AlpineMonkey Posted June 30, 2008 Share Posted June 30, 2008 Gave this route a go over the weekend and failed. I am a little disapointed for a couple of reseasons, one being that I shouldn't need to follow a route. In the past I have always been able to look up at a wall or route and say, "Yeah, I can make that go, no matter what, or there is no f-ing way." But over the weekend we got up there and I thought, I'm not so sure I can do this. It wasent that I could do it and it wasent that I couldn't, there was that uncertainity. I kept looking up going where the fuck could they have gone? All that was above me was a massive overhanging wall with massive roofs. Being high on the face I didn't see a line that I thought I could get up. Has anyone done this route? Were we on track with the original FA'ers? So after bailing we went and climbed rosebud spire (I think). Can someone with more knowldege tell me if that is Jaberwocky or Rosbud in the picture below? On route we found a baseball hat, 2 brand new bd cams, a brand new tri cam (none of which was stuck), 3 brand new mamut slings, 3 neturions, a locking biner, a brand new atc, and a 2008 graduation baloon. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rad Posted June 30, 2008 Share Posted June 30, 2008 Quite a booty haul! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AlpineMonkey Posted June 30, 2008 Author Share Posted June 30, 2008 Yeah, I don't get it, and it wasen't bail stuff. It was placed right on the route as if someone lead the pitch and the second just unclipped and climbed right on by, leaving the gear. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pope Posted June 30, 2008 Share Posted June 30, 2008 Yeah, I don't get it, and it wasen't bail stuff. It was placed right on the route as if someone lead the pitch and the second just unclipped and climbed right on by, leaving the gear. Yeah, that stuff is mine. We got a little drunk celebratin' graduation and all. Please return the gear. I'll buy you a six-pac (if you're old enough). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
W Posted June 30, 2008 Share Posted June 30, 2008 AlpineMonkey, Forrest and I climbed this route two summers ago; it's hard to tell exact details from your picture, but your dotted line looks pretty close to where we went. We soloed up to about where your dotted line ends, but we might have been just a bit further left. Up to that point it was about 5.5 or easier. There was a definitive corner system we were angling into. We roped up for the final 60 meters of it, it was about 5.8 or so and a little sketchy (rubbly rock), but it ended on a large, comfortable ledge off to the left. I actually think the FA party was on the steeper ground to the left of us, which obviously would make for a much longer and more serious route. Indeed, the upper wall is very steep and intimidating. Off the ledge, there is a 5.9 OW- it's not too hard but it's quite lichen-y, and the #5 camalot doesn't fit so good in the upper section of it, so you have to run it a bit at the end. The 2nd pitch is the best one, it's a very steep and sustained 10c crack, pumpy jamming and lb'ing. The final pitch is the crux and it is full value 11a: awkward, balancy laybacks and jamming up steep hollow flakes protected by questionable tiny cams and RP's. Then a scary mantle above pro leads to an overhanging, grainy thin hand/ringlock crack. This takes you to the ridge crest. From here, you need to routefind carefully, staying on the crest resulted in several dead ends and having to downclimb. Generally stay left of the crest to pass obstacles for the first several ropelengths (but you can simul all of this). Eventually it becomes obvious and you stay off the right (north) side and climb miles of 4th and low 5th terrain, ending with a grovel up some really chossy gravel into the summit ridge notch, at which point you can downclimb all the way to the glacier below on the south side- also very chossy. If the rock was cleaner I might rate it higher, but at it stands, aside from the 10c pitch I thought it a mediocre route especially compared to nearby classics such as CBR, Boving, and Backbone, and it has a rather undignified finish. Nonetheless, it's worth doing to round out your Dragontail collection. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Frieh Posted June 30, 2008 Share Posted June 30, 2008 Nice work Mark and Forrest! Reading this I cant help but think of all the "great climbs without a second ascent" threads where people (myself included) postulate away about which routes havent seen a second ascent yet because lets face it... if there isnt a TR on cc.com there is no way it has been climbed... all the while the Mark's and the Forrest's and the Rat's and the Dan's and the Roger's and so on are out there sending this shit and planning their next climb instead of shouting about it. Great example guys! I need to climb more and post less! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Off_White Posted June 30, 2008 Share Posted June 30, 2008 There's a better alternative to the grovel gravel finish (in common with assorted NE Buttress routes). When you hit the arcing sandy ledge just below the top, like a giant smile of a ledge, instead of heading off the right side into what you know will be total crap, go left up some big blocks and through a notch, casual 4th or low fifth, and you pop over and down to a small tree with a rap sling. Two or three raps with a single 60m get you down. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sol Posted June 30, 2008 Share Posted June 30, 2008 good try. your not the first to fail up there. next time. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AlpineMonkey Posted July 1, 2008 Author Share Posted July 1, 2008 Thanks for the comments W, I'll have to give it another go, I know the ledge you were talking about. I climbed to just below it. Above it it just looked like huge overhanging roofs with no way through them, I'll have to go back and give it a closer look in the next couple of weeks. It sounds like you guys climbed up the corner to the ledge out left with the trees on it? I was climbing right up the middle of the face which wasent hard but kinda scarry because the rock was a little rolly-pully and there wasen't that great of protection. Maybe I'll stay in that corner system too. Any comments from anyone on that tower in the picture. Rosebud or Jaberwocky? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
W Posted July 1, 2008 Share Posted July 1, 2008 Sounds like we're definitely talking about the same ledge. We also wanted to climb the face in the middle of the corner but as you said, neither the rock nor the pro was very good- the corner has better pro and the climbing is secure. As I recall, until you actually reach the ledge you can't really see the crack system you end up climbing, which begins with the black, lichened 5"-6" off width off the right side of the ledge, you can't miss it, it's only about a 40' pitch or so and ends on a narrow ledge in the corner. The 10c pitch is almost a full rope, and the anchor at the top takes some work (loose rock). The 11a breaks out right from here (every other way looks grim), but even this way is quite intimidating. Off the left side of the big ledge is another crack system, which looks far more difficult, and takes on all the roofs and overhanging rock you were seeing- I want to say that Wayne Wallace and someone (McGown?) did a route over there way back in the 80's but I'm not sure? Wayne, you out there? Joe P. and Stoney climbed Dragonfly a week prior to our ascent, which helped inspire us to try it. It certainly doesn't see much traffic but I'm sure it had been climbed many times prior to our ascents. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lunger Posted July 1, 2008 Share Posted July 1, 2008 (beta alert) re Dragonfly (and options), as best as I can recollect: when DH and I failed on this route, we started left of where you started in a R-facing corner in good rock, then trended left a bit and up. result was steep .10 (+ or -) climbing for 2 long pitches or 3 shorter ones, from start to big ledge. then as W says, an obvious OW off to the right; we linked this with the 10c above for a long strenuous pitch. (there's small gear--blue tcu comes to mind--somewhere along the OW, which felt pretty secure if you're into that kinda thing; i believe a large cam was employed too) when I set off on the 11 corner LB shooting up and right from under the roofs, the feet were all grainy kittylitter, and i was weak. after flailing a bit in too-hot temps and dropping sun, we bailed from under the roof. unfinished business. the next trip we more or less replicated the start, but moved even farther left to gain the big ledge, encountering steep and engaging climbing (trip report somewhere on here--our line to left of Wayne's, which looked excellent, for you toughguys). then, DH led us up and left to the crest of the buttress, a cool line and viable option for you if D-fly starts biting. as W relates, once up the c. 900' or so of steepness to where the crest relents, it's an uninspiring but scenic ramble to the top. we bootied a bunch of nice gear near the summit in that rotten rock! the steep part of the N face of teh NE buttress holds many appealing lines in good rock--seems a good candidate for alpine cragging, if some generous soul were to install a couple gear anchors for rapping (not advocating drilling). we donated a couple once, haha. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sol Posted July 2, 2008 Share Posted July 2, 2008 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NoahT Posted July 3, 2008 Share Posted July 3, 2008 Finally, some decent pics--nice! Thanks... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Keith_Henson Posted July 3, 2008 Share Posted July 3, 2008 (edited) "Any comments from anyone on that tower in the picture. Rosebud or Jaberwocky?" Jabberwocky Jabbewocky Edited July 3, 2008 by Keith_Henson Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AlpineMonkey Posted July 3, 2008 Author Share Posted July 3, 2008 Thats interesting because I was convinced (but still wanted to make sure) that it was Rosebud. So where is Rosebud then? I found this TR: http://cascadeclimbers.com/forum/ubbthreads.php?ubb=showflat&Number=370049 That again shows a picture of Jaberwocky on the left. But if you look up the gully you will see two towers. I thought Rosebud was on the left and Jaberwock the one on the right? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sol Posted July 12, 2008 Share Posted July 12, 2008 Dragonfly beta shot: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DirtyHarry Posted July 17, 2008 Share Posted July 17, 2008 That's it. That big block is the OW. I cleaned out a big belayer-slayer chockstone in there. You can all thank me later with a pint or three. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JoshK Posted July 28, 2008 Share Posted July 28, 2008 Nice work Mark and Forrest! Reading this I cant help but think of all the "great climbs without a second ascent" threads where people (myself included) postulate away about which routes havent seen a second ascent yet because lets face it... if there isnt a TR on cc.com there is no way it has been climbed... all the while the Mark's and the Forrest's and the Rat's and the Dan's and the Roger's and so on are out there sending this shit and planning their next climb instead of shouting about it. I don't think "shouting" about it negates the action of actually climbing. They are seperate topics. Some people climb, some people post, many do both. One truth about people is, by and large, they like to share their experiences with others. Not posting a report in no way qualifies you as some hardman more interested in climbing than those people who may chose to post a report. FWIW, Colin has posted some reports on his climbs, most of which are far more "hardcore" than these... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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