp in the dark. We got back to the car just under 12 hours after leaving it. I’ve waited a while to try the Chouinard-Herbert and was glad I squeezed it into this fall. I know I’ll be back!

- Luke

Rough topo of the Chouinard-Herbert

The Road to Astroman

Trip Reports 11 Responses »

Nov 102011

I don’t know exactly where the road began, but I do have a memory of the Astroman topo pinned to my apartment wall in Australia. It was 2005 and I had traveled to Melbourne to become a better trad climber. Sure, I was there to study abroad, but really I wanted to dance up the faces of Mount Arapiles and learn how to place gear at my limit.

Many climbs, years, and goals later I’m living in the Bay Area. Yosemite is now my “home” crag and I spend as many weekends there as possible. Last fall began with a trip up Astro-Hulk, a rainy day on the Rostrum, a send of Astro-Boy and eventually success on the Rostrum. Yosemite requires mastery of wide cracks and despite a newly gained proficiency at hand-stacking I was unsure of my ability to climb the overhung Harding Slot.

Keith leads the second pitch with the Enduro Corner just visible above.

After not climbing together for most of the summer, Keith and I were able to make October plans for Astroman. After getting a late start, we saw two parties on the route, with the lower one taking falls on the Enduro Corner. We figured out the Boulder Problem and then did the Enduro Corner, a masterpiece of thin hand jamming. Unfortunately, we could then see the next team struggling on the Harding Slot.

Keith re-racks after sending the boulder problem.

Eventually I had to start climbing and linked the pitches to the base of the Slot. This was our first time on the 6^th pitch and I was thrilled by the sporty laybacking despite my thrutching on a lower wide hands section. When I arrived near the anchor, the team was still grunting up the slot and the second opted out of climbing and jugged the pitch. All of this had made me quite nervous and I climbed poorly, struggling on the moves up to the base of the Slot. I didn’t quite have the right gear and was unsure of how or what to commit to. I hung, and then desperately aided into the Slot. Once securely wedged I was able to squeeze up, happy to be chimneying. Keith cruised the start but slipped out of the slot and had to hang. It was now 4:15pm and we were uncommitted to a late night on the rock. It was time to bail, we were still only boys.

Over the next day and on the drive home we talked about the Slot. All the other pitches had given us no trouble, but I was unconvinced that I could lead it successfully. Keith was optimistic and had figured out some good beta. We decided to swap pitches and he would get the Slot for the following weekend. As the week passed, I was unsure of our chances, but we discussed this openly and decided it was better that success was uncertain. More of an adventure… (gulp)

: Keith stemming and sending on the Enduro Corner

Saturday morning we left Hardin Flat at 6am to drive into the Valley. It was still dark, but we were both well rested and focused. We had sorted gear already and were hiking up to the route shortly after 7. By 7:30 we could see the route and two people were atop the first pitch and I heard noises that suggested two more people might be near by. We were not, however, prepared for the six people that were ahead of us! Making matters worse, there were some fixed lines of unknown origin on the route.

I started climbing at 8 am and the Astro-JAM began. We chatted, crawled, and waited our way up to the Boulder Problem. I had the lead this time and sent the pitch once the next ledge became less crowded. It felt secure, a welcome change from the weekend prior. A few foreign climbers showed up and started jugging the lines that went all the way up to the Harding Slot. Everywhere there were people leading or hanging or following. A huge cluster slowly oozing their way up the route.

Luke is psyched for ASTRO-MAN!!

As I began the Enduro Corner, two more parties showed up on the route. We had now reached 14 people on the first 6 pitches! At the overnight ledge Keith and I got comfortable. It’s pretty easy to link the next two pitches but none of the parties above us had done this. The sun was out, the day was beautiful so we relaxed and eventually had a nice long conversation with the Canadian party behind us. Two hours passed before the clog had moved through the slot. We had expected the jugging climbers to continue up the route but they luckily decided to bail. It was go time and I quickly dispatched the next two pitches.

With the gear beta dialed Keith set off up to the Slot. He cruised the overhung layback and steadily worked himself up to the point of no return. Past the last good hold, he jammed his way into the slot. “I’m at the jugs” he exclaimed proudly. He was now fully committed and almost assured of success. Not long after he had wiggled his way to the top and it was up to me. I got up to the last hand jam and the small right foot, but I couldn’t move higher. Uncertain what to do, I frantically called for slack and down climbed to the ledge. Going back up, I used a different foot, squeezed my left hand in the thin crack and squirmed up higher. Over the next five minutes I fought, swore, and inched my way into the Slot, totally lacking Keith composure. Once in I had to calm my breathing before I could continue to the belay.

Keith leads the Harding Slot

An hour earlier, sitting on the overnight ledge, we had firmly decided on bailing. We would try the Slot and then go back down. The hour was too late and we were sure to get benighted. Upon finishing the Slot it was the exact same time as the week prior, 4:15pm. Now the circumstances had changed, we had sent the pitch and the decision was instant so we charged up. At the next belay we ran into another party who were doing a the FA of Quantum Man. The party ascent raged on.

Keith follows the Harding Slot (from our 1st attempt)

Keith then onsighted the Changing Corners pitch without much trouble and we had caught back up to the parties from earlier in the day. Jammed up again, we waited, chatting with the Quantum party. It was late, after 6pm when I started the changing corners. I had a few dicey moments, not wanting to fall, before making it to the belay and taking over the lead. A toally crazy and wild pitch! It’s hard to imagine Alex, Dean or Peter soloing this pitch. The moon had risen and it was now dark. I relished in the easier climbing and was forced to bump my big gear and run it out on the 60+ feet of #3 camalots.

Setting up the belay on the final ledge, I had a spectacular view of the wall dropping off below me illuminated by the full moon. The Washington Column is a big wall and I relished the 1000 feet of air on the perfect fall night.

Keith took over the lead for the last pitch and dispatched the scary crux by headlamp. A few balance-y moves were the final test between us and success. My foot slipped while following, 15 feet below the anchor on a mossy rock. My core tightened to maintain body tension and prevented the fall.

From the summit of the Washington Column we had a spectacular view of the entire Valley. North Dome loomed above, magically lit up. We had committed to the darkness and succeeded in climbing Astroman. The success was slightly surreal. Hours before we had given up but now we had met our fall goal! The adventure was more than we bargained for and the many hours of darkness added to the memory.

I think we will both go back to climb the route again, but for now we have peace with our accomplishment. It would be nice to be able to climb at the front of the line, unrestricted by external conditions.

Cheers,

Luke

A Different View of Yosemite

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Nov 072011

I’ve recently acquired a trail running addiction. It is very awesome. Apart from the amazing (and exhausting) feeling of covering a lot of distance with a considerable amount of elevation gain (and loss), there are also the incredible views from new vantage points and the solitude of getting away from the parking lots and pavement that most Yosemite tourists limit themselves to.

While researching our previous run (4 Mile Trail to Panorama Trail to JMT), I came across some backpacker and hiker accounts of the Pohono Trail, a ~13 mile section of trail running along the southern “rim” of Yosemite Valley from the parking lot at Wawona Tunnel to Glacier Point. It is much less traveled than other trails (like the trail to Half Dome or the Yosemite Falls Trail, for example) with arguably way more views. I was able to tempt Julie into joining me and we made it into a longer run by taking the 4 Mile Trail down to Swinging Bridge and finishing at Yosemite Lodge.

I think the photos tell the story well, so I’ll just give you a few more details about the run. It was ~18 miles total, with a lot of up (maybe ~6000ft, my Garmin overestimated again, I think), because the “rim” of Yosemite Valley is not at all flat like I imagine the rim of Zion might be (Garmin data at the bottom of the post if you’re interested). One of the best parts was so many different (and new to me) views of El Cap. I wouldn’t say I’m used to seeing El Cap (it still amazes me how big it is), but it was really fun to see it from a whole different perspective. We could really see how tiny the East Buttress (which Luke was climbing) is compared to, say, The Nose. More photos are in this album.

View from the parking lot at Wawona Tunnel. All the tourists who stop here clearly don't know what they're missing.

El Cap from Stanford Point

Lovely portion of trail through the trees.

El Cap (look how little the East Buttress is!) from Taft Point.

El Cap in Profile, from a point on the trail almost at Sentinel Dome.

The lovely view of Half Dome from Glacier Point, which we enjoyed in our zombie-like state amidst flocks of tourists who had driven up here.

Back down at the Merced with very tired legs.

Fall in Yosemite: Blind Faith and the Rostrum

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Nov 032011

As you can likely tell, posts have been few and far between this fall. Two months of splitter weather have resulted in oodles of time outside in Yosemite. Lizzy has been running up a storm and I have been keeping busy climbing.

The big plan for this fall was Astroman and come September I was unsure that I was on track. After a series of emails, I had a blind date set up for the Rostrum. I wanted to check up on my fitness and was excited to get back on this amazing route. The Rostrum is one of the best multipitch crack routes that I’ve done. Each pitch presents a different challenge and move after move of awesome jamming.

Will leads the crux pitch of the Rostrum

It was the first time on the route for my partner Will and I convinced him to take the harder pitches. This allowed me to lead some of the pitches I had followed previously. Both of us were psyched to the max and you can read Will’s version of our adventure here. Our day went well and I was able to push through the pump while leading and managed to do the crux with our pack! It was a great time spent savoring steep granite. We finished in the early afternoon and spent the rest of the day relaxing in the Valley.

Will follows the post crux pitch. (The Uprising in the background)

Sometimes I get fixated on something and that weekend it was the Rostrum. I spent Sunday afternoon working on the Alien roof and started making plans to come back immediately for Blind Faith. The Alien is super steep and it was quiet exciting to lower over the lip for a few top-rope burns. Sunday of the next weekend rolled around and James and I were headed back to the Rostrum again. All week I had been reading and psyching myself up for the route.

Luke and Will psyched on a great day on the Rostrum!

The first pitch was the crux and delivered a hearty dose of difficulty. The rattly fingers and finger stacks were insecure and I struggled to place gear. I ended up hanging a few times before getting into the thin hands which lead to the top. Despite my fondness for the 2″ crack size, I couldn’t manage my pump and hung again at the crack switch. Eventually the crack widened to awesome hands and I flew up to the anchor!

James savors the first pitch of Blind Faith

The next two pitches are wide and cause many people to rappel after the first pitch. James did an excellent job on the first, learning to handstack on the fly, then I got the crux third pitch. This offwidth is amazingly splitter and slowly shrinks from 7″ to nothing. I road our #6 camalot for a while before getting into awesome hand stacks and knee locks (#5 camalot). The angle was fairly steep so it was essential to stay relaxed and rest when possible. The final moves deposit you at the anchor for the sixth pitch of the North Face route.

James sinks bomber hands at the end of the crux of Blind Faith.

Instead of the final Blind Faith pitch I was excited to check out Croft’s Excellent Adventure. The Reid guide shows this as solid 5.13, but I had heard that the bottom part was only 5.12-. With this in mind, I set off up the regular route’s 7th pitch and stepped left to the finger crack. I struggled my way up some 5.11 moves before running out steam. I tried to keep climbing but the crack turned to tips and I became an aid climber. It seems it could be doable at 12b/c but would require far more energy than I had.

James leads the first offwidth on Blind Faith

Our day still had excitement in store, since nature decided to turn on the sprinklers. During my long “aid” lead, rain clouds had moved over the Rostrum and the final pitch was slightly wet. Luckily I had a #6 camalot to provide some security for the final section of wide climbing.

These two great weekends of adventures on the Rostrum kicked off my fall Yosemite season and put me on the road to Astroman! The Excellent Adventure will need some more recon before I give it another lead attempt. Also I need to refine my finger stacking ability to redpoint the crux of Blind Faith.

Enjoy!

- Luke

Photos from a Summer in Tuolumne

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Oct 132011

The first snow has fallen and summer is officially over. The store and campground in Tuolumne closed weeks ago. The granite domes are now empty, no longer occupied by the summer flock of climbers.

The Meadows are a wonderful semi-alpine escape from the heat of Yosemite Valley. High elevation grants reasonable temps from June until October. The landscape, wide and varied, strikes a beautiful contrast to the vast walls of Yosemite proper. It was another fun summer in the Meadows, but most of my focused energy was on the Hulk, so I did more exploration and socializing than serious rock climbing. I was fortunate to climb OZ and the Gram Traverse, check out the exciting Inverted Staircase, and do a lap on Tenaya Peak, Stately Pleasure Dome, and many others. I got to explore my slab climbing weakness and hike up to the extraordinary Blues Riff. With a few more areas explored, I’m even more curious to get off the beaten track in Tuolumne.

Here are some photos from my various weekends in TM:

Drug Dome!

Casey works through the face climbing crux on OZ.

Keith onsighting the corner on OZ

Jonathan cruises the beautiful corner on OZ

Keith post crux on the P1 of the Gram Traverse

Keith leads the second pitch of the Gram Traverse

Casey leading the crux pitch of the Gram Traverse

Luke after climbing Phobos

Crazy crowds on Tenaya Peak

A friendly marmot on Tenaya Peak

Luke and Mark on Tenaya Peak

Chris and Lizzy on Tenaya Peak

Chris mantels the summit block of Tenaya Peak. (cruxy!!)

Summit success

James follows the first pitch of Hoodwink

James at the end of the 3rd pitch of The Sting

Tuolumne –> Yosemite

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Oct 052011

I still haven’t been doing much climbing, but I have been running a lot, especially on trails. With my quals coming up this quarter, I have a ton of work to do (I spent three weekends in a row working at home), and running is a much more compatible way of playing outside right now. Plus you can still have some pretty sweet adventures with running.

I knew SK had done the Tuolumne to Yosemite run before a couple summers ago and I had recently been thinking about doing it myself. During our trail runs in the Eastern Sierra over Labor Day, the subject came up and we realized we were both jonesing to do the run, which meant we could do it together!

Trail sign at the first junction ~2.5 miles in. The mileages on these signs aren't always so accurate...

We woke up early on Saturday morning, dropped off some dry clothes, our extra food, and Keith with Luke at the Crane Flat gas station (they were heading down to climb Astroman) and drove east on the 120 towards the Meadows. The weather report had been somewhat concerning (~20% chance of precipitation and temperatures in the upper 30s in Tuolumne at 8am), but we were greeted with beautiful blue skies and it was already 50 F when we reached the Sunrise Trailhead near the western end of Tenaya Lake. This helped us with our resolve to wear shorts instead of tights, which turned out to be a Good Decision. Getting dressed, putting on sunscreen and bodyglide, and packing our running packs with sufficient food and layers (we each had at least twice as much food as we needed, which seems to be a pattern with us on our adventures) took a while, but we were off and running by ~8:45am.

The trail is relatively flat for about a mile before starting the first climb, which was definitely power-hiking terrain. But I guess we were still moving fairly quickly because we passed a couple parties of hikers on our way up. There was then a downhill section and some more enjoyable flat single track before the trail split for the final ascent up Cloud’s Rest. You can either go up Cloud’s Rest, or pass to the east of it – we’d figured we could always go around if the weather was sketchy, but it was still perfect weather, so up we headed.

Looking back towards Tenaya Lake (where we started) from the final climb up Cloud's Rest.

The view from the top of Cloud’s Rest was amazing. You could see so many of the major landmarks in the Meadows and the Valley, and it was just wild looking down on Half Dome, Mt. Watkins, and Washington Column, as well as across to Tenaya Peak, Cathedral Peak, and the Matthes Crest. It was a good spot to stop a little longer to eat some solid food before we began our long descent to the Valley floor (which we could actually see from the summit!).

Half Dome and the Valley from Cloud's Rest

Summit shot, with Tenaya Lake in the background

Then we were off and headed downhill. You have a lot of elevation to lose from the top of Cloud’s Rest (~10,000ft) to Happy Isles (~4000ft), but a lot of distance to lose it over (~10 miles) and the first half of this (before reaching the JMT) were soft, well-graded trail: very nice for running on.

Joining up with the JMT with its steady stream of Half Dome dayhikers was a culture shock after >10miles of relative solitude on the trail (including having the summit of Cloud’s Rest to ourselves), but most people were pretty nice about letting us pass by. The reactions of hikers ran the gamut from dudes who started running when they saw us running to a couple of folks who gave us high fives. The last couple miles down from the top of Nevada Fall were not the most pleasant conditions – uneven, quasi-paved trail with increasing crowds, but at least gravity was still helping us and we were feeling surprisingly good.

We made it to the JMT!

Looking back up at Half Dome from the final JMT descent down the Valley.

We stopped running at the Happy Isles Trailhead, after about 17 miles (according to the map, or 16.5 according to my Garmin), with 5.5 hours elapsed time and a little over 4 hours of moving time. Garmin says we gained ~3000ft and lost ~7000ft. We each had 2L of water in our CamelBaks, which was just perfect. I ended up eating 2 packs of shot bloks, a couple pretzel sticks, half a small bagel, some dried mango, and a mojo bar. We took electrolyte pills every hour, which seemed to work well – I had no cramping.

We made our way to the Ahwahnee parking lot to retrieve the other car (we had to get the first car from Tuolumne) and commence the car shuttle. Maybe not the most fun activity for an afternoon, but the run was totally worth it. If you’re not up for the whole 17 miles, the dayhike to Cloud’s Rest would probably be pretty sweet, too (~13 miles roundtrip).

Bishop Pass Trail Run

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Sep 152011

It’s been a long time since I’ve posted anything, but I haven’t been doing much climbing this summer. Between major life events and traveling to South Africa for my field season, I’ve been super busy. I don’t really mind the time off, though. It gives me the space to appreciate other activities, like running!

We headed out to Pine Creek Canyon with a bunch of friends for Labor Day. SK is out of commission for climbing right now and had come out planning on going on some running adventures while everyone else was climbing. I got a couple of pitches in, but running in the Sierra sounded much more fun.

Scenery along the Bishop Pass Trail.

During our “warm-up” run on Saturday, which involved ~1800ft of elevation gained (and lost) over 5 miles, we decided to do something less steep for our long run. While I headed out to climb a few pitches in the afternoon, SK went into town and get beta from the local running store. After considering our options, we decided on the Bishop Pass Trail, which would lead us a little over 5 miles from the South Lake Trailhead, past many alpine lakes, to Bishop Pass, where we’d get a great view of the Palisades.

We didn’t exactly get an alpine start, so we ended up starting the run around noon. With the trailhead at 10,000ft the temperatures are great even in the middle of the day, especially since trail initially winds through a forest. We even got an extra “bonus” mile (and ~600ft of elevation gain) since South Lake was so popular that we had to park a mile down the road.

We made it!

The trail almost immediately started heading uphill and I could definitely feel the elevation. We paced ourselves, walking up the steepest sections (especially the stairs, which are not so fun to run up). A couple miles in, I tripped on a root and fell pretty much flat on my face, hitting my knee and elbow pretty hard. Part of me wonders if the elevation factored into my slow response, since I usually catch myself when I trip. I was sore, but I was pretty sure I would just be bruised, so we continued onwards and upwards.

As expected, the scenery was amazing. It being Labor Day weekend, there were plenty of dayhikers and backpackers out on the trail, but they were all really nice, cheering us on as they stepped out of the way. We took breaks every 30 minutes to consume some calories and soak in the views.

The Palisades from Bishop Pass.

Working our way up past the lakes, our eyes were drawn to the steep landscape ahead of us. Where was Bishop Pass and how on earth was this trail going to go up through the steep talus? But impressively, the trail was very well constructed with a nice grade and many (many) switchbacks. The elevation and the sore knee were definitely slowing me down, so I power-hiked up the whole final grade, but I was psyched to be getting close. And then, finally, there we were at practically 12,000ft, the second highest I’ve ever gotten under my own power (the highest was the summit of Clyde Minaret, last Labor Day with SK).

The way back down was really fun – very runnable (but not super fast, since the ground is anything but smooth and flat) and we were just psyched to be out there. We made it back to the car after about 3.5 hours of running (and hiking), not including our rest breaks, after a total of 13 miles and 2700 ft of elevation gain. We took off our shoes, rinsed our feet in the super cold creek by the car (which was great) and headed back down to Bishop to shower.

Looking back down at the way we came.

We were all the way up there!

Definitely a day well spent and I’d totally recommend the trail as a “rest day” run or dayhike if you’re around Bishop in the summer. You’ll be happy to be moving light and fast up there with just a camelbak and some shot bloks as you pass all the backpackers.

Man, my two upcoming half marathons are going to be easy in comparison – less elevation gain and they’re practically at sea level! But they won’t be as alpine and that is certainly a loss.

Anyone else have recommended trail runs near climbing areas in California? We’re thinking about doing the Tuolumne to Yosemite run…

Post-run feet

Lost in the Sun, a new route on the Incredible Hulk

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Aug 272011

600 feet 19 bolts, 10 days, 6 brushes, 4 partners and 1 route later, here is the long-winded tale of my experience new routing on the Incredible Hulk.

Photo Topo

Stemming out under the small roof, I know that I haven’t done it this way before. I hesitate and wonder if I’m going to blow it. (Stop thinking Luke, just climb). I’m inching my way towards the bolt. Opposition is crucial when all the holds are facing the wrong way. Clip, layback, I’m at the next stance. Almost there, I punch it a little more and prepare to grovel to the belay. Granite peels off the wall, my feet push hard to allow progress up the groove. I’m there, a sinker lock. Grab a good edge, stem out. I clip the anchor. The final pitch is my reward. I’m dancing up the face. It’s less than vertical and good holds are abundant. We are done for the day, maybe for this season. I had no idea it would happen so fast.

James leads us up the Red Dihedral on a scouting trip

Bolting is FUN!

It all started a year ago: August 2010. John and I had just climbed Beeline. It was an easy day, a fun time in the mountains that left me wanting more. Hiking down the gully, I searched the Hulk for something between Red Dihedral and Beeline. Hundreds of feet of rock but only one or two forgotten routes. I saw a crisp looking corner, took a photo, made a mental note and started planning the next trip.

Starting up the first pitch

Over Labor Day 2010, I convinced my roommate Keith that it would be a good idea for him to belay me while I chucked rocks at him from above (AKA route development). He seemed willing and he happily doled out slack, as I slowly climbed the first pitch of what became Lost in the Sun. The afternoon turned into evening as I cleared rock and slowly hand drilled a single belay bolt. Eventually Keith awoke from his belay slaving and was able to climb the pitch clean on follow. The first twenty feet off the belay was “blank” and I was convinced the next pitch would need protection bolts if it was possible at all. We called it quits and the 2010 season was over.

Luke is psyched after getting through the crux on pitch one!

When this summer rolled around I was thinking of the Hulk and wondering if the route could go. I recruited my friend James and come July we were hiking up a very snowy Little Slide Canyon.

Snowy Little Slide Canyon

While ground up adventures are proud, I didn’t want to start climbing and bolting a line that was impossible, drilling unnecessarily up the face. After climbing to the top of the Red Dihedral, I traversed right from the belay and set up a few directionals so James could lower me to the potential route. Instantly I saw possibilities, trundled some loose rock, and climbed around on what became pitches 4 and 5.

The next day we aborted our plans to Escape from Poland (thanks James!) and started a bolting and cleaning mission. This was a huge success, with James and I climbing most of the unknown sections on pitches 2 and 3. The features all connected and the route was becoming a reality.

With the Hulk imprinted in my mind, I had to go work on the route. I often struggle to find a partner when Lizzy is out of town and this trip proved no different. I decided to go solo. I aid soloed up through ground that James and I had tried on the previous trip. The moves were doable and I free climbed when possible. I had brought a drill and hammer in case I would need to place any bolts on lead, but when I took out the hammer and the drill, I was shocked. I had brought the drill holder but had forgotten to put in the DRILL BIT! I kept climbing, hoping that the next section would hold gear. It took a few marginal pieces before I could get in a bomber cam. This pitch made me understand the excitement and adventure of going ground up!

Jonathan pulls the pitch one crux

The next two days were spent aid soloing, lead bolting, cleaning and mini-traxioning the first four pitches. The route had come into to place with at least one bolt at all belays and more protection bolts on the crux pitch. I spent a lot of time thinking about where the bolts should go and tried to put them in reasonable places both for clipping and to protect falls.

Luke works through the crux of pitch two

The final trip I was only pseudo partner-less since I was tagging along with two friends, Casey and Jonathan. The were going to spend Saturday doing Positive Vibrations and agreed to help with my route on the other two days.

I was nervous when I started leading the first pitch of Lost in the Sun. I had done all the moves before, but I was not totally sure of where the gear would go. At the stance before the final crux, I put in a few suspect small cams. Trusting my feet, I moved left towards the belay, leaving the security of the corner. In a second it was over and the first pitch had been freed! The second pitch feels slightly harder with cool face climbing right off the belay and a slab traverse that brings you to a thin crux. Figuring out the beta was tricky and I was psyched to execute on lead. With no expectation for the third pitch, I set off. Grunting, crimping and smearing, I made my way through the seam crux and to the rest below the tips corner. Excuses filled my mind, and I aided through the crux to the third pitch belay. I was exhausted and happy to have made it as far as I did.

The next day, with the boys gone to climb Positive Vibrations, I was on my own. I mini-traxioned the first two pitches again without falling. Wasting no time, I jugged the crux section and started aid-soloing the fourth pitch.

Pitch 4 overview

I figured out a workable sequence on the 4th pitch and climbed up to the top of the fifth pitch. With the bolting finished, I continued up into the true unknown. A short splitter led to blocky terrain and I trundled a few big rocks before realizing that the climbing was easy enough to save for another day. I had seen a passage to the Red Dihedral splitter (P7 or so on that route) and didn’t think another bolted belay was necessary or prudent. The “construction” and composition was complete. The pitches had starts and finishes and I could see all the moves.

The night left me anxious and nervous for the following day. With Jonathan gassed from PV, Casey and I decided to go back to our highpoint so I could lead the fourth and fifth pitches.

After a mellow start I worked up to the crux, clipped the bolt and made the bouldery moves up higher. The send was not yet in the bag and I had to technique my way up tricky stemming section, described at the start of this post.

With the third pitch still a project, I plan on going back next year for a complete and continuous ascent. More specific beta and information can be found on Mountain Project. This has been an incredible process and a dream come true for me. Lost in the Sun tends to have more face-climbing and laybacking than straight in jamming. Many of the cruxes are tricky to figure out, which was very rewarding on redpoint. I hope many people are able to enjoy this route!

Cheers,

Luke

Savoring and Surviving the Steck-Salathe

Trip Reports 7 Responses »

Jul 192011

Murali Achanta Photo

There are many routes that have a reputation. When you drive through Yosemite, the various formations call for attention. I’ve often stared at the tall dark face of the sentinel. Blank and imposing I first heard tales of a route that climbs up the bowels of this behemoth. In Camp4, one of Steve Roper’s many books about Yosemite, he describes the multi-day first ascent done by Allen Steck and John Salathe in 1950. Endless wide climbing, multiple days on the wall, and dehydration.

Steep uphill approach = happy face?

To me Yosemite is synonymous with crack climbing and the proliferation of offwidths and chimneys define the area. The Steck-Salath is a route defined by this style. With over fifteen hundred feet of climbing, most parties do this route in a long day. I however had heard tales of climbers forced to sleep on the route, bivy on the summit, or get benighted while lost in the never ending descent gully.

With all of these thoughts in my mind, I was nervous about the route. Chimneys and off-widths can take a long time to climb and are always harder than the grade suggests.

Jonathan following the first pitch.

Parking our car at 4 Mile trail head at 5:30 am sunrise was right around the corner. The first 30 minutes of the trail were easy to follow and paved, something one could easily do in the dark. The summer heat greeted us with swarms of mosquitoes and the steep hike covered us in sweat. (Did I mention it was hot!)

The approach was simple enough to follow, with numerous cairns leading to a few hundred feet of easy 3rd and 4th class climbing. At the base I got the first lead which would set things up for the rest of the day as we swung leads. Climbing up the first pitch it was already 7am. Hopefully we had started early enough. The first three pitches flew by with linking and we were below the first crux in no time.

Great view of El Capitan! (and the cathedral rocks)

With some trepidation I set off up the Wilson Overhang. I went right side and tried to wedge my self in the inside of the crack. This gave me the security of gear but greatly increasing the difficulty of the climbing. Sweating profusely I pulled through, happy to be wearing knee pads as suggested by my friends.

Jonathan takes the sharp end on a lovely wide crack after the Wilson Overhang.

A blur of rope drag, tricky route finding and a touch of simul-climbing saw me tunneling through to the back of the flying buttress. Our topo stated “lunch ledge” or something similar and so we stopped. Jonathan announced it was only 11:30 am and I was psyched. The next two block pitch was mine. At the end of the steep 5.9 pitch I was wishing for a #4 camalot as my number three umbrellaed in the crack…

Jonathan cruises the slab pitch.

A fun slab was next, a strange change of pace on a route full of cracks and chimneys. Luckily two of the three bolts had been replaced with shiny hardware We had opted for a pack and were happy to be losing weight as we worked through our 5 liters of water.

As Jonathan squirmed his way up the flare bellow the narrows I soaked in the views. Being high up in Yosemite is spectacular. Having never climbed on the Sentinel I was stoked on the new perspectives on the valley. Slowly wedging my way up the crack I fought hard to stay in. This was my biggest struggle of the day and every inch was a battle. Finally in the chimney, past the first bolt, I sped up towards the Narrows.

Pretty steep wall with the narrows chimney on the left.

Looking up from inside our dark belay I saw my fate. The squeeze was much wider than my torso but narrower than my legs. Looking out yielded a thousand feet of exposure all the way down to the valley floor. Up I went, gear on long slings hitched to my harness. It’s hard to describe the sequence required. I kicked, thrashed and inched up only to ooze back down. I was stable below the narrows but couldn’t quite get my wedged inside.

JP on the crux flare before the narrows.

Eventually I got my left knee stuck and used a combination of chicken wings and head jams to work my legs up inside. Once my full body was in the fissure I easily squirmed and pulled my way up. I reveled in the extremely exposed position when the chimney widened towards the outside.

Sweet view of upper AND lower Yosemite Falls

With the Narrows behind us we sped up on the final pitches, summiting just before 5:30 pm. With tired bodies but the climbing complete, we faced the finally challenge of getting down. The descent was not as steep (really only a few sections of 3rd and 4th class) but it went on forever. Two hours of mind numbing talus walking returned us to the car drenched yet again in sweat.

Our timing had worked out extremely well and we had climbed in the shade all day until the last pitch. With plenty of sunlight at 7:30 we oped for a river washing before cold beer and pizza for dinner.

Celebration was in order. We had a great day climbing and avoided getting benighted (my biggest fear). I see more climbing on the sentinel in my future.

Summit Glory! (I'm a little bit excited...)

Beta/ Gear suggestions:

With the knowledge of the route I’d be happy to do it again but would hope for a slightly cooler day so we could bring less water (which was quite heavy early on). It was windy and we both brought and occasionally wore long sleeve shirts on the route. I think efficiency is very important since most of the pitches felt much easier than the three cruxes. I found the flare below the narrows to be the hardest, followed by the Wilson overhang and finally the few moves required to get established in the narrows. I skipped the squeeze above Wilson by climbing halfway up the pitch, placing a piece, and then traversing to the flake out right. This more or less put me on TR for the tricky move required to get established on the flake.

We did P1 per the supertopo, JP Linked P2 and P3 with a 70m rope. I linked P4 & P5 all the way up to a piton at a stance. JP linked P6 & P7 which required a little bit of simul-climbing. P8 was used to move the belay through the tunnel and could be linked with P6&7 if simuling. I pitched out P9 and P10, but think they should be linkable with a 70m. You may need to simul ~10-20 feet. JP climbed P11 and I climbed P12 (the narrows). These could be linked without much drag (since there’s not that much gear) and would make a killer crux pitch. JP lead P13 and I linked P14 &15 and belayed just above the tree… JP lead us to the summit, which was a short pitch with enough 5th class moves that it was nice to use a rope. This is ~ 12 pitches but two were short pitches used to move the belay and reach the summit.

Gear:
1x Green, Red C3. 2x Yellow Alien, 1 Grey Alien, 2x .5 Camalot -> #2 camalot Single #3 camalot, #4 camalot and #5 camalot. If you want more wide gear I suggest a 2nd #4 over a #3.

70 meter Rope

I would suggest a single #3 and #4 C4 and an old style #4 (purple)

On the narrows I placed a bomber .5 camalot, clipped a pin, Placed a .75camalot and finally a green alien before the two bolt belay. A #4 C4 perfect protects the opening moves and can be shoved very high so you are basically on TR to get into the slot. I hear other people place a second #4 on this pitch, but I didn’t.

A Man-Party on Mt Wilson

Trip Reports 1 Response »

Jul 012011

The feeling of being high in the air, wind blowing across my face, pitches continue until the skyline. I love multi-pitch climbing. I’m not immune to exposure, the feeling I get looking down can sour my stomach. Being able to climb all day, pitch after pitch, makes it worthwhile. The efficiency, the places it will take you, and the variety you can encounter sell this style of climbing.

It’s almost summer and I hope that the alpine season will be fruitful. Weather and free weekends did not seem to align with objectives this spring. In an attempt to become faster aid/speed climbers Lizzy and I were met with dehydration one weekend on the West Face of the Leaning Tower and then freezing rain, hail and a storm on Lurking Fear the following weekend.

Lizzy tries to escape the heat on the Leaning Tower

The last big route that I almost climbed (a theme for this spring) was Dogma in Red Rocks. I wanted to share some photos of this fun route. The climbing starts off more adventurous and wandering but once you reach the upper head-wall you are rewarded!

Since this trip was my bachelor party we had five guys and waaaay too much gear/beer. I forgot how heinous the approaches can be in Red Rocks and it took us over 4 hours with all of our ropes, bivy gear and beverages of encouragement. (The approach to El Capitan is a stroll in the park by comparison)

Jamie and Hartley at our canyon bivy

For a five person team I was shocked how fast we were able to climb. We had over 1000 feet of rope which allowed us to work in two teams with the first leading and fixing pitches while the other team mini-traxioned (self belayed) and belayed (sometimes two people at the same time).

Gordon is pscyhed for his first big wall epic!

On the first day we climbed the first 4 pitches which was more than 800 feet of climbing with various traverses. Having arrived later than expect we aborted our plan of hauling gear to the Sherwood Forest (where we had hoped to bivy) and descended to the base leaving our ropes in place.

Hartley shows off his speed jugging skills.

The next day we re-climbed the fixed pitches in a variety of styles, focusing on speed. With five people this had become an expedition and the summit was foremost. Upward progress was the main object and our team did a great job splitting up and getting the rope “up there”.

A weekend with the boys = so much fun!

As the organizer I was delighted to always have the rope above me. All day, both days, I just could just climb. Thanks guys!

Keith has enjoys the steep crimps.

The crux pitch off the Sherwood forest was a drastic change from the slabs below. Steep, crimpy, and sustained, this was the climbing I was here for! Keith styled the lead, shaking out casually, making us think there were jugs everywhere.

Keith on the crux headwall pitch.

Our progress up our fixed ropes was fast but our train slowed down as we started inching up the head-wall. The route finding was complex and the climbing was more involved. Hanging belays added excitement and eventually we knew that going down was the right decision. Over a thousand feet of rappelling later we were back at camp.

Jamie thinks rock climbing is FUN!

A side mission of going up Dogma was one of service. I’d been in contact with John Wilder and Scott Massey out of Las Vegas and John was able to hook me up with a bunch of replacement hardware from the ASCA. As we worked our way up the route we replaced tattered slings and rusty gear with large and bomber quicklinks. We added chains and made the route much nicer to rappel from the 9th pitch on down. Two of the rappel stations around trees could still be replaced but we ran out of rope (50 feet would do).

Count the climbers. There are four in this photo!

Overall it was a great time with good friends and a fun adventurous route. With many low angle approach pitches it may not be as sustained as the Rainbow Wall or Levitation 29. However the quality of the more challenging pitches, especially the ones on upper headwall, was excellent.

- Luke

Older Entries

Running Down the New Year in Tuolumne

The Chouinard-Herbert

The Road to Astroman

A Different View of Yosemite

Fall in Yosemite: Blind Faith and the Rostrum

Photos from a Summer in Tuolumne

Tuolumne –> Yosemite

Bishop Pass Trail Run

Lost in the Sun, a new route on the Incredible Hulk

Savoring and Surviving the Steck-Salathe

A Man-Party on Mt Wilson

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