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Tom
Big Wall climber
San Luis Obispo CA
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Topic Author's Original Post - Dec 27, 2009 - 05:33am PT
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ME:
Four days, rain and snow (!!!) in June, on Tribal Rite. We've got lotsa food, water and beer. Hot coffee, soup, etc. We, Wall Masters, will wait it out. The Rescue Helicopter will later fly close later, to see if we're still alive - and see idiots, in their socks drinking coffee - but, we, the idiot Wall Masters, will gain the summit under out own power.
And our amusement during the Crisis? Looking down the Wall: other parties are anxious to make headway quickly between the weather bands of sun-then-storm clouds that move in - a typical Alaskan system. Every time the sun shows, between bands of rain clouds, there was a flurry of activity, way, way, way, down there. As soon as the storm moves back in, the activity = move into shelter.
The down-wall activity is to no avail. This storm is serious, and anybody (except us) who doesn't bail has to later get rescued.
You have to understand:
The weather storm, out of Alaska, is coming in as ribbons of cloud activity - clear, then storm; clear, then storm; clear, then storm.
This is the way the Storms come in - - - recognize it as such.
You can imagine this Storm as being like the open fingers of your opened hand, if you rotate your hand, slowly, across a weather map - and the Fingers of God are the bands of clouds that move across the land, across California, including Yosemite Valley.
This is the way the Alaskan storms come in: clouds, then clear, clouds, then clear . . . .. . . .
Don't EVER forget to bring your cold-weather gear up there, on El Capitan, kids.
I'm not kidding.
You might freeze your ass off, and you might die.
El Capitan is not to be taken lightly.
I got to photograph the Rescue Helicopter, as it swung close to see if PTPP and I were still alive . . . . .
. . . funny, then, that PTTP and I were the only people on the Wall that day who had no need of a rescue . . . .
PTTP and I were just fine.
We finished our route, to the top.
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Gunkie
Trad climber
East Coast US
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Dec 27, 2009 - 11:33am PT
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Taking a huge steamer on our last day on the Nose after holding it in for two days. Relief!
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survival
Big Wall climber
A Token of My Extreme
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Dec 27, 2009 - 11:35am PT
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Tom,
I think mine was Tribal Rite also!
We did the third ascent, survived a storm, and got down to discover that my parents had watched us on the final day through a telescope!!
They met us at Ranger Rock and took us to breakfast, AWESOME!
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Lambone
Ice climber
Ashland, Or
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Dec 27, 2009 - 12:17pm PT
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So Tom, your best experience was watching others suffer while gloating with PTPP how masterfull you were? Interesting.
Mine was Zod in a Day. Success was unknown, our drive was unmatched by any other wall attempt I'd ever made. And we had beer and pizza.
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john arran
climber
sheffield, uk
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Dec 27, 2009 - 12:36pm PT
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"The look on Anne’s face as she approaches the next belay makes me wonder whether this time we really have overdone it. I’m glad she didn’t fall on that pitch; I wasn’t strictly truthful when I said it was safe, and a slip could well have launched her into mid-air, 400m above the verdant roof of the jungle. While unlikely to cause her any physical harm, it would have been a terrifying experience. And then even for a climber of her experience, regaining contact with the rock would be a complex, nervous and energy-sapping trial.
As it is we’re now in the most inaccessible, most intimidating and most lunatic place I can remember ever having the arguable pleasure of belaying; tucked into a tiny corner in the very heart of the huge, bulging roof, under a large ceiling of smooth, compact sandstone. The way here was hard and irreversible, and from here our choices are severely limited by the patently unclimbable ceiling above us and the severely overhanging walls to either side. Our only chance is to the right, where the ludicrously undercut sidewall is teasing us with the promise of a horizontal crack leading out under the ceiling. But from here the crack is tantalisingly out of reach and frustratingly out of clear view.
“The way I see it we have three options,” I explain in as matter-of-fact way as my racing pulse permits. “Ideally we’ll be able to climb directly up to the ceiling from here, and what looks like it may be a handrail will lead from there the fifteen or so metres out right to the edge, where we’ll find big holds to pull round on.” We both look out right, then above us trying to envisage moves up the decidedly blank wall, then back at each other as it is all too obvious this first option isn’t going to happen. No matter how stupid we may have been to find ourselves in this situation, to compound it by trying ridiculously hard moves above the hollow block we’re both tied to would be asking for serious trouble.
“The second option, “ I continue, “is to find some holds around this corner here…” whereupon I extend my tether and lean across from the belay, past the tiny sloping edges we can see, which probably aren’t good enough but just might be, to find that even these melt into a smooth and unclimbable wall. Our eyes meet again, just as Anne is trying to stop her look of ‘this really isn’t fun any more’ from becoming one of genuine terror. For we both know only too well what the third option is.
Our eyes drop as we look down at our feet, where the end of our tiny ledge dissolves into a horizontal fissure running along the very lip of the undercut sidewall ...
If anyone's interested the rest of the story is at http://www.thefreeclimber.com/articles/tfcPizzaEtc.htm
Now we've moved to the Pyrenees we have big adventures on our doorstep, but the nearby granite is 'only' 2,200ft high and usually climbed in a day. Still, it's great to be able to do big routes and sleep in your own bed at night!
http://www.chezarran.com/index.php
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Mark Hudon
Trad climber
Hood River, OR
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Dec 27, 2009 - 12:45pm PT
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Lambone, you could take it that Tom and PTPP were happy that they had prepared well in regard to the other teams and that they weren't exactly happy that others were suffering but merely that they were not.
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Mungeclimber
Trad climber
sorry, just posting out loud.
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Dec 27, 2009 - 09:12pm PT
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Lurking Fear, first El Cap route, great experience full of massive rock slide, storm and long days. I don't know how I can top it at this point, but I'm always looking for the next adventure.
Knowing that you don't have to rush it and that you still have beer makes the experience so much more fun. This is such a key point for myself as well.
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Melissa
Gym climber
berkeley, ca
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Dec 27, 2009 - 10:42pm PT
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Looking at El Cap from the base for the first time after standing on the top for the first time.
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Captain...or Skully
Social climber
Top of the 5.2-5.12 Boulder
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Dec 27, 2009 - 11:03pm PT
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Whoa. Tough question.
Had some seriously shinin' times on the Tall Stones.
Kinda like climbin' Desert Towers. Each one is the best Damn tower EVER!
Hmmmmm.
AfroMan, maybe? It was pretty sweet. Had an unabashed blast.
Or the Zode, 1st El Cap route, had a storm, came out shinin'.
There are several awesome times, for sure.
I dunno.
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'Pass the Pitons' Pete
Big Wall climber
like Ontario, Canada, eh?
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Dec 27, 2009 - 11:15pm PT
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Hey there, Matt - you a bit doped up on your pain meds not to see Tom's tongue planted firmly in his cheek? He describes us big wall wankers as "idiot wall masters".
But I'm with Tom - I take great pleasure in being comfortable in the most hostile of environments. I actually look forward to storms on the Captain, because it means a nice rest day warm and dry in our ledges.
Even these guys on El Cap Towers and the Boot Flake looked well prepared:
We dodged the raindrops and snowflakes just long enough to get up the RURP pitch:
The views of the clearing storm, which appeared as Tom describes above, were stunning:
We did manage to escape from our portaledge flies from time to time, long enough to enjoy a nice hot cup of joe:
Yeah, we made the summit, which we shared with Warren Harding's Wall of Early Morning Light, arguably the best El Cap Top-Out there is! Tom has described this perfect haul station in another post, but I can't find it. Does anyone have a link?
Anyway, here's the view from the top, standing on a perfect one-foot-wide hauling ledge, looking down at Tom with the pigs and ledges one pitch below, with the bridge visible at left:
Yeah, we made the summit. But Tom never mentioned in the post above that he dropped his sleeping bag off the wall! I don't remember if he dropped it before the storm, but suspect he did. He spent the rest of the wall sleeping in his pig when possible. I think I loaned him a pair of furry pants.
Anyway, he was so tired on the summit, he fell asleep in his pig, with his head pillowed against a boulder at this impossible angle!
I always had good times on the wall with Tom, and learned lots of cool stuff from him. We should do another one soon, dude...
Cheers,
Pete
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Lambone
Ice climber
Ashland, Or
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Dec 27, 2009 - 11:41pm PT
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yup I am pretty doped up these days. I enjoy El Cap storms too, but I have been lucky enough to be in the right place at the right time.
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monolith
climber
Berkeley, CA
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Dec 28, 2009 - 01:56am PT
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My partner for Salathe Wall said the best thing about getting away would be not hearing his baby cry for a few days. I knew he would miss his family dearly, so I had his wife record a message on a small tape recorder.
We played it on a beautiful, star filled night on El Cap Spire. The baby was heard crying but I think he shed a tear also.
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Jaybro
Social climber
Wolf City, Wyoming
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Dec 28, 2009 - 02:16am PT
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Too many to pick from; I got to be top out guy on every El Cap route I've done, and those were all special. Watching the the dawn over halfdome while the diving peregrines screamed their greeting, and then catching the colonel on a 50+ footer on the seagull is hard to forget, as was jugging up to that ledge on Aquarius and having said faller present me with a freshly brewed cup of Joe, bivvying on the shield headwall where it was so steep that the bags and the ledges didn't touch the wall was cool, Going from vertigo to kinesthetic joy (with exposure) while leading pancake flake, was enlightening....
Melissa might be on to something though. When I did the EL cap lieback with my family, and could, for the first time, piece together all the pitches of Mescalito (days fresh in my brain at the time) was a time I found moving...
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Wayno
Big Wall climber
Seattle, WA
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Dec 28, 2009 - 03:30am PT
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I would have to say that surviving a bad storm was also my high point and my low point was being in the storm and wondering about survival.
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jack herer
climber
veneta, or
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Dec 28, 2009 - 04:02am PT
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topping out on zodiac, just below steve muse???(sorry if thats the wrong name) a parapalegic who finally returned to climb el cap again after his accident. watching him struggle to finally get over that lip and when he did i had the most amazing feeling. when i topped out a couple minnutes later seeing his the joy in his eyes is something i will never forget. now that is bad ass.
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Mark Hudon
Trad climber
Hood River, OR
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Dec 28, 2009 - 11:19am PT
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I've spent a fair number of days and nights up there but the best night I ever experienced was my first on the approach to the Shield this October after a 30 year hiatus.
I love the way El Cap blocks out the sky and is totally black and the rest of the sky is filled with stars.
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Ottawa Doug
Social climber
Ottawa, Canada
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Dec 28, 2009 - 01:48pm PT
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Tribal Rite June '08, last night two pitches below the top, 18 year old scotch and a cuban cigar.
: )
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mongrel
Trad climber
Truckee, CA
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Dec 28, 2009 - 01:54pm PT
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Like Jaybro, I'd say leading Pancake Flake. If that pitch (well, the 5.9 part) were at the ground, it would be mobbed. Where it sits, it's got to be the most exhilarating pitch of its rating anwhere.
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Gagner
climber
Boulder
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Dec 28, 2009 - 02:08pm PT
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Mid to late-ish '80's.
3rd one day ascent of the Salathe with Steve "Lucky" Smith.
Rarely have I had such a perfect day.
No epics - no fixed gear, stuck ropes, or other jive. Just super efficent and epic free climbing. Smoke break on EC Spire because we were 1 1/2 hours ahead of schedule.
Bluebird day - perfect temps, no wind!
Made it down to the bottom of the East Ledges raps just as it got dark.
Paul
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Prod
Trad climber
Dodge Sprinter Dreaming
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Dec 28, 2009 - 02:44pm PT
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I only have 1 wall under my belt. but what I remember the most of that climb was
1. 1st night sleeping on a ledge.
2. Leading the nipple pitch with cam hooks.
3. Deciding that I was going to ask this woman to marry me.
Prod.
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