The Great Gendarme on Mt. Stuart NR

[goskac]

Hi

 

I am a bit confused at P2/P3 on the Gendarme and want some more detail since our party will do pack hauling there. Is it P2 from #1 to #2 and 60 feet? Pleas see the sketch below and let me know any beta, pack hauling experiences, and etc..

 

Cheers~

 

 

Edited July 31, 2013 by goskac

[telemarker]

Climb up and right to where it flattens out on a nice ledge, but don't go too far beyond there if you're hauling a pack. The "End" of pitch two is wherever you want it to be.

[Pete_H]

Don't haul its only 5.9-

[goskac]

Climb up and right to where it flattens out on a nice ledge, but don't go too far beyond there if you're hauling a pack. The "End" of pitch two is wherever you want it to be.

Thanks Telemarker~, Is it hard to get over without OW crack technics? Many said it was strenuous but some did many good holds on P2.

Edited July 31, 2013 by goskac

[goskac]

Don't haul its only 5.9-

Hey Bro, I am not at your level whatever~

Btw how heavy was your pack there?

[curtveld]

Felt more like 9+ to me. The short-hauling thing was simple (both pitches short and straight up) and made the seconding more enjoyable.

 

You don't really have to do any OW jamming - more like a move of layback/gastoning. If it's not going well, the fixed piece is perfect for an A0 move

[ivan]

agreed, i'm a lame free-climber but got through the gendarme okay w/o hauling - if you were gonna haul, you'd need a second line, and that's just dead weight for the rest of the climb

[Rad]

Both pitches are short and the haul is clean if you have to do it. Don't be intimidated by these pitches. You'll do fine, and they are easy to protect. Last time out we had a 3 and a 3.5. Place the 3 first from a stemming stance on large foot holds. Unless you're petite, you can get a good fist jam here. Then step up into a constriction that makes a great foot hold. Place the 3.5 from this stance. 3 might also work. 4 is fine but not needed. Edge holds on the side of the crack are there, but not needed. Lieback or jam past until into the next good footholds. Clip the fixed #4. A few more moves and you're in jug city. Have fun!

[curtveld]

if you were gonna haul, you'd need a second line, and that's just dead weight for the rest of the climb

Was pretty easy to haul with the lead rope (Hint: the pitches are only 60')

[ivan]

reckon that's right

[mmeyers]

what telemarker said. between points 2 and 3, the route sort of goes up and around. so, if you're going to haul, I think you'd want to do it from a hanging belay at 2.

 

if you decide not to haul, you can easily climb from the base of the gendarme (point 0?) to point 2, or from point 1 to point 3.

 

I also second Rad's advice. really good fist jams, with the occasional hidden holds on the inside.

[goskac]

Cultveld, Rad, Ivan, Mmeyers, Thanks all.

 

Rad :

Is it a bivy site on the right bottom corner of the photo?

http://www.cascadeclimbers.com/plab/data/504/4222Stuart_lake_copy.JPG

Where? NR notch or 8th pitch after NR notch?

btw a Nice trip report even 7 years old one.

[Rad]

Goodness that's an old photo. I'm surprised the mountain hasn't washed into the sea since then.

 

I was just up there a week ago for my second time on the route, so I'm definitely not an expert, but I think you'll find tons of bivy sites sprinkled all over the upper NR and WR routes. IMHO the long section leading up to the Gendarme is some of the best climbing so savor it.

[Drederek]

I'm pretty sure we bivied at #3 in your original picture - it was an outstanding location!

[Off_White]

Rad :

Is it a bivy site on the right bottom corner of the photo?

http://www.cascadeclimbers.com/plab/data/504/4222Stuart_lake_copy.JPG

 

That is a bivy site, but there's a more easily accessible site for two just above and under that flake up and left from the visible site, right at the end of the hand traverse. Great wind block too if you've got wind from the west and north.

[goskac]

Becky's Route

 

 

Is the yellow line on the 2nd one following the Becky's Route? (#2,3 and 4)

What about the green line route?(#2,5 and 6)

Some climbers suggested to traverse to the right and climb up after the end of OW crack while others to turn left slightly and climb all the way up straight.

Is the green line after #6 indicating the right path?

I heard that finding the better(?) route on P2/P3 will save a decent amount of time.

[Rad]

Green will be faster. Most go that way. You'll miss a short bit of hand crack between yellow 3 and 4. Either will be fine. It's all good. Enjoy!

[goskac]

Thanks again Rad. I am tackling soon and yours is really helpful.

 

Anybody know any recent water sources on upper north ridge and summit area?

I heard several spots such as at the end of the glacier to the notch,the gully after rappel on Gendarme, summit area, etc.

but I am wondering still water available these area in a couple of week.

 

[Elevation]

Did the complete NR Thursday/Friday/early Saturday. The only snow remaining at the notch is down near the bottom, by the glacier. There's a small hanging snowpatch just below the "slab with crack", a few hundred feet short of the gendarme. That'll be melted out with another week of hot weather, but it was easy enough to rappel to for a quick fillup. Still a couple of small snowpatches and drips in the bypass gully and around the corner on the bypass route, but they're going fast.

 

Big snowfield right below the summit still (100+ vertical feet) with lots of running water at the bottom, easily accessed as you're heading over to the Cascadian. 2-300 foot snowfield in upper Cascadian that'll stick around for a while.

Edited August 11, 2013 by Elevation

[goskac]

Excellent~ Many many thanks to Elevation.

[Elevation]

No problem! Enjoy the gendarme pitches for us, we didn't have enough time and had to do the bypass.

[keenwesh]

hows the glacier right now? can I do it early AM without an ice ax?

[Elevation]

We did the full, so no idea how the glacier is at the moment, except that it looks like a pretty reasonable crossing.

 

Honestly, I did it once with a whippet-head instead of an ice axe, and it was pretty stupid. This was September, so late season with pretty firm snow and occasional bare ice. We made it across okay with crampons over approach shoes, but it was one of the less-bright things I've done in the mountains.

 

Snow in the late afternoon on the south side was quite soft on our trip, so it might be okay on the north late in the day, but I wouldn't be surprised if it firms up quite a bit with the clear nights. Personally, I'd take an axe if I were to do the upper ridge right now.

[keenwesh]

glacier was a little dicy in running shoes with a single ax maybe around 9 am this morning. I've also only been climbing in CA and CO so the few snowfields I've been on have been easily passible with a sharp rock. Gendarme pitches were incredible and the fist crack crux is literally one move, shoving your right arm in to the elbow and stepping up. footholds and a super positive horizontal crimp/jug thing on the left. There's a new looking red C4 stuck in the rightward 2nd pitch traverse that would probably come out with some minor effort and a nut tool.

[goskac]

Thanks all you guys,

My group did the upper NR last week, lots of fun. We didn't via the Gendarme pitches with running out of time though. The glacier was very soft in the afternoon but I recommend an axe since about 40 feet before the end of glacier started to being steep and soft so you may need to prepare for self-arresting in case of slipping. I was able to make some water from snow patch about 100 feet above at the end of glacier.

 

The Great Gendarme looked awesome and I was really tempted but definitely time was not my side.

Here is a photo on the Gendarme my partner took while he was on the "rappelling" route.

If you are on this photo,let me know. There are six or seven more photos. I think it was a group of three, a female from Seattle was at the end of the line and two males (one from LA ?)