powderhound

how tall is that thing? not like if will ever head that way, but most just curious.

Getting a Cougar to take you home when you go to the Ketchum bars

......and the toofs

Bill when can I get the hook up on a NEW Big Wally

Sick!!!!

devils tower here I come!!!!!!! Will post some pic stoke on maonday

I have on a couple occasions taken a line I thought to be harder, because I find 5.10 climbing more often than not better than 5.6 climbing. The 5.10+ splitter on Royalty Ridge could have been bypassed but we couldn't pass it up, and we felt that it would be well within our ability. Two days prior I had spent four days at the city of rocks and this pitch is a bit harder than "heartbreaker."

Can you offer any direct observations of this, where you would like to downgrade someones FA in the Alpine? I would like it if someone went back to give lines a 2nd and let me know that either my grades are on or off in their opinion. It could also be that climbers are feeling safer and more dialed in the mountains and therefore feel they can push it a bit more. This allows them to take a line that they might find more interesting and difficult rather than the traditional path of least resistance.

Is that a griz????? F' yeah John I am glad to see you were able to get yourself away from work and get a sweet new line in.

Nice work on completing the Route John,

Trip: Sawtooths: Baron Spire - FA: The Royalty Ridge IV 5.10+ Date: 8/25/2008 Trip Report: O.. My. I first got a look at this ridge when John and I completed my first route in the tooths, Carpal Tunnel on Baron Falls Tower which sits to the North West of Baron Spire. As soon as I spotted it I elbowed John in the side and said "I have to do that man." At this time I had only completed two alpine routes and knew I wasn't ready to take on such an endeavor. The next summer Trevor Bowman and I spent some more time in the Baron Spire area completing two FA's and once again I got to look at the full ridge. This time it didn't look as daunting and I thought that I might be able to pull it off with a couple years more experience. This summer Trevor and I went back to the Baron area for three trips. The first trip we attempted the east Face route that ascends a splitter hand crack, we did the crack and then got stormed off. We spent two days in the tent and then went out. We came back two days latter and completed lawdog's lament and deliverance and then left the next day. Storms were brewing for the next couple of days so we rented harness's at the YMCA in Sun Valley, and headed off to the "City" to get dialed and wait out the weather. The city was sick, no one was there but we were limited with the meager rack that we had with us. So back to Baron we went after five days of cragging. The plan was to hike in, scope the next day, sleep, get an alpine start and finish before dark, and hike out. Luckily for us that is how it went. So here it is..... sorry about the picture I need to upload a bigger one so you can see the lables of the spires. The route begins on the West side of the bottom shield it ascends up the face to a 90ft splitter in a clean white wall. Take this to the top of the first spire. From here we climbed all of the major spires and pinnacles except two small ones that didn't appear to have any descent options. We continued to stay on the true ridge until it joins the south ridge. We took the south ridge north towards the summit of baron. Looking up at the lower shield. Trevor and I soloed up to 5.8 to get to the splitter in the face. From there we continued with low 5th class to the right facing corner/ chimney directly below the upper summit block "the queen". Take the corner to the north east side of the queen and make a 5.7 move to get to the summit. We figure the first shield was about 650ft of climbing to reach the queen. Since I got to lead the splitter on Deliverance I thought it only fitting to let Trevor eat this thing up. I was kinda glad that I didn't because it turned out to be a bit more strenuous then we both initially thought. Belay on ledge and head up the scrappy crack. 70ft 5.10+ There was a little crack on the summit slab which we might have been able to place a nut but we decided that a needles style rappel would be safer and less of a hassle. So we rapped off with the rope in a notch on my right side. The Serf also turned out to be a small 5.6 solo up to the top, starting on the north west using edges and the arete. side note* From here you can see the south ridge we joined it directly below the high point on the right and downclimbed and made a short rappel and then downclimbed to the notch. We are not sure if we were following the same line as Beckey but we do not think so. We went up ledges and steps on the west face below the ridge proper until we joined it a went up a large left facing corner at 5.6 to a small notch. From here we downclimbed ten feet and went up a short awkward crack created by a large chockstone at 5.9 The Jester: The next spire in line proved to be a bit more challenging and offered up some great chossy chimneying. The gear kinda sucks but it wasn't bad the route ascends a wide crack/chimney on the north west side of the jester. 5.9 90ft Downclimb the east ridge of the jester to reach the notch between it and the Dark Knight. The Dark Knight: From the true west ridge traverse right into a set of cracks that offer decent but not great protection. Take the flakes and finger and hand cracks to a notch. Belay in the notch next to a tree ten feet below summit. Climb up to the summit and rappel to the south west off a large block. 5.9+ 100ft This is looking back down the west ridge with baron behind me. This is me rapping the King Spire. This is a view of its shortest side the south west side drops away more than 400ft. Climb a series of cracks and wedged blocks to large ledge.50ft Climb a short slab to a series of flaring cracks up high, take these cracks to a notch 8-10 feet below the summit next to a small tree. 140ft 5.10-R Climb to the summit and rappel off a large horn. I was pretty strung out on this pitch by the end. I thought I was going for my first whipper in the alpine. From here put your regular shoes on and scramble up ledges, faces, and cracks to the south ridge. see side note above for description of upper south ridge* Overall the climb took 8.5 hours start to finish, and covered over 1700 vertical feet of rock. Gear Notes: Double to .75 BD and Single to #4 BD Approach Notes: From Baron head 500ft up to the low notch between Baron ans peak 9211'. Drop 1200ft down to the lake and head up the drainage to the south west. Head up this drainage 800ft to the base of the route.

Bickle is short for "Travis Bickle" the main character of the "Taxi Driver" Bickle became my nickname after various incidents. The wiggle refers to the horizontal squeeze wiggle you preform getting through the pitch.

Trip: Sawtooths: Baron Spire - FA: Deliverance 5.10c A2 III+ Date: 8/13/2008 Trip Report: I first noticed this line two summers ago and put it in the pie in the sky list. The Splitter on the upper shield looked like perfect cupped hands and it was. An improbable and demanding line linking features up to and through the amazing splitter crack on the golden prow. The first three pitches are excellent, with challenging climbing up great rock; the last two pitches are pretty poor, especially the "Bickle Wiggle"...too bad really, otherwise this would be a classic. With some work, most of the aid could be eliminated, but the section getting established into the splitter on pitch 2 doesn't look promising. The Route Pitch 1 free climb as far as you can this pitch may go free except for the small pendulum Pitch 1: Stem and jam up the shallow right-facing corner until it gets hard and flared near the top, then aid up about 15' and make a small pendulum right into a groove with a moderate crack to a belay stance. 5.10c C1+ 100' Pitch 2 Tink Tink, Turn, Tink Tink, Turn Pitch 2: Continue up a handcrack to double finger cracks on good rock (5.9+/.10-). Tension traverse right 10' to a semi-circular flake, clip a bolt and layback up a groove/crack to a small ledge(5.9). Two hook moves, a bad bolt (aid only!), and into the splitter crack which is thin at first and gradually widens with good gear in an airy setting. Semi-hanging stance belay past the second small bush, where the wide handcrack begins. 5.9+ A2 170' This was an impressive lead by my partner, the lead took three hours one day and another three hours the next Pitch 3 Notice my good luck hat under my helmet Pitch 3: Gorgeous, sustained cupped hands for the whole pitch! Start up a steep zig-zag and then rollover onto splitter goodness up a slab. Set up a hanging belay where the crack ends in a wide horizontal. 5.9+ 90' Pitch 4 No Pics for this shit hole The "Bickle Wiggle" a truly heinous horizontal traverse along a grungy wide crack/groove with much strenuous, weird and unpleasant climbing. Belay on the arete to the left of the massive upper dihedral system of Tall Boys... Unrated 45' Pitch 5 Pitch 5: Make a cruxy traverse left off the arete into the huge dihedral system and pick the best line up this long corner with much dubious rock. 5.9 180' Pitch 6: the bolt ladder Gear Notes: double set through bd#4 and 3-4 BD#3's hooks and blades

One down, two more to post yet.

Get to use those valley giants up there yet?

there coming soon

:lmao:

The "Bickle Wiggle"

Trip: Sawtooths - FA: Lawdogs' Lament III 5.10- A1-2 Date: 8/24/2008 Trip Report: baron in all its glory We climbed Lawdogs' Lament and Deliverance this August and climber Tallboys last summer. Pitch 1 65m 5.9- Squeeze and go, run the rope out to the best belay place. Pitch:2 55m 5.10- Head up the chimney/offwidth and then step out left to a slab to gain a RFC. Take this up under an offwidth on the left side of the chimney. Traverse out to some airy moves and head straight up finger and hands five feet left of the offwidth. Belay just below the Splitter RFC. Pitch 3 90ft 53.9- All the Red and Gold BD's you wanna give it. Belay on a ledge Pitch 4 Take the far left line off the ledge and wiggle up the squeeze to a finger crack in a flake up to an off hands crack. 5.9- 35m Pitch 5: go around to the west face of the summit block and start up the bolt ladder. This pitch took three days and was put up in 1949. We finally put a summit register on the top. This thing is kinda crazy. One of the last aid bolts is a metal dole sticking six inches out of the hole. Rappel: You can now rappel down the east face with a 70M rope and some low 5th class downclimbing. It's are belief that this is the best moderate route in this area. All of the pitch's are on bomber rock and provide an excellent route to the top with all the pitch's climbing between 5.9- and 5.10-. Gear: Double set through #3 BD and 1 #4 BD.

Look at the Perch. Its a Dowdell route on the Northwest Face and appears to start on the far right and asscend the most prominent sheild.

Nice work gents. Is that on the same face as Dowdell's: The only dance there is, V 5.10+ 13 pitches?

Pooling Info: I'm leaving PDX on the 15th. But continuing on to Bozeman the 29thish.

Great action, I'm getting geared up for August. Sounds like a great trip.

While I feel for people dying on am mountain far away from there family I don not feel for non climbers who feel they can pay there way to the summit of the highest mountain in North America just because they have fancy gear and a well paid guide service. Deaths like this might serve as a wake up call to those individuals who do not understand the dangers of such a high mountain.

That time of the month? CU Nxt time Bill how did the wide crack go? Did you get to use your valley giants? I hope you did and I will bring you back some nice salmon when I get back from AK.