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Grahm Doe
Sport climber
Just South Of Heaven
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Pretty beat up. That place is truly wild and remote. Our packs were over 100 pounds with all the climbing gear and river gear. We looked pretty comical going down the trail with giant packs and oars. I'll work on pics tonight.
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Mungeclimber
Trad climber
sorry, just posting out loud.
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Let's see some John and Susu routes! Mucci and Mooch kept talking about the ground up style that some of you guys are doing down there.
Proud!!!
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susu
Trad climber
East Bay, CA
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DR, A year ago a friend made-off w/my much prized Climbing magazine Shuteye issue, so it's very nice to see the writeup again here! Always enjoy your writing! Sweet comment at the end by Royal Robbins. We've met a precious few climbers at Shuteye in the two years we've been heading there. Would be nice to see some more.
Jeff, we'd love to get to Wawona again. Missed you & Mony of late. Looks like Mucci might be able to make it out to So Yo soon again.
Munge, thank you! Be very nice to see you out there sometime! Best to show you by climbing them with you in person! But here are a few photos otherwise.
Sean & Jess just did a great job on a new climb, ground-up, this past weekend out there.
Here's a photo of Jeff stanced out and hand drilling late this last spring on Middle Aged Man's Fancy Dreams. Edit: another ground up FA.
Grahm, so... you guys were out there somewhere underneath this fogbelt when we took this picture. Hope you're fully rested up now... Looking forward to your photos/tr!
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sneville
climber
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another great weekend at shuteye. We beat the weather and got some FA/s done. Even in the rain this place is very special.
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mucci
Trad climber
The pitch of Bagalaar above you
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Thanks for the pix all!
That one of John with gilligans hat on, hammer in hand is Priceless!
Middle age looks very nice indeed.
Mucci
Praying it all works out for a coming weekend.....
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Tork
climber
Yosemite
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Glad to see somebody got out this weekend!
Great shots! Can't wait to get on those.
Hey John and Sue, Where is Gilligan/John drilling?? (route name hint)
Sean, nice job...what's that first pitch going at?
Nate, I will be returning your email soon.
Mucci, what weekend works for you? And the rest of you as well. John, Sue, Sean, anybody else????? We need to get Nate up to Slowona Dome.
Jeff
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susu
Trad climber
East Bay, CA
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Jeff, The photo of John is on a new climb "Cowboy Cracks" to the right of Wither. Nice photo Jess. In the photo, the right-facing crack corner
in the background is the first pitch of Wither.
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Paul Martzen
Trad climber
Fresno
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Hey Grahm,
Sounds like you had an interesting adventure and have more to come, since your gear is still down there. I can add a few tidbits, though I have not been in that section myself.
Kayaking the San Joaquin Middle Fork: For many years after Royal's descent there were only a few kayakers willing to tackle that section. Three of my regular paddling partners made what we think was the 3rd or 4th descent in the early 1990's. Mike Latendresse who still lives in Oakhurst, was on the trip and shot lots of photos. These days kayak design and skills have progressed to the point that several groups a year make the descent down this canyon. There is some information plus links to trip reports at the American Whitewater page for this river reach.
http://www.americanwhitewater.org/content/River/detail/id/290/
I have some other stories that you might find more interesting.
Dr. Bob, Bob Graham, here in Fresno used to lead annual snorkeling trips through part of the canyon. Maybe from Miller Crossing to Cassidy Crossing or perhaps further. I am pretty sure it was from trail to trail and they did not go all the way to Mammoth Pool that I know of. He always had interesting (scary) tales to tell and beautiful photos.
Around 2000, I started attending lots of meetings for the relicensing of the San Joaquin power projects owned by Southern California Edison. Among the various agencies, public interest groups and concerned citizens, was one old loud mouthed, coot, who could go on and on. The rest of us would twiddle our thumbs until he got winded. But over time I developed a tremendous respect for him. One story that opened my eyes was when he described taking several weeks to hike and swim from Florence Lake to the mouth of Big Creek. This was before Mammoth Pool was built. He did not say a whole lot about the trip other than that he got really tired of eating fish and nothing else. It made me realize that he was a tough guy from whom I could learn a lot.
I know that you have climbed a lot in the river bed at Squaw Leap, but have you swam/hiked all the way from the bridge to the lower powerhouse, or from Kerchoff down, or from Reddinger to Kerchoff? Of course your gear is up above, so you are pretty committed!
Paul
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Nate D
climber
San Francisco
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Very cool share, Paul.
Very nice looking climbs, Sean, John, and Susan!
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Tork
climber
Yosemite
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Thanks Sue, looks like fun.
Hope we can all hook up soon
Jeff
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Mungeclimber
Trad climber
sorry, just posting out loud.
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awesome photos Susu.
Gilligan hats are all the rage in France, but here, I'm not sure what is kosher. I defer to your judgment John since you're on the sharp end of that there rope. ;)
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susu
Trad climber
East Bay, CA
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Paul, Enjoyed your post. esp. the part about the one old loud mouthed coot and realizing you could learn much from him. Great photos on that link too!
Hah, Munge, the fisher hat photo is Jessie's... wow, but that hat is getting some props! All I know is it hasn't tried to fly away in a wind when he's climbing like the baseball caps do. And it goes great with the King of Beers.
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mooch
Trad climber
Old Climbers' Home (Adopted)
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Oh look, its Jeff and John....sans the Gilligan hat.
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Grahm Doe
Sport climber
Just South Of Heaven
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HA! Yup, thats John and Jeff alright!
Thanks so much for that post Paul. The trip report for running the river at the link you supplied is amazing. Check it out if you didn't see it.
http://darinm.blogspot.com/2007/06/devils-postpile-middle-fork-san-joaquin.html
The quotes at the end are classic. “It’s like Dinkey Creek on crack and in a gorge” – Taylor Robertson. “The hardest thing I have ever done in a kayak” – Jules Campbell. “This is the most demanding run I’ve ever seen” “If you’ve done all the other high Sierra runs, and want more, this is for you. – Holbek & Stanley. “This run is one of the most beautiful and scary there is. It’s full-on adventure.” – Hayden Glatte.
We thought we were just gonna float and climb some walls on our way down. Dooh!
I have fa'd some routes below Reddinger Dam and put up some bouldering below Kerchoff but not floated it yet. I think I need to get a kayak. Inflatable tubes aren't cutting it!
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Nate D
climber
San Francisco
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Serious business.
I noted they lifted (without permission, perhaps?) one of Dingus' photos in that TR.
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Slater
Trad climber
Central Coast
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a kayak?! ... the rack is growing-
Standard Rack for So Yo:
snowmobile
Kayak
float tube
chain saw
snorkle
am I forgetting anything?
ps- Nate, get back to work.
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Grahm Doe
Sport climber
Just South Of Heaven
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Ok, here we go...All climbers are invited to the SSCA Southern Sierra Climbers Association gathering at Shuteye Ridge.
The event will be the weekend of October 16th . I will be there Friday night if you want to come in early. Hikes to climbing at 3 different areas can be reached from the group camping area. Bring your own beverage of choice. Topos will be provided to the nearby climbing areas. Slide show Saturday night.
Driving Directions: This is the easier and smoother way to go. It is also 2 wheel drive car accessible. Driving time is about 45 minutes from the town of North Fork. North Fork is your last chance for gas and groceries.
From North Fork take Mammoth Pool Road aka South Fork aka Road 225 aka Minarets Rd. East out of town and past the old mill heading toward Mammoth Pools. Before Mile High Overlook pull out you will pass Rock Creek Campground on the right. About .75 of a mile past the campground and before the road actually crosses Rock Creek a major intersection on your left will be dirt Road 7S02.
Turn left onto 7S02 and follow it about 4 miles until you can see Big Sleep Dome on the right. A small dirt road on the right leads to the right (south) side of Big Sleep Dome drainage. Keep your eyes peeled because the turn is in the middle of a right hand curve and it is easy to miss if you are driving fast. This final short road is a bit rocky so drive carefully to avoid flats. A large open area to your right is the main camping area. There are a few obvious fire pits to choose from. If you continue past this area in about 200 yards the road ends at a small parking area.
Near by crags:
Crocodile Rock: A beautiful dome with excellent highly featured golden granite and just over 30 routes. Incredible views from the crag and stellar climbing make it well worth the hike. Gear and sport routes mix well together at this wall. Steep featured water grooves on the main face are what make Crocodile best known for its amazing routes in the 5.11 range. The base of the main wall is very comfortable and dog friendly with big granite floors and boulders leaning against the wall for shade. Can get breezy and cold in the afternoon as the air speeds up going over Shuteye Pass.
The bouldering around Crocodile is unbelievable in quality. Comparable to the Druid Stones of Bishop.
Big Sleep Dome: South West facing giant 1,000 foot dome. This one is easily seen all the way from Fresno. Moderate multi pitch climbing is the name of the game here. Nothing harder than 5.9 so far but some fun 5 to 6 pitch excursions can be enjoyed here. The routes generally start out with smooth friction climbing and end up on giant oceans of knobs.
Fish Dome Description: A golden dome situated on the ridge with a great vibe. Shorter routes here that climb a plated dome you might think was from a dream.
So come on out and enjoy the Shuteye Ridge experience. See ya there!
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Slater
Trad climber
Central Coast
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Grahm I have a more recent, updated topo for Fish Rock.
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Nate D
climber
San Francisco
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Hooray for Hats!
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SuperTopo on the Web
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Let us know!