[MCR] SW Ridge of Pinnacle Mtn, Rockies, June 20

I guided the SW ridge of Pinnacle
mountain with one guest today. Spring is only just coming to Larch valley and
there is still a good amount of snow on the trail.

 

Today we had a mix of sun and cloud, a low of 4 and a high of 16 and no wind. Light snow showers in the morning at higher elevation. Across from Larch  valley, the ten peaks are very snowy and it looks like full on winter there. Radiation triggered avalanches rumbled all day long from that side.

Ascent to the Pinnacle - Eiffel col was all snow and supportive thanks to a weak overnight freeze. We used crampons and ice axe.

This route climbs several gully features that with a freeze currently provides fun mixed climbing. Crampons and a mountaineering axe recommended.

On the chimney crux pitch, there is not much left of the old hemp rope and this pitch must be climbed. I would say it's 5.5- 5.6, a little harder than any moves on Eisenhower tower for comparison. On the next section is a notch with a traverse that was icy and required a few chopped steps. Not much snow on the summit.

 

Beta:  I used a 50 M rope, brought a small rack of cams, couple of nuts and slings. I had pitons but did not use them. From the col, the start gully was the 3rd one over, a rib on the left that separates two gullies has a visible rappel for a landmark. You should see several pin stations en route.  Seven 25-meter raps got us back down.

 

The slopes below the col had softened considerably on the way down and we did not need crampons. We were able to easily trigger the upper 5-10 cm of isothermal snow that would run all the way on any steeper snow slopes. These slides start as sloughs and quickly gain volume and speed becoming dangerous in features that funnel them.

 

Overall, an ascent of Pinnacle is a very enjoyable and historically interesting outing that is currently in spicier than usual conditions .



Pioneering alpinist, rock, ice, mixed climber, back-country skier and certified Mountain guide at your service

Hemp rope.jpg
Description: JPEG image

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