Discussion Topic |
|
This thread has been locked |
| Messages 1 - 28 of total 28 in this topic |
blake
Trad climber
Berkeley, CA
|
|
|
Topic Author's Original Post - Sep 22, 2006 - 01:01am PT
|
well, thanks again to all who offered advice/help a little while ago for our attempt at The Nose. my brother peter and i headed over to the valley last Tuesday and started climbing on Wednesday. here i'm leading the (maybe) third pitch:
now, a few notes. i feel that we were well-prepared in some ways for the route, in that we have been climbing multi-pitch trad for many years, we are both engineers and have good understanding of all the gear, systems, hauling, safety factors, etc. HOWEVER, in other ways, we had very little preparation! mainly, we had only climbed one "big wall" before, the SFWC. needless to say, we were VERY SLOW on the aid pitches.
we had a minor setback at Sickle Ledge (top of pitch 4), when it started to rain. fortunately, we had a camera with us, so i managed to smile despite the rain AND the 18 other ropes fixed to the two bolts on Sickle:
(call me conservative, but at one time there were two parties body-hauling two ENORMOUS haul bags and another party jugging fixed lines, all on the same two-bolt anchor - maybe there should be a third bolt?)
anyway, weather cleared up and we were into the pendulums, which i though went pretty well, considering our lack of experience. i wish i had a shot of me running across to do the original pendulum and making a diving handjam into the stoveleg! that was excellent fun. instead, here's a (enhanced drama due to slight camera tilt) shot of pete following me into the Stovelegs, option A.
so i don't have any night shots of us doing the last pitch up to dolt tower, but yes, it was good times pushing the 3.5 camelot in the dark. amazingly good sleep on dolt tower (we had it to ourselves), and here's pete leading after the pendulum off of dolt:
and if you're observant, you'll notice the light in that picture and the next does not bode well for getting past el cap tower on this day. here's pete arriving at belay 13. finally, the trees start to look smaller!
and now, The Chef (as pete calls it) tastes so good on El Cap Tower:
and the next morning, wake up ...
and wish i had actually learned some yoga:
unfortunately for us, where did all the time go? we were going too alowly, we decided, to realistically make it to camp four without another long night of dark climbing, probably followed by another long day and night, etc, which, well, we just weren't up for it, and pete actually had to get back to start school, blah blah blah we decided to bail. so, one more shot of our high point:
and we were off. some tricky rappelling and swinging to get back to dolt tower. pete is dancing to encourage me to swing harder, and meanwhile, a party of friendly Croatians has materialized:
if this video works, here's me doing my version of the King Swing Bail: (hmm, photobucket doesn't like it, i'll try YouTube)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tn-EY2J8wKc
and yes, i got to do all 8 raps from dolt tower with The Pig, as pete watched deviously:
and a few more shots (panoramas that pete put together) of the rappel route:
from the bottom, somehow showing the whole big rock (that's me about four-fifths of the way up the photo, but unfortunately not very far up the nose):
and, back on the ground, safe but defeated:
now i wanna train properly and do it again . ..
mostly so i can get some photos of the other parts of the route to post on SuperTopo, of course.
oh well, good experience.. actually, great experience. and everyone we met on and around the route was super nice. oh, it was fantastic to be up on el cap tower after dark, and see all the other headlamps come out on the rest of the wall. weird sort of community, no? every once in a while, a great whoop or whelp out of someone finishing a pitch hours after dark. good stuff.
finally, we did find a wall hammer on the way down, which pete ("Eddie") already posted about. contact him if it's yours.
by the way, does anyone really want to read a trip report about a failed attempt on what must be the most climbed route on the most well-known big wall? oh well, i promised i would send something in.
cheers!
blake
|
|
ewto
Mountain climber
My mommy's tummy
|
|
|
Sep 22, 2006 - 01:08am PT
|
Sweet!
|
|
WBraun
climber
|
|
|
Sep 22, 2006 - 01:10am PT
|
" ....does anyone really want to read a trip report about a failed attempt ......"
Failed or success it's all good. Nice write up Blake.
|
|
crusher
climber
Santa Monica, CA
|
|
|
Sep 22, 2006 - 01:19am PT
|
Great pics, great adventure and you made it back safe.
Kudos!
|
|
Ed Hartouni
Trad climber
Livermore, CA
|
|
|
Sep 22, 2006 - 01:23am PT
|
It's the adventure of it!
Great to hear about it, nice report, and good luck on your preparations for you next time...
I have so many failed attempts on my list...oh man, but there are some that are sweeter than some of the sends.
|
|
Zander
Trad climber
Berkeley
|
|
|
Sep 22, 2006 - 01:25am PT
|
Hi Blake,
Thanks for the TR. Great pics too. Don't get too bummed. Next time you'll get it. Besides, any day on the rock is a good day,
See ya,
Zander
|
|
Shack
Big Wall climber
Reno NV
|
|
|
Sep 22, 2006 - 01:42am PT
|
Thanks for the TR...
I think more people should post TR's...any kind.
So what if you didn't get to the top...
It still sounds like you guys had a lot of fun.
Now you know what to do differently next time!
Great pics too!
|
|
Legion
Trad climber
The Vertical Wasteland
|
|
|
Sep 22, 2006 - 01:49am PT
|
Nice TR and pics, my buddy Richard and I ran into you guys at the base on Wednesday I think it was. You guys were jugging up to Sickle. Glad to hear you had a safe climb and are psyched to get back again!
|
|
Clint Cummins
Trad climber
SF Bay area, CA
|
|
|
Sep 22, 2006 - 03:38am PT
|
blake,
Thanks for sharing your trip report.
How did you end up handling the extra fixed rope to Sickle? Did you toss one down and have some friends pick it up?
|
|
Kartch
climber
belgrade, mt
|
|
|
Sep 22, 2006 - 09:32am PT
|
Sweet TR. Nice pics.
|
|
Euroford
Trad climber
chicago
|
|
|
Sep 22, 2006 - 10:23am PT
|
looks like you guys had a good time, up and down.
|
|
Russ Walling
Social climber
Out on the sand, Man.....
|
|
|
Sep 22, 2006 - 10:26am PT
|
Hey! That was a cool TR! Great pics. Loved the Foreign Legion style bandana taped to the helmet trick.
|
|
spyork
Social climber
Land of Green Stretchy People
|
|
|
Sep 22, 2006 - 11:21am PT
|
Thanks for the trip report. You will make it next time. Besides, if you do trip reports, I don't have to write about the stupid things I do.
Steve
|
|
Crimpergirl
Sport climber
St. Louis
|
|
|
Sep 22, 2006 - 02:31pm PT
|
Excellent - Thanks for the photos! Plus, it's extra fun to realize that I probably saw your headlights dancing in the dark on El Cap last week... cool....
|
|
Lambone
Ice climber
Ashland, Or
|
|
|
Sep 22, 2006 - 02:54pm PT
|
From the meadows, we watched you heading up Stovelegs in the dark, and doing the big pendulum back to Dolt tower afterward. Sorry you din't make it!
Is that big pendulum required on the normal bail route? I thought there were anchors straight down the face below El Cap Tower???
|
|
Roger Breedlove
climber
Cleveland Heights, Ohio
|
|
|
Sep 22, 2006 - 03:02pm PT
|
Nice TR and pictures, Blake. It's too bad that you had to come down, but it will go like a breeze when you return. It is a big rock, isn't it?
I bailed on the Nose, with a client, in the stovelegs. Way too hot, and guiding is slow. I wouldn't take the chance of dealing with a dehydrated client up high.
Your pictures bring it all back--living vicariously.
Best, Roger
|
|
curlie
Trad climber
SLO, CA
|
|
|
Sep 22, 2006 - 05:37pm PT
|
Nice TR, man! Wall-noob to wall-noob, I know what it's like to bail 'cause you're going too slow!
|
|
Standing Strong
Mountain climber
the trail
|
|
|
Sep 22, 2006 - 05:46pm PT
|
blake that's an awesome tr. it's the journey not the destination... i think it's rad you were out there gettin' after it.
|
|
JuanDeFuca
Big Wall climber
Stoney Point
|
|
|
Sep 22, 2006 - 08:34pm PT
|
This is the best thread of the week. Thanks and good luck next time.
Juan
|
|
Gunkie
climber
East Coast US
|
|
|
Sep 22, 2006 - 08:45pm PT
|
Nice and thanks for sharing. Next time you'll nail it. Once you reach Camp 4, the pitches go much quicker. Besides you already did the 'technical' crux; in the Gunks we would say that we did the climb even if the are some easier 5.10R roofs above the 5.10+ very well protected pitch we just did :)
|
|
blake
Trad climber
Berkeley, CA
|
|
|
Topic Author's Reply - Sep 22, 2006 - 09:18pm PT
|
[Is that big pendulum required on the normal bail route? I thought there were anchors straight down the face below El Cap Tower???]
Lambone- our understanding was that you could rap straight down from dolt, or straight down from stuff above pitch 17 (king swing), but not in between (when the route swings wide to the right to and from el cap tower). could be wrong, of course, but we didn't see anything straight down from el cap tower. anyway, swinging around gave us something to do on the way down. .
by the way, i used one cam hook exactly once, and that was in the little "C2+" section on pitch 3, where i used it as a regular hook in a pocket i didn't have the right size hybrid alien for. thank goodness for cam hooks, ha ha.
blake
|
|
blake
Trad climber
Berkeley, CA
|
|
|
Topic Author's Reply - Sep 22, 2006 - 09:24pm PT
|
Clint,
we ended up doing some real rope tomfoolery around sickle. we fixed and hauled all the way to the top of pitch 6, left a 70m rope from there back to sickle, then a 60m (our eventual lead line), a 50, another 50, and a 40 back to the ground. after juggin up in the morning, we dropped the 40 and two 50's for pickup, which was successful. i guess it worked pretty well, although it seemed to take a long time dealing with all the ropes ..
meanwhile, there were a bunch of other fixed ropes from sickle to the ground, and then there were a bunch of other parties just jugging and rapping on which fixed rope was free at the time. it's a shame because it's so easy with a lot of weight to burn up a rope rapping that far on a single line with a regular ATC-type device and without much concern for "someone else's ropes". . oh well, we all made it.
Nose or Bust
blake
|
|
Jaybro
Social climber
The West
|
|
|
Sep 22, 2006 - 09:44pm PT
|
Great report, spectacular photos. That is what the spirit of climbing is all about. I envy your adventure, You put me back there!
Next time try to allow more time before deadlines, (they have shut me down, before)and, really, don't worry about being slow! You'll get faster as you go and get it increasingly together. 'Up there'is the only place it's going to happen.
My first El Cap route (Aquarius,82) took six days, we dropped stuff (my bag, pins, nuts, flakes) sat out a storm (where we ran out of supplies) and all the rest. But just doing it once gave us the confidence to manage several other, proud, slow, ascents, and eventually we got faster.
|
|
Irisharehere
Trad climber
Gunks
|
|
|
Sep 22, 2006 - 09:49pm PT
|
That wasn't a failure - it was a successful reconaissance......
|
|
Slakkey
Trad climber
From a Quiet Place by the Lake
|
|
|
Sep 22, 2006 - 09:50pm PT
|
For once I agree with Juan, This is the best thread of the week. Blake you guys did great no failure what so ever. Great Pics, Great views. You guys are a true breath of fresh air to this site. Never give up.
|
|
onepitch
Social climber
berkeley CA
|
|
|
Sep 22, 2006 - 10:17pm PT
|
Nice go Blake and Pete,
I was sure you guys would make it. I figured it would be in the middle of the night when you topped out but I was sure. I'm inspired to restart my wall career because of you guys(not that I had one but you know what I mean).
Anyway, hopefully Pete is not too bogged down with this new school stuff to climb regularly.
Jeremy
|
|
Mimi
climber
|
|
|
Sep 23, 2006 - 12:20pm PT
|
Cool pics/TR Blake! Sorry you had to bail. You did gain valuable experience regardless. Can't wait to see your TR when you do send that thing.
|
|
| Messages 1 - 28 of total 28 in this topic |
|
SuperTopo on the Web
|
Let us know!