East Buttress, Middle Cathedral 5.10c or 5.9 A0

Yosemite Valley, California USA

Currently 5.0/5

Sort 136 beta reports by: Most Recent | Most Helpful
What is route "beta"?

Summary of All Ratings

SuperTopo Rating:	1 2 3 4 5	(5.0)
Average Customer Rating:	1 2 3 4 5	(4.6)
Your Rating:	1 2 3 4 5	(none)

Rating Distribution

46 Total Ratings

5 star:		(31)
4 star:		(13)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

eggsbrown

Trad climber

Toronto, ON

Oct 14, 2018 - 07:38am

I dropped my Samsung S7 from the top of the 10th pitch of Middle Cathedral and last saw it tumbling down the face. It's in a chunky black "unicorn beetle" case. If you find it I will be very thankful - lots of pictures from a weeklong trip to Yosemite that I'm very sad are likely lost.

Clint Cummins

Trad climber

SF Bay area, CA

Jun 10, 2018 - 01:18pm

what's that white stuff?

It's reflective paint - latex paint that you drop tiny glass beads onto.
It's on the top edge and front indents on some of the Fixe 4mm hangers.
It should make it easier to find the next anchor if you are coming down at night with a headlamp.
My long time new route partner cragnshag thought of this and bought the materials.


	Sons of Yesterday - Eastern Rappel Route. Typical anchor with reflective paint. 11/2016 Credit: Clint Cummins

I used the same stuff on many of the anchors on the Sons of Yesterday rap route.

P.S. Nuts will sometimes loosen, because the hangers are loaded at different angles when you are weighting one, vs. rapping from both. Tightening the nut by hand is fine.

tizzleh

Social climber

Albuquerque

Jun 10, 2018 - 10:08am

Thanks for bolting the rappels. Just a heads up, one of the rappel anchors has a loose nut (not bolt). It was the right side, the hanger was spinning. I hand-tightened it but someone should bring a wrench next time and tighten them on the way down. Plus, what's that white stuff? I thought it was bird sh#t. but then I started to think it's glue? It's not working if it is.

Clint Cummins

Trad climber

SF Bay area, CA

Jun 3, 2018 - 08:54pm

> Was the rap route drilled by hand?
Yes.
It doesn't take that long to drill a 3/8" x 2.25" hole by hand, with a modern carbide tip SDS drill bit.
Plus we had 2 people drilling at the same time.
Job and I had 2 ropes each, and we would "leapfrog" each other.
I would generally go down first and start the next 2 holes < 95'
below my last spot.
When Job finished his anchor, I'd stop on the holes I started
and rap further down on my ropes to the next spot and drill those.
We took 3 days to do it.


	Job drilling anchor #5 on the Middle Cathedral East Face rap route, day 2, 2013-04-21. Credit: Clint Cummins


	Job, tag team drilling anchor #11 on the Middle Cathedral East Face rap route, day 3, 2013-05-04. Credit: Clint Cummins

donini

Trad climber

Ouray, Colorado

Jun 3, 2018 - 08:49pm

Route rating should include 5.10 a if you do the pitch that veers right below the bolt ladder....preferable way in my mind.

Largo

Sport climber

The Big Wide Open Face

Jun 3, 2018 - 08:45pm

I always thought the 5.10c on the bolt ladder was a sandbag.

MTNcoachRazor

Trad climber

Mammoth Lakes

Jun 3, 2018 - 07:53pm

Was the rap route drilled by hand?

nicholas_wray

Boulder climber

Sacramento, ca

Oct 20, 2017 - 02:37pm

Dislodged a large rock pulling my rope from trees below 1st rap station. I believe there are some more there, please be careful friends.

JADIAN

Trad climber

Manton

May 1, 2017 - 08:10am

Scroll down to full color photo of rap route. Really good way to descend. We missed the 7th (8th?) station, really need to keep an eye out for the hangers!

ryankelly

climber

Bhumi

Nov 16, 2016 - 07:58am

climbed it 11/14/15

5.10 variation: the bolt after the corner / roof looks like it got hit by a rock


	Credit: ryankelly


	Credit: ryankelly

first rap station bolt:


	Credit: ryankelly

rudyg

Trad climber

Sausalito

Apr 7, 2015 - 10:47am

LARGE LOOSE PILLAR PITCH 10!!!

I climbed this route a few years ago, and then recently this year. When I climbed it back in '13 I had to help a climber with a broken ankle ascend the last two pitches. While ascending pitch 10 (as per supertopo) I placed a cam on the left side of a large 12-foot-tall, 1-foot-wide pillar in the middle of the pitch, body weighted it, and felt the whole pillar shift and the cam nearly come out. I'd forgotten about the pillar until climbing this route again a few weeks ago. It is in the middle of supertopo's pitch 10, after the "5.6" grove and before the 5.8 thin hands, just above and left of an obvious exposed ledge to the right of the climb. Climbing it again, it did not feel loose, but a leader fall on a cam placed to the side of it, or a climber liebacking either crack might be enough to send it down.

Rattlesnake Arch

Social climber

Home is where we park it

Nov 4, 2014 - 05:22am

Whilst enjoying the convenience of the new rap route (thanks Clint!), I couldn't help analyzing the scenarios, however unlikely, that would cause me to become stranded on this 1000 ft wall. I also contemplated the wisdom of leaving my 2nd rap rope, a lightweight 60m twin, in the car to save a few pounds. While I recommend the rap route over the standard descent, a 2nd rope might provide self-rescue options if something goes wrong. Your choice...

cat t.

climber

california

Oct 19, 2014 - 06:45pm

Clint's rap route is AWESOME and easy to find (even in the dark); it takes a while (since you can do it with one 60m) but you're pretty much guaranteed to not get ropes stuck. The last two raps at least can be combined with a 70. Thanks so much, Clint! Also, definitely recommend the chimney pitches, great fun.

alina

Trad climber

Jun 11, 2014 - 05:47pm

I've done both the chimney variation (stayed left) and the face variation on this one. I definitely enjoyed the chimney climbing a lot more. I did not think the climb deserved "classic" status going right. It's also a great way to avoid the crowds.

fubar

climber

Jun 11, 2014 - 12:29pm

Did this on a hot day last weekend, and moved fast as possible. Started at 6, topped out on P10 at 9:45. Fun route; the rappels took a looong time (an hour and a half at least). I don't know if the Kat Walk descent would have been less hot, but the rappels were brutal in the sun: next time I'd bring approach shoes just to do the raps, and definitely doubles or a 60m pull line. There's a really nice looking bolted face on the rap route, too--if it hadn't been 1000 degrees it'd be worth doing on the way down.

I enjoyed this route, but the climbing felt discontinuous and not as memorable as any other Valley multi pitch I've done, and even the other Cathedral routes (way below Frenzy, Stoner's, DNB). I think the designation as a "Classic" has given it a popularity that isn't on par with the actual climbing.

birdnerd

Trad climber

SF, CA

May 16, 2014 - 12:42pm

Awesome!!!!
Thank you, Clint!
I'm going back first week in June and have a new determination to get on it after being embarrassingly shut down on the approach.
This will be incredibly helpful.

Clint Cummins

Trad climber

SF Bay area, CA

May 16, 2014 - 03:30am


	Middle Cathedral - East Buttress to Central Pillar of Frenzy approaches (click to enlarge) Credit: xRez / cc

This might help.
The carabiner signs are often missing, so don't depend on finding them.
Sometimes people take them.

The lower carabiner sign is near a high point in the paved Valley Loop trail. If you start to go downhill and get below the Central Pillar of Frenzy, you went too far. (There is supposed to be another carabiner sign below the Central Pillar, where its approach trail leaves the paved trail).

The official approach trail goes slightly left and up a few stone steps to reach a prominent erosion gully, which has various sizes of boulders (some of which are loose).

The upper carabiner sign is in a steep section of the loose erosion gully, and may move if boulders roll down or if there is some rain.
The final section of the East Buttress approach trail traverses west out of the erosion gully to reach the Pedestal.
The key to finding this traverse is to spot the Pedestal from the gully, and start the traverse before you are above the top of the Pedestal.

I prefer using the old/original approach trail, which leaves the erosion gully about 100' from the paved trail. It goes up the west rim of the erosion gully (and sometimes rejoins it). It is also the best way to reach the Kor-Beck. Eventually it goes very close to the Pedestal and does some small switchbacks left of the Pedestal.

birdnerd

Trad climber

SF, CA

May 16, 2014 - 02:01am

Hiked around for hours yesterday looking for the start of the route. Saw no carabiner signs. Found one cairn and a tree trunk with some slings on it.
Thoughts? Helpful approach beta?

Nor Cal

Trad climber

San Mateo

Oct 27, 2013 - 03:59pm

We just did this route again and noticed that a few of the nuts on the rap route bolts are loose. Perhaps someone can bring a wrench and tighten them. I did not have a wrench the other day and I wont be on that route any time soon to do the job.

Clint Cummins

Trad climber

SF Bay area, CA

Jul 9, 2013 - 01:16am

[Click to View Linked Image]
Here is a more detailed overlay of the start of the rap route.

Normally I make a gear belay at the end of the 5.8 corner pitch (10), on a white ledge. Then you could start the next pitch (11) by underclinging right and going up a chimney/groove.

To rappel, you just go 20' left (east) on the white ledge to the first anchor (2 bolts with double ring hangers).

The first rap goes down and to climber's left, to just below a 6' fir tree. Tie off your rappel on your right thigh and grab the flake/ledge where the tree is growing, scramble up 6' (4th class) and stand on the ledge. The next anchor is above the left end of this ledge, at the brink of the steep East Face.

yosemite 5.9

climber

santa cruz

Jul 8, 2013 - 08:39pm

Correction to my post below about where to start the rappel.

At top of pitch ten you can walk a few steps South to the rap station to use as the final belay station, with a directional.

From there, to RAPPEL, there is a tree immediately below you in the way. Swing VERY hard South IMMEDIATELY on rappel to the little Christmas tree, a very, very short rap distance, then a few more feet to the blocks up on the arete. The second rap station is on the other side of the blocks. The third rap station is again a little ways to the South. See the rap photo on this thread.

D Fred

Trad climber

san francisco, ca

Jun 25, 2013 - 03:47pm

p.s. that "really really" loose flake on p8 i mentioned a few weeks ago is finally gone! hopefully it was trundled safely (i had called the yosemite mountain school to let them know)

also, the large loose flake on the top of pitch 8 with 3 "X"s on it (on the right side just before you traverse the hand rail out left) is REALLY REALLY loose. it is leaning against the wall and my partner put his hand on it and almost tipped it over. be super careful since it's directly above the line of the climb. probably needs a controlled trundle to keep the route safe for everyone

Nor Cal

Trad climber

San Mateo

Jun 18, 2013 - 11:23pm

We did this climb a few weeks ago and used the new rap route. Thanks a million.

yosemite 5.9

climber

santa cruz

Jun 18, 2013 - 05:49pm

Thanks for the great rap routing from me too. My guide, Mark, from YMS and I left the car at 6 AM and found one party two pitches above. They allowed us to pass after pitch 8. We were rapped down at 1 and back to the car by 2 PM. I am only a 5.9 crack climber so I don't think we were particularly fast.

This route is full of loose rock beginning on the first pitch. I suggest considering waiting your turn to start by being away from the route.

We took the 5.10a face variation right of the bolted aid portion. This probably saved time. There is a bolt to start the pitch out on the face. You just can't see it. Climb up ten feet, then right ten feet, out on the face to see it. There is a crux fingers lieback on the pitch that needs a small piece like a Metolius purple size 0 cam in a horizontal crack, or possibly even smaller. It can be hard for the follower to remove the pro at this crux. There is also a slippery polished, short, flaring wide crack on pitch 8 or 9 that is best climbed out on the face to the right of the crack as soon as you can, if you take this variation. This variation is definitely exposed face climbing, so you better be a very good 5.10 climber to try it, in my opinion.

At top of pitch ten you can walk a few steps South to the rap station to use as the final belay station, with a directional. From there, to belay, there is a tree immediately below you in the way. Swing VERY hard South IMMEDIATELY on rappel to the little Christmas tree, a very, very short rap distance, then a few more feet to the blocks up on the arete. The second rap station is on the other side of the blocks. The third rap station is again a little ways to the South. See the rap photo on this thread.

After that, we linked rap pitches with two 60 meter ropes, so I can't offer more details. A color printout of the rap route photo on this thread is very helpful. Black and white is pretty worthless.

These comments are solely mine and are not endorsed or approved by YMS in any way.

D Fred

Trad climber

san francisco, ca

Jun 8, 2013 - 06:40am

To Clint and Job... my hat's off to both of you, great job on the rap bolting. I did this climb again yesterday and the raps were flawless from p10. The first bolts took us down to the left just to the edge of the arete, and had to do that short step up through the small pine to get the ledge on the arete for the 2nd rap station, and after that it was smooth sailing without a single hang up. Took about an hour from 1st to last rap.

Also, when pulling the rope on the first rap off p10, THANK YOU for that sling around the flake! Well placed, my heart sank when our rope got sucked right into that flake, but then it glided right over that webbing without any sticking. Nicely done.

Cheers!

Doug

Paul B

Big Wall climber

Sheffield, UK

May 21, 2013 - 03:59pm

I misread the beta and went to the top of P11 (following the left variation). From here we abbed from the trees and soon found the new rings just up and left of the top of P10 (over a little overlap).

From here down to the pillar and then onto a small stance on the corner. After this we switched back to using both ropes (2x 60m) and all of the ropes pulled with ease. This put us back at the base in no time at all (it HAS to be quicker than the gulley?).

Thanks for the effort of putting these in.

On P3 I misread the topo after seeing the two options, the 5.6 hands must be quite far round to the right as the LH option itself is reasonably far right of the stance.

D Fred

Trad climber

san francisco, ca

May 20, 2013 - 01:04am

Although you could potentially rap from the top of P11 (using trees) I think doing this may endanger parties below you because of the small rocks that are strewn all over the top. Part of the motivation for putting the anchors left of P10 was reducing this rockfall potential.

sold, P10 it is then!
thanks again for the work on this. i'll be back on the climb the first week of june, so i'll give the rap a try then

doug

Relic

Social climber

Weenie

May 18, 2013 - 12:15pm

Bump for Luke and Kieran

nouveau

Trad climber

San Francisco, CA

May 17, 2013 - 03:29pm

can you rap from the top of pitch 11, or do you need to exit at pitch 10?

D Fred

Trad climber

san francisco, ca

May 16, 2013 - 11:49pm

thanks!

one last question about the rap route... can you rap from the top of pitch 11, or do you need to exit at pitch 10? (i kinda like that last little 5.7 gulley pitch)

clint and job, thanks again for putting this rap descent up. we did the gulley descent on tuesday in the rain and it was not incredibly enjoyable... though walking down that gulley between middle and higher is pretty spectacular.

p.s. JvSF, if i remember right, you had a TR linking east butt of middle and serenity/sons in a day... it was a good read and impressive day... sounded exhausting too. strong work

jvSF

Trad climber

San Francisco

May 16, 2013 - 06:56pm

The rap route is pretty straightforward and low risk for getting your rope stuck. The first rap (down and left to the pedestal) is the only spot where you might get your rope stuck as there are quite a few trees and a flake and you are pulling the rope sideways. The rappels are generally so short it is easy to control the rope.

D Fred

Trad climber

san francisco, ca

May 16, 2013 - 08:38am

cheers! thanks for your work on the rap route

we did the route yesterday and would love to avoid that gully next time... though i see a lot of bushes along the rap route, anyone have trouble with ropes getting stuck?

also, the large loose flake on the top of pitch 8 with 3 "X"s on it (on the right side just before you traverse the hand rail out left) is REALLY REALLY loose. it is leaning against the wall and my partner put his hand on it and almost tipped it over. be super careful since it's directly above the line of the climb. probably needs a controlled trundle to keep the route safe for everyone

Park

Trad climber

Reno

May 15, 2013 - 02:12pm

The new rappel route on the left side of East Buttress of Middle Cathedral is awesome! Great work Clint and Job. Thanks for making the whole climb/rappel experience that much more enjoyable. It's nice to have 2 options now for the decent, kat walk or rappel route. The new rappel route makes the climb that much more classic!

Clint Cummins

Trad climber

SF Bay area, CA

May 15, 2013 - 03:38am

From the top of the DNB or North Buttress, I prefer to rappel the Ho / Turret / Left Rabbit Ear. But I know that route pretty well. This avoids extra ascending and traversing left on some exposed / low 5th sections of the Kat Walk. Plus it ends at the start of the North Buttress.
Very few people top out on Sacherer-Fredericks, Kor-Beck or Powell-Reed.
It could be used for those, though.
We reached it from the top of Middle Cathedral after hiking up the Spires Gully and around the backside of Higher, etc.
From the Kat Walk, you would descend the upper 3rd/4th class part of the East Buttress (the part between the last 5th class pitch and the Kat Walk). This is right about where the Sacherer-Fredericks ends also.
Then at the top of the last 5th class pitch of East Buttress, you could descend that pitch, but that could endanger parties below because there are often loose stones on that last pitch.
Better is to traverse straight to climbers' left (4th class) to a parallel gully/corner, and make 2 rappels from trees.
This reaches the ledge atop the last 5.8 corner pitch of the EB, and the first rap anchor is on the far left end of the ledge.
As I said above, probably nobody is going to do this for the other routes.

pvalchev

Social climber

Truckee, CA

May 15, 2013 - 01:53am

Personally I think this is amazing, and this alternative descent route may save a life. Bumbling down that gully with multiple parties at the same time is sketchy at best - and early season, it pretty much feels like rolling the dice. Thank you so much for doing this (I will have to check it out next time in the area, looking forward to topo/details on how to get to it; is it easy to find when topping out on the DNB/other routes too?)

Again, thank you for this great contribution!

Clint Cummins

Trad climber

SF Bay area, CA

May 14, 2013 - 11:12pm

Is it legit to add a bolted rappel to such a venerable climb?

The answer probably depends on who you ask.
I was surprised when the Royal Arches Rappel Route appeared, but it has been there for many years now and seems to get used frequently.
It does change the experience, not hiking over and down North Dome Gully. Some people still do that descent, too.

Neither of these rappel routes goes down the path of the climb - they are independent.
So they are different than "adding bolts to an existing climb".

We did not want to add bolts to every belay station of the East Buttress and make that the rap route. That would definitely change the experience of building gear anchors on the East Buttress, and create lots of conflict between people ascending and descending.
We also didn't want the rap route to be easily visible from the East Buttress (like over to the right).

I could list other popular rappel routes which were not originally used:

Nose (OK, used mostly for bailing from Dolt)

East Ledges of El Cap (the right side is partly an old route)

the arete left of Central Pillar of Frenzy (actually a newish route)

and less popular rappel routes

down from notch behind Lost Arrow Spire (for LA Chimney and LA Direct)

Coonyard Pinnacle

LuckyJack

Trad climber

Novato, CA

May 14, 2013 - 10:43pm

Is it legit to add a bolted rappel to such a venerable climb? It seems like people would get all traditionalist and chop them or something. They are definitely faster BTW. We did the gully descent and when we came back to the base to pick up a pack the three parties behind us had already topped out and rapped.

Clint Cummins

Trad climber

SF Bay area, CA

May 14, 2013 - 06:43pm

Is there a bolted rap route to the left of the climb somewhere?

Yes. 12 bolted/ringed anchors, down a fairly clean east-facing wall (left around the corner from the East Buttress route).
Rappable with a single 60m rope - no raps longer than 90'.
The first rappel is very diagonal to climber's left, to reach a station at a block on the top of the wall (you actually tie off your ATC and climb up a couple of moves to the anchor). Then mostly straight down. Stances 3 and 4 are small, the others are fairly easy to stand on.
You end up 2 minutes uphill from the start of the climb, so you avoid the Kat Walk / Cathedral Chimney entirely.

Whether it's faster than the Kat Walk / Cathedral Chimney, I'm not sure.
That descent will probably continue to be popular, but the rap route removes most rockfall hazard and the hangup risk is fairly low (if using a single rope; if attempted with 2 ropes, your rope might hang up on trees).
It should at least be useful when there is lots of snow in the Cathedral Chimney.

When we chose locations for the anchors, there were a few instances when there were trees close to the rappel route (3, 5 and 6 on the overlay photo). In these cases we placed the station about level with the tree, but off to the side.
When pulling the rope down from above, if the wind takes it into a tree, it will be just to the side of you and hopefully easy to pull it out. And on the next rappel, the rope is very unlikely to contact the tree.
However, if you tried to rappel with 2 ropes and skipped one of these stations next to a tree, your rope might hang up in the tree, 90' above you.
As jvSF mentions, the first rappel is diagonal, and your rope runs over a flake with trees below. I wrapped an old sling around the notch where the flake contacts the wall, so if your rope goes in there, it should pull over/down smoothly.

Neither descent is 100% safe; you could die on the rap route if you go off the end of your rope, or if your rope hangs up and you can't retrieve it (and a storm or cold night comes in). There is no fast rescue from this route (same as Royal Arches Rappels), because it's not fast to hike to the top. You can be cited (fined) for a rescue ("creating a hazardous situation") in the Valley if you take unusual risks. So this descent option is just one possible choice.

Job Alexander and I placed these anchors over 3 days, finishing on May 4.
This was after doing the Kat Walk / Cathedral Chimney descent a few weeks earlier, with a fair amount of snow / water. And the mangled/missing rap bolts there.
Job just observed that for such a beautiful climb, he felt the descent was fairly ugly and detracted.
I knew I didn't recommend the "Penny Pinnacle rap route", but thought this face might have good potential for a clean rappel route.
Part of my own motivation for considering rappel route alternatives to the Kat Walk / Cathedral Chimney is that my partner and I almost died in there a few years back when a huge boulder came down it.
Bolts and hangers were my own, not ASCA (ASCA are for replacement only).
[Click to View Linked Image]

LuckyJack

Trad climber

Novato, CA

May 14, 2013 - 06:17pm

We climbed this route this weekend, but seemed to be the only ones to come down the gully, though there were at least three parties behind us. Also I noticed rap rings at the top of the tenth pitch, about 15 feet left of the bottom of the final 5.7 gully. Is there a bolted rap route to the left of the climb somewhere?

czycat

Trad climber

Jackson, WY

Oct 15, 2012 - 03:01pm

Regarding the left hand variation on the last pitch, I think the grades are off. The pitch starts of with a 5.7 undercling traverse right into the slippery 5.7 groove. The variation then exists out left in a finger crack (5.8 move) up to a big flake and the tree. Continue up some thin flakes/cracks for about 10 feet, then step left to a right leaning diagonal crack (SuperTopo calls this 5.10a, but more like 5.8). Follow the crack up - feels like 5.7 (I had my feet in the crack, layback). Topo calls it 5.9. I thought this was some of the better climbing on the route, and personally it far more appealing then the slick as snot 5.7 groove!

crasic

climber

Aug 10, 2012 - 09:20pm

Did this climb (5.9A0 50 classics) on August 9th in 95 degree weather. Lots of good sustained climbing at the grade, no easy "filler" pitches, every pitch is 5.7/5.8 with a 5.9 roof crux on P5. Sun exposure on the climb is pretty severe so brings lots of water. We started at the crack of dawn and with 6 liters between the two of us we ran out of water by P8 and mini-epiced the descent in a dehydrated drunken stupor. Bring more than you think you need if you know you are going to take a while doing it.

Although I'm sure its season dependent, every tree on the route (with the exception of the top out) was SWARMING with ants, avoid them like the plague

Pitches 1&2 and 3&4 link very comfortably with a 60m. there is no reason to not link them.

Crux pitch is definitely easier if you are tall, aid portion was fun to do (don't bring aiders), I'm not talented enough to free it, don't clip the last bolt and just used the fixed slings to pendulum over to the roof. The roof crux itself is one move, very well protected. With a fixed pin at the crux and a line of 7 beefy bolts below you, it feels more like a sport climb. Its so well protected even the fledgling 5.9 leader (like me) should give it a go with full confidence, if all hope is lost you can still pull up on the fixed pin.

One of the fixed pitons at the top P7 is gone, but the crack on the left takes medium sized pieces.

Last pitch was kind of a drag compared to the rest of the climb, its super dirty once you get into the 4th class section. There is a 10a variation on the top out that I'm sure is worth doing if you can

Descent was a pain, its only redeeming feature being that its hard to get lost, follow the cairns to the gully. Three raps and then scramble the rest of the way. The heavy rockfall from a few years back is not very evident, but still lots of loose rocks to chuck down at your partner if you aren't careful. The nature of the narrow gully means that anything falling from high above will be channeled directly on your head, so do the raps quickly. Hanger on the first has been replaced it seems (it wasn't flat) and the questionable bent hanger on the last rap is still there, but two other bolts back the thing up.

Rip

Trad climber

Norman, OK

Jun 8, 2012 - 11:55pm

Climbed the EB route on June 4, 2012. Everything went well except the rappels down the descent gully. The beta here was quite helpful, and anyone planning to climb this route should read the entire list of beta. I agree, the topo marking Penny Pinnacle was quite helpful, but finding the rappel gully, Cathedral Chimney, was actually pretty straight forward because someone had marked the descent route from the top of EB to the gully with a series of small cairns.

Warning: The descent route down the gully (as described in Supertopo's Yosemite Valley Free Climbs guide book) has a warning about rock fall. However, it fails to mention the potential for flash-floods in the gully.

We started the rappels in a light mist, but within less than 5 minutes the gully was flooded and extremely dangerous. Water had risen from a mere trickle to knee level within a matter of minutes, soaking my partner who was about 50-75 ft down into the steep narrow section. The water came from the West, from above the chasm between Higher and Middle Cathedral. Remarkably, this all happened before it started to rain hard within the gully itself, indicating that runoff from up high, above the chasm, can quickly flood the descent gully. The roaring water also brought down rocks into the gully, pinning our rappel line. I won't bore you with all the details here, but this caused a miserable 8-hour epic of life-threatening hypothermia and near exhaustion.

Given the layout of this gully, perhaps the risk for flash floods is merely common sense. However, having never seen the actual gully itself, we had no way of knowing that the water from the upper parts of the East side of Higher and Middle Cathedral could eventually funnel directly into this narrow descent gully.

My suggestion is to avoid this gully completely if there is any chance of rain, or consider the Penny Pinnacle descent route instead (although we had difficulty finding it). If anyone has had a similar experience in this gully, please post it.

Manny

Social climber

tempe

May 29, 2012 - 12:45am

Just above the first belay on the 10a fifty crowded variation (pitch 3 of the pitch combination for 70m) is a bread box sized stone on a ledge. Don't pull it off.

snowhazed

Trad climber

Oaksterdam, CA

Apr 23, 2012 - 12:43pm

no snow

Falcon16

Trad climber

Kingsburg, ca

Apr 21, 2012 - 11:07pm

Anyone know if the descent gully still has snow?

PellucidWombat

Mountain climber

Draperderr, by Bangerter, Utah

Nov 4, 2011 - 02:01pm

With 70m doubles, you can link nearly all pitches without too much drag:

1&2
3&4
5&6 (unless you're a moron like me and get your thin ropes stuck in the 5.9 finger crack in the roof. Then these are separated :-P)
7&8
9&10 (Just don't stop short after pitch 8 or you will have to simul-climb about 10-15 ft to finish P10.)

Nothing to link w/ P11.

I second the observation about the topo being off on P6. Straight up looked nicer, but I went right on the terrain of least resistance as the topo showed. I ended up placing a cam about 10 ft above the "50 Crowded" belay before zigging far left and up to find the 1 piton on the pitch that I could find, and then zagging back right again to finish.

gonamok

climber

dont make me come over there

Nov 1, 2011 - 03:25am

Did the E. Buttress the first time with Michael Paul in 1978. I led the "bolt ladder" wearing RRs and thought it was 5.10c. We downclimbed the katwalk and the whole chimney without breaking out the rope. Every sling station has a down climb, including a couple thrillers where you lower from a hand jam behind the chockstone to unseen edges beneath, but nothing harder than 5.6.

The second time was in the early 90s with Todd Trimble. We were climbing pretty well at the time and were across the 5.6 traverse in about an hour. Then these crazy romanian alpinists suddenly appeared below us, and acted like they wanted to pass, so we took off. I ran up the next pitch without placing any pro and todd did the same on the pitch after, almost running to stay ahead of the romanians.

On the last 3 pitches we pulled away from them, as it had become USA vs Romania by then. We did full pitch runouts on every pitch from the end of the traverse to the top, finishing the route in under two hours. We never, ever would have done that on our own, shows you what a little competition can do.

We downclimbed all but 2 raps that time, but it was such a pain in the ass that rapping is faster and easier. The 5.10c face pitch seemed easier with sticky rubber on my feet this time. Maybe something has broken on that pitch.


	Credit: gonamok

Leading the crux pitch, way back when.

Pythonist

Trad climber

Oakland, CA

Oct 31, 2011 - 04:47pm

We did a seemingly very quick ascent this past weekend (took 6 hours to climb the route), and I think there's a lot of beta to be updated on this route...

We used 70m rope, and a light rack with 12 extended draws. Started off from Upper Pines at 6:30, walked in from 7, and started climbing just after dawn at 7:30. For a super-classic route, on a Sunday, with perfect weather, we didn't see a single other person the whole day.

Oh, and the approach beta: "Follow the gully to a carabiner sign in the middle of the boulders and another [...] right marking a trail" Neither of those signs are there. The trail right is fairly obvious, assuming your doing the approach in daylight, but pre-dawn it's quite tricky to judge.

Pitch-by-pitch account:
Pitch 1 and 2:
These can be run together easily, providing you don't place gear to give you horrible rope drag on pitch 1. There are plenty of lines to select from on pitch 1 - don't just head back right because the topo says 5.3; I would say climbing direct from the low move right to the 5.5 fingers is a more obvious climb. At the top of 1, place gear, clip the piton, do a single 5.8 move and head for the anchor around the bush.
Pitch 3 and 4:
Running these together is a little harder, and communication and ropework is less obvious. From the belay, move up and right to a ledge, then up the corner via 5.8. The layback moves left around the flake didn't really feel 5.8, so if you're running the pitches together, try not to place gear out at the end of the flake (too much drag). The starting 5.7 layback of pitch 4 was actually one of the harder things on the route - perhaps not really being warm or used to the friction, but the wall right felt very insecure! After the initial corner, the remaining 5.7 is solid. Just keep going until the obvious blank slab!

(As a timing note, yes I was running it out quite a bit, but we were at the start of the crux pitch within an hour of leaving the ground)

Pitch 5:
Definitely a good way to introduce yourself to harder slabs in the Valley - you couldn't ask for better protection. All 9 bolts look brand new, and there is some (slightly suspect) webbing on the ninth, such that you can clip it from the ledge and continue left.

WARNING: I don't know why SuperTopo says "stay right of bolts". There is the only obvious hold on the slab to the right of the third bolt. This hold is not attached well to the slab, and is too far right to clip the third bolt. DO NOT be tempted - I think leaning fully off this hold to make the clip will likely rip it off the wall, resulting in the hold hitting you in the head whilst you bounce horizontally down the slab... The move left to the bolt is desperate, and meant on the first attempt I took a quick swing onto the second bolt. Lowering back to the bottom of the slab is perhaps the answer for any fall - no point in hanging if you're trying to climb it clean.

For me, the easier-looking line is just to the LEFT of the new bolts (perhaps the topo was written for the old ones?). Start up the iron-stained scoops, make a tricky move slight right across the third bolt, the back left and straight up to the ledge. The ledge will be worse than you thought, and results in a thought-provoking mantel. Give your calves a rest, step down and left, then jump for joy at regaining real holds. Try not to place gear on the left in the 5.8 section (which feels remarkably easy after the slab), as that will cause your rope to get caught in the crack over the roof - rope drag for the leader and a harder time keeping the second tight up the slab. Just keep reaching higher over the 5.9 roof, and good finger-locks will appear. The 5.6 finish to the pitch is fine, and the bolts quickly appear.

(That crux pitch took the next hour by itself)

Pitch 6:
The topo makes it look as if moving directly right from the belay is correct... actually, the piton is 10ft above and only slight right of the belay. Continue up and right on nice sloping ledges and flakes to a tougher move (place gear after to be nice to your second).

Pitches 7,8,9,10,11:
All these are as described, and should likely all be done in single pitches... with the caveat that getting stuck in the cracks is not obligatory - there are plenty of face/arete holds to make the climbing interesting. There is currently only a single brand-new blade at the belay at the end of 7, but there are plenty of placements to back it up.

Make sure to move left out of the corner to the great 5.8 flake/crack, and make sure NOT to be tempted leftwards out of the horrible grovel that the final groove provides - it is easy to get yourself into a position you won't get out of!

Somewhere in the middle of pitch 7 or 8 you likely start wondering how many more pitches you have to go... Having done the crux and a lot of fun pitches, enthusiasm waned rather dramatically about here.

As for the descent: from the final pitch, head back around to the right and a very dirty gulley. At the top of this head left and you should find the bivy site. Cairns lead further left (with a few confusing sections to / away from the wall on the right) around to the large descent gulley. The topo from Clint below is still accurate - the first rap has a good bolt and backup chockstone, and the intermediate has a lot of reasonable webbing. The final rap bolts are a little suspect, so we used a backup as the first guy went off, but they held solidly.

Hope that helps some folks, and encourages others - it's a great route, with an incredibly well protected and short crux section. And I don't know many routes that will give you that in addition to 8 pitches of good 5.7/8 climbing.

Wes & Bridget

Trad climber

Dublin, CA

Apr 12, 2011 - 01:20am

We did the climb on April 4th and took the "50 Crowded" variation. The climb was awesome! We went out to the 5.6 hand crack on pitch 3 & it was really cool- the first really exposed part of the climb. There were a few wet patches on a couple of the easier pitches, but everything else was dry. The descent was the crux for us. There was some snow on top, and it took us a while to figure out how to get down. We were a little confused by all of the descent beta. Anything we could have potentially scrambled down looked way too sketchy, so we decided to rappel. For the following, bear in mind that we use the term "trail" loosely (due to the snow at the top)...

To find the rapppels: From the top of the climb, follow the Supertopo descent beta to scramble your way to the "campfire ring". From the "campfire ring", just keep heading to the south towards Higher Cathedral. We had a copy of the rappel topo labelled "Kat Walk and Penny Pinnacle rap route" with us (from a previous post) and it definitely helped. The best landmark to look for is the "100' tree 50' above trail." That tree is pretty much the biggest tree around up there- you can't miss it. Walk along the "trail" towards Higher Cathedral until you get under the big tree. Beneath the giant pine tree, about 30' down a slab from the "trail" is the "double pine at brink". That is where we rappelled from. If you decide to double-rope rappel from the double pine, make sure your knot is over the lip of rock near the anchor so it doesn't get stuck. We took two ropes with us, and it gave us more options rapelling- some of the rappel anchors (especially the ones down in the gulley) leave a lot to be desired. Bring some extra webbing and rap rings just in case. All in all, an incredible route, and we plan on doing it again!

Annie

Trad climber

Bishop, CA

Oct 17, 2010 - 11:44pm

WARNING: LOOSE ROCK!

Climbed the ORIGINAL ROUTE on Saturday October 16, 2010.
This post is to warn climbers about a huge loose flake on top of pitch 6 according to the Reid book. In the Supertopo it is the first non- numbered belay on the Original Route. In other words, it is the top of the pitch after the 10c bold ladder pitch. In other other words it is at the top of the first 5.6 chimney. There are two trees growing out of the huge square slot. At a little stance to the right there is a small crack that sounded solid and holds a gray and blue Camelot.

My anchor there consisted of a gray and blue Camelot in that crack equalized with the higher tree. When I led off I pulled on the top of the rock and this HUGE flake cracked at the bottom and nearly pulled off. My cams opened up making me thankful that I had equalized with a tree even though if that whole thing were to fall off we would have been dead anyway.

Anyway- don't touch the thing. I drew an X on it but I think its raining there now. I wouldn't even recommend going up there its so loose and huge and scary.

Be safe people!


	Big loose rock. Credit: Annie

Danholio

Trad climber

San Francisco, CA

Jul 18, 2010 - 02:05pm

Difficult to find a climb of this length at such a consistently moderate grade in Yosemite. A must do.

Climbed it on July 10. Given the popularity of the route and it being a Saturday, we started the approach in the dark, arriving at the base at 5:30 am. Turns out, we were the only party on the route that day?!? Maybe people were scared off by the heat (forecast for ~90's). With an early start and gaining elevation by the time the sun hits the route, temperatures were actually quite pleasant. So... I would recommend trying this climb with an early start even if its going to be hot.

Some route beta - 1-2 and 3-4 link comfortably with a 60. On P6, start by going up first then traverse right. I started by traversing right and ended up at the bolts for the 50 Crowded Variation! P7 belay is on a comfy ledge but gear is difficult. There's a shiny new piton that can be backed up with C3's/small nuts and a .5 cam to the left. Final pitch is more like 190', not 120'. Both roofs are pretty spicy but well protected.

Ant update - we encountered swarming ants at least 4 times along the way. I found that if you left them alone, they would calm down in a few minutes, making the ant situation manageable. Watch out for ants at the top of the climb. Seems like every tree up there is infested. Anchor from horns and other rock instead of trees.

noal elkins

climber

Jul 7, 2010 - 04:08pm

We climbed it about a month ago and did not encounter any ants. Check out Clint's post a little lower on this page for the gully descent. I printed a copy and it was helpful.

Sonic

Trad climber

Golden, Co

Jun 1, 2010 - 11:58am

Loved the climb so much last month that I did it again this last weekend! Super classic! If you choose to find the rap rather than going through the gulley, be prepared for very angry red ants!!!! bring two ropes to rap is a must as well! Me and my partner simaled the rap because the ants were getting so bad!

wessle

Trad climber

Rancho Cordova, CA

May 11, 2010 - 02:17pm

My wife and I climbed this route on Saturday (May 1). We found the rout to be super classic with pitch after pitch of interesting and beautiful climbing. We Choose to do the 10a variation for pitch 5 instead of the bolt ladder. The pitch was stout but doable.

After the variation we continued up the 50 crowded variation, passing a guided team of three. (Thanks for letting us climb through guys.) We linked pitches 6 and 7 with only about 10ft. of simulclimbing.

If you choose, you can link pitches 7 and 8 to avoid an uncomfortable belay in the alcove at the top of pitch 7. I advise this.

The Descent was really the crux of the climb. The descent gully still has quite a bit of snow. Most of the snow patches are pretty thick, but I did punch through a couple times. Several secondary rap stations are rigged and we used these to rappel down the snow a little faster.

This route is currently in great shape but there were already ants at the base of the 5.7 Chimney on the last pitch. On the descent the first two rappels are more like canyoneering than climbing because of the constant water that instantly soaks your rope. Also some basic "snow sense" is valuable when descending the snow patches. (I punched through a couple times while rappeling.)

There is no doubt in my mind why this route is considered one of the 50 classics of North America.

Sonic

Trad climber

Golden, Co

May 6, 2010 - 09:13pm

Climbed the EB last weekend and it was beautiful. Starting looking into the weather about a week before we went and the prediction was rain. But the weekend turned out beautiful and sunny.

We left camp 4 about 545 to head over to the start of the climb. The approach was really easy to find if you have the supertopo book. Just look for the carabiner post sign on the valley loop trail and head up and to the right. You'll eventually hit a gully, (the one you use on the way down.) THe start of the climb is easy to tell because there is a rock outcropping about 10ft from the climb that gives one an excellent view of the valley.

We linked pitches 1&2 and then 3&4 with no problem on our 60m rope. I can say that there were no bees or ants the whole way up, (Only ants on the way down). THe bolt ladder was fun, although a left crimp did break when my partner was leading it. It didnt affect the climb though. You can easily french free through the ladder if you forget your aiders.

The climb was alittle wet. There are enough features on opposing faces to easily make it up if you are a competent 5.9-5.10 leader. If was my first 5.9 lead and I found it not to hard.

The last pitch heads up a gully, which is very wet. The climb goes left out of it though so it shouldnt be a problem. Once you hit the top of the climb keep heading up right through a 4th class scramble. The trail will eventually give you the option of heading left, so follow this towards the upper cathedral rock.

The way down was quite interesting. At first we hiked all the way over to the gully, but it was burried with much snow and ice. On the way over there we heard two mini rock slides going down the gully so we decided to find the raps.

Finding the raps takes some time. The best beta I can give is to print out the topo below on another comment, that thing saved us. Try to orientate yourself so that looking at the 30 foot cliff with the walled bivy rock site further up to your right. Now at this spot, look out towards the valley. There should be a small path through the bushes of mazaneeda. At this point you need to keep heading down. You'll eventually come to some really exposed slab, you have to go down this. We found a tree to rap off of to get down there, just cause its pretty wet. From there you'll find a small double pine that has rap rings on it. It surprisingly holds! I highly recommend bringing two ropes, or extra webbing because the next rap station is on a slinged boulder that has SKETCHY white webbing on it. If you have two ropes, you can rap past this to a huge oak tree. Once your at the oak tree, rap down towards the gully and its a fairly easy walk to the bottom.

As far as gear goes: I have a rack of aliens up to red and grey, a 1.25 1.5 and 3.5 wild country, bd .5 .75 1 2 3 4. Metolius 6, You can easily get away with not bringing the 4, but i placed it like 3 to 4 times so it was worth it.

All in all this is a great route and cant wait to do it again!!!!!

Sonic

Trad climber

Golden, Co

Apr 29, 2010 - 10:14am

Climbing it this weekend, so a new update will be up soon!

Tattooed 1

Trad climber

Sebastopol, Ca

Apr 12, 2010 - 06:34pm

My guess to both questions is yes. Pretty nasty weather there late yesterday with a bunch of snow. The descent gully is in the shade and cold. There is still a fair amount of snow on Middle.
Tim

Highlife

Trad climber

California

Apr 12, 2010 - 01:26pm

Has anybody tried to run this yet this year? Im thinking about giving it a whirl this weekend, but dont know if a) the routes dry or b) the descent is covered in snow. Any thoughts?

Vendelkrakker

Trad climber

Los Angeles, CA

Oct 30, 2009 - 06:25pm

Climbed this route for the first time last thursday (oct 22). The weather was perfect and there were only 3 parties on the route (we were the first). I tried to free the 5.10c pitch thinking that since I can lead some 5.11 sport climbs and haven't had trouble on slabs in the past that it would be doable, even with a pack on. Boy did I get schooled! It felt more like 11b slab with a pack on and after 3 tries I french freed it to the awesome, yet- by then after flailing just below- challenging 5.9 roof. My partner and I were both of the opinion that this climb has 2 or 3 pitches of 5 star climbing with 3 and 4 star climbing in between, except for the final pitch which ends with 3rd/4th class. However, the views, quality of rock, and overall atmosphere make it an all star climb!

One of the bolts on the first rappel in the gully is missing and the other's bolt hanger has been smashed by rock fall. Someone added black webbing to that anchor, fairly recently from the looks of it and the rappel is safe as of last thursday. Second rappel also suffering from mashed up bolt hangers. We didn't have any replacements otherwise...

martygarrison

Trad climber

Washington DC

May 12, 2009 - 02:54pm

I never rapped the decent. You could down climb and then when you hit the second rap you could burrow around to the left...

Jay Wood

Trad climber

Land of God-less fools

May 11, 2009 - 11:06pm

No bees on original route currently. I think they multiply and get fired up in the Fall, but don't nest in a consistent spot.

Fungi

Trad climber

Sonora, CA

May 11, 2009 - 09:37pm

Please be extremely careful in the descent gully for this route. There is a lot of snow and water causing loose rock to fall very easily.

Rhodo-Router

Gym climber

sawatch choss

Apr 6, 2009 - 04:58pm

Looks like one of the two descent bolts at the first rap station in the gully has been wiped out over the winter. The other is in good shape and has rings on it.

Kicking steps down 500' of snow in running shoes took a long time.

drc

Trad climber

Durham, NC

Oct 27, 2008 - 06:44pm

Climbed this on Friday.
We were the only party on the route. The weather was beatiful and the climbing really mellow. Not like the other EB across the valley which was mean and angry.
As someone below stated Tolkien is exactly what came to mind on the descent. What an awesome place. The sound of beehives resonating in the chasm added some extra ambiance.

harmonydoc

Trad climber

Rohnert Park, CA

Oct 20, 2008 - 04:31pm

Followed a fast/experienced partner up this yesterday (10/19). Fabulous mostly moderate climbing with killer views! About 5 hours up (linked 1&2/3&4), 1 1/2 hours down at my careful pace. Party before us wandered around lost for over an hour trying to find the descent before my partner pointed them in the right direction, if I had not been with someone who knew where to go I likely would have done the same. It's challenging not to dislodge rocks in loose descent gully. Don't remember being uncomfortable about rap bolts, but since I didn't rig the raps and 2 people had just descended before me probably wasn't looking that closely.

Clint Cummins

Trad climber

SF Bay area, CA

Oct 13, 2008 - 02:45pm

Here are photos of the descent and rappel anchor bolts from May 2007 (in some years there can be snow here in May):

[Click to View Linked Image]
upper anchor - left hanger a little bent
[4/21/09 update from Brian Biega's forum post - the upper/right hanger is missing - the lower/left bent hanger is still there]

[Click to View Linked Image]
the upper rappel. We had one 60m rope, so my partner rappelled first on a single strand (115').

[Click to View Linked Image]
I rappelled second, on a double strand. The gully and overhang are longer than 30m, so I rappelled 80' to this slung chockstone and did a second 35' rappel to rejoin my partner.

[Click to View Linked Image]
lower anchor - bolts a little rusty, hangers bent.
No hanger on lower 3rd bolt.

Note: you can downclimb this section (with or without a belay) instead of rappelling; it's about 5.4.

[Click to View Linked Image]
This shows the rappels accurately.

I do not recommend the Penny Pinnacle rappel route center/right side of the above topo), since it is slower/longer, it is hard to find, and there is a higher chance of rope hangup.

Chris McNamara

SuperTopo staff member

Oct 12, 2008 - 01:42pm

just got this not about the descent:

East Buttress Middle Cathedral descent: bolts on the last rappel in the gully were hit by some rocks. They look smashed and rusty and slightly uncomfortable to rap off.

Ben Emery

Trad climber

Back and forth the Pacific

Sep 29, 2008 - 01:36am

We went up today.

There's a warning sign about the yellowjackets still up at the base, it suggests sticking to the now-standard route listed in Supertopo, staying clear of the original chimney variation.

Sticking to the standard route I only saw the occassional wasp and they certainly didn't bother us any.

Seems a nice time of the year to do it; much of the climb was in the shade from about midday.

Mazzystr

Gym climber

Homeless...

Sep 28, 2008 - 11:50am

has anyone been up this route since Sept 22?

i'll be in the valley next week and i'm thinking of taking my crack fledgling up this route.

i'm wondering the status of those bees.

Thanks!
/Chris C

brat

climber

formerly El Portal

Sep 22, 2008 - 11:01pm

On September 21, while climbing the "50 Crowded Variation," we encountered two Japanese climbers bailing off the original route after receiving hundreds of bee stings in the chimneys. They didn't say which pitch, but as of September '08, there are bees in the chimneys, so beware if doing the original route!!

Floyd Hayes

Trad climber

Hidden Valley Lake, CA

Jul 28, 2008 - 02:14pm

Pitch 5: The best face moves seemed to wander from left to right to left of the bolts, with the hardest being a thin mantle just below and left of the next-to-last bolt, and then a step down and left toward the crack. Seemed much harder than 5.10c (two of us flailed), though the heat and backpack didn't help.

Pitch 6: From the anchor atop pitch 5, SuperTopo shows the right traverse variation going horizontally RIGHT from the belay anchor, then UP to a pin. Indeed there are nice footholds going horizontally right, so I went way out about halfway to the double-bolt anchor on the 50 Crowded Variation, but there was no pro and no easy way up to a pin. From the anchor first go UP, then RIGHT to the obvious pin (visible from the anchor) and easier climbing. There is a small cam/nut placement between the two pins. The "5.8 friction" was more like a lunge to a jug.

Pitch 10: One of my partners missed the "5.8 thin hands" crack (shown in SuperTopo) that forks to the left near the top of the pitch and instead continued leading straight up the shallow dihedral (not shown in SuperTopo) to the wide chimney/groove of pitch 11 (it appeared well traveled, so I suspect this often happens). I had previously led the "5.8 thin hands" crack section (though 23 years earlier!) and wistfully looked at it while struggling up the dihedral. The thin hands crack is definitely easier, less awkward, shorter, and leads to a more comfortable ledge with a tree belay and shade.

Brendan

Trad climber

Yosemite, CA

Jul 15, 2008 - 12:17pm

Fun route, it took the better part of the day to free. We took the origional line up through the 10c face climbing and upper chimney pitches.

A little beta (if you want it):
I highly suggest the link up of pitches 1-2, and 3-4. Use long runners.

Pitch 5- tightly bolted 10c face. Very slabby.
Pitch 6- flared 5.7 chimney. Fun and physical.
Pitch 7- flared 5.8 chimney. Physical, beautiful and clean. Belay off micro nuts and TCUs at piton. Deeply consider wearing long pants for these two pitches.
Pitch 8- Small cams protect the Factor 2. Head right to OW and stemming. Don't underestimate these previously mentioned pitches.
pitch 9 and 10, trend right to clean dihedral, head left at end of dihedral to tree belay.

sprout

Trad climber

clovis, ca

Jun 8, 2008 - 09:05pm

Did this route yesterday. I'm pretty sure we didn't take the best approach, but still got there by walking the base of the rock. We saw some occasional ants but nothing as described below. The decent is clear of snow except for one small car-sized chunk. The second rappel anchor was soaked and in a dark manky corner. If someone had a little extra cord or webbing, it'd be nice to see that mank beefed up a little (we didn't have any, but lived still the same). A stellar route with great views. I would agree about the belay ledge for the top of 6. If you climb past the bolts, up to near where the piton is shown on the topo (a good sized ledge before the longer lieback) your belay should be much more comfortable.

Sascha

climber

Oakland, CA

Jun 6, 2008 - 10:57pm

Hoping to do this route soon -- how's the ant situation as of June 2008? Anything noteworthy about conditions on the descent?

tcb

Trad climber

San Francisco, CA

Apr 29, 2008 - 09:17pm

Did this great route for the third time yesterday, first time on the 10a variation. Several notes:

Carabiner posts appear to be missing on the approach.

If you do the 10a variation, you can proceed to link pitches 7 & 8 on the topo. (Possibly you can do this without the variation as well). On pitch 6, climb past the regular 2 bolt belay and keep going until you are nearly out of rope. This is the last ledge before the main cracks/corner of pitch 7. Belay on this ledge on gear -- make sure it is the highest ledge(!). From here it is just under 60m to the top of pitch 8. Save a #1 and #2 cam for the pitch 8 belay, and enjoy skipping the pitch 7 belay, which has always been a bit annoying, both as a stance and as an anchor.

Still lots of snow in the gully, bit of an adventure to get down. We took several double rope raps to get through the snowfield. If you have good boots and are comfortable on snow, you could kick steps, but there are several impromptu rap stations to get through the snow. Another party did fine with only single rope raps, I think they used a deadman anchor for one of them.

blake

Trad climber

Berkeley, CA

Nov 26, 2007 - 03:26am

wow, what a great route. never found any "carabiner posts" on the approach (are those still around?). pulled through the bolts on the 5th pitch. 1/2 and 3/4 link easily with a 60m. probably will only bring up to #3 cams next time. farther than we thought to get from the top of the last pitch to the trail across to the gulley. definitely do not need a second rope for the descent. we did two very short rappels (30' and 40' or so). it was spooky seeing bolts buried by huge rockfall and other bolts smashed in the descent gulley, but otherwise quite a cool spot.

no one else on the route on a beautiful Saturday (Nov 24). ..

onepitch

Social climber

berkeley CA

Sep 18, 2007 - 02:40pm

No ant problems as of 9/17/07. Lot of parties on the route as expected though.

Oscar

Trad climber

San Diego, CA

Aug 27, 2007 - 03:55pm

I'm planning to do the E buttress in October, do anybody knows if there is still a plague of ants there?
Thank you
Oscar

randalms

Trad climber

Aug 13, 2007 - 01:10am

Did this climb on August 11, 2007

As mentioned above:
ANT WARNING,
the 3'rd pitch, the polished lie back
variation had MORE ants on it than I have ever seen.
They were covering the little bench area at the bottom
of the lie back crack, some queen ant (or bigger ant
with wings) was crawling around,
and they were POURING out of the crack
where you MUST jam your hands. It was a brief horror
movie experience, as I was worried that my feet would
slip from smearing so many ants and I had to lead it
very quickly, so the ants would not get too far into
my clothes. Rapidly got to a stance above the ants,
about 30 feet up, jam in some pro, then scrape and
smash ants off arms, legs, hair, neck, and continued
to do so for the next HOUR.

Sticky sweet smell of the ants got all over the rope
and our clothes for the rest of the day.

It sounds bad, but really it was over quick, and we were
laughing about it for the rest of the day and probably
for the rest of my life. I'm sure it will make a better
story every time I tell it.

Oh did I mention the ants? The were at least 4 inches long
and had posion tipped jaws, and could leap about 20 feet,
and you had to pry them from your flesh with pliers-Each one,
and there were hundreds of thousands of them.

And let me tell you about the ants- There were several million
of them, each was about 2 feet long, I think they were radioactively mutated. They squirted mustard gas from the tips
of their 14 inch posion stingers-Rapidly we parallel
wired our headlamp batteries thru our digital camera flashes and
(after quickly reprogramming the digital camera bios'es) and
created a Mutant-Radioactive-Formic-Acid-Ant-Death-Beam
which we used to cover our very motivated rapid ascent.

Ants as big as Dinosaurs, and as Vicious as RightWing Talk Radio
Show Guys!

I could go on and on, and probably will.

summerprophet

Mountain climber

Cali Via Canada

Jul 23, 2007 - 10:09am

Climbed this route July 22, 2007.

Just FYI, the incredibly exposed 5.6 handcrack variation (pitch 3 if you are not linking pitches) is crawling with ants.

Also, the descent trail is now very well marked with cairns. Thank you to whoever did the effort.

Duke-

Trad climber

SF, aka: Dirkastan

Dec 13, 2006 - 11:15pm

Chris T. and I did this one, it was one of the best days of my life.
-D

lizard fiasco

Trad climber

Berkeley, CA

Oct 21, 2006 - 03:09pm

In order to pass another party, we did the left Original Route variation after pitch 5. I linked P5 to the optional 90' belay station between the 5.7 and 5.8 chimneys, where there's a tree with slings. It's more comfortable to stand above and to the right of the tree, but after placing a couple nuts I discovered the flake there is quite loose--beware of anchoring or laybacking on that flake!

As for the descent, I agree with luca below--we wasted a lot of time looking left too early after the fire ring. Follow the cairns after the ring. No problem rappelling with a 70 meter rope, though it sounds like there are multiple descent routes.

NinjaChimp

climber

someplace in-between

May 1, 2006 - 03:50am

P.S. If your freeing the slab pitch remember to rack your draws on your left side.

Edit: I'm refering to the bolt ladder .10c

NinjaChimp

climber

someplace in-between

May 1, 2006 - 03:48am

Did this on 4-29-06. Started climbing at 7:15 and were the first party on route. As to the missing pin(s) on the right variation pitch 8 belay, I was able to back up the remaining pin with a purple metolius and a TINY nut. More importantly, the decent gully is nasty right now. We were forced to make two double rope raps and one short rap in addition to much slushing around in the snow. One rap was off of a tombstone that I would not have done personaly if I had not seen a much larger person do before me (even still I'm still suprised it held). We had only brought one rope (as per route description) but were fortunate enough to have had a second party a few hours behind us with whom we shared ropes for the descent. Total time climbing: more or less 5.5 hours. Total time spent looking for feasible descent/sleeping while waiting for second party/descending: 5 hours. Time spent in Yosemite this weekend: priceless!

luca

Trad climber

milano italy

Oct 23, 2005 - 03:27am

I did in august with marta, my 12 years daughter. we were alone, beautiful day and beautiful climb. we take the easy variant, and we enjoied it. after there were pitch on pitch of good climbing, not easy, but you can put great pro. pay attention to the descent: from the top of the route walk some minutes towards right on the track (more that specified in the guide) than move left when you feel logic and follow the small path in the dense bush. two rappels, good also with one rope.
luca

fear

Ice climber

hartford, ct

Sep 19, 2005 - 04:09pm

Great route. ~12 hours climbing and descent for two punters from the east coast.

The 1st new non-mangled nut/bolt on the raps in the gulley is loose and could be spun off by hand. My mini-leatherman snugged it down but be careful or bring a real wrench.

The 2nd to last last belay below the exit gulley on the great ledge has a tree filled with fire-ants. There's a great 1-1.5" crack right behind you that would take bomber gear if you don't like being bitten. Don't touch the tree and they won't bother you.

The first non-bolted belay station (8?) on the right-hand variation is supposed to have two pins according the the topo. Only one remains. Bring a black and blue alien to back it up in the two remaining pin scars. A few creative small nut placements are also up left. And don't fall.

Definitely link 1&2 and 3&4 with 60's. DO the handcrack variation after the P2 belay(5.6 crack around a step to the right). Awesome exposure and easy climbing once in the crack.

-Fear

Lambone

Big Wall climber

Ashland, Or

Jun 9, 2005 - 09:52pm

a 60m rope works for linking the first 4 pitches also. did it on tuesday. 4th time on this climb and as good as ever. I love crowds... ;-)

wes

Trad climber

Arizona

Jun 6, 2005 - 08:30am

Great route. I climbed it on may 25th 2005. GET ON IT EARLY!! I mean really early. 6:00 is not early. more like 5:00. We took a 70m and linked the first 2 and the second 2. If this route is going to be fairly easy for you and you don't want to get slowed down ( like we did... make sure you are there first)
The climbing was clean and the exposure and views excellent. I thought the last pitch was by far the the most difficult on the route. Can't wait to get back. we carried a double rack from .4-#2 and a # 3 and 3.5. that was more than enough.

climberweenie

Trad climber

San Jose, CA

May 30, 2005 - 12:35pm

Good point about lulling folks into bypassing the raps. The "5.7" was a total guesstimate since I didn't do it, and things always seem to be harder when you're on it than when you're looking at it. Be safe, rap it (dumb to get hurt or die at this point!).

August West

Trad climber

Where the wind blows strange

May 29, 2005 - 11:30pm

On the 5.10a variation, you probably passed the "3 inch crack" on the right. We did the same thing the first time. However, even after we found it the next time, my partner didn't bother stopping to put pro in--by that point, you are past the difficulties.

I've not tried it, but I would think that second rap would be a harder downclimb than 5.7. Not trying to argue, but don't want to see somebody "lulled" into trying it either (then again, it never crossed my mind to downclimb past the first rap either).

climberweenie

Trad climber

San Jose, CA

May 29, 2005 - 12:36am

did the route today 5/28. We started from road ~ 6am, were #2 on route (by 20 seconds because we took scenic route to base by going too far right, then skirting along base of middle cathedral on 4th class). didn't really start climbing til 7ish (not sure of time).

60m rope, linked 1+2, 3+4. Lieback 5.7 fingers around pitches 3-4 was just awesome, and I normally dislike liebacks. Pitch 5, took the 5.10a variation to the right (nice), then up past 3 bolts (all excellent big bolts), then straight up about 30+ feet of unprotected delicate face (of the 5.8 range) to the double bolts! (white circle in supertopo) Where the heck was the 3" crack referenced in supertopo? upper pitches we're graded fairly, but somehow just seemed tougher than they should be by looking at it (totally fun though).

I led past belay station 9 to a ledge halfway between 9 & 10. great ledge, protection not that great. 60m ropes still not quite long enough to finish pitch 11 to a safe walk-off spot (had a mini pitch at end).

descent is fairly long. After topping, need to wander back and right farther than one would expect if literally interpreting supertopo (maybe 50-75 yards, contouring right, after the summit top-out). Look for the light-colored rock cairns. Then up some fairly exposed 3rd class with lot's of loose dirt etc., til the fire ring area mentioned in supertopo (not a distinct ring, but charred wood was indicative). we headed down and bushwacked for a bit (careful close to edge), then eventually met up with a real trail. After tracking this long enough, you reach a spot where it seems like a rap station would be, but no slings. WRONG! There is a fairly recent treefall, creating a wall of foliage obscuring the real descent trail (back right toward the high point of the awesome canyon between higher and middle cathedral rock. Push through the foliage to stay on the trail, and it becomes very obvious after a few steps. Follow down into small rock scrambling in the canyon (now I know why they call it the bowling alley). Highly recommend hiking boots - NOT TEVA'S (my foot was smashed several times by large sliding rocks, thank goodness for boot padding).

We solo'd past the first rap station, the second one we used (15-20' drop into chimney that widens farther than you can stem, or ~5.7 exposed downclimb), and the last rap we used for 20 feet though could have solo'd this at easy 5th class or 4th class (tuck under the roof and slide along til it's safe to drop farther back in the alcove). The whole canyon was dry except for a small stream near the rap stations (the rope got a bit wet, that's all).

If you have weak joints or are tired/dehydrated, it would be easy to twist an ankle or knee on this descent, so plan accordingly. Route is pretty obvious, can't miss getting back to the road (by daylight at least!). We topped the route @ 1:30pm, I reached the car @ 3:15pm (we took a few vanity photos with El Cap in back from summit, but then I was moving at a pretty good clip, hopping rocks toward the middle and end of the gulley). In the dark, it could take a LONG time to be safe.

ricardo

Gym climber

San Francisco, CA

May 16, 2005 - 01:18pm

Did the route 5/16

With the water flowing down the descent i didn't feel like taking a chance on wether our ropes would reach the bottom of the first 2 rappels. So we used the intermediary station.

Would be great if someone brought some new hardware to put on those slings around the chockstone. The ring on there is pretty thin and rusty. (Its a quicklink)

Replaced the slings on the 3rd rap station, the slings that were there were about 2 years old and had just about abraded through.

The gully seemed more stable right now than a year ago. -- there is a tree perched above the gully across from the katwalk that is barely hanging on.. -- wouldn't want to be there when it goes.

the Fet

climber

Tu-Tok-A-Nu-La

May 16, 2005 - 10:21am

Did the route Saturday 5/14/05.

We started the route at 7AM and were the only party on it until I was getting to the top of pitch 4 then 1 other party showed up.

Perfect T-shirt weather. The only water on the route was on pitch 7 and was easy to avoid.

We bootied 3 nuts, a double length sling, and a locking biner in various places. It's good to be the first party of the day on a moderate classic.

My partner led the 7th pitch as his first lead in Yosemite. We never saw or heard the other party after the 8th pitch, I hope they didn't epic. I did the route once before about 6 years ago, and I forgot how good it is. The climbing and exposure for the rating are top notch.

The raps through the waterfalls on the descent at this time of year weren't bad. I guess the water-flow has slowed down as of late. My pants and shoes got a little wet mostly from water coming off the rope. But it would be easy to slip and dunk your feet completely. The 2nd rap station is tat around a chockstone in the waterfall with a rusty hardware store quicklink. It looked like with a 60M rope from the 1st rap station you can almost skip it but you come up about 10 feet short, a post below says it makes it though so maybe with rope stretch it would be ok.

We made good time on the route, but the descent took us considerably longer than the 1.5 hours the supertopo states as average.

Phil Winterson

Trad climber

Manhattan Beach, CA

Aug 8, 2004 - 01:22am

Did the route in late June, it was fine despite the ominous rockfall warnings posted on the trail. Linked 1-2 and 3-4. The crux had one hard move but the bolt ladder was easy, and the 6th pitch traverse wasn't too runout, you can get a couple aliens in. The hardest pitch is the second to last though, I thought, with some thin finger locks. Had to grovel a bit in the flaring gully/chimney on the last pitch.

On the descent, go right then up, and when you get to the fire ring, go right (as you face the valley) for quite a while. The trail meanders up and down through brush, keep going until it goes down into the enormous gully between middle and higher. You actually hike down into the gully for a bit until you find the first rappel rings. Don't rap off a tree or anything, just keep following the trail. All in all a beautiful route, collosal views the whole way, sustained but no really hard moves, great pro throughout. Climbing time for us middle-aged weekend warriors was 7 hours.

August West

Trad climber

Where the wind blows strange

Apr 30, 2004 - 11:58am

The east gully descent is in much better shape than I found it a year ago.

The top rap now has two bolts (old and new). The slings on the chock stone have been cleaned up. The last rap now has three bolts (two old with smashed hangers and a new).

I didn't find the descent as precarious as a year ago (not coming down in a heavy rainstorm might have something to do with that). The rocks are a little more consolitdated. However, my partner did dislodge a baseball size rock (with the rope while rapping) that whizzed past his head and mine. Be careful and wearing a helmet is strongly recommended.

I did the 5.6 variation at the start of the third pitch. A little awkward getting into, but a fun, quick, hand crack.

My partner lead the 50 crowded variation. Very good climbing but I thought it was stiff for 10a. After the first bolt, the next couple of pieces are micro cams (blue and green aliens) in a tips lieback/undercling from delicate stances. The mantel is more intimidating than hard. Above that, he got off route to the right. It was fun, 5.9+ climbing up irregular edges, but runout with lichen.

The 10a exit pitch at the top is very good. I thought it was more like 5.9. It did lead to a long dirty gully.

ThomasKeefer

Trad climber

Where the wind blows strange

I agree with what CT said about the descent being much better than expected. It is a dream compared to some on the eastside but... One thing that I would add to the topo description about staying on the catwalk is that the topo tells you that when you get to the camp fire ring to go down and left and specifically not up and right. Well about ten minutes into it you come across a well established bivvy site that has a distinct trail that is going down and left. There are a few cairns here pointing you up and right but they dont become visible until you go up and right. This could be dangerous to someone if they had to do the descent in the dark because the down and left trail is very loose and friable and slopes down over the edge. Aside from that, the descent is pretty easy.
One final thing~ the last pitch chimney can be avoided for the most part if you start up it and then work left toward a really tiny sapling growing from a crack. One 5.8 step across move and then you get a really really nice finger crack that is about 5.7 all the way to the top- very nice compared to the chimney IMO.