North Couloir

The striking cleft/couloir on the left side of the buttress. Mostly a steep snow climb with a few mixed pitches. Depending on conditions, one might get lucky and find some water ice in the crux pitch, making it a much more pleasant endeavor (maybe in Spring after some melt/freeze cycles). The rock walls in the couloir are shattered and loose, and solid protection is difficult to find in places. Thin pins were valuable for some belays.

Moderate snow ramps lead to some short mixed steps over a rock band or two and then a chockstone at the base of the deep chimney. An M3 pitch in the deep chimney is followed by more steep snow and then an enormous trailer-sized chockstone. In early season with dry conditions, you can tunnel up behind and through the huge block, but as it gets buried with snow later in the season you might have to climb around it on the outside (probably harder). Above, a long easy snow ramp leads to the summit.

From the summit, we descended gullies on the west face of the buttress, Cl3-4, to where we could walk back to the base.

Single rock rack to 3 or 4", set of stoppers, a few thin pitons, and maybe a stubby ice screw or two depending on conditions.