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Tricouni Nail/Cerberus Rock Climbing

Climbing Area Map

Routes in Tricouni Nail/Cerberus

	Cerberus T 5.8 5b 16 VI- 15 HVS 4c
	East Face Rotert/Fowler Route T 5.10d 6b+ 21 VII+ 21 E3 5b R
	Unknown S 5.10- 6a 18 VI+ 18 E1 5a R

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Elevation:	6,267 ft
GPS:	43.84004, -103.53593 Google Map · Climbing Area Map
Page Views:	14,999 total · 59/month
Shared By:	Andrew Gram on Jul 1, 2002
Admins:	Peter Gram, Greg Parker, Mikel Madsen, Mark Rafferty Page Updates (admin only)

Description

The Tricouni Nail is the distinctive three-headed spire in the middle of the Ten Pins cluster. Tricouni Nail is the original name for this spire, though Royal Robbins renamed it Cerberus when he made the first ascent.

This is one of the most classic climbs in the Black Hills, and the descent is a notorious though completely secure simulrappel from the top. No anchors exist on the summit, so the rope must be layed in between two of the horns with one climber rappeling off each side simultaneously. Be sure to maintain good communication with your partner while doing this because you end on opposite sides of the spire. Local climbers harvest booty almost daily from people unfamiliar with this technique.

Getting There

The spire is hard to miss with its three heads. Scramble up into the middle of the spires, and climb the side facing Queen Pin(the larger mass of spires away from the Cathedral Spires).