Palisade Traverse, June 2012

Jon asked the typical questions.  "How many times have you done the Palisade Traverse?"  "Does it ever get boring?"  The first question does not have a ready answer, which is the reason that the second does.  First of all, it never gets boring in the Palisades.  That is because it is never the same twice.  I have indeed spent a lot of time on the ridge-crest between Thunderbolt and Sill.  Guiding and personal trips have had me up there linking at least four of the area's five "14ers" eight times in the last four years.  And that doesn't count the attempts that came up short.  I can honestly say that no two of those trips were at all alike.  This trip with ultra-running and self-deprecating B.A. Jon A. was no exception.  We wanted to get Jon up there early in the season, and keep us both in approach shoes the entire way.  We wanted to get some huge days of traversing under our harnesses.  Fulfilling these objectives would get Jon on his way to his next big mission.  Stay tuned, and in the meantime ponder that this was just Jon's "warm-up".

This view never gets old.

Anyway, we set out to tweak the standard guided Palisade Traverse itinerary.  Inspired by our very own Peter Croft's interpretation of this mega-classic traverse, we set out to approach and exit on the east and connect Winchell Col and Mt. Sill via the crest.  Measured on Google Earth (using my new favorite tech tool, USGS topo overlays available here) this section of ridge is a mile and a half.  The "meat" of it is found between Thunderbolt and Polemonium.  This section contains the best rock in the Palisades and the highest concentration of technical 14ers in the country.  And this section is just a half-mile long.  The often, and understandably, skipped NW ridge of Thunderbolt is a half-mile long on its own.  The mathematician will quickly deduce that the section from Polemonium to Sill is a half-mile long also.  In any case, we couldn't let Jon settle for anything less than the whole beast.

Jon and I met in Bishop on Tuesday morning to talk logistics and gear, then headed out to the North Fork of Big Pine Creek.  We busted in, as quickly as we could, to the Thunderbolt Glacier tarn camp.  We napped on Yosemite-style glacier polish and grubbed on a big fat steak.  That's livin'.

We woke with the sun on the chilly first morning and strode over to Winchell Col.  That NW ridge has rock that is a little looser than further along, but it is a totally worthy addition to the traverse.  We found mainly dry Cali rock, but did have to do some icy PataLaska style tunneling.

"This is just like Peak 11300, but different"

I hate to say it, but the section from Thunderbolt to North Palisade was almost "routine".  What a joy to traverse very familiar terrain with a strong partner.  I don't pretend to think that Jon felt it was routine, nor do I mean any disrespect to this chunk of terrain.  I was simply content to remember my first trip through that section a few years back and reflect on the accumulation of experiences there.  Jon, in his way, will down-play his own performance.  But, mark my words, the guy can move and tough it out.  As much as he talks about enjoying suffering, I can only guess the misery this 100 mile runner can stand.

The latter part of the day, up onto North Palisade.  Smack in the
middle of the High Sierra's own Circus Maximus.  

Sunset on North Palisade.  Thankfully camp is just a single rappel away.  Boo Yeah!

Morning lounging at 14k.  That's livin'.  Or does livin' mean steaks and glacier polish?  Damn, what a trip!

We woke, again with the sun, on the morning of day 3 high in the S. Bowl of North Pal.  We knew we had made better than excellent progress, and even had the hubris to propose making the trailhead a whole day early.  In the end we did exactly that, going from North Palisade over Polemonium to Sill and down and out.  This last day was long, but felt like the wind-down after the prior day's blitz.  All that, and we didn't short ourselves on anything:  We slept, ate, and drank what we needed.  We gathered a bazillion gigs of data via a total of five cameras.  We never walked or climbed by headlamp.  We did indeed work hard, but, as Sam Ewing said "Hard work spotlights the character of people:  some turn up their sleeves, some turn up their noses, and some don't turn up at all."  Jon turned up and turned it on.  He very well may cite various challenges faced up in those Palisades, but as an observer, I can vouch for smooth adaptation to considerable difficulty.  

Sun sets on a day past, looking to a day ahead.

Packing for a Multi-day Ridge Traverse

So, something about a multi-day ridge traverse has captured your attention. Maybe it's a 2-day itinerary on Lone Pine Peak, the 4 day version of the Palisade Traverse, or something bigger and further out there. In any case, you want to cover some ground and be ready for technical climbing. You will spend cool nights at altitude, burn lots of calories, and carry all of your gear the entire time. A trip like the Palisade Traverse requires the ultimate expression of "fast and light" packing strategies. The first, easiest, and cheapest way to lighten one's load is to leave stuff behind. Then one must choose gear that is multi-purpose. Then one should consider some of the more specialized gear. Here is an annotated list of personal gear one should have for a trip like this. For now, lets ignore group gear considerations (rope, rack, cooking kit, first aid and repair) and focus on individual gear and clothing.

• Pack: Choose a small, simple pack, and leave behind what won't fit in it. Now, a 25-35 liter pack will be stuffed tight as a drum, but that makes for a rigid package that stiffens the whole outfit. That means you can (and should) choose a frameless version, one that can contain a tri-folded piece of closed-cell foam as "framesheet" and sleeping pad. Bam, many pounds saved right there! Models we like: ArcTeryx Cierzo 25 or 35. Cold Cold World Ozone or Valdez.
• Sleeping Pad: see above. If you absolutely must have something inflatable and complicated, choose one of the lightest, smallest pads you can. Like the Thermarest NeoAir. Size small.
• Sleeping Bag: Down-filled, rated to 30 or 40 F. About a trillion options here. Pack it in a plastic-bag-lined compression sack. Squish that guy to the density of a rock.
• Shelter: Bivy Sack or tarp. Less than a pound, no poles or silliness like that. With Sierra Ridges we simply don't camp high in poor weather. Poor weather brings electricity, and no bivy sack is lightning-safe. Keep it super minimalist. What we like: Brooks Range ultralight tarps. Solo size, or share a bigger one with your partner. Or the Outdoor Research Aurora Bivy.
• Helmet: your choice, but realize that the lightest options are half the weight of the heaviest.
• Harness: Lightweight, minimalist. The Camp Alp 95, at just over 3 ounces, is the extreme expression of this. But the Black Diamond Couloir and the Camp Air harnesses both come in around 8 ounces and are far more durable and versatile. Your choice.
• Carabiners: Each person should have a pair of lockers. Tiny lockers are light, but less versatile. Your huge lockers from that Denali expedition in '94 weight probably twice what they need to, and who knows what has happened to them since Kurt Cobain died. Grab a pair of modern, small, pear-shaped 'biners. Like the Black Diamond Mini Pearabiner.
• Belay device: Learn to belay and rappel without a device. Or throw in a small, simple multi-purpose device. Like the BD ATC Guide.
• Chalk, rock shoes, tape gloves, etc.: you'll be surprised how climbing alpine rock without these things isn't all that bad. Leave 'em at home.
• Early season Footwear: Early season you'll want mountain boots. Lightweight, low-profile, uninsulated, dedicated mountaineering boots. The go-to is La Sportiva's Trango Evo S GTX, but other companies make excellent entries in this category.
• No snow? What to use on your feet? If conditions require no steep snow or ice, don't hesitate to go to approach shoes. Get 'em in high-top configuration to keep the scree out and fit 'em with a compromise between walking comfort and climbing performance. We like Evolv Maximus shoes for High Sierra scrambling, off-trail travel, and technical ridge-climbing.
• Gaiters: Nah. Just rig some elastic to your pant cuffs to keep them down snug over your shoes.
• Socks: Wear-a-day, Air-a-day. 2 pairs max.
• Pants: Mid-weight, softshell dedicated climbing pants. OR Cirque pants are great, as are any number of comparable offerings. Maybe add long underwear if the forecast is unseasonably cold.
• Upper body: Here, the options are limitless. Start with a synthetic t-shirt. Then add 3-4 more layers, the more hoods the better. One of which should be an ultralight, truly waterproof shell. OR's Helium Jacket is one choice. Another of your 3 or 4 layers should be a light-weight puffy jacket. Less than one pound, again, ideally with a hood. Then a lightweight fleece and/or a long-sleeve base layer and/or an ultralight soft-shell. Hoods all around, sound like a broken record?
• Hat: No need if you have all those hoods! Maybe a sun-hat for the approach.
• Gloves: One pair, ultralight. Consider work-style gloves for durability and dexterity. Jed really likes "Ironclad Cold Conditions Gloves."

Palisade Traverse in the Eastern Sierra

It's official, the Palisade Traverse is my favorite High Sierra offering! What a grand adventure: Wilderness approach, snow, ice, lightweight camping, amazing rock climbing, difficult summit pinnacles, high altitude, and an accumulation of demands to the body. Like many trips conducted with expertise in the ever-changing mountain environment, this particular traverse can be attacked with a number of strategies. Snow coverage, team fitness, rock-climbing prowess and weather forecast all combine to determine the appropriate tactics. Having done the traverse a number of times, in 4 different months of the year with many different combinations of the above factors, I feel well-versed in the options. I must say that my preferred schedule is the one Bill and I undertook this past weekend.

We hiked in on day 1 to the Thunderbolt Glacier tarn camp. This is a beautiful, smooth-rock campsite looking straight up at the imposing East Prow of Thunderbolt Peak.

We were able to wake around sunrise each morning of our 4 day trip. On day 2 we used the cool morning and firm snow to race comfortably up the North Couloir of Thunderbolt Peak.

Here is Bill on the traverse around "The Lightning Rod" on Thunderbolt.
We camped the second night at the Underhill Notch, scoring flat sandy spots, snow handy for water, and a leisurely, if cold, view of the sunset to the northwest.

A disproportioned view of the Thunderbolt Peak Summit block- quite a feat in mountain boots.
Bill and lichen coming 'round "The Archbishop", a tower on the spectacular Northwest Ridge of Starlight Peak.

The wild summit of Starlight Peak: "The Milkbottle"
From the summit of Starlight to the summit of North Palisade is a complicated couple hundred yards. It's climb down, rappel, across, up, down, swing across, scramble up, scramble down and finish with 2 5th class pitches right to the summit. Folks can easily converse between the adjacent peaks, but the traverse can take hours. Some knowledge and skill makes it smoother, but it's always an experience. This section of 'off-width' climbing is not the easiest variation, but it is a safer option, and photogenic to boot.
Summit of North Palisade:


Soaking up some sun, re-organizing, and grabbing a snack at the U-Notch.
Sunset view from camp very near the summit of Polemonium Peak.
Small, but fierce, these variations of "Nieve Penitentes" made a compelling foreground for a day 4 sunrise.

The final Summit, Mount Sill, with all the peaks lined up behind Bill's hooded head. This was a cold trip: each night we slept cold, each day we climbed in all our clothes and gloves. Brrrrr.