Fall in the Eastern Sierra: Crystral Crag, North Peak's N. Couloir, Pine Creek, & SE Face of Emerson

On the sunlit edge of Crystal Crag's North Arete.

At the risk of sounding like a broken record, in the mountains it's all about flexibility.  Seems that's the theme of my entries here.  "We were greatly rewarded by the flexibility of so and so... blah blah blah."  But really, it makes a huge difference!  Ask not "how do I climb this mountain?".  Rather, ask, "what's the coolest thing to do right now?"  Billy came up for 4 days asking exactly that question.  He had some goals in mind:  big days, adventure, snow, rock, ice, summits.  Pretty good stuff, really.  But as for which routes and peaks we did, he didn't really care.  The journey is the important part.  Where did that journey take us?  We started with the North Arete of Crystal Crag.  An excellent warm-up and, with the South Ridge descent, is a full-on traverse of a High Sierra peak.

In North Peak's North Couloir-   Classic neve conditions.

 Next we headed for North Peak's North Couloir.  A proper mixed climb, this route combines a handful of ice pitches with 3 pitches of quality rock climbing.  Awesome.  Billy came with a climb like this as his main goal.  He'll be the first to admit that it was awesome, but just one day in almost a week of great days!

Approaching Emerson's huge SE Face

 Day 3 we went rock climbing in Pine Creek.  Recent and dedicated efforts by some of Bishop's finest have created some truly classic multi-pitch rock climbs out there.  We tackled "Chips off the Old Block", a 6 pitch 5.10b.

Day 4 we waffled a bit on plans, debating among our many excellent options.  Weather, access and desires narrowed the choices and soon the SE Face of Emerson rose to the top of the heap.  This is a huge route.  Never "hard", but constantly technical, Emerson can be a full-day and then some.  Billy came fit, got acclimated, and we crushed the agenda in a noteworthy-for-the-season sunlit car to car effort.  In fact, in civilized fashion, we never left the car before sunrise and never returned after.  

Above the face is some killer ridge-aneering.

Eastern Sierra Evolution Loop Go Light, Go Fast

THE EVOLUTION LOOP

Two hours on day two brought the only stint of bad weather. Driving sleet blinded us from the East as we scrambled over high granite slabs, rounding pristine lakes and crossing primitive streams to the top of Muir Pass. I am wearing my only layers and they are covered in a coat of sticky white crud. Justin and Blake are setting the pace, their sights set on the hut situated on the summit of Muir Pass. We hit the hut in three waves and take the place over. It is cold, but not unbearably so. Jed starts wrapping himself in the mega-mid he is carrying as the sole shelter for three of the hikers. Chris gets up to help him and Blake is shouting suggestions from a bench on the side. They are functioning as a team with a mission now, trying to create a streamlined hiking tarp from a piece of gear many alpine climbers already own. Multi-purposing is one of the keys to going light and fast. But this one is a failure. He looks like a raddish on steroids dressed in a body diaper. Humor is another key to success with minimalist adventures.

The Evolution Loop tracks from North Lake to South Lake through the Evolution basin up and over three 12,000 foot passes (Piute, Muir, Bishop). It is 55 miles and surprisingly run-able. We had the chance to take an experimental test run of the route with Sierra Mountain Guides a few weeks ago. Along the way, we are testing lightweight gear, learning about hyperlight strategies and tactics from frontrunners in this area of study like Justin (Trauma) Lichter and Howie Schwartz, and we are blessed with a stunning overview of the high Sierra. I am ashamed to say that before this, I had never seen the Sierras more than the highway drive from Reno to wine country. So much climbing, so little time. I am delighted to report that the range blew my mind as expected. The entire range from the Palisades to the peaks over Piute rises from the most solid layer of granite bedrock I have ever seen. This makes the terrain feel flat and continuous, even at elevations of 12,000 plus where 14ers loom overhead. It is strikingly different from the mini-ranges that form the Rockies where the elevation tends to drop sharply between each cirque.

There are also fewer roads. We are on a loop that is part of the longest continual stretch of roadless country in the nation. As such, we are self-supported for most of the trip. This is fine. Our packs average around 15 pounds for days two and three. We are breezing past hikers with huge loads covering the same ground in six days. But even this is not the best way to run this route. This is an exploratory outing and we are minimizing some costs and taking time to put some new gear to the test. We have the luxury of experiencing the mule-supported camp on the first night, then we are on our own. The trip from Sierra Mountain Guides will feature mule-supported camps (with chefs) on both nights. So sick!

For us, day one was 25 miles of mountain running. We wore shorts and our gear is minimalist with only a water bottle, snacks and lightweight wind gear. The next two days we covered the remaining 30 miles bagging high peaks along the way and stopping frequently for mini product review sessions with the seasoned team. Water was straight from the source with no treatment the entire way and the wilderness left its mark on us with bronzed skin, clean air, and a genuine feeling of detachment from the rest of the world. Content and happy, we wonder if it should ever end. But like any trip, this one has a beginning and an end. We are happy they are both (along with everything in between) beautiful, and rugged, and entrancing … the way our wilderness was meant to be.
Sierra Mountain Guides
Special thanks to the photographers:
1. Blake Herrington
2. Matt Irons
3. Matt Irons
4. Dave McCoy
5. Dave McCoy
6. Howie Schwartz
7. Blake Herrington

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North Couloir

Fall treats in the Sierra and post holing in October…….

Oct  5-6 brought a blanket of  2-3 feet of  snow to the Palisade approach – Joe and I pushed our trip back a day in anticipation of the high pressure that was following the storm, and we were treated to amazing views and some aerobic trail breaking.

Leaving mammoth at 6 AM I got really excited with calm winds and not a single cloud in the sky and my first glimpse as to what the storm had gifted us……

Our objective was the Swiss arête of Mt. Sill – however due to conditions we decided to climb the N. Coulouir – a formidable objective under our winter/October conditions.

Hours of Post holing ensued, and Joe and I ended up breaking trail to Sam Mack Meadow.

We had amazing views and the Palisades looked great under a winter blanket

                     -Viren P.