This is one of the all time classic routes on the tower. Find it by heading up the North Face/ NW corner approach. When you get to the base of the tower look to your right for a large left facing corner that starts low angle and gets steeper and has a lardge roof aboiut 200 feet up. This is a few cracks to the right of the Everlasting column.
P1. Head up the low angle rock in the corner and belay from mostly fixed gear on a sloping ledge directly underneath the roof. This pitch is 5.8 and is long (~200 ft). Position your belayer as high as possible and be prepared for a bit of simul-climbing. You could rap with 2 ropes from here, but then you'd miss the real fun.
P2. Head out the right side of the roof in a finger crack with marginal feet and small stoppers for gear. Once you get past the roof follow the corner straight up with a mixed bag of thin crack, lieback, and face techniques until you hit the anchors. Make sure to look around and take in your position as it is truly spectacular. This pitch is shorter than the first, but I can't remember specifics because the climbing was so awesome.
2 double rope raps will put you back on the ground. It is possible to contiue up from here, but I haven't done it. Sorry.
Protection
Mostly small gear, lots of stoppers and small cams. You shouldn't need anything bigger than a #1 camalot for the climbing, but you might need a #2 to back up the first belay. 2 ropes to rap after the 2nd pitch.
P2 is about 125' to an arbitrary hanging belay, with well aged anchors. If anyone ever replaces the anchors, please, please move the anchors! This pitch ends in the middle of the crack, no features what so ever to stand on. There appears to be a natural small ledge about 15-20' higher (on easier ground).
Gear: The largest piece of gear that I placed on the 2nd pitch was a .5 camalot. Lots of stoppers (#1 - #7 rock, double or triples), 1 green alien, three yellow aliens, 2 red aliens. First pitch goes pretty easy on a set of nuts, the second pitch could as well (I ran out).
What a stunning line! The moves are great, and the position can't be beat! We went through pitch 3, and every pitch was nice. Despite the note in Guillmete's guidebook, the anchors at the top of 3 are in good shape, just some minor surface rust.
By Sergio P From: Idaho Springs, CO Jul 26, 2007 rating: 5.11a
With a 70m rope you can be lowered from the top of p2 to the top of p1. This allows for a more comfortable belay on the ledge while you belay the second climber.
North Face & Northwest Corner
RSS Feed
