Climb: Stuart-NW face
Date of Climb: 3/14/2005
Trip Report: On our second effort in two weeks (first time in, it snowed), Jim and I did the better part of the NW face route on Mt. Stuart Sunday/Monday. Conditions are primo right now and I have to recommend this one strongly to those looking for burly adventure.
Our hikes in and out were superb and the only thing to note really is that we didn't bring snowshoes and this was a fine decision, for the trail is nicely packed down. So as soon as they open the #$%(ing gate, there will be easy access to the high country.
Monday, climbing day, we woke up at 4am and were walking in 15 minutes. Ran into a couple people bivying up on the moraine. Brrr, it was cold and windy. Apparently, they tried the Girth Pillar day before but one of them dropped a tool so they rapped and in the only words I heard over the wind, "we did the Ice Cliff Glacier...we had to do SOMETHING!" I think this was their second effort...
Took us nearly 4 hours (slow and steady) to get from our camp in the trees (5400') to the base of the climb. Weather was perfect, the wind blowing strong enough to remind us that it is in fact winter.
First pitch was stiff: steep and sustained, but the ice (water ice!) was superb. After that, we wove our way up runnels and steps for many pitches. Protection was here and there, but the snow and ice remained great.
After shooting up this long couloir, we found ourselves next to the gendarme. From there, we angled right up two steep steps and I set up a belay. Decision: either straight up a mid-fifth mixed pitch or right on a snow ramp to the skyline.
I hadn't been here before and Jim couldn't remember which way to go. I lobbied hard for going straight up the mixed pitch thinking of the little sketch in my outdated edition of the Beckey guide. We took this mixed pitch up, hurrying now because it was getting late and we REALLY wanted to top out by sunset...
Well, this was not the easy way. I led up to the crest of the north ridge, on a knife edge below a 5.8 handcrack. Shit, shit, shit. Neither of us wanted to take this...not now, not with the gear we had. We resolved this quickly as we could by rapping down onto the NE face. We did a ~200 foot traverse and went straight up to the ridgecrest, finishing with some very thrilling steep, unconsolidated, granular snow to reach the last 10 minutes of sunshine.
Then it was a long, long downclimb down the Sherpa in the dark and one rappel down some hard glacier ice bulges and back to camp at 8:45pm. What an adventure!!
Gear Notes: 2 ice tools and crampons
1 50 meter Edelweiss Dynamic
4 ice screws
2 pickets (very useful)
3 pitons (1 steel blade, 2 ti blades)
5 small nuts
2 med hexes
Approach Notes: hard, icy trail
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