Jimjub
Trad climber
San Francisco
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Climbed this on Saturday after Cathedral. I see absolutely zero reason to skip this climb once you have summited Cathedral. It is just begging you to stand on top of it.
Descend from Cathedral via the 3rd class ledges and head over to the pinnacle once possible. You will likely end up on a very large ledge/notch right below the south face of Eichorn. This is where you will end up rappelling back to. From here, move down 8ft to the smaller ledge below. From here we built a simple anchor and roped up.
We broke this down in to 2 pitches and it worked out perfectly. The first pitch being the hand traverse which is stunning. Once you have passed the first piton look up and you will see the other 3 pitons listed on the Topo. The climbing here looks pretty intimidating (for 5.4) but you simply stem with your feet and grab jugs for your hands. After about 15 feet you will find yourself in a large notch that is listed on the Topo as the optional belay. I actually think this is a very comfortable place to belay with bomber anchor placements and plenty of room for 2 people. P2 was stemming up the wide rib to the summit.
There is a brand new shiny bolt that is attached to the 2 older bolts via 2 slings/webbing, and a rap ring. Rap down 70 ft back to the notch. From here, traverse back to towards cathedral and scramble up 3rd class to the notch where you will join the decent "staircase" back to the base of Cathedral.
(p.s. If you were the group that summited Cathedral after us that took a picture of us standing on the top of the pinnacle, I would LOVE and appreciate the photo!)
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froodish
Social climber
Portland, Oregon
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FWIW, short clip from the summit from September of last year (2009):
http://pangram.org/misc/eichorn-summit-full.mov
Looked good to me then. Kinda hard to tell in the clip, but the new bolt backing the relics up is down to the left (if facing Cathedral) which is the direction you rap off. As a general rule, I'd bring a tied sling (and rap ring too) along on outings like this. As you can see from the turds by the old bolts, there's critters up there and critters have been known to chew on webbing.
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georgiegirl
Sport climber
Heaven
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Any one been up this lately? Just curious about the state of the rap bolts at the top? Are they smooth enough to run the rope straight through or should I bring some extra webbing?
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Chris McNamara
SuperTopo staff member
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cool trip report here http://www.supertopo.com/climbing/thread.html?topic_id=927257
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Chugar
Trad climber
Mariposa, CA
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Thanks for the info! Also, the two old anchors bolts up top have been backed up with one new anchor bolt. Rap rings connect all three for a secure rappel.
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Gene
climber
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Have your second belay you to the top - it's one pitch. Have the belayer scoot back toward the top of Cathedral and take the hero shop. Rap off the top. Return the favor to your partner.
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davidji
Social climber
CA
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Chugar,
The $$ shot is from the east (towards the summit). The climb starts at the NW part of the pinnacle, and if you were being belayed, your belayer couldn't take the pic.
While the route is committing, and may feel stout for 5.4, it makes a fun solo if you're into that. In that case the person who belayed you on the SE Butt could take the pic. Couldn't tell you how it is to solo downclimb, since I rapped.
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Chugar
Trad climber
Mariposa, CA
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Hi all, I'd like to do the Cathedral Southeast Butress and the North Face of Eichorn. Got a question: in order to get that nice $ shot on top of Eichorn, do you need a 2nd party to take that shot or can the belayer take it? I'm assuming the shot is taken on top of Cathedral... Thanks!
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climber4life
Mountain climber
seattle
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A few hundred feet from Cathedral Peak, Eichorn Pinnacle stands as one of the most spectacular features in the Sierra. The climb starts with a traverse off a large ledge onto tremendously exposed terrain that is sure to make your stomach turn. Though the moves are well protected and rated 5.4, the fantastic exposure will get blood pumping for even the most experienced climbers. The climb ends on a spectacular summit with dramatic exposure on every side. This is a great linkup with Cathedral Peak.
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Brian in SLC
Social climber
Salt Lake City, UT
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Great route. Climbed it on a quiet, sunny day (although a tad windy): 25 August 04.
Had a bit of hard time tryin' to figure out where to belay the first pitch from. Helped that the topo indicated to not clip the fixed pin above the slab, though. A bit more detailed topo could keep folks from fishin' around for that tiny stance (although we found it ok anyhoo). Pretty detailed as it is, I suppose...
Neat, neat route. Not too many 5.4's with that kind of exposure and easy cruising. Stupendious.
Anchor on top looked fine as the sling mass was around a chockstone and through the old, rusty bolts too. Might be helpful in the future to mention that the rappel ends up right on the initial traverse ledge (in case the rap rings aren't positioned that way) on the same side of the ridge-lette as the climb is on. Might prevent someone from rappin' into space on the far side of the pinnacle, maybe.
Worthy of a day hike/trip all by itself.
Brian in SLC
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Fields
Trad climber
CA
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We did this yesterday after Cathedral. WOW!!!
It's very fun and I highly recommend taking the extra time to do it. (most people seem to hustle down from Cathedral...)
Just to let you know, the bolts have NOT been replaced and are old/rusty/scary. There are a bunch of slings around a small but somewhat decent bolder and through the old bolts. I would bring some webbing/rap ring just in case you decide to get rid of the old, weathering slings.
And don't forget the registry.
Great climb.
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Colt45
Trad climber
Seattle, WA
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Holy cow, this is one amazing pitch!!! It would be ridiculous to climb cathedral and not add this on afterwards if you have the time.
It is quite steep and exposed for 5.4, and note that initially you have to do a short 4th class hand traverse to belay from a small stance to keep rope drag down for the leader.
The descent down to the John Muir trail took a while, and it might be faster to simply use the standard Cathedral descent.
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The unreal summit of Eichorn Pinnacle.Photo: Randy Spurrier
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