Day 0. An exploratory day to stash gear at the base of the climb. Ben scopes out Mt. Wilson from the Oak Creek pullout. The route we're eyeing is Resolution Arete on the left side. It's 20 pitches long and 2,500 ft. tall. Maybe the longest route at Red Rock. No fixed anchors. Sort of committing, especially if you are not familiar with descent options (like Inti Watana to the right or Sherwood Forest to the left.) We were not familiar with either, so we were committed. We spent Saturday scoping out the approach and stashing gear/water for Sunday. So glad we did because there's a very long, thorny, and steep scramble to the base of the first pitch.
Day 1 (first day of climbing). Despite finding the approach trail with cairns, we still got lost the next day. Showed up at 3am for the 2 hour uphill slog. At sunrise we arrive at our stashed gear from the day before.
Above, sunrise on first pitch of Resolution.
Ben scopes out his next lead.
We are forced to bivy above Sherwood forest after 10 pitches, including the crux 5.11+ pitch. Neither of us could free it. Plus I got stuck trying to clean it because of rope shenanigans, wasting at least 45 minutes hanging under the roof.
A $250 patagonia down sweater. It helped out a bunch as wind and rain fell upon us periodically throughout the night. The accursed scrub oak and its roots shot holes into my bivy bag so I got pretty wet. Suffice to say, I think I slept for about 10 minutes that night. Discovered that Ben talks in his sleep.
Day 2. (Second day on the wall)... Sunrise from our bivy notch. It was beautiful despite ominous clouds and moisture. Later it would briefly snow and hail on us.
8 hours later, we can de-rope for the summit scramble, described as "5.2, with some 5.8". Hm.
Just 400 ft to the top!
2:20pm, we summit. Ben on the tippy-top. Highest point in Red Rock.
The summit register is protected by rocks.
Very windy up there. We chose the heinous 3 hour boulder-hopping descent down First Creek Canyon.
3 comments:
Werner Herzog would approve of this entry, although I think he'd prefer your post to be heaviy concentrated on images/description of the suffering you endured on the bivy including a detailed transcription of Ben's fever-dream talk.
Then perhaps a brief image or two of the summit, and then more detail on your arduous and treacherous down hike. And then perhaps even more on the further descent into the mundane daily routine of spreadsheets and cell-phone conference calls.
I applaud and admire your emergence from the developmental chrysalis of bouldering and sport climbing and the engorging unfolding of your true mountaineering wings. They are bright and beautiful. May they flap even more stridently and take you even farther yet.
You got Herzog wrong! I don't see him worrying about making a National Geographic kind of documentary, at all!!! He will ask about your dreams, the possible insanity of the climbers. I can hear his inquisitive voice in my head right now...it is beautiful. Oh yeah, great photos Chilly, the views are fantastic! You can appreciate how tall you are by looking at the road and Spring Ranch, looks like you were in a plane. Pataguchi oh so yellow#5 jacket looks sweet on the photos with the blues of the sky in the background, worth every dollar of it damn it!
I enjoyed your trip report and pictures. Thanks for posting up (TFPU).
Phil Broscovak
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