Best first Sierra Climb

I'm heading out to the Sierras next weekend to do my first alpine climb. Right now I'm planning on doing the North Ridge of Lone Pine Peak, but I'm concerned I'm bitting off a longer climb than I can do in the day. If anyone has some suggestions for another route that'd be great.

I'm looking for
- Long grade II or short grade III
- 5.7 or easier
- Farther south is preferable (I'm in So Cal)
- No ice climbing

Thanks

The east buttress of Whitney is a really great climb. Not sure if it is Grade II or III though. The approach is pretty big to do in a day, although it does get done often.

NE Arete of Bear Creek Spire. You can probably do it easily in a day, though you can also camp near Dade, Gem or Treasure Lakes if you want to take your time. Depending on the conditions, you may have to contend with a snowfield on the decent, which can be icy some years.

East Butt of Whitney is great, but the approach is quite a bit more involved and you'll need a permit. The SE Buttress of Cathedral is awesome but really crowded. N. Ridge of Mt. Conness is pretty mellow, great fun and also easily done in a day. Most of those are further north than perhaps you wanted to drive, but all fit the bill.

I think the E. Buttress is a good third our fourth Sierra climb . Factor in the elevation , the permit situation , possibly the crowds, and a longish approach depending on your fitness, I would get a few other Sierra routes under my belt before E. Butt.

I vote for Tenaya Peak in Tuolumne Meadows. It's grade III , easy fifth class , mellow approach , handles crowds well , and is totally doable in a day .

Other votes would be Laurel Mtn. E. Ridge of Mt. Russel , or Cathedral Peak . The ridges on Conness too ...

EDIT : I just saw you were thinking of Lone Pine Peak . That ridge is definitely doable in a day . Much of the approach is on that Meysen Lake trail , the climbing is mellow , and the ridge is not super long , you might want o be comfortable with Sierra scrambling though , roping up every pitch would be long ... good luck

Tenaya Peak still has a patch of snow on the ledge. Bear Creak would be probably your best bet.

The N ridge of Lone pine peak is not trivial. It's long and not obvious. However, it's approached right from the Whitney portal campground so no pack required. I think Cathedral Peak is a great 1st Sierra Peak to climb.

+1 on the routefinding on LPP not being straightforward esp for a first Sierra route

The N Fork Lone Pine Peak trail is pretty beaten down and well documented online, but the permit situation is grim (same deal for E Ridge on Russell).

If you don't mind heading to Bishop the SE Face of Emerson is a fun and underappreciated route. There's a little bit of everything on it and you won't have to deal with crowds or permits. I was told it was free of snow (and the chimney was dry) as of last weekend. Bonus: short approach

Another vote for Cathedral Peak!

fossanna , how is SE face as a solo ? is it loose ? exposure ? thanks .

vincent L. wrote:fossanna , how is SE face as a solo ? is it loose ? exposure ? thanks .

Cruiser solo with minimal choss on anything steep/more technical. Some talus in the gullies and talus/scree on the descent, but minor compared to the MR descent on Whitney. The tower from my pics isn't required but it's a worthy detour. Not a ton of exposure aside from the first pitch.

Pro is sparse on the NE Gully on Laurel.

Also, I would leave Cathedral for midweek unless you don't mind lines. Matthes is a much better (and less crowded) route IMO although the approach and route are longer. The Supertopo description is helpful for both.

i'll be out that way towards the end of july. what are some good climbs in the 5.10/5.11 range?

cruxslayer wrote:i'll be out that way towards the end of july. what are some good climbs in the 5.10/5.11 range?

3rd Pillar of Dana
Sun Ribbon Arete or Dark Star on Temple
Blindspot in Pine Ck (not alpine)
Harding Route on Conness
Positive Vibes or Sunspot on the Hulk

my vote would be bear creek spire. it will give you more of the true high sierra alpine feel compared to climbing stuff around tuolumne. the views from the summit are awesome! it can easily be done c2c in a day. the approach is not that grueling, only slight elevation gain over a few miles. it is impossible to get lost and route finding is nil.

of course mountain project does have a search function:

mountainproject.com/scripts…

I agree that Lone Pine Peak is probably not the best choice for a first timer. The old Roper guide, which didn't slouch on ratings, time estimates,etc., characterized it as a day and a half climb. It is really just a long day climb, though the route finding can be problematic and I've heard of some having issues with the descent. Great route though.

Does anyone have an idea on current (10 days from now) Conness conditions? Thanks.

Kyle, it'll definitely be wet. Check out this thread, if you haven't already: mountainproject.com/v/tuolu…

Thanks for the responses everyone. If we are comfortable and prepared for a bivy is the north ridge a realistic goal? Otherwise how are conditions on BCS? I'm not sure I'm up for snowy 5.8 cracks. And hows route finding on the North Arete itself?

Will, I think people are talking about the NE (easy 5th) not the North (5.8) Arete, and it doesn't have any shady chimneys like the N Arete. The NE Arete is fairly straightforward. I'm not sure the snow conditions on the approach/descent right now. You may be doing some postholing.

If you decide on BCS I would recommend the approach I listed as option 2b here: mountainproject.com/v/east-…

Will Creed wrote:Thanks for the responses everyone. If we are comfortable and prepared for a bivy is the north ridge a realistic goal? Otherwise how are conditions on BCS? I'm not sure I'm up for snowy 5.8 cracks. And hows route finding on the North Arete itself?

I would save the North Ridge of Lone Pine until you are comfortable enough on that kind of terrain to solo lots of 4th/easy 5th class terrain and get up it in a day. Much more enjoyable that way.

Can't be alpine if it doesn't have any ice, so I'd say Swiss Arete on Mount Sill as my alpine choice.
For an intro; North Arete, Crystal Crag is pretty nice - plus really easy approach.