The Nose, El Capitan 5.14a or 5.9 C2

Yosemite Valley, California USA

Currently 5.0/5

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Summary of All Ratings

SuperTopo Rating:	1 2 3 4 5	(5.0)
Average Customer Rating:	1 2 3 4 5	(5.0)
Your Rating:	1 2 3 4 5	(none)

Rating Distribution

19 Total Ratings

5 star:		(19)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

Mungeclimber

Trad climber

Nothing creative to say

May 15, 2017 - 10:58pm

wow, great TR and congrats on the engage.

Gina E.

Trad climber

Sep 12, 2016 - 05:59am

A trip report for the NIAD done this summer: https://sinkerjams.com/2016/09/12/the-niad/

Chris McNamara

SuperTopo staff member

Mar 8, 2015 - 06:46pm

Cool trip report here http://sinkerjams.com/2015/03/06/climbing-the-nose-on-el-capitan/

Matt's

climber

Feb 23, 2015 - 02:02pm

Route and the summit was bone dry a week ago. No snow or ice. Some of the cracks were a little dirty from the heavy rains two weeks ago.

If you bring a hammer, you can booty three tomahawks off the first three pitches.

I got a purple totem stuck on the penultimate pitch, if you feel generous it would be cool to get it back !

Vitaliy M.

Mountain climber

San Francisco

Feb 23, 2015 - 11:38am

Did the NIAD late January. Descent was mostly dry and snow free, BUT watch out for ice patches. There were a few next to the stream crossing on the slabs. In the night time if you slip on that you can go all the way over the edge. Route was not wet. Even Changing Corners. Enjoy and good luck!

protour

Trad climber

Yosemite, CA

Feb 11, 2015 - 08:55pm

Route should be straightforward, the ledges are dry, enjoy

max kruzic

Big Wall climber

Bishop, CA

Feb 11, 2015 - 03:55pm

Planning on getting on route next week. Anybody have beta on conditions of route and descent? Snow? wet?

markoclimbo

Big Wall climber

skerries dublin ireland

May 13, 2014 - 04:27pm

Hey guys, I'm looking for a climbing partner to give this route a shot in later august this year! after the 17th at some point, I will have basic trad rack but no big wall gear with me so if anyone is interested drop me a email kennedymark96@gmail.com

raymond phule

climber

Mar 18, 2014 - 10:33am

I have climb the Nose and Lurking fear in late July and beginning of august. I would say no problem. The noise were kind of windy and that made the heat ok. The first few pitches on lurking fear were kind of hot though. But it depends of course also on the actual weather. Bring a lot of water and I believe that you would be fine.

We had some rain on the first day on the nose so I believe that we spent two days alone on elcap before we saw another party. I don't believe that the days on the nose were any different in temperature than the rest of my weeks in the valley (except for during the rain).

Jonsey

Trad climber

Chapel Hill, NC

Mar 18, 2014 - 10:25am

What would the lowest crowd seasons be for The Nose? July-August? HOW unadvisable is it then? Is the heat not simply manageable with extra water?

Just wondering. Thanks!

Impaler

Social climber

San Francisco

Sep 17, 2013 - 07:45pm

It has 2 beefy bolts. "C" way is a good way to go if you are french freeing. Good beta is to link all the way from Sickle to this belay station in one pitch. Backclean a ton and have you partner simulclimb a bit from the sickle on easy terrain up to the "5.9 bulge".

mac gilbert

Trad climber

logan, Utah

Sep 17, 2013 - 06:57pm

Does anyone have beta on the alternate belay for pitch 7 (on the super topo, the one if you take the "B" or "C" variations to skip dolt hole and belay from the bottom of the stove legs). I am curious if it still consists of only one bolt and gear or if it now have more than one bolt (and no need for gear).

Thanks!

Offset

climber

seattle

Jun 18, 2013 - 02:35pm

Are you talking about the big triangle roof just before the penji? or before that?

nevermind

climber007

Trad climber

San Jose, CA

Jun 18, 2013 - 02:08pm

Just did the NIAD (almost... 36 hours :-) this weekend and wanted to give a shout out about a death flake!!

After the king swing at the belay marked as p17 in the supertopo.. there is a large hollow suspended/wedged flake directly above the bolts..

my partner stepped on it inadvertently while setting off from the belay and it slid down several inches.. we thought it was gonna take us out right then and there... was pretty terrifying for the rest of that belay.. as there is no where to hide from it..

I did not have anything in our kit to mark it.. tried with my chalk but it didn't take well...

im not sure this one will ever be safe to trundle unless there is a coordinated effort with NPS as its location would send rock fall some of the busiest areas on El Cap..

so anywhoo... be warned.. and for gods sake avoid yarding on it or placing any gear under it.. especially if you are aiding and plan to weight the gear!!

Here are zoomed out and in pics of me taken by Tom Evans while I was belaying there..


	zoomed out Credit: tom evans


	zoomed in Credit: tom evans

Dr.Q

climber

Idaho

May 3, 2013 - 09:01pm

Just did the Nose a couple of weeks ago. We took A 60 Meter haul line and 12 meter 8mm tether to dock the bags with. The 8 mm worked great to lower the bags on most pitches and we tied the bags in short on the haul line for the couple of lower outs that were longer. I would use that system again.

Adamame

climber

Santa Cruz

Apr 27, 2013 - 09:58pm

Use a 60m lead line and 70m haul line. This will help a lot for routes that have a lot of traversing like The Nose. Retie the bags with a butterfly and create as much lower out line as possible for those traversing pitches.

troy norman

Trad climber

camas,wa

Apr 26, 2013 - 02:01am

Sauerlach, Thanks for your thoughts. I am not a fan of jugging up a loaded haul line, thus the reason C2 lowers out the bags once C3has jugged a free unloaded line.

Another question which has been asked but doesn't ever seem to get a reply. Lowering out on the Nose. How long of a cord does one really need, especially if not doing the King Swing.

It looks like many people only take 2 60m ropes and just tie the piggy in short. Is this best practice or take an extra 7mm cord "Xm" long to lower out.

Thanks

sauerlach

climber

Munich, Germany

Apr 24, 2013 - 06:46am

I have tried to climb the Nose in 2008 (and bailed) and finally summitted in 2009, each time as a team of three climbers.

We progressed as described by you in your "Strategy A" (with the exception of the second lower-out of the pigs mentioned by you):

C1 leads, trailing the (static) haul line, and fixes lead line and haul line at belay station
C2 clips jumars into haul line and (together with the pigs) gets lowered out (if required) by C3
C2 jugs the haul line and subsequently hauls (together with C1), while C2 starts to clean the pitch immediately after having lowered out the pigs and C2

This system went well and smoothly and was regarded effective by us. Your strategy B seems a little awkward to me and I can't see the benefit against Strategy A. But I admit that there are more proficient experts @ supertopo than me to assess the efficiency of this Strategy B.

Stay safe, have fun and enjoy!

troy norman

Trad climber

camas,wa

Apr 24, 2013 - 05:37am

BEST STRATEGY FOR A TEAM OF 3??
We will mostly aid 85-90% of the route.

Strategy A)
Climber 1, leads with 60m lead line and trail a 60m haul line, fixes both lines. Climber 3 gets lowered out as needed with a 7mm cord and then jugs the haul line. Climber 1 and 3 to start to haul while climber 2 lowers out the pig as needed and then follows the pitch.

B) C1 leads with 60m lead line and trails a 7mm tag line, once at the belay he pulls up the haul(70m) and separate jug line(60m). C2 begins following. C3 ties in short, lowers out then jugs a free line while C1 hauls. No lower out line..Possible or not?

Basically, we are trying to use a few ropes as possible and still be safe. We are planning to opt out on the King Swing for the Jardine Traverse.

Thanks

Chris McNamara

SuperTopo staff member

Apr 9, 2013 - 02:15am

Yes, 2 and 3 link w/ 60m

Vitaliy M.

Mountain climber

San Francisco

Apr 9, 2013 - 01:16am

Do pitches 2 and 3 link with a 60 M rope?

Clint Cummins

Trad climber

SF Bay area, CA

Nov 13, 2012 - 03:34am

On the far right approach to the first pitch (3rd/4th class), the blocky bulge 30' off the ground has several very loose blocks right now. It seems to have incurred some impact from above recently.
I tossed off several smaller flakes, but the larger loose ones need to be trundled (carefully).

patrice

Trad climber

brussels, belgium

Jul 29, 2012 - 03:15pm


	Credit: patrice

Hi,
I'm agree : You need three ropes of 60m.
Be aware that your rope would be abrade by the rounded edge of Sickle ledge. It's better to foresee a small rope protection (size : 1 or 2 ft) ;-)
Patrice.
(Sorry for my spelling mistakes..)

lukebob

Trad climber

Denver, CO

Jul 28, 2012 - 09:13pm

3 60m ropes will get you to the ground from sickle ledge. You just have to tie the ends of the ropes together and pass the knots on the rappel. Don't try to rappel from bolt station to bolt station with 3 60m ropes when fixing....you won't make it.

AJFish

Trad climber

Rapid City, SD

Jul 27, 2012 - 08:47pm

In the Big Walls book it says it's possible to fix from sickle ledge to the base with 3 60m ropes. My partner and I went up just to fix some lines the night before and we ended up being 30ft short of the ground with 3 60's. Soooo Bring 4 60m ropes if this is your strategy

bfz

climber

Jun 16, 2012 - 03:44am

Last week I lost my camera on El Cap/ tribal rite. Maybe it landed on El Cap tower. It would be great if someone secures the memory cart and could send me the pictures. many thanks. my e-mail: benefizer@web.de
cheers, markus

Jim Smith

Trad climber

sunnyvale, ca

Jun 4, 2012 - 12:40pm

If I take the low route (variation C on the supertopo) getting from the top of sickle to the bolted belay at the bottom of the stovelegs and I have a 60m lead and haul line, is there enough rope left on the haul line to lower the bags across without a second line?

Anybody ever done this? It sure would be nice to not have to take a lower out line next time.

Jim

jvSF

Trad climber

San Francisco

Mar 12, 2012 - 06:51pm

On a trip to Dolt tower on 3/12/12, the piton shown in the topo at the pitch 8 anchor is no longer there - only one bolt to the left of the crack. i believe a #0.75 camalot worked to back up the bolt.

we also found the fourth rap station below dolt to be quite far to the left on the blank face below the stove legs. 30 mph westerly winds necessitated an ambitious pendulum across the face to gain the anchor.

bsquare

Big Wall climber

Ivins, UT

Jul 11, 2011 - 11:26am

I am not sure if this is the place to ask, but June 10 and 11 2011, some friends and I did the first few pitches of the Nose and bailed below Dolt tower. Somewhere along the way, we left an offset Alien. Most likely it was left on the decent route right of the stovelegs in a corner crack backing up the haulbag. If anyone has it, its return would mean a lot to me as it was a gift and they are no longer available.

Cheers,

Bryan

jadubovsky

climber

May 26, 2010 - 05:32pm

Looking for a climbing partner who might want to give this route a go in early July. I'm planning on a 3-4 day climb and I'll have most of the gear necessary.

sircamalot

Trad climber

Provo, UT

May 4, 2010 - 12:06am

There are rap stations every 50 or so meters so no need to attach ropes end to end.

Pabs

Trad climber

Apr 25, 2010 - 05:50am

When fixing to sickle with 60m ropes are there anchors every 60m, or do you just have to tie the ropes end to end and jug straight away to sickle? Thanks.

mongrel

Trad climber

Truckee, CA

Mar 10, 2010 - 10:17pm

Yep, that's right.

sircamalot

Trad climber

Provo, UT

Mar 10, 2010 - 09:57pm

So just a set of any micronuts will do the job?

BASE104

Social climber

An Oil Field

Mar 9, 2010 - 02:40am

Small brass or whatever will work fine. You should take some small stuff anyway. They don't weigh anything. It is only a few moves on the changing corners pitch that are kinda weird.

sircamalot

Trad climber

Provo, UT

Mar 8, 2010 - 10:41pm

Has anyone who's climbed the route know if DMM Peanuts or the Metolius Astros can be used for the changing corners pitch? They look like they'd be offset enough for the job... or are the HB/DMM brass offsets the only way to go?

Chris McNamara

SuperTopo staff member

Jun 23, 2009 - 01:14am

Question
"We're thinking of doing either the Nose, Salathe, or Triple Direct and the crowds are probably our number one worry. How does one wait for a day to get on a wall; is there a line, do you have to stay there to keep your place, can one climb through the night and pass parties that way. "

My answer
whoever starts up the wall first is first in line until you work something out differently. Its customary and best for everyone involved, to let a much faster party pass. It takes some extra time to the pass, so either the faster party usually jugs a fixed line by the slower party or vice versa

The tricky thing is when you get an only slightly faster team behind a slower party. When this happens, don't pass. The extra time of passing and dealing with the cluster of two parties at a belay takes extra time and takes away from both teams big wall experience. In general, only ask to pass if you feel you are MUCH faster and CONFIDENT you can blast ahead.

As far as starting up at night to pass, this is ok as long as you work it out with the team being passed before hand. Again, its important that you are confident that you are MUCH faster team in order to get good spacing and make the experience pleasant for everyone.

When you are fixing pitches (e.g. fixing pitches to Sickle on the nose). The team that fixes pitches first, is first in line to start the route. They should try to haul all their bags that day to sickle and start at very first light if there are other teams behind them. If the team first in line knows they are going slower than teams behind them, they should let the faster teams fast. However, the faster teams should start at first light or earlier if possible.

As for speed climbing, its best for everyone involved, to not try the nose in a day when there are 5 parties on the wall.

Chris McNamara

SuperTopo staff member

Apr 15, 2009 - 03:30pm

Wayne Merry's podcast on the first ascent of The Nose. Great 5 minute video with photos and narration - http://www.supertopo.com/climbing/thread.html?topic_id=836523

Chris McNamara

SuperTopo staff member

Mar 29, 2009 - 07:27pm

Great link to a 1979 Nose rack here

http://www.supertopo.com/climbing/thread.html?topic_id=622349

Chris McNamara

SuperTopo staff member

Mar 28, 2009 - 11:48am

Another trip report here

http://www.supertopo.com/climbing/thread.html?topic_id=820307

Chris McNamara

SuperTopo staff member

Mar 27, 2009 - 11:21am

Discussion of the King Swing Here

http://www.supertopo.com/climbing/thread.html?topic_id=818602

Chris McNamara

SuperTopo staff member

Mar 3, 2009 - 12:41am

great video of Hans Florine and Yuji climbing the nose REALLY fast here

http://www.climbing.com/masters_of_stone/

dirhk

Trad climber

Feb 4, 2009 - 12:39am

Is there enough lead line left to do the lower out on p.7 ?

Chris McNamara

SuperTopo staff member

Nov 29, 2008 - 01:38am

The story of Lynn Hill's first free ascent of The Nose

http://www.supertopo.com/climbing/thread.html?topic_id=733078

Chris McNamara

SuperTopo staff member

Nov 15, 2008 - 04:29am

hilarious trip report here with cool photos

http://www.supertopo.com/climbing/thread.html?topic_id=109316

Chris McNamara

SuperTopo staff member

Nov 4, 2008 - 06:58pm

Here is a great photo How To Lower Out From the King Swing post:

http://www.supertopo.com/climbing/thread.html?topic_id=714500

Clint Cummins

Trad climber

SF Bay area, CA

Oct 6, 2008 - 01:53pm

> [Hans' ratings:] 11a,12a,10d,11c or C1,C1+,C0, C1.

I freed them once; fortunately I was following on p2 and p4 which made it easier for me, as the gear can probably get in the way when leading p2.
I'd say:
11a, 11d, 10c, 11b.

On aid:
5.8 C1, C2, C2, C2.

I always rate pendulums C2 by tradition.
Also, the single hardest move for me last time was on p3, where there is a flaring finger sized pod high on the pitch. I could get a #2 TCU to hold there by placing it with the axle vertical (stem sticking straight out from the rock). It held while I weighted it, but fell out when I stepped off of it. Similar to another TCU/pod move on the pitch above Camp 5, just before you reach right from the face crack into the main corner.

I agree there are some tricky sections, like on p2 reaching the pendulum point. I was short on the #1 size TCUs once there; I didn't want to run it out too much on the slick 5.9 finger crack, so I was aiding and my TCU torqued and came out. I fell about 15' and impacted a ledge with my butt. It really torqued my back, and I was in a lot of pain. My partner was able to lower me very slowly down the route, and he helped me walk out. I had to lie flat on my back for about 2 weeks to recover.... I read later in Accidents in North American Mountaineering that somebody else fell on p2 and got knocked out.

Chris McNamara

SuperTopo staff member

Oct 6, 2008 - 12:06pm

erik sloan just sent me this note from Hans Florine:

"A while back I sent Hans some questions about his views on fixed gear on the Nose. In there were a few questions about the first four pitches. He thought the difficulties were 11a,12a,10d,11c or C1,C1+,C0, C1."

no me (chris mac) responding:
I have not freed pitches 2-4 so I can't agree or disagree. But those ratings sound about right, which makes them harder than i list in my Big Walls book.

I think the aid ratings are harder than C1. I feel there are a few sections of C2 if you were to aid every single move. There are some 5.9 sections that if you aid are really tricky and could result in a 10-20 foot fall. Which is not C1 in my book.

mongrel

Trad climber

Truckee, CA

Sep 9, 2008 - 07:40pm

I vote with Clint. We did it with just 2 #4 Friends. At the time (probably not today!) I remember freeing the wider Stovelegs, resulting in respectable but not heinous runouts from those two pieces. It would be deluxe to have a new grey Camalot or two, but not necessary. We also had no offset nuts or Aliens, only one each purple to yellow Metolius (plus later, a couple wired bliss bootied from various pitches). But we did have Tricams, pink and red, and used them several times in the pin scars up to Sickle. No cam hooks either, but we did have tiny RPs (actually, I think steel ones from BD, same thing) which I think we used only on one pitch (to Glowering Spot). The point is, if you aspire to the Nose, don't wait!! You do not need any fancy new gear, it is still only C1 and maybe some C2 fixed mank in pitches 1-4 and the final bolt ladder (shoelace on bolt hanging WAY out). We freed up to about 10b and aided everything else easily on ancient gear. It's good to be able to do efficient belay setups (eg do some grade IVs) and preferably to free at 10a so you do not miss out on the Pancake Flake.

Clint Cummins

Trad climber

SF Bay area, CA

Sep 9, 2008 - 06:00pm

I have done the Nose 3 times (most recently in 2005), and was always able to aid that last wide section to Dolt with 2 #4 Friends. No free moves required. The #4 Friends were fairly "wide open", but held me fine. Width: 3.75" for 2-3 moves; otherwise narrower.

[Edit to add:] If it matters, I'm 6' tall; I don't recall if it was reachy to aid the final short 3.75" crack. For the long Stoveleg pitch below, I aided the whole thing, leapfrogging the 2 #4 Friends. There were a few fixed cams the past 2 times I did it, so I just clipped those instead of leaving one of the #4s behind.

Chris McNamara

SuperTopo staff member

Sep 8, 2008 - 12:19pm

You can get by with a camalot # 4 but you will have to sorta free a bit also. If you want to totally aid the section you will need a #5.

Also, there is a great photo trip report here:

http://www.supertopo.com/climbing/thread.html?topic_id=667319

whoburg

climber

Aug 28, 2008 - 10:02am

I'm wondering: for the 4.5" offwidth sections (such as just below Dolt), is it best to carry a #4 or a #5 camalot (new C4 sizes)? Thanks for any info!

Lucas

Trad climber

Goleta, CA

Jun 30, 2008 - 12:49pm

Thanks for your advice, Chris. We did the route last week, and took a the 4 smallest hybrids, up to yellow/red. This was plenty. The yellow/red is very useful on the pitch 3 aid crux and the smallest hybrid was very useful overall as well.

patrice

Trad climber

brussels, belgium

Jun 27, 2008 - 03:45pm

Salut Serge "C",
l'an dernier, nous sommes restés dans la vallée du 15 août au 15 septembre et il y a eu une vague de chaleur sans précédent sur tte la Californie. On a relevé des t° record de 99°F dans la vallée. Autant dire qu'il n'y avait pas un chat dans El Cap!
L'année précédente, à la même période, le temps était génial !?
--

Last year, we stayed in the valley between 8/15 and 9/15. The heat was horrible : 99°F max. Nobody in El Cap or other sunny faces of the valley. In 2006, at the same period,it was perfect!?
--
two yel/red hybrids Alien are very useful for large pin scars in 3th and 4th pitches.

Patrice (Belgium)

Serge C

Mountain climber

France

Jun 27, 2008 - 02:58pm

I'm planning to climb the Nose during the last fiften days of august :
* isn't it too hot at that time? Is the heat bearable for a pleasant climbing
* Are there too many people at that time of the year?
Is it clear or crowded?
Thanks

Chris McNamara

SuperTopo staff member

May 30, 2008 - 08:50am

i would take one set up to the yellow/red. if you plan to aid most of the lower four pitches then a few more would be nice

Lucas

Trad climber

Goleta, CA

May 29, 2008 - 04:45pm

I'm planning to do the route soon, and was wondering what size aliens are most useful. We have plenty of TCUs and camalots, but aside from the yellow/red hybrid alien, which I'll be borrowing from someone, are there any other sizes that are particularly useful?

Chris McNamara

SuperTopo staff member

Apr 5, 2008 - 01:09pm

A while back i did an interview with Wayne Merry. He told some great stories about the nose that i have not seen published elsewhere, here is the interview. Everything is a quote from Merry unless its obviously a question from me

Quotes From Wayne Merry on the First Ascent of the Nose

The disorganization of this ascent was absolutely mind-boggling. The climb
was a terrible thrash. For food, everybody just brought whatever he thought
was best. Somehow we ended up with way too many Kipper Snacks. Dick brought
a whole case, and what with the shortage of water (less than 2 quarts most
days, often a quart or less), they somehow lacked appeal. But we ate 'em
and were grateful, and belched a lot of fish.

We communicated to the ground crew by throwing messages in cans. Love
letters were tossed from Dolt Tower and Camp IV in a Hunt's tomato can
once, and maybe fruit cocktail cans other times. Got a picture of the can,
too, and Cindy has a couple of those letters. I remember writing one very
long one, but the can hung up on the way down. I wonder if anyone has
found it.

In an effort to raise a few bucks for the fixed ropes I had offered to toss
down some dispatches for a San Jose newspaper, but someone there didn't
think it was newsworthy. I wonder if he kept his job.

We knew the wall was assailable. The question was - was it climbable.
Several years before, Gary Hemming and I had looked carefully at the route,
wondering if we could lower supplies from the top to ledges along the way.
We also examined Half Dome, plotting to climb out horizontally from the
east side to stash supplies for a frontal assault. Needless to say we never
got to it, and the nearest I came to it was loaning Joe Fitschen my
Kletterschuhe when he arrived for the first ascent without any climbing
shoes. It seemed like expedition tactics were all that would work on those
big walls at the time. Summer of ‘57 I remember looking through binoculars at El Cap with Harding and Powell, and insisting that the Salathé wall
was a classier route.

Dolt Tower
Called Dolt Tower because Bill “Dolt” Feuerer was prusiking downward from Dolt Tower to
reroute some fixed ropes when he got his beard stuck in a prusik knot.
Earlier on, bill earned the nickname “Dolt” when he frantically clipped his
aider to a piece. He stood and breathed a sigh of relief - which instantly
became a scream as he realized the sling he had his foot in was the wrong
one, clipped only to his waist.

El Cap Tower
On El Cap Tower a bushy tailed wood rat ate through Warren Harding's
sleeping bag in several places as well as a plasticized tarp. We were never free
of loose down and feathers from that point on. Thank God they didn’t have
an appetite for the fixed nylon ropes.

Camp IV
The closest call on the route came for me on Camp IV. I rested a haulbag on
the ledge not clipped in to anything - and carefully stacked the haul line
beside it. I underestimated how much the pitch traversed and when I
lowered myself out to start prusiking the fixed rope the line started
zipping off the ledge. I waited for the line to eventually come
tight on the haulbag and jerk it off the ledge. The line came
tight and the bag shifted but thankfully stayed put on the ledge. It would
have fallen a full rope length and snapped tight on my waist. It was a 50lb
haul bag and a coil or two of rope. I was struggling
with the knot where the haul bag was tied into my waist, my eyes like
targets, knowing there was no way I was going to get it undone in time. I
knew I was a dead man. I was very introspective the rest of the day.

Between Camp IV and Camp V
We got pretty fast at prusiking. It eventually only took 10-15 minutes to
prusik a 150 feet of rope. However, that was unloaded. It depended on the
load being carried. We didn't haul the loads up on ropes, but carried them
attached to the waist. They were up to 50 pounds.

Incidentally, the climbing rope was tied to us with a single bowline around
the waist. Swamis came later. But we rigged up some pretty elaborate
prusiking outfits, which were actually quite comfortable. The rappel
technique of the time makes my hair stand on end now, and I still have a
white scar on my back I got rappelling from Camp V to Camp IV on a single
strand of slick new rope. I'm not sure, but I think we originated the
prusik safety for rappelling. At least it seemed like our idea at the time.

Camp V
On Camp V there were ledges named: Warren’s bedroom, Wayne’s bedroom and the
Sun Deck. Warren's was the large middle one. Mine was the small one down
below with its anchor way up above on Warren's bedroom, so there was strong
incentive not to roll over. Or even sleep for that matter. The Sun Deck was
the highest one.

We had a can of fruit cocktail that night, and about a pint of water left.
I took my share of the water in the cocktail can and tucked it onto a
little ledge just below "my bedroom" for that awful time at about 4 am when
you wake up with your tongue sticking to your palate. I woke up then,
fumbled the can, and listened to it tinkle down the face. Bad night.

Camp VI
"One of the low moments of the climbs came high on the route when Harding
and I were climbing above Camp VI. We had been drinking slim rations of
often foul tasting water so one day George Whitmore decided to bring us a
treat. He prusiked up 2,500 feet with a big 48 ounce can of tomato juice.
As Harding and I descended from the days work of leading, George opened the
can but then fumbled it. He let a terrible scream as the can rolled into a
large crack and became fixed, upside down, just out of his reach. We all
had to watch and listen as the tomato juice went "glug, glug, glug" and
emptied inside the crack. I'm sure that can is still down there somewhere.

Summit
On the way to the park we stopped in Merced and picked up a bottle of
champagne and four champagne glasses. This was our "summit kit", to be
carried to the top by the support party. Since there weren't enough
surviving glasses hauled in by the support party (John Wittmer and Ellen
Searby) I used for the toast an aluminum cup that I had hauled up the wall
for some reason. After a celebratory glass of the bubbly we tossed the
glasses off the summit. Don’t tell the park service.

Summit
At 6 am Harding called down: Can you hang on for one more bolt? I
thought, "Jesus - can "I" hang on! I had been standing there looking up
all night at this little spidery figure halloed by its headlamp, dangling
under overhangs and banging away above his head - and he asks me if I can
hang on!

Why did Harding drill the final bolt ladder at night instead of waiting
till morning?
We had just gone through a 2-day snowstorm and were scared of
the weather (although it turned out great). We were beat, short of food and
water, there was no reasonable bivouac ledge above Camp VI and we sure as
hell didn't want to go down again.

Summit
A reporter asked when we got down, "Do you think it will be climbed again?"
I said, "I can't even imagine anyone going through that for the sake of a
second ascent!" and I believed it.

Equipment

Biners:
50 steel and aluminum oval biners with lead team
Many drills
125 bolts (the bolts were bloody awful. I wouldn't hang a picture from them
today, but belayed from them then.)
2 European, wood hammers

Pitons:
Masonry nails
Original Salath» lost arrows
3" oak wood wedges (rarely used)
4 stove leg pitons
3" aluminum t sections
Aluminum angles

Food
Kipper snacks (way too many)
Canned fruit cocktail
Canned tomatoes.
Jerky
Canned tuna
2-gallon military surplus plastic bladder water container (tasted awful)
Candy bars: O Henry, Baby Ruth and Hershey’s
Trail mix
Raisons
Peanuts
Canned cocktail wieners

Clothing
Heavy cotton plus-fours (like long knickers), military mountain pants
Dacron t shirt
A wool shirt and sweater
A thin Dacron batting filled vest
Nylon-cotton parka stocking cap
Marine corps combat boots (with modified Vibram soles.), Kletterschuhe
No rain gear (we got wet a few times)
Down parka (the most sophisticated garment on the climb)

Misc facts
Number of people involved in the ascent: 8
Amount of rope used on the climb: 4000+ feet of yachting rope and manila
How to lose weight fast with the el cap diet: water rations: 1-2 quarts per
day. Merry weighed 15 pounds less when he summated due to dehydration
Hauling method: prusiking with 30-40 pound duffel bags attached to the waist
Training method: lots of $1.25/gallon red wine and pull-ups on doorframes.
Shelter: 8x10 rubberized nylon tarp for a lean-to on camp six.
Portaledge: a Stokes Litter was hauled but never used.

Lambone

Big Wall climber

Ashland, Or

Nov 3, 2007 - 01:24pm

The cruxes are 5.11c or C1, 5.10 or C2. Hooks, cam hooks and offset cam are required to aid through the hard parts. It's interesting that these ratings do not match up with the overall rating of the route.

Do yourself a favor and download the free Supertopo, however this topo is outdated, the new book has changes made, especially belays in the Stovelegs:
http://www.supertopo.com/topos/yosemite/thenose.html

Did this route finally Nov 5th-9th. NOBODY on the route which was a gift. The days were short which put us doing some night climbing, but the temps were like summer! We fixed to Sickle, then spent three nights on the wall at Dolt Tower, Camp IV, and Camp VI, and we used a portaledge. This is a good strategy if you know you are going to be slower. I need to get stronger so I can free more and climb faster!

motocrosser21

Trad climber

Virginia

Nov 3, 2007 - 09:24am

What are the first 4-5 pitches of the nose rated?

Erik Sloan

Big Wall climber

Yosemite Big Wall

May 11, 2007 - 04:23pm

You do have to return to Dolt Tower to rap the Nose--there is no direct rap route from El Cap tower. Just did the Nose myself. What fun!

Alexey

climber

San Jose, CA

May 11, 2007 - 03:24pm

We did one day climb to Dolt Tower (similar as FreeBlast, no packs ) and had time to go tree more pitches to El Cap Tower. We did not climb them because we was not sure how to rappel from there with 2 50m ropes. From Dolt there is strait down eight 50m rappels to the ground mentioned on topo.
My question: is similar direct rappel line exist under El Cap Tower or you need to return from there to Dolt by doing leaning rappels?

nate23

Trad climber

c-ville, virginia

Apr 4, 2007 - 02:35pm

If that is the spot i think you are thinking of it is not that bad - definitely not very dangerous or requiring much of a rack for that pitch

YetAnotherDave

Trad climber

Vancouver, BC

Apr 3, 2007 - 01:46pm

Another linking question: can you link from 17 to the intermediate belay between 18 and 19 with a 70m rope, if you take the pendulum option on 18? The topo makes it look less than 60 meters if you take the 5.10 A0 face option, but I've heard that it's runout mid-10 after the last bolt, and I'm not sure I'll be up to that with a wall rack. thanks

piglicker

Trad climber

Cubage Patch

Oct 4, 2006 - 06:38pm

When we were on it a couple of weeks ago, there were no semi-permanent or permanent fixed lines from Sickle to the ground. We fixed our own lines.

blake

Trad climber

Berkeley, CA

Sep 5, 2006 - 01:09am

anyone know the status of any ropes semi-permanently fixed to sickle ledge? mostly, can i count on them being there and being in decent condition for rapping/jugging? thanks

jwreed

Gym climber

Tualatin OR

Jun 30, 2006 - 11:11am

Photograph of Nose route, El Capitan.
http://community.webshots.com/photo/2377008770053544625RoACjs
[Click to View Linked Image]

Fat Dad

Trad climber

Los Angeles, CA

Mar 28, 2006 - 06:21pm

Over the past twenty years or so, although I've done the Captain several times by other routes, I've never done the Nose, in part because of the crowds or just getting jones by other parties. Example: early one morning we arrive at our fixed lines and find a party of four jugging them. Nothing to do but curse at them and come back another day since a group that big will monopolize the bivies. Ironically, the one time we did manage to crawl through the riff-raff, we got pelted by rain on the Stovelegs and had to bail. :( One of these days.

My advise, give yourself a few extra days to bag the route to figure in such events, and bivy at the base of your fixed lines to protect them from poachers.

handsome B

Gym climber

SL,UT

Mar 28, 2006 - 01:57pm

link 2 & 3 and link the last two pitches to Dolt Tower.

many parties will be on the route.

talk to people at the base to find their schedule, we had some aid climbers let us go first because we were faster

Steven

Trad climber

Arvada, Colorado

Mar 27, 2006 - 04:17pm

I just had a few questions about this route. First what is the process for getting started on the route if others are ahead of you? Are parties just waiting at the bottom until the first few pitches open up? Also what pitches can be resonably linked with a 60m rope? And lastly how many parties can be expected on the route in mid to late May?

Chris McNamara

SuperTopo staff member

Nov 25, 2005 - 12:54pm

I posted two trip reports on climbing the nose in a day in the fall of 2005:

http://www.supertopo.com/climbing/thread.html?topic_id=121433

http://www.supertopo.com/climbing/thread.html?topic_id=119120

SteveM

Trad climber

Nov 24, 2005 - 01:35pm

Wish I'd had that beta before we climbed P4 on 8th Oct :-/

There was a head mashed into the small corner before Sickle, with a broken wire loop. TCUs went into the two pockets quite well but they were a strenuous and blind placement (for me). Watch out for the swing back into the corner - if you go in backwards (like I did) it has the potential to hurt a lot.

PS. TR & photos at http://www.bad-altitude.co.uk/memories/yosemite2005/tripreport.html

Chris McNamara

SuperTopo staff member

Oct 22, 2005 - 03:47am

this may have already been posted, if so excuse me: the pendulum getting to Sickle Ledge (pitch 4) is now a lot harder because the piton shown in the SuperTopo (up high and left is gone). it's now a tricky tension traverse more than a swing.

I just did the route on 10/20/05. I definitely had to do mandatory 5.9 moves (maybe easy 5.10) alternated with aiding on a few nasty wire-things. This doesn't change the overall difficulty of the route, and i didn't see anybody bailing from this point, but its just a heads up to expect pitch 4 to be a little more spicy than indicated on the supertopo.

Luvshaker

climber

eugene

Aug 20, 2005 - 09:06pm

Pitch 21, just before the 5.7 traverse..... 4x4 block TEETERING after I lightly handjamed behind it. I went below it fine to begin the traverse. This one will likely let go pretty soon.

Karl Baba

Trad climber

Yosemite, Ca

Aug 13, 2005 - 09:12pm

To comment further on the issue of fixing to the base of the stovelegs:

It's straight down and smooth from sickle down to the ground. It is low stress hauling (but harder than if it were overhanging) It's also straight down and smooth from the base of the stovelegs, so the hauling wouldn't be any different.

warning: with a 70 meter rope, or with great difficulty with a 60, it's possible to link pitch 5 from Sickle through pitch 6 to the top of Sickle before the penji to Dolt Hole. If you do that, there seems to be a greater potential for getting your haulbag stuck when you haul. It's not the end of the world as your second should be able to get to it fairly quickly, but it's kind of a PITA. To state the obvious, I'm not talking about hauling up the sickle itself, but lowering or chucking the bag out onto the face and hauling up that. It might be faster to just do it in two pitches and not worry about the bag sticking.

Peace

Karl

handsome B

Gym climber

SL,UT

Aug 2, 2005 - 01:25pm

Does anyone have the linking pitches beta for using 70 meter ropes on the Nose?

Clint Cummins

Trad climber

SF Bay area, CA

Jul 13, 2005 - 07:23pm

Jan asked about the advisiability of hauling direct to p8 (start of Stovelegs).

>... But the main question is, if the hauling could be easier/straighter with that strategy.
It could easily be worse. You will have the weight of 5- ropes (instead of 3.1), and you will not have a convenient ledge for stacking the ropes (like Sickle). I am assuming here that you are hauling direct from the ground to that point with all the ropes tied together. If you are hauling from station to station, then the rope weight is less of an issue, but it assumes the intermediate anchors are good enough for hauling. Hauling station to station is also your backup plan, in case you cannot move the bag off the ground, or it gets stuck partway up. So the rap route anchors could be an issue again.

>I have never seen the route, so I do not know what the rappel/retreat/jug route looks like.
I haven't done the rap route, either, so I can't answer that. It was established by Tom Rohrer in the late 60s or early 70s. Some of the anchors (observable on the route at times) have been improved, but several are original. Several of the original anchors have a 3/8" Star Dryvin bolt, which is actually fairly strong in shear mode, but will probably look scary if you have not seen one before. (It is not as strong as conventional 3/8" bolts used currently). There was a famous accident in the early 70s where one of the bolt hangers on this rap route, in the Stovelegs area failed when a retreating team of three was attached to it. (They also abused the anchor by dropping their haulbag onto it instead of lowering the bag, and they didn't clip all hangers independently). The anchor had a Dolt hanger with a hidden crack. So be very careful if you see one of those (the metal on them is too hard/brittle).

Other considerations:

Without a nice ledge, it will not be easy to put your sleeping bags into the haulbag when you jumar up the next morning. If you have an extra set of sleeping bags to leave on the ground then this is not a problem.

Having 5 ropes means you will probably drop 3 to the ground. So that is more ropes to be stolen, unless you have some ground crew to pick them up for you.

I wouldn't plan to bivvy in El Cap Meadows. Find a less visible spot.

You are adding 3 or 4 extra pitches to the middle of your first day (before the hauling). So if you are delayed in starting the route (by people ahead of you, or people with a couple of pitches fixed), you might want to switch to the more conventional hauling to Sickle (and maybe 2 more pitches).

As others have said, the hauling to Sickle and then Stovelegs is not that bad. With a bag for a team of three, it will be harder than average, though. When I did the route in early June, the team (of 2) just ahead of us had a heavy bag and were using static haul lines (heavy) and were not able to haul it direct to Sickle. They were strong guys, and they adapted by hauling it station to station. I (135 pound weakling, but with dynamic ropes and less weight in the bag) was able to haul our bag directly. So one implied solution is to switch to a 2-person team and lighten your bag.

Hauling direct to Stovelegs would give you a way to pass folks who were not fixed so high. But it could create bad feelings if the people you pass are faster and catch up with you quickly the next day.

P.S. My preferred way is to fix to Sickle, haul the bag up there, but sleep on the ground. It is quick and easy to jumar up in the morning. And Sickle is not comfy for sleeping more than one person. You will want a good night's sleep before that next big day.

Have fun,

Clint

jay77

climber

Jul 6, 2005 - 11:35am

Hi Karl and Jung,

thank you for your response on the topic!
To straighten out what we where thinking of:
The hauling to sickle and above to the stoveleg cracks may be difficult as I read from various betas and trip reports. So we where thinking of fixing 5 ropes from the beginning of the stoveleg cracks to the ground and hauling there straight instead of via the sickle ledge. As I can see from the topo the pitches between sickle and stoveleg have a traversing nature and the hauling could get easier on the blank face than there. Also if the sickle is crowded, we thought we could start early before sunrise jugging/hauling the fixed lines and maybe have the chance to pass other parties this way.
But the main question is, if the hauling could be easier/straighter with that strategy.
I have never seen the route, so I do not know what the rappel/retreat/jug route looks like.

Best regards,
Jan

Karl Baba

Trad climber

Yosemite, Ca

Jul 5, 2005 - 02:38am

The pitches from Sickle to the base of the Stove Legs can go very fast and relatively easy if and only if you are your partner are clear and efficient in the leading and particularly following of pendulums.

Some folks don't understand or practice pendulums before they hit the Nose and get terminally set-back by delays caused by lame logistics in the Penjis.

That first full day on the Nose is a killer and lots of folks bail after that. You have to jug and haul efficiently, then do penji's efficiently, then climb wide cracks efficiently, then not get psyched by being on El Cap and the intimidating wind that seems to blow there mid-day.

Best of Luck. It would be a pain to carry up enough rope to fix to the stovelegs, but, if you were willing to go through that hassle, it would at least have the advantage that you could start jugging and hauling in the dark and start your day beyond a bunch of logistics. I'd only do it if I were doubtful about my ability to pull it off otherwise and I had a perverse commitment to do the Nose that very season.

Peace

Karl

jung

Big Wall climber

Subaru wagon

Jul 4, 2005 - 05:08am

Jay77

i did that once, it seemed like a waste of time. you might as well sleep on sickle ledge,get an earlier start and save yourself 3 pitches of jugging. or better yet climb to sickle and fix a line or two above you, then sleep.

jung

Big Wall climber

Subaru wagon

Jul 4, 2005 - 05:07am

jay77

climber

Jun 21, 2005 - 08:13am

Hi all,

we want to climb the nose in September 2005 in a party of three. We think about climbing and hauling the first day up to the beginning of the Stoveleg Cracks (pitch 8), fix ropes, rappel down to the ground and bivy on the El Cap meadows. The next day we want to jug back up to the Stoveleg Cracks instead of the Sickle Ledge. Is this strategy good to save time? Any comments on our plan are welcome.

Regards,
Jan from Germany

bigwalling

climber

Sep 2, 2004 - 09:35pm

The Nose might be one of the worse climbs to practice aid on in all but bad weather.

Melissa

Gym climber

berkeley, ca

Sep 2, 2004 - 05:53pm

For what it's worth...I think the Supertopo is wrong or at least can be depending up on fixed gear, and there are other things that have changed since the topo was made, so it's worthwhile to ask... I watched a gal lob on the second or third pitch (forget now?) who was practicing aid (at least C1 aid...) and needed to bust some free moves in her boots. I think poop*ghost may have reported similar?

It sound like the orginal poster is looking for practice aid anyway. If this is the case, less busy routes might be more enjoyable and considerate. Bryan Law compiled this list:

http://www.supertopo.com/climbing/thread.html?m=25887#msg25887

David

Trad climber

San Rafael, CA

Sep 2, 2004 - 02:31pm

See that link above to the free topo for the Nose?
Why don't you download it and see for yourself.

As do all ST topos, it includes a pitch by pitch chart of mandatory free moves.

pdxclimber

Trad climber

portland, oregon

Sep 2, 2004 - 02:26pm

Does anyone know how far up the Nose one can make it without having to free climb. Thanks in advance.

Mike

climber

Orange County CA

Apr 17, 2004 - 05:10pm

jhump: More like a stance than a ledge.
JDogg: I think the best thing would be to do the pitches in the standard way (using recommended stations as described in modern topos, lowering out the bag with a let-out line, and lowering yourself out as a second normally would). There may not be enough rope for the follower to completely lower out from the top of the boot, but there's a fixed point at the "toe" of the boot where the second can secure himself during the initial lower and rig another lower out. Stop there and do it rather than ending up nowhere with no more rope and having to go back up if there's any question whether you have enough rope. I hope I answered your Q. The pitches in this area of the Nose are trickier for the follower than the leader - lots of traversing, with both free and aid most likely.

J-Dogg

Trad climber

colorado

Apr 16, 2004 - 12:15pm

Whats the best method for getting the follower and haul bag across the king swing to eagle ledge? Do the follower and the bag need to go to the top of the boot flake or make the swing from the top of the bolt ladder. Thanks

jhump

Mountain climber

Cleveland, OH

Mar 15, 2004 - 11:36pm

Is "Eagle Ledge" suitable for a 2 man bivy? I am talking about the ledge that can be accessed by taking the Jardine traverse, or by lowering into it on the King Swing- Pitch 17 Supertopo.

Karl Baba

Trad climber

Yosemite, Ca

Jun 23, 2003 - 12:09pm

It seems that the anchor situation on the stovelegs has changed and even the latest supertopo download is no longer accurate.

The bolted anchors on the left side of the crack indicated for pitch 8 no longer exist. This seems to result in folks belaying from the rap route anchors to the right of the crack down lower.

The only other anchor would be the bolt to the left of the crack down lower (optional belay on the topo) or build your own anchor if you manage to have enough 1 and 2 camalots left for it after the first stoveleg pitch.

I noticed that several parties climbed the whole bolt ladder above Dolt hole, belayed there, and then penjied over to link the next pitch all the way to the anchors on pitch 9. This is a shame because you miss a great deal of the one of the finest and most moderate cracks on El Cap in favor of a bolt ladder and some wide corner.

It is doubtful that the present anchor on pitch 9 is located where the supertopo says it is. A 200 foot rope barely reaches Dolt tower from the new pitch 9 anchors. Since the Supertopo says this distance should be 270 feet (and if memory serves) the pitch 9 anchors must have been moved up.

Hope this helps. Crowds are the crux! Make friends and snuggle tight up there!

PEace

Karl

David Nelson

climber

San Francisco

Jun 18, 2003 - 05:58pm

I just completed the Nose (my first Grade VI), May 14-19. I got a bit of training in following on aid from Chris McNamara (thanks, Chris).

The weather had just quit its 6 week rain-fest, but the Stone was fairly dry (a bit wet under the Great Roof). During our climb, we got rain, wind, sun, and cold, but no ennervating heat (I have had that before, no fun).

Some excitement: someone below us loosened a 6' x 4' x 6" block in the Grey Band, and the SAR group came in, the NPS closed off the lower part of El Cap and cleared everyone out from the Valley floor below and they "trundled" it off May 19. The Grey Band has a lot of loose stuff, we had to be very careful. Makes one very nervous, knowing that Sickle is right below and there is usually a crowd waiting to get onto the Stovelegs. Makes me very nervous staying on Sickle if there are people above, which there always are. I got hit while on Sickle, on my forearm by a 4"x 4" x 1" rock; if it had been big, I would not be posting this. Scary. Guys: be very careful not to knock stuff loose.

The East Ledges have three fixed ropes, all in good (for fixed ropes) condition, if you go down the right side.

I have posted some photos of my recent trip at http://www.DavidLNelson.MD/ElCapitan/homepage.htm as well as some more beta and thoughts (enter the site, click on Beta).

MattT

Trad climber

Montana

May 10, 2003 - 03:28pm

Requesting Beta: What is the fastest way to move from Texas Flake through the King swing with a party of 3 that is hauling? Is it recommended to haul from the top of Texas (P15) straight to the top of P17 if you have a 50m lower line?? We were thinking of having Climber1 fixing to the top of Boot, Climber2 cleaning to the base of Boot then swinging (assuming no gear left above that point), Climber3, lowering from Texas then jugging a fixed line to 17, then Climber1 rapping from Boot and jugging to 17. Will this work assuming enough lower out lines?

(FYI our (2)lead and haul lines are 60 and 70m respectivley)

Thanks
MT

Chris McNamara

SuperTopo staff member

Apr 15, 2003 - 08:00pm

Here are the recent conditions on The Nose given to me by Geoff Hill

I took a trip up the nose 2
weeks ago or so just before the big snow. The king
swing mabye used to have a fixed point where the swing
was broken up into two swings or pendulums. This point
is no longer present. What ensued was more like an
emperor swing. 20 feet below the boot flake, booking
ass across 20-30 meters of rock, jumping a 5 meter
indent in the face to get enough momentum to get around
the corner and into the 10a offwidth below the bolts.

when my partner cleaned, he thought he saw a recent
scar when an second fixed point may have been.

As for garbage on the route:

There were three fixed ropes that I can
remember.

1) trash rope on the traverse onto sicle. should be
cut.

2) fixed rope on the pedulum into the stove legs.
usless really, unless speed climbing or something

3) pain in the ass fixed rope in the crack of the first
pitch of the stovelegs, i had to continually remove it
from the crack to get a jam. should be cut.

There is some water on dolt, there was food, but we ate
it. There was very little garbage, we packed out a bit
of trash, but there is a ton higher up, in camp 6
crack, in the deep cracks and flakes on route.

the summit has very little trash.

someone going up the nose would do well to bring 4
meters of sling to make new tie offs as many are ready
to go, with core showing or very worn webbing.

a few hexes in the hand size would be good to augment
those carrying only 2x cams and doing a lot of aiding.

Chris McNamara

SuperTopo staff member

Nov 19, 2002 - 09:59pm

here's the beta:

from belay 13, you go left on 4 bolts. after the 4th bolt you have to make a few 5.9 moves to the belay stance that you could maybe aid with a hook. on the next pitch, you have to make a few mandatory 5.8 or so face moves but there is usually good protection. after that its C1 (or 5.11) to Eagle Ledge where you rejoin the nose. this is definitely the fastest option if you are soloing but the pitches are not nearly as classic as on the standard route.

MEH

Novice climber

Mill Valley, CA

Nov 19, 2002 - 09:55pm

I'm looking for information on the "free" variation that by-passes the King Swing. I've done the regular way but am thinking of soloing the route and thought that might be a better option. Wondering about quality and ease of climbing/aiding at the 10- standard. Thanks.

Chris McNamara

SuperTopo staff member

correction to the topo: on the pitch leading to Camp 4, there should only be one bolt and just before bolt it should say "5.6 tension off nut"