[TR] Prusik Peak - Der Sportsman 06/23/2020

[Michael Telstad]

Trip: Prusik Peak - Der Sportsman

Trip Date: 06/23/2020

Trip Report:

 

I was pretty hesitant to write this TR due to the current overcrowding in the area. I realized that it likely isn't going to make much of a difference cuz no-one really uses this site anymore anyhow. And as long as people follow a few key tips, you can have a good responsible Enchantments climb.

1.) Avoid weekends like the plague... as best you can.

2.) Get to the TH before 7 And try not to get yourself parked in.

3.) If you start later hitch to and from the TH if you can. (This worked better and was safer before COVID).

4.)Pick up trash you find. Quadruple points for picking up other peoples surface shits, and try to stick to trails and rock as much as possible. 

 

Now on to the actual TR

 

Last year Sean and I climbed the West face of CBR around the same time, starting at 9:30ish and getting back to the car just before dark. We decided to keep the (almost) solstice tradition going this year with Der Sportsman. 17+ hours of daylight is pretty luxurious

 

We left the trail head a little after 6. Our packs felt light with no water and no real insulating layers to speak of. The trail was pretty quiet at that hour on a Tuesday. The hike up Aasgard was pretty uneventful with only the usual snow patch to cross near the top. The descent down to Prusik was a nice change of pace and the soft snow seemed to make it a little lower impact and faster down the steep sections. 

 

Arriving at the base in good time, we decided to chill for a little bit and recover to give us a better shot at the cruxy first pitch. 

 

Finally the sun coming around the corner gave me enough courage to rack up and get going while the crux was still shaded. Unfortunately I pumped out and broke a foot chip so no OS for me, but Sean followed the pitch in style. 

 

P2 isn't too spicy apart from the real risk of whipping on your belayer. This is the only reason I would consider setting up the belay a little higher.

 

P3 is absolute money! Unfortunately it has 2 fixed pieces at the beginning that detract from the cleanliness of the line, but who really cares, it's great!

 

P4 I found the step right to be super desperate and kinda just fell onto the far right foot as a last resort, not sure how that worked out but it did. The moves off the pillar near the end of the pitch are pretty spicy. The rope looks like it would slice right across the arete if you were to fall. Best to avoid that.

 

P5 was probably the only sandbagged pitch on the route. I'd also say it's the worst pitch on the route, which is saying a lot since it is still pretty damn good! I've seen the pitch called 10b, but I'd say 10c/d. 

 

P6 Oh boy is this the icing on the cake! Such an incredible position to be climbing such an amazing crack! Definitely not 12a, felt more like 11a/b on TR. 

 

From where we topped out, we untied and scrambled up to the summit, chatted with some nice folks and took a small nap. We then downclimbed the W Ridge and scrambled back to our packs in our rock shoes to avoid taking axes or shoes up the route.

 

The hike out always sucks, but is the price you pay for the light packs and burrito dinner. We got down with enough light to re-set up camp and crack a beer before the headlamps came out.

 

I feel like I've focused too much on times in my previous TR's. If you want to know our splits I have a Strava track HERE.

Gear Notes:
Double rack tiny to 2, single #3 and triples in a few finger sizes. We brought nuts but never used them. 60m 9mm rope Handfull of slings and QD's Water filter Trail runners

Approach Notes:
Over the river and through the woods, up the pass, down the hill and up another hill.

Edited July 1, 2020 by Michael Telstad

[JasonG]

1 hour ago, Michael Telstad said:

cuz no-one really uses this site anymore anyhow.

Ouch. 

Glad you had a good climb on that stout route!

[kmfoerster]

Sweet! Yeah, I've switched to TikTok for all my trip reports now.

[Trent]

Nice! Thanks for posting.

[DPS]

Thanks for the beta. I would only have to aid the first 6 pitches, the rest I could free.

[Matt_Alford]

On 7/1/2020 at 2:38 PM, Michael Telstad said:

I realized that it likely isn't going to make much of a difference cuz no-one really uses this site anymore anyhow.

Hey, easy there young man...who  you calling no-one?  

Nice job Michael T....crushing it!

Cheers,

Mr. Alford