Approaching Surf's Up on the SW shoulder of Snowpatch.

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Approaching Surf's Up on the SW shoulder of Snowpatch.

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Scramble to summit (3rd with a few 5th class steps).

Looking up the Krause-McKarthy Rappel Route line.

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Steph Abegg

Aug 1, 2016

“Approaching Surf's Up on the SW shoulder of Snowpatch.”

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Nearby Photos

Napping on Surf's Up Ledge. East Face of Pigeon in distance.

Top of Snowpatch spire after climbing Surfs Up!

Route Overlay Surf's Up.

On Surfs Up ledge

Pitch 5.

In this photo I am leading Pitch 2. I am looking for the 5.8 bulge, which was still above me. I figured this out and continued up the slot to my left in the photo, and exited it about 20 feet below a large horn wrapped in slings. The 5.8 move was pretty easy. The routefinding on the lower pitches is a bit tricky. The description makes a note of not being suckered up too high.

The three climbers in the photo are at the rap station at the start of the Krause-McCarthy Rappel Route. The climber on the left is coming up from the Snowpatch Route. All routes that react the South summit desced via the Krause-McCarthy Rappel Route. The guidebook says you need two ropes, but you can also rap it with a single 70m rope (the party after us did). Not sure if a single 60m rope would work. We made four double-rope rappels. We got our rope stuck (twice!) on the third rappel and the party above us freed it (twice!). The rappel route dumps you off ~100m of scrambling from the base of Surf's Up, so we were able to leave our approach shoes and ice axes at the base of the route and not bring them up the climb.

Upper part of Surfs Up - beautiful granite and crack climbing.

Looking down from the belay on top of pitch one.

Guy Johnson and Sue McCowen at the top of the S Peak of Snowpatch Spire - July 1990

Sue and Guy 1P above "Surf's Up" (I think?) - July 1990

Guy Johnson on the Vowell Glacier - July 1990

Route Overlay Surf's Up Pitches 1-4.

Pigeon Spire and the Howsers as seen from Surfs Up ledge

Looking down at the first pitch above Surf's Up ledge

Scramble to summit (3rd with a few 5th class steps).

Approaching Surf's Up on the SW shoulder of Snowpatch.

Looking up the Krause-McKarthy Rappel Route line.

Pitch 1.

Pitch 4.

Pitch 3.

A second just about to reach the belay at the top of pitch 1. The first three pitches have some "choose your own adventure" character to them, but each belay is obvious once up the pitch a bit.

Another party climbing Pitch 3. This party had been suckered up and left and had realized they were off-route about the time we started climbing Pitch 1. In the photo, Stewart is at the belay at the wobbly flake/horn and the belayer from the other party is at the giant horn wrapped in slings (the leader had to downclimb 20 feet to get into the corner so the nest of slings on that horn are more likely bail slings rather than belay slings).

Guy Johnson on the way to the West Face of Snowpatch Spire in July 1990

Surf's Up Ledge.

Guy Johnson leading P3 - July 1990

Pitch 6.

Sue McCowen leading off of Surf's Up. Guy Johnson belaying - July 1990

Pitch 7.

North Peak of Snowpatch from the South Peak - July 1990

The start of Surfs Up. It's easy to wander around aimlessly among the fins.