Correction to Secor, Lone Pine Peak, North Ridge route
by Matthew Gelber
Guidebook recommends bypassing the final headwall by traversing right on a
class 3 ledge, crossing a loose gully, and going up a class 3 buttress
above. Perhaps the condition of the gully has worsened since Secor did it;
at any rate crossing it is now a suicidal undertaking. Having [barely]
survived the crossing recently I would heartily recommend going any way
other than this. Tackling the headwall directly looks easy class five for
3 or 4 pitches.
On the other hand, if you try to cross the gully and live through it,
you'll have beautiful memories: first, the gully shifting under your feet;
then, the whole thing moving; you sprinting up and making no progress as
the gully unloads over the edge -- which is just under your feet; blocks
passing by first under your hands and chest and knees and then under your
feet and then into the void; the smell of sulfur and roar of crashing
rocks.
The information in these pages is provided by
interested volunteers and has not been field checked.
R.J. Secor, The Mountaineers and the Sierra Club
are in no way responsible for the
accuracy of any route advice on this web site.
Safe climbers must be able to understand the terrain
and topography of the area they travel in, and they
must make wise route finding choices based on their
own knowledge, experience and observations.