First El Cap climb. The little details.

Here is another thing people should do.

The climbing from the ground to the bottom of the Legs is pretty much unlike anything else on the Nose. It's all ugly pin scars and traverses a lot and you don't really get a feel for the immensity of being on El Cap. It feels like a lot of four pitch free climbs you've done. Once you get out to the Legs though and there is that one crack that runs up into the sky, you feel committed and it feels like a much bigger deal.

First of all, grab a topo and go out into the meadow and sit down with your partners and go over every single freakin' detail on the topo in full on, real life, detail. Talk about the EXACT sequence that you'll do something. Every single little detail in the order you will do it. NOTHING should be new for you when you get up there, you should have it all figured out and wired. Right there, at the top of Sickle and the next few pitches, for some reason, is a wind band. All of a sudden you are going to feel like you are climbing in a hurricane! Your ropes will be blowing all over the place (use rope bags) and you WILL NOT be able to communicate with your partner. It'll be freaky and if you are the average party, you will bail.

BUT, if you know what your partner is going to do, and you know what you are going to do, you can ignore the wind and get the job done and increase your odds for success.

I second everything Dave Cummings wrote above also.

I agree with many of these comments..El Cap is WAY bigger deal than Half Dome for instance. I remember doing the Nose to El Cap Tower and then getting freaked out..great learning experience though !! next time was much better.
French Free is a great way to go, but can get mighty strenno..quickly..You will use full aiders..pocket aiders will kill the feet pretty quickly if your are in them a lot.

C'mon son! I had to say it but I'm just messing around, not judging. If it makes you feel better I changed my name just to post the exact same comment last year when my partner asked a question about the climb were planning. Nobody is safe.

Tell you what, a group of 3 is better anyway so I'll join you guys and we'll do this shit right.

Otherwise, bring way more than you think you'll need and you'll have no reason to bail. Extra food and water, clothes, ganj, ledge, rope, key gear like hauling stuff that could shut you down if it's dropped or damaged. Going light sounds good, having everything you need to survive any situation is self reliance.

If you want to meet for a beer I'll tell you everything you need to know.

Fat Dad said this:

Finally, protect your fixed ropes leading up to Sickle.

What are you referring to, Fat Dad? And how do you do this? If you fix to Sickle, head back to camp for the night, there is no reasonable way to "protect" your fixed ropes. What am I missing?

Wally

the hauling was harder than we thought it was going to be. Pack light to help with that as much as possible. Getting the jumaring, lowering and pendulums dialed is also a really good plan. Those can end up being time sinks and really eat up your efforts.

Brian Payst wrote:the hauling was harder than we thought it was going to be. Pack light to help with that as much as possible.

He is right. No matter how you pack, you'll probably be pretty heavy regardless on your first wall. For this reason don't skimp on your hauling setup. Mark Hudon mentioned his webpage up thread, and if i'm not mistaking he has instructions on his 3:1 hauling setup on that webpage. It's simple and very efficient. It may be a bit heavier to carry but making the hauling as easy as possible will increase your chances of success. We bailed on my first wall because we got burnt out hauling a heavy load using an inefficient set up comparably speaking.

Great insights here.

I'm making a new how-to guidebook, and think you got pretty much everything covered here.

Maybe have your communication system dialed for when it is windy, as it often is in the afternoons up there. Simple ideas are pull up fifteen feet of the lead line and fix it, pause, then give three quick jerks on the lead line; after that I yell and wave my arm from side to side(Just holding up a fist(not waving) is the 'hold on' or 'watch me' signal). After those cues I don't wait to try and hear my partner, if it's howling, I just set up the haul and pull the haul line tight through the hauler. Because we are using the munter-mule, my partner knows that if the lead line is not moving/there has been a wave, and then all the haul line goes out and I start to haul the bag, that they can release the mule and lower the bag out with the munter.

The ledges on the Nose slope a little, so it can be nice to have an inflatable sleeping pad with a little seam grip or something sticky on one side.

Make sure everyone has a small point and shoot camera. Lots of wow moments up there.

re: don't wear nice clothes. What else would you save them for? The Nose is the best multi-pitch climb in the world!

I've climbed the Nose 16 or 17 times. Ask any questions you have.
Erik
erik@yosemitebigwall.com

Use a micro traxion instead of a mini traxion/others for hauling and get very comfortable with space hauling. I got physically crushed early on the Nose body hauling until I figured this out.

Wally wrote:Fat Dad said this: Finally, protect your fixed ropes leading up to Sickle. What are you referring to, Fat Dad? And how do you do this? If you fix to Sickle, head back to camp for the night, there is no reasonable way to "protect" your fixed ropes. What am I missing? Wally

What I mean is showing up the morning you intend to blast and find a two, three, or four guys jugging up your fixed lines. Since you can't (legally) crash at the base, protecting them is tough. If I knew how do it, I'd probably have done the Nose by now. We had the same problem when we launched on Shield--FOUR guys jugging our lines on Freeblast, one of which graciously sawed the rope over an edge as he jugged. We even had some Euros who tried to jug our spare lead line, which was still hanging to the ground from the top of the second pitch. Don't know what it is about me and fixed ropes. Maybe a have a 'kick me' sign on my back that I don't know of either.

Sounds like your (the OP) first experience on the Nose will be similar to mine. If so, here's my advice:

1) If 5.10 cracks is your limit near the ground, and this is your first wall...you'll be drained and you will not be free climbing a lot on the last half. Most of the pitches after the Roorf are at least 5.10+ and sustained. So you'll likely want more than pocket aiders cause you'll be aiding a lot.(I brought a ladder aider and was happy with it).

2) Bring the portaledge if you have it. We would have been screwed if we didn't have one because folks claimed Camp 5 and El Cap Tower while we were on the wall. One less thing to worry about.

3) Because you'll have a lot for your first wall (and you should as others have mentioned), fix to Sickle on your first day and haul from there. Hauling a heavy load up the 4th class approach, Pine Line, and the first 4 pitches is a terrible idea

I agree with bring the ledge if you have it (as long as you or your partner don't weigh 120 lbs, where 12 lbs of extra weight could make a difference hauling).

Re: use a micro traxion instead of a mini traxion? Huh? How many walls you done bud?

Use a Protraxion to haul on any route bigger than the South Face of the Column or the Leaning Tower. Why struggle? And you can really work the pulleys on those smaller haulers and ruin them.

I met a guy who soloed El Cap in 6 days with a Minitraxion. We did a route in two days, 3 man team, with the Protraxion. He was like, 'what was I thinking?'.

Did the Nose last year after hitting up Zion and the Black Canyon for some epic weekends starting 2 months before Yosemite. We were both pretty fit and solid 5.10 trad climbers. Took us 3 long days and 1 easy top-out day.

+1 on the sloping ledges comment. Put seam grip or something sticky on the bottom of your bivy sack or you'll be slowly sliding down each ledge all night long.

We took a portaledge up the climb with us & allowed us to keep pushing until dark on day 2. It would have been a miserable night without it.

Micro Traxion is insanely light and worked awesome... Even with 100lb load. I'm selling my mini and pro... I don't see myself doing anything bigger than El Cap.

It helps to leave your climbing shoes on for the king swing... Especially with the free climbing after the swing. I did both in my approach shoes but would have been easier in climbing shoes.

Water, Gatorade, and ravioli in the can. 4 days of fitness testing fun. Good luck & have a great time!!

mention Gatorade//wall-ritas...drink half, fill with tequila and freeze//by the time it's partially thawed, you get a great buzz and instant headache

one liter per 2 people is usually enough..i like the lemon/lime mix

Ravioli in the can may be traditional, until you learn how to read the label on the can. There's definitely better bang for your buck in terms of nutrition and weight.

Is there any specific reason that canned food is best? I've got a vacuum sealer. It seemed like double vac sealing the ravioli, chile, whatever and leaving the can behind would save weight

The Blueprint Part Dank wrote:Is there any specific reason that canned food is best? I've got a vacuum sealer. It seemed like double vac sealing the ravioli, chile, whatever and leaving the can behind would save weight

Probably because it's quick, easy and there's no prep. Using a vacuum seal would be a good idea. I've dehydrated fruits, greens and deer jerky to take on the wall. Jerky is an awesome snack to keep in your pocket while on the wall.

Fat Dad wrote: What I mean is showing up the morning you intend to blast and find a two, three, or four guys jugging up your fixed lines. Since you can't (legally) crash at the base, protecting them is tough. If I knew how do it, I'd probably have done the Nose by now. We had the same problem when we launched on Shield--FOUR guys jugging our lines on Freeblast, one of which graciously sawed the rope over an edge as he jugged. We even had some Euros who tried to jug our spare lead line, which was still hanging to the ground from the top of the second pitch. Don't know what it is about me and fixed ropes. Maybe a have a 'kick me' sign on my back that I don't know of either.

Got it Fat Dad. Yeah - I have been always nervous about leaving fixed lines. Seems like most folks play fair. I have never had trouble with anyone messin' with my lines, at least that I know about. I have also had good luck with, on day 2, when it was time to blast, dropping my lower two lines and having them neatly coiled and hanging from a tree branch after our climb.

The Blueprint Part Dank wrote:Is there any specific reason that canned food is best? I've got a vacuum sealer. It seemed like double vac sealing the ravioli, chile, whatever and leaving the can behind would save weight

Once you break the seal on the can, you will taint the contents. Expect vacuum sealed chow to go bad in a day or three if you repackage it. If you want to ditch the cans get MRE's, they work pretty nicely.

Hudon likes freeze dried, and there is nothing wrong with that approach to save can weight. Bring extra water to hydrate them, and think ahead about how you will heat the entrees. One possible benefit of the freeze dried approach is that if you end up with extra, it is the lightest way to bring down leftovers from the top.

Is there a better solution to protect the rope for the pig than the top of a water bottle?

Is there a better solution to protect the rope for the pig than the top of a water bottle?