Most precarious spire ever climbed.

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p-owed

Social climber
Ramona ca
Apr 3, 2010 - 02:21am PT
Do they believe it?
cintune

climber
the Moon and Antarctica
Apr 3, 2010 - 09:44am PT

Studly

Trad climber
WA
Apr 3, 2010 - 11:41am PT
Here's a link to the first ascent of Assassin Spire that was finally climbed last month. A scary stack of choss frozen togather.
http://www.alpinist.com/doc/web10w/newswire-assassin-spire-cascades
Ed Hartouni

Trad climber
Livermore, CA
Apr 3, 2010 - 12:55pm PT
nice +½π pic, p-owed...
brett

climber
oregon
Apr 3, 2010 - 01:47pm PT
There was one of the horsemen at Smith. I remember thinking anyone who climbed it didn't have too much regard for the future. It's gone.

Mighty Hiker

climber
Vancouver, B.C.
Apr 3, 2010 - 06:11pm PT
Childe Roland to the dark tower came....

The Siege Perilous...
Steve Grossman

Trad climber
Seattle, WA
May 16, 2010 - 06:21pm PT
The Bump Less Perilous!!!
tradmanclimbs

Ice climber
Pomfert VT
May 16, 2010 - 09:39pm PT
The gendarm was precarious enough that it fell down.. The top of Aincent Art is kind of short but the way it wiggles up there certainly makes it feel somwhat precarious...
couchmaster

climber
pdx
May 16, 2010 - 10:45pm PT
Can't speak to the skinniest out there, and certainly NOT the most precarious or hairiset. But my personal demon and personal hairiest, The Salathe Highway on The Old Witch pinnacle just saw a 2nd ascent, literally, yesterday. I asked the leader, who'd just returned from Yosemite, how hard he thought it was and he said something like it was easy on the Yosemite scale but at least a 7 (of 10) on the testicular shrinkage scale. Once enough folks do it and the knobs stop popping off or someone sticks a bolt or 2 in her: that will ease to about a 2 or 3 we both agreed.

Some pics. 1st is the profile that got her the name. The route, the first up her started from the notch and can be better seen on the distance pic taken of the other side. Essentially starting up the chimney then the left profile.

Nearing the top

On top leaving a rap sling on her hair bun. BTW, the little pinnacle isn't blowing the big one in this picture, that's a needless #5 big bro, so get yer mind our of the gutter.

This picture was taken from @ 200 feet off the deck. The rap point is over that overhang there.

Distance view with the top marked.

That's all I got. That and a personal shout out to my man Fish™. Big Big thanks to the Mussmaster himself. I ordered some 9/16" supertape from Fish Products and told him the story of my fixation (ie, dreaming of a solo, ground up, no bolts and hammerless ascent of a virgin pinnacle -but it wasn't this one as it turned out). I was later to be very grateful that my local boyz were out of that material, cause look at what Fish sewed up and sent me with the Supertape order too for no charge!! Fish Frikkan rules™!


Russ sent me like 6 of these sewn tie-offs. 3 small 3 large. The large worked, I didn't have the sac to use the small for pro on small knobs. I dubbed them Fish™ Magic Tie-offs™ ™ ™, and they are really sweet, as they stay cinched up much better, unlike just cinching a full length runner!

mike m

Trad climber
black hills
Topic Author's Reply - Feb 8, 2011 - 11:37pm PT
Bump for some crazy mo-fo's climbing scary spires!
mike m

Trad climber
black hills
Topic Author's Reply - Feb 8, 2011 - 11:57pm PT
I wonder if there are any rock spires unstable enough to sway in the wind. The leaning column on Devils Tower's Durrance route moves several inches by just standing on it.
Allen Hill

Social climber
CO.
Feb 9, 2011 - 12:01am PT
http://www.mountainproject.com/v/colorado/grand_junction/escalante_canyon/106085949
Bobert

Trad climber
boulder, Colorado
Feb 9, 2011 - 12:51pm PT
In the early sixties, Layton Kor talked me into a climbing trip to Glenwood Canyon. He said it was just like the Dolomites. (Neither of us had been to the Dolomites but were intrigued with them). We did a number of climbs, each one with it's unique near-death experience.
Layton had spotted this very large flake with a pinnacle-like summit stuck onto one of the walls. He thought it looked challenging.
On the climb, I was belaying from a little ledge when I looked up and saw a large rock heading right for me. I instinctively rolled off the ledge and ended up hanging from my belay anchor. To my horror I saw the rock had cut both of our double-ropes completely in two. Luckily on the other side of the anchor. I told Kor he was off belay for a minute. Then he went merrily on his way.
When we sat on the summit and looked down, I remarked "Wouldn't it be ironic if this thing just toppled over?"
We looked at each other for a few seconds, then Kor started frantically drilling a rap bolt.
Every time I drive through the canyon I look up to see if the pinnacle is still there. So far it is.
ydpl8s

Trad climber
Santa Monica, California
Feb 9, 2011 - 01:03pm PT
Hank, that looks like a smokestack tower near Salida, Co.
TKingsbury

Trad climber
MT
Feb 9, 2011 - 01:31pm PT
Sparky

Trad climber
vagabon movin on
Feb 9, 2011 - 01:58pm PT
Petite Grepon in RMNP is fun to get the first winter ascent

http://www.math.usu.edu/~bryanb/photos/climbing/trad/trad5.html
le_bruce

climber
Oakland: what's not to love?
Feb 9, 2011 - 02:18pm PT
Hank, that looks like a smokestack tower near Salida, Co.


Front Range Freaks - see it! Cool video.
Haggis

Trad climber
Scotland
Feb 9, 2011 - 02:34pm PT
nah - what you need is a spire that requires a small rubber boat or a swim to get to the base.

its also an arch - very cool



Castle Yesnaby - Orkney - bonnie Scotland
not my image
anees

climber
Feb 9, 2011 - 02:56pm PT
I wonder if there are any rock spires unstable enough to sway in the wind.

My experience climbing Honeymoon Chimney on the Priest in Castle Valley UT leads me to say "Yes!" I climbed it on a day the wind was absolutely howling. Stemming up between the Priest and the Nuns (I think it's the Nuns?), trying to reach the 3rd pitch bolt ladder, it seemed very clear that one or both of the towers was swaying back and forth. There might have been some vertigo involved as well (it's EXPOSED), but it's a really wide stem and I could feel the distance between the two towers changing rhythmically, closer and farther, as they moved. Yikes!
nutjob

Trad climber
Berkeley, CA
Feb 9, 2011 - 06:30pm PT
There's a tower on Hawkman's Escape where Ramblin' Rose cuts left, thatI swear was shifting every time the deep bass moan of the wind came through. I was chimneying up between the pillar and the main wall, and felt it rock out a little and I abandoned that technique.

The second time we tried Hawkman's, I stayed away from that scary thing as much as I could:

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