Zeb's Arete

Zeb's Arete has decent protection with some choss. Little route finding is required. Stay on the arete. Be mindful of knocking rocks onto your belayer or other climbers. This is a reasonable climb for budding alpinists, but I would not recommend for those new to trad leading or following (this is an alpine climb, and those considerations need to be taken seriously). That being said, this climb is low commitment for the couch approach and deproach as well as the ability to easily bail from the arete.

Pitch breakdown: 

P1 (75 feet) 5.6. Easy climbing and some choss. Climb the right side of the arete from the ledge. I recommend not placing until the headwall is reached to minimize drag if linking P1&2. Competent leaders can easily link these two with a 70m.

P2 (100 feet) 5.7 ("crux") pitch. Head left up the chimney. The climbing is interesting and thoughtful. The protection is good. Remember, everything feels harder than it actually is at 12,500 ft. I recommend linking P1&2 for a stellar 175 foot pitch.

P3 (70 feet) 5.6. I recommend not placing gear if linking pitches and just placing high in the jam crack. Skipping the 5.6 jam crack would be a damn shame, because it's short and sweet. An alternative would be to take the 5-9+ thin cracks alternative on steeper terrain.

P4&5 (225 feet) 5.4. Follow the arete and obvious path of travel. (Link these for a good long easy pitch which makes a fast solo). If placing gear, do so thoughtfully and sparingly to minimize drag.

P6 (80 feet) 4th Class (move the belay). Linking P6&7 is advisable. Regardless, it is recommended to solo across easy 4th Class (your rope will get caught and is more of a hassle than a help). 30/40 feet of easy solo will put you at a bomber anchor at the base of the sweet alcove with hands over a small roof. Once surmounted, you'll see the traverse pitch. One piton on the traverse will run you to the base of the wide crack. If you have moved the belay, you can easily link P6-8 almost to the top (20m shy) with a 70m.

P7 (70 feet) 5.6. The standard pitch goes out to the left and bypasses the short, wide climb then meets with the slab to continue up easy ground on the arete). If you're a fan of offwidth, the short crack is worth the grovel and goes at 5.7. Everything feels harder at 13k. Continue up easy terrain tending slightly left on the arete. Follow the path of least resistance.

P8 (a short jaunt/scramble to the summit). Continue up the easy climbing until you reach the summit plateau.

How do you get back to your car you ask? You'll see it along the road about 500 yards away. Be careful not to trample the plants. Rock hopping saves the sensitive alpine life!

Walk north across the boulderfield, and locate a large gully that descends down towards the base of the Big Buttress. The arete will be in view prominently shortly into the descent. After about a quarter mile, the gully widens and opens up. You will see a path of travel to the right and a huge shelf sitting at the arete (not all the way down). Follow the weakness (trough) up to this shelf. This is the start of P1.

A singles rack to 4 and a set of nuts. There is one piton on the route.