Yellow Brick Road  WI3+

1,024 page views Good page? (1 like)

Type:  Ice, 2 pitches, 350 feet Consensus:  WI3+ [details] FA:  Charlie Porter and Mead Hargis Season:  winter Submitted By:  rhyang on Dec 31, 2011 You & This Route  |  Other Opinions (7) Your todo list: Your stars: Your rating: -none- [change] Your ticklist: [add new tick]

BETA PHOTO: 29-December-2011: another party gearing up. Note ...

Add Photo  Add Comment    Printer View

Description 

In early summer there is a seeping waterfall down a black streak on the face around the corner from Oz, Gram, etc. In the winter this becomes an ice route. Probably in most years highway 120 is closed for the winter before this happens, but in 2011 the road re-opened in December and did not close for the rest of the year.

The route started out fairly easy, and then steepened. Most seemed to belay on screws about 150' up on a bit of a ledge. The second pitch had a short vertical section, and in late December seemed to get sun by noonish.

After the crux the route flattens, and it's probably most expedient to just traverse right towards a 2-bolt anchor with rap rings. Place a screw or two as a directional for the follower and then walk in crampons on knobby Tuolumne granite for a bit. This seemed about 60m from the belay, possibly a rope-stretcher.

I believe the rap anchors belong to a rock route called Crystal Meth (5.8R), established in 8/2008 (see the 2009 supertopo guide).

Location 

Start at the pullout for Drug Dome and hike/ski/snowshoe towards Drug Dome, but as you near the base contour right towards Mariluolumne Dome. The route can be seen from the road if driving from the west and is fairly obvious from the approach as you come out of the trees.

Depending on snow cover and recent traffic there may be a nice use trail to follow (we were second of at least four parties on it).

Descend by rappel. There are two other bolted rap anchors after the first one; with two 60m ropes you can skip one of them.

Protection 

Ice screws, 60-70m rope(s). Two 60's will get you down in two rappels, a single 70 will make it in three.

Photos of Yellow Brick Road Slideshow

Add Photo

29-December-2011: Me leading first pitch. pic by ...	29-December-2009: Steve Larson leading crux pitch,...	BETA PHOTO: 29-December-2011: Steve Larson at the rap station ...
BETA PHOTO: 29-December-2011: Me traversing towards the rap st...	A big snow year and thin ice barely covering the f...	December 2011, Hwy 120 open, approach 20 minutes f...
View upwards to the 2nd pitch.	BETA PHOTO: The climb as seen from the road, January 2012	First pitch in January 2012 (70 meters makes it al...
Looking down the first pitch of Yellow Brick Road ...	BETA PHOTO: Looking up	BETA PHOTO: Pitch 1
BETA PHOTO: Pitch 2