Fromage Posted November 8, 2003 Share Posted November 8, 2003 Climbed said route with Onetoole on Th and Fr. Excellent conditions, cold and clear. Lots of ice had formed around 4,000 on the approach, creeks were iced over. The face was fun but a bit short, we only climbed 3 pitches of ice, ascendining the headwall just to the left of a free-hanging icicle/pillar. Mostly the snow was hard and crunchy, with some fluff blown over it near the summit. We thought about going and looking at the NW couloir but it was 10 degrees F in the morning and we didn't feel so motivated. Pressure was dropping and clouds moved in during the afternoon on Friday as we descended to the car. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
goatboy Posted November 8, 2003 Share Posted November 8, 2003 Nice work! How was access in regard to the bergschrund, crevasses, etc? Did you solo to the NE Face, and did you rope up on the face? How steep? Thanks for any info. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fromage Posted November 9, 2003 Author Share Posted November 9, 2003 Approaching the E ridge up the Inspiration was easy. All crevasses were exposed and the snow bridges we crossed looked fairly solid when we saw them in daylight on the descent. A little weaving was required, but no great feat of navigation was necessary. On the N side of the E ridge it was the same story. There were some large exposed crevasses, but traversing out to the base of the face was straightforward. The headwall was fairly wide and offered a number of variations. You can make it as hard or as easy as you want. There was a schrund above the headwall where the face rejoins the ridge. On the eastern edge it is covered by a snow bridge, but the crack is obvious. The farther west you go the more ominous the schrund is, and if you go far enough west it is a giant overhang. We climbed the headwall just to the left of a freestanding pillar/icicle formation, where the ice was probably 70 degrees. Above the headwall the gradient eases off and you are soon back on 50 degree ice. We climbed the face in three pitches of varying length, making anchors where the ice looked best. Once we regained the ridge (about 150 feet below the summit?) we unroped and soloed the moderate snow to the top. I felt that objectively the route was safe under the conditions we had. Hope that helps. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cpt.Caveman Posted November 10, 2003 Share Posted November 10, 2003 The approach to NW couloir info- There is a large crevasse just after passing north of Dean's Spire the on the McAllister glacier... It might go with trickery- or maybe the other option would be to set a rappel from the NR of Eldorado. Probably 2 raps - no anchors in place now. Go get it tough guys. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
David_Parker Posted November 10, 2003 Share Posted November 10, 2003 How far up Cascade River road can you get? Milepost 19? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vegetablebelay Posted November 10, 2003 Share Posted November 10, 2003 You can drive all the way to the Eldo TH where the road is gated. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tennessee Posted November 13, 2003 Share Posted November 13, 2003 We hiked in to the Hidden Lake Peak/Sibley Creek trail (the beginning of the Triad Approach to Eldo) and climbed a bunch of FAT, easy waterice climbs on Sat and Sun 11/8-9. There was so many frozen creeks you couldn't climb them all. Nothing any harder than a 3. A couple major multi pitch flows were accessible with only a mile and a half approach. I'm sure they are gone now with the warm weather and rain from Monday and Tuesday. . . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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