Type: Trad, Alpine, 550 ft (167 m), 3 pitches, Grade III
FA: George Bell & Bernard Gillett, 2003, 2nd ascent Greg Sievers, Ben Rosenberg
Page Views: 926 total · 4/month
Shared By: Greg Sievers on Jul 5, 2006
Admins: Leo Paik, John McNamee, Frances Fierst, Monty, Monomaniac, Tyler KC

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Description Suggest change

P1 - Ascend the right-hand most of 3 right facing dihedrals by climbing a 5.8 slab in a right facing dihedral. At a point where the two right most dihedrals converge step up and left over 5.9 folds, traverse left 30' above or below a bushy ledge to two prominent 30' tall right angling ramps that pass a small roof on the left, climbing the left hand ramp. Belay on a large grassy bench below the now prominent south buttress. - 5.9, 200'

P2 - Step left 10' and work up a 5.7 off-width just left of the prow and continue up a wide crack for 50'. At the grassy ledge above, step left again and climb an easy hand crack that turns into a delightful finger crack above another small step. Follow it up and right across the face and belay on the right side of the prow in a right facing corner. 5.7, 180'

P3 - Boulder up over a 6' flake moving right to a crack. Step left on the ledge above, climb a broken hand crack above the undercut and at an alcove move right. Climb a crack that starts in a left facing dihedral and becomes the obvious splitter hand crack in the south facing summit arete. Fire up the long hand crack (crux) and arrive on the summit ridge gendarmes. 5.10a, 170'

The balanced rock - ArrowHead itself is 100' north along the broke ridge, past 3 gendarmes. Climbability of balanced rock is unknown, but the two sides we saw looked extremely difficult.

Descent: (there is some very old tat webbing up on the 3rd gendarme wedged along a loose chock) but don't go there. Instead: after descending the back side of a deep cleft in a chimney, traverse through two massive stones and from the 2nd gendarme drop down 10' to the east and traverse down along a large sloping ledge, northeast 100'. Find a 3' horn out on the end of the precipice. Sling the horn for a 160' rappel to the gully, above which you started. Scramble down 4th class grasses ledges to the start.

Location Suggest change

Approach: after passing Black Lake on the right and ascending the standard grassy slope, head up and right through a series of grassy ledges and slabs or directly up the gully/chimney - either way is 4th Class. Always keep the Arrowhead Spire and its SE gully to your left, although climbing the gully IS the most direct approach. Continue up talus and grassy steep slope to the bottom of the cirque, which lies immediately right/north of the Spire.
Gear up at a point where a long horizontal krumholtz tree island lines a small ledge at the base of the slabs directly below the Arrowhead Spire proper and its southeast apron. As is typical in alpine zones, some lichen, granola and loose rock will be encountered.
Descent: (there is some very old tat webbing up on the 3rd gendarme wedged along a loose chock) but don't go there. Instead: after descending the back side of a deep cleft in a chimney, on the 2nd gendarme, pass through two massive stones and from the 3rd gendarme drop down 10' to the east and traverse down along a large, wide sloping ledge, northeast 100'. Find a 3' horn out on the end of the ledge above the precipice. Sling the horn for a 160' rappel to the gully, above which you started. Scramble down 4th class grasses ledges to the start.

Protection Suggest change

Standard single rack with doubles in #1, #2, #3 Camalots.

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