Left Ski Track
5.11a YDS 6c French 22 Ewbanks VII+ UIAA 22 ZA E3 5c British
Avg: 3.1 from 203 votes
Type: | Trad, 160 ft (48 m) |
FA: | Al Ruiz and Rich Wolfe, 1966 FFA:Tom Higgins, April 1968 |
Page Views: | 19,799 total · 85/month |
Shared By: | C Miller on Dec 31, 2004 |
Admins: | Greg Opland, Mike Morley, C Miller, Adam Stackhouse, Salamanizer Ski, Justin Johnsen, Vicki Schwantes, Gunkswest |
1. Vegetation is not allowed to be used as an anchor.
2. Only neutral or rock colored bolt hangers are allowed.
For a complete list of climbing rules and closures visit:
nps.gov/jotr/planyourvisit/…
Description
While it's certainly possible to break into two pitches, it's recommended to be done as one long pitch. The crux is found early on near a bolt, but stays interesting for a bit longer. Near the halfway mark there are several options to finish - 1) stay in the crack to the top or 2) cut out right and climb steep plates, finishing right of the crack.
A really fun route that is so close to the road there's really no excuse for not doing it at least once. Should the climbing seem difficult, imagine climbing it like Tom Higgins did on the first free ascent - without all the modern gear available today.
Location
The east face of Intersection Rock is sliced by several left- slanting crack systems dubbed The Ski Tracks, all of which offer good to excellent crack climbing. This route, as the name implies, takes the leftmost crack that reaches from the ground all the way to the top in one elegant sweep.
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