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| Messages 1 - 9 of total 9 in this topic |
Sascha
climber
Sebastopol, CA
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Topic Author's Original Post - Aug 10, 2008 - 11:08pm PT
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Last week my partner and I failed to locate the start of the regular route on the Third Pillar of Dana... I felt pretty stupid, but have heard from several people now that it's not really all that obvious, even with the topo. Might someone be able to help clarify the approach to the direct and regular start? See my post on the route page. Many thanks!
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monolith
Trad climber
Berkeley
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Aug 11, 2008 - 12:06am PT
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Any pictures?
Now you've go me worried. I've done it twice, both times with snow so the crossing was easy but we still belayed. I'd like to go back this year.
I remember looking across the gully to good ledges, then starting straight up from there. The ledges seemed the first reasonable place to start a climb.
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Sascha
climber
Sebastopol, CA
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Topic Author's Reply - Aug 11, 2008 - 12:20am PT
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No pictures, alas.
I don't even know which gully we were in... There seemed to be a surprising number of ridges we had to get across while cutting over to the right. Those smaller ridges don't really show up in the photo of the approach. There was more sand and loose rock to go down, and then back up, and then what my partner said he surely recognized as the base of the pillar - except that, come to think of it, the features on it didn't really match the topo...
One take-home lesson: If you're about to make a consequential routefinding decision in the middle of getting hammered by the hike and cussing about the conditions, take five minutes to sit down, have a sip of water and a bite to eat. THEN think about which way is the smart way to go.
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monolith
Trad climber
Berkeley
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Aug 11, 2008 - 12:54am PT
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Good advice about taking a break.
Probably because of foreshortening, it seemed to me we were only climbing half the pillar.
The prominent white sheer face section of the 3rd pillar is a clue to where the 3rd class ledges and start are. The ledges are below and to the left of this face (as you face the pillar from Mono).
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ec
climber
ca
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Aug 11, 2008 - 01:01am PT
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'never seemed that difficult of a task...consult guidebook, map and compass...
I remember going out there with none of those items. Once you see the Pillar (seemed obvious to me which one it was...) from the edge of the plateau, head down the gully just west of it. There was a small ledge part-way up the route with a dinky pine tree on it. head for that. If you cannot nail the start of the route, you may have trouble higher where the face pitch is...
 ec
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monolith
Trad climber
Berkeley
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Aug 11, 2008 - 01:07am PT
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We went down the gully just west of the rotten pillar, which is west of the 3rd Pillar, so that leaves a gully to be crossed to get to the start. Do some go down the gully between the 3rd pillar and the rotten pillar?
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Karl Baba
Trad climber
Yosemite, Ca
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Aug 11, 2008 - 01:32am PT
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The actual Third Pillar is the most obvious thing in the world. It seems likely that you crossed the gully between the descent ridge and the rotton pillar which is between the real Third Pillar and the larger descent ridge. You didn't go far enough.
I usually cut across above the rotten pillar and head down and over to Third Pillar, but if you don't find the secret little notch, you have to go down and around the rotten pillar to get to the real route. The real third pillar looks like a clean skyscraper and it ain't super confusing if you have the supertopo.
Peace
Karl
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Sascha
climber
Sebastopol, CA
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Topic Author's Reply - Aug 11, 2008 - 12:11pm PT
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Thanks, Karl. The picture is great.
So from where this was taken, you go down and left to the start. There may be (in some years) an additional snow field below the frame of the picture, yes?
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Karl Baba
Trad climber
Yosemite, Ca
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Aug 11, 2008 - 01:27pm PT
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Yes
Worth going back to!
Peace
Karl
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