ElCap Reports

ElCap Report 5/21/12

By Tom Evans

Yo… Warmer today with less wind. Word is that the weather is in for a change this coming weekend. After three weeks of solid weather I guess we can’t complain. Not much action from the NA east. The ElCap Shuttle starts on May 25^th. Then I guess the fun begins at the Bridge!

Today’s ElCap Report… written just for you…unique in all the world!

NA Wall: Two teams are on this historic route, the first on the SE Face.

The lower team is Stuart and Niek and they worked their way up to Big Sur as the day wore on.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

1)  Stuart and Niek at the belay at the start of the long corner leading to Big Sur.

　

The upper team climbed off Big Sur this morning and were last seen in the lower reaches of the Black Dihedral.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

2)  Finishing the traverse to the corner leading to the Black Dihedral.

　

Mescalito: Bud and Zack Miller finished the long corner and crossed the Molar traverse this morning. Later in the day they were seen climbing the most disliked pitch on the route….. The 5.9 corner after the Molar.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

3)  Starting the Molar Traverse.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

4)  Missing the Molar pendulum.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

5)  Climbing the highly unpopular 5.9 corner after the Molar Traverse.

　

Nose: I did spot a mixed team of two, purported to be Dean Potter and a woman, who’s name I don’t recall. The man sure had Dean’s famous beak, but it was not Dean.  Turns out it was a local team of Gara and PeP.   They climbed well with Gara leading quite a few pitches. I last saw them climbing out of Camp 5 around 3pm.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

6)  Gara climbing out of Camp 5 on the Nose.

　

Above them were the Drab team of three, starting the last pitch at 3pm.

A bit lower was the team of two from yesterday who were a pitch above the changing corners. Note in the photograph how the corner is eroding in curved chunks of rock. Recall that, at the end of Pancake Flake, a similar feature is in evidence.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

7)  Curved, erosional features high on the Nose.

　

There was a party dragging up the Legs with kit so I guess they are giving it a real shot. If they bail the Nose will be empty once again.

　

Muir: Roger Putnam and Ryan Huetter are climbing this route as a geology investigation, part of a research project Roger is working on. They climbed to the traverse and were in the good stuff above the grey bands by the time I left.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

　

 

8(  Climbing above the wide pitch that starts the upper headwall.

　

Salathe/Freerider: A team climbed from the Ear to the Spire while I was in attendance. They did the traditional pitch above the Ear.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

9)  First light on the Salathe.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

10)  Above, the two German climbers, Hans and Sebastian, worked the hard stuff on top rope.

　

In other news: Very quiet today at the Bridge. Alex Honnold and Kate Rutherford stopped by for a while after doing the West Face this morning. I guess Alex didn’t get enough exercise a couple of days ago on the Triple!!

Gabe and Mike blasted on ND to Tribal later in the morning. Holly and Lorna decided to make other plans. Mostly there are not many bailers this season… thus no bail of the day… except, of course, for those from Sickle Ledge on the Nose, which go unnoticed from the Bridge.

So that's the way it is for this Monday, the 21st day of May,2012.

Later, Tom