lunger

fantastic. yeah, dreamy indeed -- appreciate the pictorial tour.

glad you guys enjoyed the report. tanstaafl: yeah, some bad humans left a bunch of junk at one site--got most of it, but lacked capacity for a shattered cooler. Kam: oh, tubby had cheese alright. a lack of cheese threatens his essence. I think you'd enjoy the route and the whole package, it's a beautiful area, and a nice weather option for poor west side wx. Kyle: saw your Berge report; good stuff, that route looks comparable in tech difficulty but of higher rock quality. it probably helps that it gets more 'traffic'. Here's another pic I forgot to post, with Cleator (visible) and Berge's (blocked behind Cleator) grand-daddy Buck looming in background: https://photos.app.goo.gl/axZRhc4xEvjcmumr7

Trip: Mt Cleator - Tubby Needs Cheese 5.8+, 9 pitches, 1,000'+ Trip Date: 09/01/2019 Trip Report: It's been a spell since my last report; I offer a tale of an ascetic and a hedonist climbing yet another irrelevant obscurity in their quest for entertainment and raw truth. The weather forecast pointed them east, and Mt Cleator appeared to fit the bill. After a pleasant trail tramp past Buck Mtn and establishing camp, the dialectic duo scouted and debated a number of lines available, and provisionally settled on the cleanest looking one. The line emanates from near the main summit (not the N tower), and is a NW jutting rib that appears to share the granitic character of the pluton on nearby Berge--very little schist encountered. (Other options abound on the N side of this peak up to the N tower, but even these impaired codgers reckoned unappealing the primarily grubby schist on these longer lines toeing down more directly to Buck Cr. They agreed to buy beer for any whippersnapper climbing one of these lines.) For the full Cascades sub-alpinism experience, approach directly from a camp near Buck Creek, where the trail passes close to the creek. Romp up pleasant alp slopes to a band of cliffy terrain, then bunk-jungle up steep alder to pass a waterfall. This approach grants access to the upper basin and the several lines available on the northwestern quadrant of the mountain. For the descent enjoy the scenic trail tour return via Buck Creek Pass. Lots of wildlife encountered--bear, coyotes calling at each other (probably about the bear), deer, etc. The climb's more-technical and mental challenges are concentrated in pitches 2, 3, 8 and 9. (Unfortunately, not many climbing pics taken.) Pitch 2: while the self-styled epicurean showered his pathetic self with sod digging for pro and holds, the wannabe stylite laughed derisively. Pitch 3: the ascetic got his come-uppance, "I wanna go home", but eventually pieced together a lead to the crest of the rib. The middle pitches were more scrambly, mostly mid-fifth and easier. Pitch 8: a sweet, relatively steep and juggy corner. Pitch 9: interspersed short splitters and varied climbing, beautiful and exposed ridge rambling with steeper steps. P1: P3: P6(?), climber low center: On average, the over-indulger and the self-depriver make for a balanced human. In an alternate universe the roles could be switched, and maybe the pair would climb splitter cracks on impeccable stone; but in this one, they reconcile themselves to seeking new lines on inconsistent rock with their mercifully impaired memories. On this climb, a somewhat dirty beginning becomes more enjoyable higher (and with distance). It's difficult to get a well-defined shot of the line. Here's a flavor: Tubby Needs Cheese begins to the left of the shaded red streak on far right, a few hundred ft below that tiny spot of sunshine on the ridge, and continues up to and then on the right skyline. Tubby tops out in the horizontal strip of sunshine, or perhaps just out of view behind the pyramidal feature to the left of it. (The sunlit tower is in the foreground relative to the main summit.) Beckey's CAG vol 2 (2nd ed.) has a good pic of it along with Buck on page 160, swooping down from the main summit clearly marked MT CLEATOR. And from the west, hiking toward Buck Pass: A shot on the way home on Labor Day, TNC in the shade on right toeing down just left of the snow in the basin: More pics (recommend click on 'info' to see descriptions for many): https://photos.app.goo.gl/P2U5SJgB8jU1eQBo8 Gear Notes: Double rack through 3, a 4, some nuts. We didn't use our pins, but some folk might want to. Approach Notes: Park at Trinity. Buck Creek trail, etc. -- see above.

heck yes! thx for the detailed report, good stuff.

whoa, neato trip, entertaining write-up, and fantastic pics! that Frenzel camp looks five star--both in your pics and from Himmelgeisterhorn a few years ago--must get there one of these days. any berries to feast one along the way? hope the Terror Twins made it out ok. and, hahaha: "You really should go climb both North and South Hozomeen". General's orders like that ensure mutiny. appreciate you taking the time for the report.

For sure! Constance holds abundant good ski lines. Thanks for the report, and nice work. That mountain's summit is a favorite, exposed and fantastic views all around.

nice pics! yes agree that area is gorgeous, lots of cool flora, walls, towers and interesting features, and plenty of local relief. and a favorite spring ski destination, solitude more or less assured in that season. thanks for the vicarious revisit.

i've wondered the same; haven't consulted the B Bible, but it sure looks vegetated. could still be 'fun' to explore some of those buttresses

looks like a cool route. tempted to follow your tracks sometime. and as always, nice pics "The happy(ish) crew, ... before things got really ugly" do tell. did a happy-hippy-skippy ski descent down to the road encounter the cold hard face of shrubby reality? Or is that road uphill both ways? or perhaps avy debris nightmare?

nice 'discovery', lads! looks like a solid addition to your empire of dirt. have wistfully looked up at that wondering if/when someone might climb it. how many snargs on the rack?

nice report! whiskey is an essential ingredient to camping in the crescent cr basin environs. 4 hours to the drop-in point near the chopping block? damn, either that trail has been beat in, and/or you guys were moving. with that kind of steam, you shoulda checked out the central buttress on the S face of Terror, a worthwhile climb imo. that Wild Hair Crack climb does rank high on my list of shorter climbs worth the hike...wild place, with neat history.

looks like a great trip. agree the Leap offers a prime cragging situation. Haystack was my first ever climb, on a lark while visiting my bro in CA. his (relative newbie) buddy had led the crux pitch, that I followed wide-eyed, only to arrive at the belay to hear he wasn't confident in the anchor--my brother would later describe the anchor as 'whimsical'. thanks for the opp'y to revisit that place, good spot for sure.

Very cool to see a repeat (already)! Nice work. Glad you found the way in from the south works fine. Haha re: your signature, apropos for this particular climb Would like to see some pics if you got'em

looks like a fine adventure! congrats.

fantastisch! both the trip and the photography. that n despair summit is a special place. i recognize that rusty film tin; what's with the little plastic container, a new register, or something else? and the axes deployed in the heather--classic. that's either a throwing disc on Tim's pack, or a portable toilet. in that vein, my guess for the origins of "Shrundy" are not public-forum-appropriate. glad i stopped in here at cc.com to see your trip, and seano's impressive feat. thanks for posting this