Hijinx on Three O'Clock Rock

[catbirdseat]

We watched a couple of young fellows get a bit over their heads on Three O'Clock Rock. They made it part way up Cornucopoeia. Then they veered off onto Dick's demise (alt finish to Big Tree One- dirty groove with grass growing out of it) for a ways, then back onto Cornucopoeia.

 

Finally, after more than half the rope was out, the leader couldn't make the moves, so he built a gear anchor on what was probably the only crack on the pitch.

 

Rather than bringing his partner up, the partner stayed clipped to the lower anchor and allowed the leader to pull up the rope. Now you have two climbers isolated from one another, one with the rope and the other marooned.

 

I hollered over to ask that if they needed any help, we'd eventually be rapping down their way. The leader said he'd wait for us. I also suggested that the leader could rap down to a nearby bolt and tie his ropes to it. Then he could break down his anchor and downclimb to the bolt, which he eventually did. He got part way down and then fell on the bolt.

 

After that he rapped from a leaver biner to a second anchor and then from that to his partner. We retrieved the biner he left and returned it to them at the base.

 

Earlier that morning we'd given them a copy of the topo. They'd left it at the base of the route. One of them said they don't use topos. They like their adventure.

 

I'm certainly glad that no one got hurt.

[Alpinfox]

 

So is there some booty up there or what?

[DirtyHarry]

One of them said they don't use topos. They like their adventure.

 

Sounds like they got what they were looking for.

[catbirdseat]

Nope. No booty. They figured it out. It just took them a couple of hours to do it. Belayer apparently had enough cigarettes to last him while he waited.