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05/04/04: Two new alpine mixed routes in Alaska.
The first route was a narrow gully on the 2500ft east face Royal Tower in Little Switzerland. Canadian Bacon (ED1 M5 WI4) involved 3000ft of actual climbing up thin, foamy ice and steep mixed. Much of the ice was too snowy to accept ice screws making for unnerving climbing as picks threatened to slice through the vertical “sn’ice”. The route finished up the southeast ridge to the summit and was completed in a 17-hour round-trip with lots of simul-climbing. Isaac sets the bait: “There are still a few interesting looking ice and mixed objectives on Royal Tower so get after it!"
In a 14 hour round-trip, they knocked off the last
major unclimbed gully which is located on the left side of the south
face. Maxim (ED1 M4 WI5) begins as a steep snow gully that
gradually pinches to fun ice and mixed climbing. The first crux negotiated
steep ice (slightly overhanging at one point!) around the left side
of a truck-size chockstone. The last couple of pitches involved a 2ft
wide, spotty thin ice runnel leading to a prominent notch on the gendarmed
summit ridge. Unseen from the glacier, this tight, shoulder-width goullotte
provided the best climbing of the trip. copyright 2004: SeanIsaac.com |