Luckiest Man

Soak in panoramic views of Franconia Notch, with the entirety of Cannon and the Eaglet amphitheater rising prominently in the foreground. Comfortable belay ledges catch a cooling breeze on hot days - just remember your sun gear.

Pitch two delivers a variety of climbing styles - from overhanging jug bashing, to cranking into a distinctive and exciting (but well-protected) hanging corner system, then techniquing your way to the top. Pitches three and four add more big exposure with thoughtful movement through airy terrain.

P1 – Start in a precarious position on top of a steep gully at the two-bolt ground anchor. You can place a good No. 1 Camalot before the first bolt. Climb the face and crack systems. Trend up and left, with plenty of options for good protection and two more bolts, to reach a flat ledge at the top of the buttress. Two-bolt anchor. (5.7, 100’)

P2 – Climb straight up off the ledge, placing a few pieces of gear before the second bolt. Monkey your way through the airy roof on big, crowbar-tested jugs. When the buckets end, escape left onto the face. Catch your breath, clip the bolt at the start of the massive hanging corner system, and then crank through the crux (No. 3 Camalot). Find plenty more good pro in the corner crack as you climb higher (Puff of Smoke variation goes left here). Climb beneath the large nose-shaped rock feature and then traverse right to reach an optional four-bolt belay on a sloping ledge. (5.11, 80’)

P3 – Pitches two and three can be linked, or you can stop at the optional anchor for a close belay on the P3 crux. Follow two bolts straight up off the ledge into a crux roof pull. Climb higher to a two-bolt anchor at a comfortable incut ledge. Enjoy that view! (5.11, 20’)

P4 – Step right off the anchor and follow the crack system up and right onto the exposed face. Three bolts lead rightward through cruxy moves on perfect granite. Climb rightward toward a prominent corner system. When the corner turns grassy, step left around a small roof on the arete and clip the final bolt on the route Persistence to reach an anchor on a comfortable ledge. (5.8, 100’)

Puff of Smoke variation: Take a little ride on this recommended variation. A monster crux pitch that's even more sustained, airy, and traddy than the original. On Pitch 2, completely avoid the nose-shaped rock feature, the optional P2 anchor, and the two bolts on P3. Instead, once you've pulled the P2 crux and climbed up massive hanging corner system for about 15', pull up and left into the steep and pumpy v-groove corner system. Follow cracks and plentiful gear placements to reach the P3 anchor at the comfortable incut ledge. (5.11, 100’)

Descent:

Rappel with a single 70m rope. 

It’s not possible to rappel back to the P1 anchor. The massive hanging roof leaves you suspended in space, making a friction traverse back impossible. Instead, there’s a bolted rappel station down and to the right of the P1 anchor in the gully.

Backstory:

The name Luckiest Man nods to both the Wood Brothers’ song of the same title and the unfinished A4 aid route Shape Shifters, first attempted by Jon Sykes and Steve Dupuis. In April 1998, the pair aid-climbed the general start of Luckiest Man, going ground-up through loose rock in brazen style to reach what is now the optional P2 anchor.

As the story goes, they returned around 2003 to try to complete the route. While aiding far to the right of what would become Luckiest Man’s P2, Dupuis was placing a bolt — intended for Sykes to attempt freeing the pitch in the future — when the aid hook he was hanging from blew out. During the fall, Dupuis’ lead rope was cut by a hidden razor-sharp hold. He plummeted 120 feet, slowed only momentarily when his tag line snagged around 80 feet, before landing on a rock at the base of the route. The impact broke his back and ruptured his spleen.

“Steve is doing fine now and raising a very large family in Maine,” Sykes said. “Luckiest man I ever knew.”

Located at the far climber’s left end of the Main Cliff. Follow the base trail past The Late Show and descend the fixed hand lines near the base of Ole Man’s Booty. Continue along mostly flat ground for less than five minutes to reach the far climber’s left end of the cliff. The route starts at the top of a steep gully, directly below a massive hanging corner high on the wall.

Rack from 0.1 to No. 3, with doubles from 0.2 to No. 1. Set of nuts; small and medium sizes are especially useful.