Artem's Ramp

Approaching the Torre. Photo by Jack Cramer.

Since we had a good time on the Torre De Mierda last year, Jack invited me to go up and check out the other line he spied on the face in the middle of February. Last year we started the day with fun, fast, and frightening skiing across a frozen Convict Lake. With an even warmer and drier winter that wasn't a realistic option this time, so we started skinning around the lake and up into the hanging valley below Morrison.

Questing on Pitch 1. Photo by Jack Cramer.

We were aiming for a ramp system left of Jamaican Lager. The system starts a few hundred feet off the ground, and at first it looked like we could traverse in from the left. After screwing around there for a while we found the climbing and protection wasn't to our liking and dropped down a couple hundred feet, closer to the front part of the face. 

Jack nearing the pitch 1 belay.

Moderate but runout and wandery climbing took us to the snow ledge at the bottom of the ramp. Jack found some tat around a block here, but this was the only sign of other climbers we'd see all day. At this point in the day - after wasting time with the other start - we both knew without saying that we would be skiing out in the dark. In fact, we'd also be topping out in the dark.

Looking down pitch 3.

The first few pitches of the ramp increased in difficulty and then stayed there. I always have a hard time putting a difficulty rating on this kind of climbing but I don't remember any move being harder than maybe M3 or so. It was never steeper than vertical, but like other routes on the Torre and Morrison positive and secure holds are rare and the protection can be sparse and tricky. I don't recall a ton of loose rock, and because the ramp generally leans to the left it wasn't particularly difficult to keep the belays out of the line of fire.

Pitch 5. Photo by Jack Cramer.

Night fell as we climbed the last few pitches. Fortunately we remembered the descent from last time and soon were dealing with some less-than-ideal ski conditions on our way down to the lake. 

We climbed this route in about the driest winter conditions it would be in. My guess is that it could hold more snow. Depending on the quality of that snow the climbing could be easier, faster, or both. I think you would find helpful snow after an unusually wet storm, or maybe later in the winter when that snow has had time to melt and re-freeze. The line is visible from highway 395.

The following information is from my hazy memory, caveat emptor:

Rack: Stoppers, a double set of cams to #2, one each #3 and #4, 4 - 6 pitons

Pitch 1: 35m 

Pitch 2: 40m to a snowy sloping ledge

Pitch 3: 50m start up the ramp with easy holds on the left

Pitch 4: 50m follow the ramp, a bit harder than pitch 3

Pitch 5: 40m follow the ramp, a bit harder than pitch 4

Pitch 6: 30m up and right to protected stance

Pitch 7: 40m around the corner to the left 

Pitch 8: 60m follow the ramp

Pitch 9: 60m follow the ramp to the summit

 

Route overlay by Jack Cramer. Jamaican Lager starts at the red stripe to the right.

 

Comments

Post a Comment

Comments are moderated to keep spam at bay, it might take a few days for me to get around to it, thanks for your patience!

Popular posts from this blog

Route List By Difficulty

Image
This list is totally subjective and (hopefully) evolving. You might disagree with the order, which is fine. What do Californians know about M-climbing anyway. If you think there's a major error please contact me! Routes are sorted by overall difficulty, not just the hardest technical move (kinda like the French Alpine Grades or IFAS), and are fairly close in difficulty with their neighbors on the list. Here's a grade reference from Alpinist Magazine . Ian McEleney on Justification. If you climb to the top of the chimney this is your exit onto the summit slabs. Photo by Kevin McGarity. Crystal Crag - West Face (3rd) or South Ridge (low 5th). A "mini-alpine" winter day (though it could be long if you're a slow hiker/skier. In the winter park at the end of Main Street where Tamarack Cross Country ski area begins. Both of these routes are good for figuring out how to be in the backcountry in the winter but don't need to be very technical. Mammoth Rock - Justifica
Read more

Wheeler Crest action

Image
Over the last month or so (early 2022) the Wheeler Crest has seen a flurry of winter climbing action. Much of this has been spearheaded by Richard Shore, who may be the the current expert on climbs in this area. He and Joel Kaufmann put up Scottish Astronauts on the Rocketship a few years ago, and an extension/variation to this route was one of the first things to go down this season.  In late January Tad McCrea, Jack Cramer, and myself hiked in to have a look at the route. On the first ascent of that route Richard and Joel bypassed a not-quite-fully-formed ice strip with some cool looking wide climbing on the third pitch. Richard had shared a photo of the strip looking much longer this year, and Tad had spied more ice above the top of the Rocketship.  Tad climbing the snow blobs, as viewed from inside pitch 1. Photo by Jack Cramer.   The route got off to an interesting start. Instead of the moderate mixed climbing the first ascentionists experienced on pitch 1, we found a tricky squee
Read more

Mount Morrison Winter Climbing Considerations

Image
The north face of Mount Morrison. Photo by Jack Cramer. This imposing peak has attracted winter climbing attention for a long time*, and the current era is no exception. Preston Rhea is the modern scholar and activist on this peak, doing a ton of research on the old routes and putting up a number of new winter (and summer) climbs for us to try. The metamorphic rock in this area is waaaaayy different to climb on than the stone on say, Mount Russell or the Hulk. The north face of the peak is almost 2000 feet high. These two factors mean that Morrison requires a slightly different mindset from winter climbers than other peaks in the range. It reminds me a bit of alpine climbing in the Canadian Rockies. The following beta can be helpful for folks climbing on Mount Morrison or the Torre De Mierda for the first time. Approach (distances are approximate and measured from the picnic area on the east side of the lake) I think that if you're any climbing routes on the north side of the peak
Read more