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Location: International : Africa : South Africa : Table Mountain : Touch and Go (5.10c)
By: Martin le Roux When: May 6, 2013 | view comment >> |
Comments: First ascent (1961) was by Richard Williams, Paul White and Barry Fletcher. I've posted some scanned photos from their original trip report.
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Location: International : Africa : South Africa : Table Mountain : Jacobs Ladder (5.8)
By: Martin le Roux When: May 6, 2013 | view comment >> |
Comments: Maybe it's not done this way any more, but the original route was done in four pitches (not counting an approach pitch):
P1. Same as Davecro's P1, except I don't remember a semi-hanging belay.
P2. Continue up a juggy crack through the overhang, then traverse left to a stance on a bushy ledge (about 10m, S African grade 15).
P3. Traverse back right past the top of P2, then continue up and right to join Daverco's P2. Alternatively, you could set up a hanging belay at the top of the juggy crack on ... more >>
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Location: CO : CO Ice & Mixed : RMNP - Mixed/Ice : Loch Vale & vicinity : Loch Vale & uphill : Northwest Face Route - That... (WI3-4)
By: Martin le Roux When: Nov 5, 2012 | view comment >> |
Comments: Climbed this on Nov. 4, 2012. Lots of ice and hardly any snow.
We started down the descent gully mentioned by Leo Paik, but it was very loose and we changed our minds. If you need to get back to the base of the 1st pitch, then it might be better to bring double ropes and rap the route. There are rap slings in place most of the way up.
We ended up going down the way described by Scott Bower. For those with compasses, note that you start by heading NE (not E), and the gully drops down to the N, ... more >>
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Location: WY : Devil's Tower : West Face : El Matador (5.10d)
By: Martin le Roux When: Sep 25, 2012 | view comment >> |
Comments: To answer Micah Kurtz's question: Your guess is correct. Pitch 2 ("the pitch you've heard about") is indeed the 10d pitch.
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Location: WY : Grand Teton National Park : Grand Teton : The Grand Traverse (5.8)
By: Martin le Roux When: Jul 23, 2012 | view comment >> |
Comments: We did the Cathedral Traverse on July 20-22, 2012, which would normally be considered early season, but it was a low snow year, so maybe this counts as mid-season.
- We needed crampons and an axe to get down to & across the Koven col, and in a couple other places. Lightweight aluminum crampons were ideal for this.
- There's a good bivvy spot just below the summit of Owen, on the E side of the S ridge.
- The Ortenberger/Jackson book describes a descent of Owen's W Ledges that's different from Rol... more >>
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Location: CO : CO Ice & Mixed : Silverton : Eureka : Whorehouse Hoses (WI4-5)
By: Martin le Roux When: Feb 14, 2012 | view comment >> |
Comments: Pitch 1 is a bit longer than 60m, at least on lead. We had to simul-climb for a few feet. Double 60s were fine on rappel.
As of Feb. 2012, the base of pitch 2 (the easy pitch) was a snow bridge above flowing water. We discovered this because my parter punched through when rappeling.
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Location: General Climbing : Beckey's New Book : Post : Photo
By: Martin le Roux When: Jan 5, 2012 | view comment >> |
Comments: Yes, it's copyrighted, but I think this is fair use.
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Location: CO : CO Ice & Mixed : RMNP - Mixed/Ice : Loch Vale & vicinity : Loch Vale & uphill : North Face Icefield
By: Martin le Roux When: Sep 26, 2011 | view comment >> |
Comments: This is called the "Thatchtop-Powell" icefield in a couple of guidebooks (e.g. Gillett, Cooper "Colorado Snow Climbs"), which is an odd name since it doesn't actually finish between Thatchtop and Powell -- it finishes on the Taylor Peak side of Powell. Powell North Face is a better name.
As of late Sept 2011, this was hard neve with a thin layer of new snow. Angle was about 45 for the most part, maybe 50-55 degrees at the top of the couloir right of the rock rib. Cooper's book says 65 degrees, ... more >>
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Location: CO : Alpine Rock : RMNP - Rock : The Saber : Southwest Corner (5.10a)
By: Martin le Roux When: Aug 15, 2011 | view comment >> |
Comments: Great climb. The only reason I give it less than 4 stars is that there's some suspect rock on the upper pitches, especially if you climb too far to the left on the last two 5.8/5.9 pitches. The crux pitch is sustained, but I think 5.10a is a fair rating. I didn't find it as hard as the 5.9+ pitch on Syke's Sickle, for example.
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Location: CO : Alpine Rock : RMNP - Rock : The Saber
By: Martin le Roux When: Aug 13, 2011 | view comment >> |
Comments: As J. Thompson mentions, the rap route now goes with a single 70m. If you're using double 60s, Tony B's 2006 description is still accurate, but the 3rd rap (150' over the edge into space and down to a ledge) now has an intermediate rap station. Something to be aware of if you're counting rap stations and trying to follow Tony's description.
It's not hard to arrange the ropes so they don't run through the rope-eating notch that Tony mentions. This is at station #5 (Tony's original count) o... more >>
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Location: CO : Alpine Rock : RMNP - Rock : Long's Peak : Upper East Face : Kiener's Route (5.3 Easy Snow)
By: Martin le Roux When: Jul 18, 2011 | view comment >> |
Comments: As of July 17, 2011, Kiener's was in good shape. Firm snow on Lamb's Slide, Broadway was basically snow-free, a bit damp at the back of Kiener's chminey but otherwise the route was dry. The N Face descent was a different matter - still lots of slushy snow and running water all over the place. Didn't help that we got caught in a thunderstorm just as we were starting the rappels.
If anyone finds a pair of leather Marmot gloves near the top of the 5th class sections on Kiener's, could you send me ... more >>
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Location: WA : Mount Rainier : Liberty Ridge (AI2-3 Steep Snow)
By: Martin le Roux When: Jun 21, 2011 | view comment >> |
Comments: Beware of loose rock on the lower part of the ridge, especially after the snow cover melts later in the season. We were almost taken out by rockfall when crossing from the Carbon Glacier onto the ridge.
Otherwise it's a great route, although some of the slope angles in the above description may be exaggerated. I don't remember anything in excess of 60 degrees except for a short section at the bergscrund near the top.
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Location: CO : Alpine Rock : San Juans : The Grenadiers : Vestal Peak
By: Martin le Roux When: Jul 27, 2009 | view comment >> |
Comments: Here are some GPS coordinates that may be useful (NAD27)
If hiking from Elk Park, the trail to Vestal Basin crosses Elk Creek at 13S0270341/4177518.
The trail to the base of Vestal Peak (and Arrow) leaves the Vestal Basin trail in the meadow at 13S0270823/4175556 and crosses Vestal Creek at 13S0270817/4175486 before heading steeply uphill.
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Location: CO : John Bachar Passes Away
By: Martin le Roux When: Jul 9, 2009 | view comment >> |
Comments: The New York Times has an obituary. See www.nytimes.com/2009/07/09/sports/09bachar.html.
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Location: CO : Alpine Rock : RMNP - Rock : Glacier Gorge : Pagoda Mountain : North Buttress (5.7)
By: Martin le Roux When: Jul 21, 2008 | view comment >> |
Comments: Climbed this on July 19, 2008. Great line - we enjoyed it more than the N ridge of Spearhead, although the rock isn't as clean on account of not getting as much traffic.
The route description above isn't very accurate. It takes 4 ropelengths to reach the ledge below the steep headwall, not 3 (have a look at Jfox's Sept 2007 beta photos). Also, once one gets above the steep headwall there are at least 3 ropelengths of scrambling along the exposed ridge crest before one reaches the summit. No... more >>
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Location: CO : CO Ice & Mixed : RMNP - Mixed/Ice : Odessa Gorge : Notchtop & vicinity : North Face (5.7 WI3)
By: Martin le Roux When: Oct 29, 2007 | view comment >> |
Comments: Climbed this on 10/28/2007. Nice sunny day and good conditions. Climbable ice on all pitches although a bit hollow in spots lower down. Snow well-consolidated after a week of warm weather. Mid-size cams were useful at belays and for protecting the crux of the 1st pitch. We did the 1st pitch as two pitches; there's a small ledge and a peg belay/rap station on the right-hand side where the ice steepens.
For the descent, we hiked all the way up to the summit (the cornice hasn't real... more >>
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Location: CO : Alpine Rock : Mount of the Holy Cross : Holy Cross Couloir
By: Martin le Roux When: Jul 9, 2007 | view comment >> |
Comments: The climber's trail up to the Bowl of Tears is very indistinct and would be just about impossible to find in the dark. Even in daylight it's not easy to follow. If attempting a one-day ascent from the parking lot it's likely to be mid-morning before you get into the couloir, by which time you'll be wallowing up slush. The alternative is to camp at the Bowl of Tears, climb the couloir while it's still firm and and descend the Teardrop (broad snowy cirque to the south of the peak). With overni... more >>
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Location: CO : Alpine Rock : RMNP - Rock : Ypsilon Mountain : Y Couloir (Right Branch)
By: Martin le Roux When: Jul 23, 2006 | view comment >> |
Comments: Climbed this on July 23, 2006. Good conditions -- firm snow all the way up, despite the summer heat. No ice in the chimney; we climbed 2 pitches of easy 5th-class rock on the left-hand side to bypass this section. Still a bit of a cornice at top but easily bypassed by scrambling up loose rock on the right.
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Location: CO : Alpine Rock : Indian Peaks : James Peak : Shooting Star
By: Martin le Roux When: Apr 24, 2006 | view comment >> |
Comments: Climbed this on April 24 with John Christie. Lots of snow -- we did 90% of the approach on skis -- but nicely consolidated after a couple of weeks of warm weather. Approached from St. Mary's Glacier. Sunny warm day, which made for slushy conditions towards the top of the climb. We didn't find any ice. We carried two axes each, rope, pickets, etc. but all we used were crampons and a single axe. Other posters have mentioned that the angle reaches 60 degrees at the top, but we didn't find any... more >>
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Location: CO : Boulder : Flatirons : South : The Matron
By: Martin le Roux When: Jul 28, 2004 | view comment >> |
Comments: Now that the raptor closure season is over, the friendly folks at OSMP have attempted to obscure the start of the climbers' access trail by cutting down some branches and dragging them across the trail. Exactly what this is meant to achieve escapes me.
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Location: CO : Alpine Rock : Indian Peaks : Mount Neva : North Ridge
By: Martin le Roux When: Jul 26, 2004 | view comment >> |
Comments: This climb can also be accessed from Junco Lake trailhead on the west side of the divide.Follow the Caribou Pass trail for about 4 miles to the start of the Neva's north ridge. From the summit there's an easy descent down the northwest ridge to Columbine Lake. From Columbine Lake there's a good trail back down the valley.
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Location: CO : Alpine Rock : RMNP - Rock : Hallett Peak
By: Martin le Roux When: Jul 19, 2004 | view comment >> |
Comments: If anyone is planning to climb here mid-week, the trail from Dream Lake to Emerald Lake is CLOSED for reconstruction (as of July 2004) on Tues, Wed, Thurs and Fri from 8am to 4:30pm. Scheduled completion is September 2004. The trail is open before 8am and if you want to come back down before 4:30am you'll be allowed through.
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Location: CO : Alpine Rock : RMNP - Rock : Hallett Peak : Love Route (5.9)
By: Martin le Roux When: Jul 18, 2004 | view comment >> |
Comments: As recommended by David C., we combined the first three pitches of Better Than Love with the top pitches of the Love Route. We carried a copy of Gillett's route description but found it very confusing when it came to the upper pitches. Here's my attempt at a revised description:
4. From the large ledge at the top of the pitch 3 (or pitch 4 if climbing BTL), climb the left side of a large pillar to a small sloping stance at the base of a RIGHT-facing flake, 5.6.
5. Climb the right-facing fl... more >>
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Location: CO : Alpine Rock : RMNP - Rock : Notchtop
By: Martin le Roux When: Jul 23, 2003 | view comment >> |
Comments: The regular descent gully leads down to the SW, not SE as stated above.
As of July 10 2003 there was still some snow in the gully, but not so much that we needed an ice-axe. Earlier in the season an ice-axe might be advisable.
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Location: CO : Alpine Rock : RMNP - Rock : Notchtop : Optimismus (5.9)
By: Martin le Roux When: Jul 16, 2003 | view comment >> |
Comments: We did this is three pitches even though our ropes were only 50m.
To get to the start of pitch 1, we scrambled up left along a loose, easy gully then traversed back right to reach the bottom of the black streaks. This was 3rd or maybe 4th class.
We moved our belay between the top of pitch 2 and the start of pitch 3 (basically a 20m walk along a wide ledge).
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