ElCap Report 6/16/12

ElCap Report 6/16/12

By Tom Evans

Yo.. Another day of warm and clear weather. Not a lot of breeze, so beware and take some extra water if you are planning on going on the hill. Pretty calm around here, especially for a weekend. Several climbers came by to wish me a happy 68th Bday, drink a few celebratory Cobras and eat junk food. Thanks for the attention… and thanks to the Princess of the Bridge for sending a nice care package to honor the event.

Tomorrow the Bigs take a shot at the record. I talked to Hans for a moment when he did a drive by, in the company of his beautiful children and the legendary Tom Frost. Hondo also stopped by for a brief chat. They say that 6:30am would be a good time to come to watch the event… billed by me as “The greatest spectacle in American Sports”. Come on out and support the effort. Parking might be tight so make plans accordingly. Think about it… when will you ever have the chance to see such an event again? Better than a basketball game, scarier than a horror flick, faster than a speeding bullet!

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

Zodiac: Presently the most popular route on the rock.

Wes and Dave bivied on Peanut, as seems to be all the rage these days. They were on the next to last pitch as I departed and will be off by supper time.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

1)  Climbing above Peanut Ledge this morning.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

2)  Slab pitch two below the top.

 

Below them the Solo, (who is that guy?), retains the lead as the Oregon boys didn’t pass yesterday as I expected. In fact the Oregon boys don’t seem to be in any hurry and are just out for a fun time on the Cap.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

3)  Solo leaving the belay to climb the Circle this morning. Check out his sweet, tidy, belay set up. This man knows what he is doing!

 

 

Just behind the solo is the team of Matt, Joey, and Aaron. In no hurry they lounged around in the shade of the morning until the sun forced them to climb.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

4)  Lounging in the morning shade... Priceless!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

5)  Lowest down was a mixed couple who did the first two before I departed. I couldn’t tell if they were serious or just out for practice. Tomorrow will tell the tale.

 

Mescalito: The second most popular route on the rock at the moment.

Dan and John are at the head of the line, far above the other teams. They did the Molar traverse as the afternoon came on.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

6)  Pitch out of the long dihedral to the start of the Molar.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

7)  Climbing to the belay at the start of the Pendulum pitch.

 

Lower down, the three man team of Dan Roberts, Pete Shepherd, and Steve Jones blasted and were on Stork ledge when I departed early in the afternoon.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

8)  The Bird and the Boys.

 

Below and stalling are the “Spray Brothers”… bridge rats who have yet to earn their place at the Bridge. They plan on Mescalito to Adrift back to Mescalito. They have hauled kit but not climbed yet. They say they don’t believe in fixing… Well, that makes it much easier to bail!!!

ND to Tribal: Adam and Jordan are blasting tomorrow on this popular combination.

Nose: I did see the team of Scott and Trevor reach the top today around 1pm. Trevor seemed to be getting the job done just fine. First time up the Captain… will he return?!

Lower down, the three man team from yesterday climbed from Camp 4 to past Camp 5 as I watched. They were carrying a banner of some kind, but today was the first time I could see it clearly. Isn’t that sweet!?

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

10)  Love is everywhere!

 

Lower down yet a couple of parties are threatening to start the route, but none have appeared beyond Sickle Ledge, so the Bigs will have clear sailing for most of the route in the morning.

Salathe: I did see a couple of guys for a moment or two above the Spire this morning but the angle was not good to see how much they progressed today.

Golden Gate: While you and I slept last night, Nik Berry, partnered by Francis Perrault, who just got off a NIAD a few hours before, sent this great climb!! Nik has had a great season having climbed the Prophet, El Corazon, and Golden Gate all free! Francis told me this morning at the Bridge that he was fried and done for the season. He did a solo of New Dawn, an 18 hour NIAD, and partnered Golden Gate for Nik. Good work men!

In other news: I will be at the Bridge in the morning for the speed record try by Hans and Alex. The weather is getting warmer each day and the big wall season seems to be coming to an end. There seems to be a last minute rush to get in the last routes of the season… so there is still time. Several good routes have parties going on them soon and I will update you as the climbs progress.

So that’s the way it is, for this Saturday, the 16th day of June, 2012.

Another year… shot to hell!!!

Later

Tom

 

 

sprayers

what bridge rats be sprayin and gettin on adrift?

Birthday

Tom, Jordan and I didn't know it was your birthday yesterday or we would have said something. Thanks for the pictures and the good times on the bridge. Happy Birthday!

Happy Birthday Tom!

Hi Tom,

Lovin' the report. Great pics of memorable places. Thanks for the continued posts.
Hope you had a great birthday at the bridge!

Cheers,
Doug

Tom!

Happy Birthday Tom and thanks for the great report! I didn't know it was your birthday or your actual age, seriously Tom, you look young for your age. Now I can't wait to read tomorrow's report!
Anastasia

Happy Birthday, Tom

Best wishes from Europe and thank you very much for your tremendous job!
Team "Old Germans"

Any chance of a Big live video feed?

Anybody going to stream video, commentary, or chat of the Nose speed attempt?

Happy Birthday Tom! -Roger

Happy Birthday Tom!
-Roger

Happy Birthday Tom

Love the pictures, Tom. Wish I could be there in person to watch the lads tomorrow, but I'll have to settle for your great shots.
Cheers from Vancouver BC

Also...

Happy birthday, Tom. Yer doin' the Lord's work ;-)

Canadians

Jordan texted me last night that they topped out around 8pm. Way to go boys!

Really Clear Set

The shot of the crew at Great Roof is exceptionally clear...

WOW!!!