Amazing- Spearhead is located in Rocky Mountain National Park and is perched above Glacier Gorge. Spearhead is an 800-ft granite spire that rises to a sharp point above the upper basin (past Black Lake). In the middle of the immense vertical wall is a right arcing crescent roof dubbed the "Sickle". [Syke's] Sickle is a wonderful route that ascends several crack systems before arriving at the "Sickle".
P1 ascends a 5.5 left arcing wide crack (easy to spot in the center of the wall), then unites with a flaky system that moves up and left (watch rope drag) before ending 200 feet up on a ledge to the left of a blocky roof (bypass the weathered webbing for the “standard” first belay).
P2 crosses the "flat earth" (a 35-degree grassy ledge) with an easy dihedral before ascending a 35-foot slab, w/ no protection, to a nice [flake]- don't fall (this is the most direct, and exciting, way to the [flake] system above)!
P3 moves diagonally left (past slings) then ascends hollow and loose flicks up an amazing wall with great exposure and fun aesthetic moves (pass the upper slings and set up camp 20 feet higher on a “nice” horn below a large dihedral).
P4 starts the business- 40 foot of great dihedral, then everything goes vertical, to the right, with side pulls- stemming- and fun moves for another 50 feet (5.7+).
P5 gets a little crazy: move up into a wide crack, then make a relatively thin face traverse, to your right, before rising high on a one foot thick OW flack that starts vertical then bends right and ends 10 feet below a nice ledge w/ a huge loose block (the book says 5.7, if so- it was a very hard 5.7).
P6 is the "crux" (the book says 5.9.... I thought it was solid 5.10a ). (Note: keep in mind: you are well over six hundred and fifty feet off the ground, and below an amazing roof that cuts out then daggers down). The view is absolutely incredible! You are on a beautiful wall (Spearhead is the smallest peak amongst the surrounding spires). The valley is painted with golden aspen, evergreen trees, bright red bushes, and turquoise lakes. At eye level there is an array of jagged peaks that jut forth from a wrapped ridgeline. It's so awe inspiring: everything is sharp and edgy and very intense.
The "crux" starts with a nice 20-foot dihedral that intersects the roof (great pro w/ two good fixed pieces at the roof intersection). Time to get to work...move out above a void of space, stem, place big gear (the crack above takes large cam), stem some more, fist jam, then pull through the roof slot to a huge edge. Looking down into the void, from the stemming position, is wicked cool! For the sanity of your second- slot a “fat” nut above the apex of the “slot exit” and remove your #4 cam placement from the crack (this increases rope drag, but makes the crux more enjoyable for your second). Ride the edge above the abyss for about 40-feet, on easy rock, and set-up a belay.
P7. From the belay, continue up the left-leaning crack system a short way, place pro as high as you can (I put it under a flake just to the right of the system), then climb down a little and traverse straight right for 30-40 feet until you come to the bolt (which has recently been replaced). As you are climbing up the crack system, make sure to take your time and look to the right for the bolt, which is very hard to spot, especially from where you need to start the traverse. Unfortunately, the hardest move on the pitch comes just before you clip the bolt, but it is no harder than 5.8 at the very most. After you clip the bolt, head up and right on easier climbing into a dihedral and then step right around an overhang to third class terrain. This pitch is not really dangerous for the second.
Descent- At the top of the last pitch: head to the right, and loop around to the back (it's an easy scramble to the vertigo inducing tip-top). Descend the obvious path (NW) for a hundred yards or so, then cut to the left (south), to exit the ridge. If you keep descending the obvious slide path it turns into a cliff!
The Sickle - wow. Not sure how to prepare for that one. Much easier (but still pretty strenuous) for the long-legged and big-handed. Definitely a wild feature to climb up into and through. Now that I'm forgetting how scared I was - wow that was cool.
The face pitch above the roof really wasn't that big of a deal, but I probably wouldn't be too psyched (get it?) to do it in the rain. Follow the crack up to where there are a couple blocks jammed in it. From there, the bolt (new) is pretty much straight right. There was some blue webbing hanging from it when I did it - kind of hard to not find it. The bolt itself is pretty well camoflaged, though. Gillett mentions a pin before the bolt, but I didn't see any.
Judging from the decent rap anchors, this route obviously sees it share of retreats.
What an awesome climb!!! This route was a bit over my head for an alpine route, so, I was very happy to climbing be with a solid alpinist, Dave Russell! Thanks Dave, you da man! Just wanted to add some comments about the traversing second to last pitch...
We didn't see the bolt, but think we did it right?? After going up through the slot (wow!), the sleet caused the rock to be wet, and the impending traverse had put our game faces on. We moved up on the left side of the belay for about a body length, and then traversed straight right on crimpers. Dave got a sketchy Yellow Metolius half way through the traverse which goes maybe 20 feet to another short crack system. He said a yellow Alien would have been better, but, probably shouldn't fall here anyway!!! After we scrambled up to the true summit to check out the vertigo, we decided that we possibly climbed right past the bolt, if so, someone did a good job on the camoflauge! We did see the bolt further up and to the left with the blue sling hanging on it, and agreed that that wasn't the right way for this route...
A few more like this one, and I should be just about, almost, ready for the Casual Route on the Diamond, one of my biggest alpine goals!
Did this a couple weeks ago and had a blast. We did not bring a cam bigger than #3 camalot, and did not even need it on the crux. there are about four good fixed pins leading up to the roof and one about at your feet doing the crux moves. the moves seem pretty secure, because you can fully chimney it. The Spearhead has to be one of the coolest formations i have ever seen.
The bolt on the pitch after the crux was camoflaged and did not have a sling on it as of 7/15/2002. It is hard to find. After climbing through the roof, continue up the left leaning crack system for about 40' until you come to some large blocks in the crack system. The bolt is about 25' up and to the right of these blocks. It can be seen if you lean way back from the blocks. It is a light tan color.
By Tony Bubb From: Boulder, CO Apr 30, 2003 rating: 5.10a
If you have anxiety about finding the traverse and the bolt, check the photos. The one posted 1/11/2002 is of my partner [on the] traverse- you can see the draw on the bolt in the photo, as taken from the belay. Thin moves to get there though- a little [spooky]
Probably the best route I've ever done in the park, I had dreams about laybacking huge flakes for hundreds of feet last night - my brain trying to process the day's experiences. The bolt on the final pitch: I started the traverse 15 feet down from the belay, on the block resting in the crack. The holds seemed more defined here, and I wasn't too sketched out.
That roof wrecked us - my partner got his hand stuck in a twisted fist jam and nearly broke his knuckle, and I ended up using a heel-toe lock above my head. I didn't get beta from the free-soloer who spent 20 minutes up there looking at it before committing - we were on the belay ledge below, afraid to look. Yikes!
[I also edited the route description, it should be much easier to follow now.]
The roof is certainly hard to figure out. with that much exposure, it's hard to commit to such weird stemming (chimneying) moves. mentally, it's a 5.11 roof. this climb goes by way [too] fast for the quality
My partner and I were stormed off of Syke's Sickle, on Spearhead in RMNP, Saturday, July 19 ... a mere 50 feet or so from the top! I had just completed the roof crux, and was near the belay, when the sky opened up with the full wrath of [insert Diety of choice here]! You know what I mean if you were in the area...wow. Lightning, hail, torrential rain...needless to say, we bailed ASAP. In so doing, I was lowered from a number 1 (red) Camalot, right before the belay at the end of pitch 7 (the crux, roof pitch), before the final slab 5.7 traverse.
I submit this plea: I know there's an active debate as to whether or not we deserve to get this piece back, but if you are so inclined, there's the good karma and a reward in it for you! I'd head up there myself to get it, but work gets in the way... Also, we left a few nuts, 'biners, and slings on the retreat down the face, if you happen to scoop those up as well, but of course, those are far less important.
Anyway, thanks much!! You can reach me at phred(at)frontier.net.
Fred Vanden Bergh
PS: Before the storm hit us, the climbing was stellar...gorgeous granite, amazing setting, fun route. And the crux is a blast! Great position and exposure! Can't wait to get back up there and stand on the tippy-top.
Hey, did this a few days [ago], and if you want to bump the difficulty up to mid 5.10, there is a variation on the last pitch that allows you to do so. Its R/or X though, so make sure you are a confident face climber. Where you would take off for the last pitch, look up and left and you will see a blue sling that marks a fairly good looking bolt . Climb up and clip the bolt, then traverse left on knobs to a good 2 inch rail. These are probably the trickiest moves on the pitch. Then, you will see a thin crack leading up to a right facing corner. Fish in you 00 TCU or black Alien, clip it long to avoid rope drag and do two or three thin moves into the right facing corner, where the difficulty eases off to 5.7 or so. Good Luck!
The variation Jake refers to here is actually the final pitch to Spear Me the Details - an amazing route in it's own right. I found this to be the scariest section of Spear Me the Details - if you fall after clipping the bolt but before getting solid gear in the seam (gear that can handle a directional force nonetheless), you're looking at broken bones.
Ahh... the dubiuos 9+ rating was invented for cruxes like this one. Weird, weird, weird. This route is a natural passage up a grand monolith of bulletproof granite. So good!!!!!
Dude, there is exactly three and a half buttloads of snow up there right now.I was up near Black Lake last weekend and Spearhead has a lot of snow on it, the decent looked very snowy.
This route is excellent. Didn't find that bolt on the last pitch though. Talk about being exposed up there, very, very airy. One of the best routes I've done out here in Colorado. Well worth the approach.
Climbed this route yesterday with Joe Chorny on a perfect day. We were the only ones on the route all day - going midweek is highly recommended.
Overall, I thought the route was good but not great - for some reason I was expecting better. There is a surprising amount of loose rock on the route - particularly on pitch 3 - which took away from the overall quality. On pitch 3 don't be tempted to keep going up and right to a large flake system it is very loose - angle up right initially (40 ft or so) but cut back left ASAP.
The climbing felt hard for the grade on nearly every pitch. Since the route is an old one the ratings don't appear to have been inflated over time.
The crux pitch is very well protected with 2 or 3 fixed pieces, then a piton, and then two fixed wires. The good gear aside, this pitch is strenous and a little bizarre. Joe and I both found that stemming/chimneying with both feet on the left wall was the easiest way up. We didn't do any fist jamming.
A #4 Camalot is not needed on the crux pitch but is very nice to have on the pitch before the crux. That pitch has a pretty hard traverse to the right to go from one crack system to a flake system. The flake is wide and the #4 works well (doubt anything smaller would fit). I moved the #4 up a couple times on that flake. Without a #4 it might be 20-25 ft before you can place gear and the climbing is not trivial.
I found the last pitch to be easier than advertised. The bolt is there and is about 15-20 feet from the belay and not the 30-40 ft reported. Traverse about 10 feet right on good footholds, make one harder move straight up using the very obvious chalked knob for the left hand and clip the bolt. The moves after the bolt are actually a little harder but the bolt is right there.
Overall, good route, worth doing, but probably wouldn't do it again.
DESCENT:there are several descents listed for Spearhead. I am still amused at folks who head north or rap the north ridge. A very safe and plesant stroll is to walk west to the lowest point in the saddle between Spearhead and Chiefshead, and turn left - SOUTH. Then stay to your left and head east, down ledges. It is mostly 3rd class and one tiny section of 4th. I've done this about 8 times over 15 years, it kewl.
Just continue to keep left and head east from the saddle. You will follow a long ramp and be deposited at the base of (just below) Age Axe and the SE prow.
We carried out [trail] shoes to the summit and did the complete descent in them; safely.
Don't bring a #4, and don't bother bringing trail shoes to the top. Too much weight to bring. We did the down hike in climbing shoes and it was perfectly fine. Great Route!
It might be possible to climb the 5.8 crack to the right of the run-out slab past Middle Earth Ledge, then make a rising traverse back to the flake system. In regards to the belay after the crux pitch--I belayed just past the crux, at an old bolt, with a #1 and #2 cam instead of heading up higher, as is described. This allowed me to communicate with my partner and negotiate the rope out of the crack from time to time. FIXED GEAR-As of 07-07, there were 4 pins in the dihedral, and 2 fixed stoppers just before you pull over the roof. Tons o' fun!
I guess most people are finding the route obvious, but my partner and I were slowed a bit on pitches two and five. On pitch two take the left-angling ramp/dihedral to its highest point before committing to the slab. This reduces the runout to the flakes significantly, and some small nuts/RPs can be found. On pitch five, the route goes up only a body length or so in the widish crack before traversing right. We stayed to the left in the dihedral thinking (and then hoping) the traverse would appear higher up, but it never did. Fortunately, we found an excellent retreat anchor where the dihedral meets the far left edge of the roof which we used to pendulum over to the route proper. Fun but time consuming. A great route in a spectacular setting.
Spearhead
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