Tom_Sjolseth Posted September 3, 2012 Share Posted September 3, 2012 Trip: North Early Winters Spire - NW Corner (III, 5.9) Date: 9/1/2012 Trip Report: Daniel Jeffrey and I climbed this superb route on Saturday. We found the climbing and the quality of rock to be pretty great - fun and sustained on excellent granite. We just wished the route were longer. Being Labor Day weekend, there were dozens of people climbing on the Liberty Bell group - I believe 4 teams climbed the NW Corner of NEWS. The line-up for the DEB of Liberty Bell was almost comical. Gear Notes: Doubles to 2", singles 3-5". We could have left the #5 at home and brought an extra #4 for the off-width. Approach Notes: 55 minutes to the base of the route on easy trail. Descent is easy.. three rappels into the notch between SEWS and NEWS, then two more in the gully below. 60m rope will work, 70m works better. Rappel anchors have recently been rebolted. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JasonG Posted September 3, 2012 Share Posted September 3, 2012 Excellent! This has been on my list for some time, but I need to brush off the OW skills first. Thanks for the report. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KaskadskyjKozak Posted September 3, 2012 Share Posted September 3, 2012 Cool! And it was nice to run into you guys at Lone Fir after your climb. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
matsfredrickson Posted September 3, 2012 Share Posted September 3, 2012 That looks like a sweet route. My buddy and I did the SW Rib on SEWS the same day. We were first on the route and there were a dozen people waiting by the time we finished the first pitch. An early start is definitely a must, but then you have to face the cold! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
curtveld Posted September 3, 2012 Share Posted September 3, 2012 I believe 4 teams climbed the NW Corner of NEWS. This is remarkable. Wonder if it's because of the 5 stars in the new SuperTopo book? Awesome line though - love that flake pitch. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sepultura Posted September 4, 2012 Share Posted September 4, 2012 Sweet Guys! A great climb I took my biggest whipper I have ever taken in the mountains on that climb(if you can call WA Pass the mountains!). Luckily it was on a #3, it was a bit wet and greasy at the time. Strangely enough I fell at the exact same spot several years later when I was on second. Guess that off width is a bit too hard for me! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sol Posted September 4, 2012 Share Posted September 4, 2012 Call me a hater, but i've never understood the classic status of the NW Corner.. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dberdinka Posted September 4, 2012 Share Posted September 4, 2012 You're a hater. What the DEB of Liberty Bell? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
keenwesh Posted September 4, 2012 Share Posted September 4, 2012 (edited) direct east buttress, I always thought it was just the east buttress, but I guess I was wrong. edit: misread the second half of that. yeah I have no idea what the DEB on liberty bell is... I'll stop chiming in and shut up now Edited September 5, 2012 by keenwesh Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tom_Sjolseth Posted September 4, 2012 Author Share Posted September 4, 2012 Indeed, the route could have been longer, but the climbing was a lot of fun. I have no idea what is considered a "classic". The line-up was for the East Face of Liberty Bell - Liberty Crack?? I was thinking of the Direct East Buttress of SEWS when I said DEB. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
telemarker Posted September 4, 2012 Share Posted September 4, 2012 Call me a hater, but i've never understood the classic status of the NW Corner.. Sol, it's a classic if you link it up with the West Face route a well. Do the W. Face first, and if you rappel and scramble fast enough back to the NW Corner, it can feel like a continuous, 6 pitch route. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cdweiland Posted September 4, 2012 Share Posted September 4, 2012 That looks like a sweet route. My buddy and I did the SW Rib on SEWS the same day. We were first on the route and there were a dozen people waiting by the time we finished the first pitch. An early start is definitely a must, but then you have to face the cold! I was a part of that cluster just after you guys. Luckily we were next on the route, as there were enough people that others decided to change objectives. Here is a picture of Tom and Daniel on NEWS. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OlympicMtnBoy Posted September 4, 2012 Share Posted September 4, 2012 Cool, despite the haters, I think that route is fun. I especially liked the 5.8 lieback bit before the offwidth, fun easy moves with great exposure. And the offwidth is pretty fun too since it's not all that steep and you'll just slide back down for much of it. :-) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ryanl Posted September 4, 2012 Share Posted September 4, 2012 Sol, it's a classic if you link it up with the West Face route a well. Do the W. Face first, and if you rappel and scramble fast enough back to the NW Corner, it can feel like a continuous, 6 pitch route. How'd you arrive at 6 pitches? Like the idea though! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
telemarker Posted September 4, 2012 Share Posted September 4, 2012 Sol, it's a classic if you link it up with the West Face route a well. Do the W. Face first, and if you rappel and scramble fast enough back to the NW Corner, it can feel like a continuous, 6 pitch route. How'd you arrive at 6 pitches? Like the idea though! Both routes can be done in three, rope stretching pitches with a 60m, with a wee bit of simul climbing on the first pitch up to the large alcove. When we going to climb something?! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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