Going on a road trip, six must do climbs in the Sierras.....

Levy

Big Wall climber
So Cal

Jun 3, 2015 - 07:42am PT

Jun 3, 2015 - 07:42am PT
Castle Rock Spire -Regular route 5.11
Keeler Needle -Harding route 5.10c
Calaveras Dome -War of the Walls 5.10c
Calaveras Dome - Silk Road 5.11a/b
Mt Sill -East face or Dead Larry's Pillar 5.7 to 5.10
Mt Chamberlain - East face 5.10 to 5.12
Mt. Russell - Mithral Dihedral 5.10
Warlock Needle - S face 5.10

Bob Harrington

climberG
Bishop, California

Jun 4, 2015 - 08:35pm PT
Lots of great suggestions, but now you need an itinerary.

First, what Ksolem said. The Needles. The place is crazy beautiful and your preferred ratings are right in the area's sweet spot. Camping area at the trail head is small but nice -- get there mid-week to snag a good spot and plan on staying five days. Most of the routes are 2-5 pitch crack climbs of fantastic quality. The approach is a rolling 2 1/2 miles, mostly good trail, but it wears you down after a couple of days, so make the third day a rest day. On the rest day, head down the slope north of the camp site and in about fifteen minutes, you'll be in a pristine Sequoia grove. There will be no one else there. It's reverential.

Next, Whitney region. Day 1 is hiking up to Iceberg Lake, a high lovely lake below the east face of Whitney. Crowded, because all the Whitney climbers camp there, but there's lots of room. Acclimatize for a couple of days by climbing on Russell. Options are Western Front, Bloody Corner, Startrekin, Mithral Dihedral, Fishhook Arete. I've only done the last three -- all good. Bloody looks like hard 5.10 thin hands. Startrekin has a nice 10a hands pitch. Mithral is 9+ with a capital P. Russell is friendly because the routes are relatively short 4-6 pitches and not chossy. Fishhook is maybe longer but a scooch easier, very popular.

Now that you're well acclimated, do the Harding Route on Keeler. Has some choss, but also has some good pitches, and some burly but reasonable wide cracks. It's such a proud looking thing. That makes up for the choss. You (even you) may feel a little beat up after Keeler, so take an easy semi rest day and do either the east face or east buttress of Whitney, which ever one isn't clotted with summitteers.

That pretty much burns through a two week trip. If you have more time, Charlotte dome is not to be missed. An easy three days, from Onion Valley. If you have more time, Sun Ribbon Arete is IMHO the premier climb on Temple Crag. It doesn't have Dark Star's 5.10 rating, but is more continuous and follows a more dramatic narrative-like sequence of pitches. And it has a semi-obligatory tyrolean traverse.

BuddhaStalin

climber
Truckee, CA

Jun 4, 2015 - 11:43pm PT
Look into Twilight Pillar on Norman Clyde Peak, an old 5.8+ Don Jensen route. Among the most memorable that Ive done, soo good. Awesome last pitch. Nobody will be on it and so many less people on that side of the palisades.

Whitney and russell are great and all but the crowds and the poop bagging and such make me venture elsewheres a lot. Mt Hale has always intrigued me, but havent gotten on it yet, a 1970's 5.10+ is there, NE face.

Farther hike in, but Mt Clarence King has the Ramp Route, older 5.9 grade. Great climbing.

NE face of Picture Peak is a good old 5.9, very 5.10-y. You will definitey have that one to yourselves.

Merriam Peak is another to recommend, N buttress. 5.10

Lots of great 5.10 at Ruby Wall that will not be habitated.

Third Recess peak has been on my radar for a while but havent hit it yet, a couple newer 5.10s that look real nice, NE buttress and Serving Detention.

Another on my list for hopefully this year, but no later than next is the east peak of Mt Barnard, theres a highly appealing looking 1972 5.9 Rowell route up it, as well as a 5.10 East dihedral.

You mean The Pinnacles outside of Hollister, or the Trona Pinnacles?

If you're talkin' the Nat'l Monument, I say you should think twice. While I love the place and the climbing history is rich