[TR] Dragontail- Triple Couloirs 2/10/2004

[geordie]

Climb: Dragontail-Triple Couloirs

 

Date of Climb: 2/10/2004

 

Trip Report:

Baby Z Rat and I decided to use this wonderful weather window to get up something big. We stumbled our way up the trail enjoying the tracks of fellow cc.rs. Unfortunately we had left before they posted about snow conditions up high. We made a nice camp by the lake and headed up in the morning (later than we should have.) We found the first couloir to have mostly very powdery snow, with some windblown firmer spots. The going was embarassingly slow. We bailed just past the entrance to the runnels, which looked thin, though I've never seen them before to compare. So we rapped and downclimbed and were happy to sacrifice a little gear in order to save our epic for another day.

Beautiful few days in a wonderful spot.

Gear Notes:

used pickets

used pins

wished we coulda used the screws

Edited February 12, 2004 by geordie

[JoshK]

I dont want to speculate (or piss you off ) but one time I climbed triple couliors and found DEEP powder and wind blown stuff all the way up the first coulior. Actually, all of them for that matter. Despite this, the runnels were absoulutely awesome (relatively thick) and the top 1/2 pitch were legit water ice that took tools incredibly well.

 

I just found that interesting, after encountering nothing but deep stuff everywhere else.

[geordie]

Yeah, I'm not saying the route was in or out of condition. We were not winning the game against the clock and since the going was getting any easier, decided to bail. The runnels certainly weren't an option for us, but maybe for a stronger/ more adventurous party.

Another day..

[catbirdseat]

No shame in turning around. It's all about living to climb another day.