Sierra Wide

Our Sierra trip for the year was in doubt due to my niece's visit over the summer and Ye getting very busy at work after she left. But when Ye found the time to leave over the Labor Day weekend, the trip was on! This was going to be a month later than last year's trip and again we had no permits to the popular destinations. Unfortunately, I got hit badly in the ribs during karate just before the trip. I would call out the guy who hit me every time I had to make a hard move and my ribs screamed. Anyway, we ended up climbing long, wide and hard climbs which were challenging in many ways. Ye climbed exceptionally well and got us through the hardest sections. I tried my best and worked hard to follow. I'm proud to watch him grow to become the climber he is today and I'd be very happy if I have contributed to his progression.

A selection of pictures from the trip are here.

August 31, Saturday: 
We started driving from PDX at 6:00am and reached Bridgeport in the evening to very smoky skies. We were planning to climb on the Incredible Hulk, but the smoke made us wonder if we should change plans. We asked various people what the conditions were in the backcountry. Everybody had a different story so we decided to take a chance and go in anyway. We parked and camped for the night at Mono Village campground at Twin Lakes under smoky conditions. The friendly attendant came out late and let us camp for free, otherwise we would had to go in the forest beyond the campground, nice!

September 1, Sunday:

In the morning the campground was still very smoky but we went with the plan and hiked in to the Hulk. We knew from last year the dry crossing over the beaver dams and swamps and early morning cool temps allowed us to make good time. We arrived in 2.5hrs below the Hulk to an eerie emptiness. There were nobody around, what a difference from last year when we couldn't find a spot to camp due to crowds. Smoke worked in our favor. We dropped our packs and hiked up to the base of the Polish Route (5.10+) with our climbing gear. The route's first pitch delivered a punch to us. Things were hard from the get go. It remained this way throughout the climb, struggle, struggle. It was a tough choice for the first climb of the trip and at altitude. In the afternoon the valleys filled with smoke. Fortunately no storms but abundant wind as usual. Once we finished the climb the next challenge was to find the rappels. The only anchor we could see was on the prow and not pointing to the gully. So first Ye went back towards the gully looking for the rappels but came back with no luck. Then I went looking further down and saw a couple trees hoping they had slings on them but none. So then with serious doubts we decided to try the bolt anchor on the prow. I went down the sheer face only to see that our single 60m wouldn't get as to any other anchor. So I climbed up the rope, ugh. In the mean time it was getting late and the possibility of spending the night up there loomed. Once I got back to our high point, Ye decided to go as far as he could with the rope, it is pretty exposed so we kept the belays on, looking for the rappels. He passed the trees and yelled back that he found an anchor. What a relief. I followed quickly and we made four rappels off of somewhat sketchy anchors. Not only that every next anchor was not easily spotted. We made it down to the gully floor as it got dark and hiked out with headlamps over the endless talus. The gear beta was spot on with 2x#4 and a single #5 cam but the descent not so much. We picked a primo spot to pitch our tents and had a late but relaxing dinner having averted an epic.

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September 2, Monday:

We had a slow start to the day from the near epic climb the day before. As we watched three strong climbers hiking to the base of Positive Vibes, we decided we should go climb the Beeline (5.10-). This was a route I tried to climb with Victor several years ago but turned around from its base due to stormy conditions on that day. Around 10am, a leisurely alpine start, we started hiking towards the base. The climbing was a lot of fun and much easier than the Polish route. It was quite windy and the smoke started moving in again in the afternoon. The first three pitches followed fun cracks, fourth pitch called for technical stemming and it was engaging, the fifth pitch started with a right trending face traverse into a wide crack. We both felt comfortable with it. The Polish must have prepared us for the wide. Last couple pitches were easier but the rock quality was not as good. We enjoyed the summit as Ye returned the Hulk Ball, which he took from the summit register last year, mission accomplished! We returned to camp with plenty day light left. Instead of hiking out we decided to stay another night and explore the upper lakes, what a beautiful place.

September 3, Tuesday:
In the morning we hiked out the beautiful Hulk camp hoping to come back to it for more alpine candy.
Next goal was to hike into Temple Crag area. We drove down to Bishop and scored a permit. But the weather was getting very dark and as we were still in Bishop it started raining. Things only got worse during the drive to the trailhead in Big Pine. We waited for a break in the rain but it became obvious we could not hike in today. We had enough of waiting and drove down south to Lone Pine to see if the weather was any better and if we could score permits for Mt Whitney area. No permits and the ranger told us to come on Thursday, sure... We went back to town and had one of the best tacos from a taco truck before heading up to camp at Whitney Portal. That night as we were pouring over topos to decide on the next climbs, Ye asked me if I'd climb the Harding Route on Keeler Needle. What? He had been dreaming about this climb ever since seeing it last year. I listed many of my reservations and fears as excuses. After all Keeler Needle is very ominous and intimidating. It has a reputation for bad rock, hard climbing, snow/ice cone at its base etc. Ye demanded a yes or no answer and finally I agreed to commit while thinking that the Polish route was a struggle and this climb is harder, higher, wider, longer. Obviously I didn't sleep well that night thinking about what we were getting ourselves into...

September 4, Wednesday:
We had an early start to our approach to Keeler Needle to avoid any contact with the law :). Knowing the approach from last year we made quick progress towards the Mt Whitney massif. In less than three hours we were in the moraine of Keeler Needle.  The whole place is covered by big boulders and hardly any flat spots were available. We found a sandy spot and scraped it flat so we could pitch our little tents. Snow melt was nearby for water source. It was still before noon and we had planned to do some other climbing nearby but the sheer size of Keeler Needle made us decide that we should take the day off, rest and hydrate for the big day tomorrow. Incidentally there was a party on the climb. We watched and cheered them on as they made progress towards the top all day along. We stashed our gear for the climb at the base of the climb and got a close up look. The route didn't look too bad as far as we could see. The snow cone was a simple walk-up and my ice axe was totally unnecessary. Now we just had to wait till early morning to get on this beast next morning.

September 5, Thursday:

Big day, and time to put the game face on. We got up at 5am but it was pitch dark and cold below freezing. After a quick bite and coffee we got moving by 7am we started the first pitch. Here we go Harding Route (5.10c). Ye launched the first pitch, followed by the second pitch which involved pulling over a roof which was quite physical. A moderate third pitch got us to the base of the first offwidth. Most of the crack had features and no offwidth technique was required until the very end where a #5 cam seemed useful.  The next long pitch was easy and we simulclimbed it to the first big bench area. We felt we were moving faster than the team from yesterday. The next pitch brought us to the base of the Red Dihedral pitch. We both smiled at the scene, what a great looking crack. If it was at low elevation there would be a line. Perfect jams and stems for 200ft brought us to the base of the crux offwidth. We had read that the crack would take gear at its back and indeed it did. Ye did a great job leading it and not too long has passed the three bolts after which the climbing eases. Wow, the hardest part was over for him. I shouldered the two packs until I had to go into offwidth mode, then they had to be dangled. It was pretty hard going with the weight and bulk and I appreciated very much the tight belay Ye provided. I was worked at the end of the pitch. Ye took us through another chimney and we were nearly under the summit headwall. From there a counter clock traverse brought us to the upper bench right under the summit. The exposure and rope drag were huge. At this point we were in the shade and it got really cold. We looked at what the topo calls clean cracks. They looked good but the cold motivated us to skip them and get up as fast as we could. From here on the route goes in to the chossy, blocky north side. Ye had a picture of this section and we found it very helpful. From the upper bench five pitches brought us to the summit. I could not believe it was only 5pm and we had pulled off the climb so smoothly. We hiked over to the summit plateau of Mt Whitney and down the scrappy Mountaineer's route down to Iceberg Lake and back to our camp in the hole under Keeler Needle. It took a while to grasp what we had just did. It was just about a 12 hour day including the climb and descent. I really wished we could celebrate this but all I had was a handful of pasta and a tuna pouch. Food was little but the satisfaction was huge and an enormous weight had lifted off of our shoulders. I thank Ye for convincing me to do this climb which scared me so much and believing that we could pull it off. He made it happen!














September 6, Friday:
We packed our stuff and hiked out of the Keeler moraine. Incredibly proud but very hungry also. A two hour hike got us back to Whitney Portal. We quickly made it down to Lone Pine for a brunch at our favorite Alabama Hills Diner. We felt like we were done climbing, nothing else would feel right after Keeler!

So the thought of hiking in to Temple Crag was scrapped. Instead, we decided for a fun moderate day by running the ridges on Mt Conness as our last climb before we would head home. We drove to Saddleback campground near Tuolumne to find it nearly empty due to the Rim Fire closures. The camping was so pleasant here, which made me wonder why we always camped over the years in the dirty, noisy ghetto Tuolumne campground. We cooked large amounts of food now that we had access to our supplies. My body lacked so much nutrition from all the camps first at the Hulk then at Keeler, that I stuffed myself to the brink. After food and a bit of rest we thought we are here and used to the wide climbing by now, why not do another Harding route on the SW face on Mt Conness. The route is shorter and the book claims it is easier than Keeler Needle. So a plan was hatched to go for it early morning.

September 7, Saturday:
A pretty chilly morning greeted us around 6:30am as we started our approach hike towards Mt Conness from Sawmill CG. We practically were running to stay warm. Along the way we passed another team who was also going for the SW Face, coincidentally we had met one of them, David, on Red Dihedral on the Hulk last year. We chatted a bit and continued our brisk pace. We dropped our packs on the summit plateau and donned our climbing gear. During the haste to get out of the hard blowing cold wind, we completely missed the descent gully which resulted in dropping down way further than the gully and contouring back to the base of the route. This probably added another 40 minutes or so extra boulder hopping. The other team caught up with us as we started the first pitch. The first pitch was slimy wet as expected. The second pitch was full rope long, slanting to the right awkward and hard. Third pitch started easy then zigzaged across an unprotected face followed by a chimney. Placing gear at the beginning and end of the traverse and then going straight up in the chimney gave me horrible rope drag and I had to cut the pitch short which kind of killed my mojo. Next was the offwitdh pitch. The really tight start gave me hard time as I struggled with the pack on. We had a single #6 cam and Ye completely ran out the pitch. I was terrified just following it and thinking about the consequence of a fall here. It was truly a heroic lead, wow!

Next pitch contained the tricky 5.10 traverse and supposedly 5.8 chimney. I sailed off the traverse and had a tough time moving up the chimney, which did not favor bigger bodies. After this the climbing became more open crack climbing for two more pitches and fun. We found ourselves on easy ground below the summit. It was now 5pm and it had taken us about seven hours to climb the route. I felt the climbing was much harder than on Keeler Needle, maybe I was tired from a week long climbing or had too much food the night before.The views were obscured by all the smoke coming from the Rim Fire to the west. We briefly enjoyed the summit and forced our tired legs to go down. On the way back we ran into a family of Ptarmigans who were not afraid of us at all. We enjoyed their presence and took bunch of pictures. Before dark we made it back to camp with great joy and satisfaction of having done another one of the big four routes according to Peter Croft.

September 8, Sunday:
After the near fiasco on the Polish route we had our doubts about our climbing but in a way it prepared us for the wide climbing that ensued. The smoke from the fires kept the crowds down and made camping easier. Ye did an exceptionally well job leading the hard pitches. I'm simply proud to be part of the overall effort. The Sierra-Nevada mountains have been nice to us. They challenged and inspired at the same time. Until next time, peace!

Squamish Climbing Frenzy

With four days of vacation and perfect forecast to the north we decided to head up to Squamish with the goal of climbing as much as we could. We drove as far as the border and spent the night at the last rest area on grass hidden behind trees. Noisy but nice otherwise. On Thursday we made the short trip to Squamish hoping to find a spot in the Chief campground. Of course it was full so we opted to stay at Klahanie campground, pricey but with showers, tables and somewhat private camp sites it was worth the extra money. We scored a site (108) with the best view just to be moved to another one the next day due to existing reservations...
Anxious to start climbing we dashed for Squaw to climb Birds of Prey. But by the time we got to the base there were multiple parties on route and waiting, so went over to Jungle Warfare (5.10a)

More pictures can be seen here.

Valkyrie Attempt

To be written up.

Trout in August

I interrupted my yard work weekend when Stan wanted to meet at Trout Creek on Sunday. I had not climbed with Stan over a year if my memory serves me right. I spent a very comfortable night at the quiet campground on Saturday and Stan was at camp 7am sharp on Sunday. Given the heat we started climbing early and non-stop until we were pretty tired. Once the sun hit the main wall we went to the north end. We managed to get in 8 routes, not bad for TC, topping off the day with little offwidth practice on Rodeo Crack. We climbed U3, Fissuremen*, Gold Rush, Two Step Left*, Fun Soup, Great Googlie Mooglie*, Bedside Manner, Rodeo Crack. 

Sierra Blitz

With big plans to climb several classic alpine lines but without permits, Ye and I took a gamble to go down to Eastern Sierra during the first week of August. We were always on the move and made the most out of the time we spent there and came back safely with a great sense of satisfaction and accomplishment.

July 28, Saturday: 
We started driving from PDX at 6:30am and reached the famous Mobile station restaurant in Lee Vining around 7pm for the usual stop to have a nice and expensive dinner. Then we drove to Saddleback Lake campground and pitched our tents and slept in the trees out of sight. The night at 10K elevation was hard after coming up from sea level.

July 29, Sunday:
We couldn't get up and moving at our 5am plan to climb the Third Pillar after having difficulties sleeping. Eventually, our engines started kicking and we cruised up Dana Plateau. Seeing many parties getting ready we ran down the gully and of course missed the turn off to the start of the route. 2 hours to the base was not bad but our late start had put 3 parties ahead of us. Fortunately for us, not so for them, two parties got lost on the second pitch (go further left and don't get suckered in the cracks on the face) we passed them and were on top by 2pm. Happily we cruised down to the lake and Mobil station for a slice of pizza and fries, yum. Next, we drove to Lone Pine and up to Whitney Portal and camped at the beautiful hikers campground at 8.3K.

July 30, Monday
Here comes the first crux, we planned to get in to the lottery for Whitney permits at 11am so we had a leisurely morning and coffee in Lone Pine. The friendly ranger there says that there a two permits available for today. Stunned by our luck we have a big brunch at Alabama Hills Diner in Lone Pine and go back up to Whitney Portal. We spent the hot hours packing for the next 3 days. Around 3pm we shoulder our heavy packs and motor up the North fork trail which goes by quickly with great vistas. After a 3.5 hour trek we found ourselves a nice sheltered spot to camp by Iceberg Lake. We both have light headache but not too bad.






July 31, Tuesday

The plan for today was to climb the east buttress on
Mt Whitney which has more climbing and better rock according to people we talked. However, Ye was really feeling the altitude and could not sleep at all, but amazingly he rallied and we started moving after everybody had gone already. The party ahead of us decided to bail after the first pitch so we were free to go. Few roped pitches led up and around the Peewee and we un-roped and scrambled to the top. After enjoying the views, taking pictures we endured a long nasty descent of Mountaineers route. The afternoon was hot and we both hit the sack for some napping.

August 1, Wednesday
With Whitney behind us we wanted to climb Mt Russell. We brought enough gear for Mithral Dihedral so went for it. Since the route stays in the shade we had another leisurely start. Two guys were already on the route when we got there. The first two pitches were great fun despite what Croft says in his book. Then came the "dihedral". I took the first part and stopped at the chimney. I remembered people saying that it would be good place to stop to avoid a hanging belay higher up. Ye finished up the rest and it was awesome. From the top of the dihedral we stayed roped and simuled three rope lengths to the top. There were hard sections that a rope was good idea. Another long scree and talus descent, not as bad as Mountaineers, saw us back to camp.

August 2, Thursday
The previous day clouds were building all day and at night we had clouds shroud the entire Iceberg followed by lightning and rain, very eery. We briefly entertained the idea of climbing Fishhook on Mt Russell but instead of doing the same descent we decided to pack up, yes including our wag bags, and hike out. The hike out was expedited by thoughts of a large brunch at A-Hills Diner in Lone Pine. Food and the valley heat made us really slow but eventually we made our way to Bishop for some afternoon climbing. Cardinal Pinnacle with its relatively short approach and four fun pitches on the west side fit the bill well. We stuffed ourselves at The Chinese buffet in Bishop for dinner and watched the lightning storm outside.

August 3, Friday
We spent the previous night 20 miles south of Lee Vining in the woods.It was nice to sleep in the warmth and extra oxygen for once. We continued driving north to Bridgeport to get permits for the Incredible Hulk area. After we got our backcountry permits Ye spent several hours to stitch his approach shoes together which had taken a serious beating from all the scree and talus hiking. Mono Village and all the RVs, campers and people was quite the scene. After lunch in sweltering heat we hiked in Little Slide Canyon to the Hulk area. We found the trail which led to a dry crossing on a log and bypassed the swamps and beaver crossings. In 2.5 hours we joined the masses camped at the base of the Hulk. The heat of the day resulted in a big thunderstorm and we watched party after party bailing from the wall.

August 4, Saturday
We got up at 5am and saw a team already hiking by headlamp to the base of Red Dihedral, our goal for the day. We got going at 6am and shortly after that two young guys were pressing right behind us posed to pass us. Not so fast young guns, they admitted by saying "we didn't think you were so fit" :). We started behind the party that started in the dark but they were already lost on the first pitch and we caught up with them quickly and got stuck. They slowed us down considerably until they finally let us pass three pitches above the red dihedral. We cruised to the top and enjoyed few moments before the thunderstorm closed in. We got a good soaker on the final talus descent, but we couldn't care less. In an hour we were packed up and headed out. On the way out we ran into John Erickson, my doctor friend from Chicago, who had to bail from Positive Vibes when the storm hit, small world. That evening I joined Ye and had the biggest slab of meat in a very long time at Mono Village.

August 5, Sunday
The previous night we experienced an incredibly violent thunder, lightning and rain storm. At times it was so bright that it would blind and the noise was deafening. As terrifying as all this was, I lied on my back with a smile of great satisfaction having climbed all these classic lines. In the morning we picked up our wet camping gear and started the long drive home. It was a memorable trip and much thanks to Ye for making it happen! 

More pictures from the trip are here.

Flagstone (July 5-6, 2008)

I had hoped to make a Squamish trip over the long Independence Day weekend, but the forecast was not good to the north. Unfortunately I didn't have any alpine partners either, so the weekend didn't look good for climbing. Henry had invited me for a BBQ and fireworks at his ranch on the 4th. The Denyer's were there too and they told me that they were going to Flagstone tomorrow. I had never even heard of this place and with my usual snobbish attitude I asked if it was any good or if it was a choss pile. They assured me it was good climbing with bolts and slabs but no cracks. Not my favorite style but hey it was climbing so we hatched a plan to go there.

Flagstone is basically a dome east of Eugene above McKenzie River. The access is via long forest roads. I was surprised to see how popular the place was. It is mainly a slab climbing area, with good rock. The popular routes are clean of moss and friendly bolted. The routes on the north side are almost over bolted. The routes are long and it is good to have a 70m rope or two 60m ropes to get down. I have to admit the climbing is quite fun.

Saturday turned out to be overcast which provided cool temps ideal for climbing. Mark led Hydrotube (5.9) first thing in the morning. I and Natasha followed the exciting first pitch and led the easier second pitch. Meanwhile Henry and Nolana climbed Acme Problem (5.7). We all converged for the double rope rappel down. Next I jumped on a 5.10a route which had a thin start, midway I got a bit off-route and it got hard that I had to down climb and correct it. Next door Mark led a 5.8 route which was stiff for the grade. From my route we TRed the next right slab which is another 5.10a/b. Finally before heading for lunch I led another long 5.10a route, a 70m rope was just enough to get me back. The route started with easy 5.9 moves and the upper section was sustained and cool 10a moves to a mantle before anchors. For lunch we ate Henry's left over roast beef sandwiches , yummy. For the afternoon we headed to the north side and Mark led the first pitches of Northern Ligths (5.8) and another 5.8 next door. Nolana did a fine job leading the first picth Toy Box (5.8). There we ran into Gent and John G. they came to set up ropes for their kids. It was fun to watch the kids play on the slabs, so cool.
We called it a day and set camp in the middle of the blocked forest road. Mark cooked up fajitas and with all the good stuff to go with.

Sunday we woke up to a misty morning but the clouds soon burned off as we went back to the crag. Henry and Nolana wanted to do Hydrotube (5.9) so we went to the far right end of the crag and I led the tenuous Deep Pocket (5.9), the first bolt is pretty high and required sketchy traversy moves. It was a wake up call. I almost fell at the third bolt as I missed the key pocket hold. After Mark and Natasha TRed the route we traded ropes with Henry. We ran into the guy who put up some of the routes here nearly 20 year ago. He recommended the 5.10b next to Hydrotube. So I went for it with a bit of hesitation after my so so performance on Deep Pocket. The route had really powerful and good moves. The crux came higher up when I had to do a side pull and high reach over the lip. I committed to the move but my right foot slipped and I came off, fortunately the route is well bolted and it was a short fall. After some thinking and looking around I pulled the move, very fun and exciting. I placed a blue tcu and gold camalot on the route, so I was happy. After everybody took their turn, Mark led another fun 5.10b to the right. This route didn't have powerful moves but was more delicate, also really good. Finally I pushed Henry to lead a 5.10a route next to Acme Problem and he did a fine job. We all took rides on these routes and called it good.

It turned out to be a great fun weekend of climbing on slabs which I didn't know existed in Oregon. Thanks to the Denyer's and Henry and Nolana for having me and all the good food.

More pictures from this trip are here.

Buckner NFace Attempt (June 28-29, 2008)

More pictures from this trip are here.