NEW EXPEDITIONS
NEW EXPEDITIONS T
he
M
iddle
P alis a d e — F ir s t A s c e n t F rom
the
N orth
O n e of the noblest peaks of the S ie rra N e v ad a is the M i d d l e P alisade. F ro m the south it presents a couloir-furrow ed ram p art surm ounted by num erous se rra te pinn acles; from the north it is even m o re im posing when v iew e d either from the deep gorge of B ig P ine C r ee k o r from nearby m ountains. A m o n g C a lif o rn ia m ountaineers it enjoys the distinction of being one of the most difficult peaks in the range. U n til the past sum m er all of the fe w ascents m ade had been up the south face, and the opinion w a s c u r re n t that the sum m it w a s in all p ro b ab ility inaccessible from the north, that side h avin g an appearance of forbidding sheerness. F o r several seasons the w r i t e r had surveyed this formidable front of the m o un tain , sp eculatin g as to w h e th e r it m ig h t not be scaled. B u t p a r tly on account of its negative aspect and p a r tly on account of the difficulty of access to it ( th e re being nothing more than a suggestion of a trail in the gorge of B ig P in e C r e e k and none w h a t e v e r in the upper b a s in ) , I had in defin itely deferred an y a t tempt on the m o un tain from this direction. E a r l y last J u n e , how ever, I decided to m ake the venture. L e a v in g a lodge at an elevation of some 8 ,0 00 ft. above sealevel, I knapsacked up to a lak e a t 1 0 ,500 ft. and there m ade camp. T h e fo llo w in g m o rn in g I began to t ru d g e up a steep slope to the south of the lak e and in the direction of the M i d d l e Palisade. Soon I cam e upon a long, n a r ro w and re m ark ab ly straig h t lake, shut in by
steep bluffs and still m o stly frozen over. A f t e r flanking it, I made a “d ia g o n a l” up snow -clad slopes to the southwest. P resen tly, h o w ever, I began to pay the p e n alty of a late start by b re ak in g through the snow -crust, sometimes to m y knees. U p o n com ing w ith in full v ie w of the M i d d l e Palisade to w erin g high above the g la c ie r at its base, I paused for a fe w m inutes to study it. T h e highest point la y ap p a re n tly about m id w a y alo n g the ja g g e d su m m it rid ge and below it an a r ê t e descended between two couloirs, e v e n tu a lly ter m in a tin g in a buttress above the glacier. A ll alo ng the base of the m o un tain ran a steep w a ll several hundred feet high and in most places e vid e n tly unscalable. H o w e v e r, at the end of the buttress and on eith er side, north of a couloir above the in itial cliff, it looked favorable. A t first sight the most v uln erab le, but not the most advisable, point, as developed later, w as a snowfan d ire c tly to the rig h t of the buttress. H a v in g m ade these observations, I tru d ged at a w id e an gle across the gla c ie r to the foot of the snow -fan and then up its steep acclivity. W h e n p art w a y up, I began to realize the d an g e r of a snow-slide f a llin g on me from the upper couloir, as the sun w as sh inin g d irec tly on snow lodged on the steep face of the peak above. T h e fan had obviously been formed by such slides, but being averse to r e tu rn in g , I continued u p w ard s. N e a r the top I came upon a f railly -b rid g ed bergschrund, u s u a lly the o nly crevasse of consequence in Sierran glaciers. C rossing, h ow ever, to the left, I began to m ake m y w a y up a w id e chim ney en din g in a notch on the upper rim of the cliff, a p p are n tly the o n ly feasible route at that point, altho ugh fo rm in g the path of occasional snow-slides. Nevertheless, I pro ceeded, picking m y w a y alo n g the sides of the chim ney w h en pos sible, but at tim es c u ttin g steps up its ice-covered floor. H a v i n g s u r mounted the cliff, I w a lk e d a few rods to a mass of sedim entary m ateria l imbedded in the p re v a ilin g g ran ite , and w h ile e x am in in g it, a frag m e n t of ice struck the back of m y neck. I turned around and sa w a snow-slide perhaps fifty y ard s in length, sw ish in g alo ng the couloir and pou rin g over the notch thro ugh w hich I had ju s t come. T h e couloir obviously being dangerous, I scram bled up to the ar ê te bounding it on the south. A lth o u gh occasionally obstructed w ith loose snow, this afforded excellent and o n ly m o d e rate ly diffi cu lt clim bin g. T h e sun shone from a sky of purest blue, and the silence of the m ountainside w as broken o nly by the notes of rosy finches as they darted by, and once by a c la tt e r of f a llin g rocks in a nearb y couloir. N e a r the top of the m o untain the masses of snow became la r g e r and more frequent, some of them o b ligin g me to feel m y w a y alo n g w ith the ice-axe. O c casio n ally I flanked them by de to u rin g to w a rd s the bottom of the couloir to m y right or by co nto urin g alo n g shelves on the more precipitous drop to the left. J u s t below the crest, a heap of snow la r g e r than usual w as encountered. P a r t l y by floundering through it, p a r tly by going
around it, I got above and hoisted m yself to the top w h ere, some w h a t to m y surprise, I found m yself fac in g the cairn erected on the highest point of the m ountain, 14,049 ft. above sea-level. T h e n a r ro w knife-edge, w it h a sheer drop on w e st and south and a v ery precipitous one in the face w hich I had scaled, combined to render the sum m it a ra th e r th r illin g eyrie. T h e sharp w e st peak of the M i d d l e P alisad e across a gre at chasm in the su m m it a r ê te, the broad-faced p y ra m id of M t . S ill, the Gothic spires of the N o rth P alisade and beyond the la t te r to the right, the ru g g e d ly sym m etrical peaks of M t s . W in c h e ll and A gassiz , formed an assemblage of superb m ountains capable of aro using enthusiasm in the most blasé. T h e eye follow ed the axis of the ran ge for over a h un dred m iles— from M t s . W h i t n e y and W illia m s o n in the south to M t s . R it te r and L y e ll in the north. A s the w in d rumbled in the couloir on the south face and blew stro n gly across the sum m it, I took shelter in a litt le coign east of the crest. T h e r e I remained for h alf an hour lu n ch in g and w a t c h in g the rosy finches p la y in g about the rocks, ap p are n tly en jo yin g the m ountain tops as much as do mountaineers. In the descent I follow ed the crest of the same a r ê te as much as possible. It w as w ith o u t incident until I neared the brink of the cliff above the glacier. In v iew of the m o r n in g ’s experience, I w a s not especially eager to descend to the snow-fan. A f t e r a pause, I decided to continue over the a r e te to the m arg in of the cliff w ith the hope that it w o u ld afford a route down to the glacier. T h is cam e to pass, and I w a s soon stan din g beside the bergschrund. I hesitated to m ak e a leap, but e v e n tu ally I shot across, alig h tin g on firm footing. C o n tin u in g, I again encountered the schrund beyond a rocky projection, but cleared it w ith a bound and proceeded then n o r th w a r d across the glacier. I plodded through soft snow for a w h ile , but fin ally in dulged in a long glissade to a basin not far from the south end of the long, n a r r o w lake encountered in the morning. N o t relishing the prospect of clim bin g over the bluffs enclosing the lake, I w a lk e d across the ice and altho ugh it w as so m ew hat rotten, gained the fa r th e r end, w ith o u t experiencing a n y thin g worse than a pair of w e t feet. H a ste n in g down the declivity beyond, I soon arrived at the lake w h e re m y camp lay . T h e ascent had been a most excellent one. L a t e r in the season, w it h less snow on the face and p a r tic u la r ly in the couloirs, v ery litt le risk w o u ld be run by competent climbers. I t ran ks am o n g the finest rockclimbs a v ailab le in the S ie r r a N e v ad a.
he
M
iddle
P alis a d e — F ir s t A s c e n t F rom
the
N orth
O n e of the noblest peaks of the S ie rra N e v ad a is the M i d d l e P alisade. F ro m the south it presents a couloir-furrow ed ram p art surm ounted by num erous se rra te pinn acles; from the north it is even m o re im posing when v iew e d either from the deep gorge of B ig P ine C r ee k o r from nearby m ountains. A m o n g C a lif o rn ia m ountaineers it enjoys the distinction of being one of the most difficult peaks in the range. U n til the past sum m er all of the fe w ascents m ade had been up the south face, and the opinion w a s c u r re n t that the sum m it w a s in all p ro b ab ility inaccessible from the north, that side h avin g an appearance of forbidding sheerness. F o r several seasons the w r i t e r had surveyed this formidable front of the m o un tain , sp eculatin g as to w h e th e r it m ig h t not be scaled. B u t p a r tly on account of its negative aspect and p a r tly on account of the difficulty of access to it ( th e re being nothing more than a suggestion of a trail in the gorge of B ig P in e C r e e k and none w h a t e v e r in the upper b a s in ) , I had in defin itely deferred an y a t tempt on the m o un tain from this direction. E a r l y last J u n e , how ever, I decided to m ake the venture. L e a v in g a lodge at an elevation of some 8 ,0 00 ft. above sealevel, I knapsacked up to a lak e a t 1 0 ,500 ft. and there m ade camp. T h e fo llo w in g m o rn in g I began to t ru d g e up a steep slope to the south of the lak e and in the direction of the M i d d l e Palisade. Soon I cam e upon a long, n a r ro w and re m ark ab ly straig h t lake, shut in by
steep bluffs and still m o stly frozen over. A f t e r flanking it, I made a “d ia g o n a l” up snow -clad slopes to the southwest. P resen tly, h o w ever, I began to pay the p e n alty of a late start by b re ak in g through the snow -crust, sometimes to m y knees. U p o n com ing w ith in full v ie w of the M i d d l e Palisade to w erin g high above the g la c ie r at its base, I paused for a fe w m inutes to study it. T h e highest point la y ap p a re n tly about m id w a y alo n g the ja g g e d su m m it rid ge and below it an a r ê t e descended between two couloirs, e v e n tu a lly ter m in a tin g in a buttress above the glacier. A ll alo ng the base of the m o un tain ran a steep w a ll several hundred feet high and in most places e vid e n tly unscalable. H o w e v e r, at the end of the buttress and on eith er side, north of a couloir above the in itial cliff, it looked favorable. A t first sight the most v uln erab le, but not the most advisable, point, as developed later, w as a snowfan d ire c tly to the rig h t of the buttress. H a v in g m ade these observations, I tru d ged at a w id e an gle across the gla c ie r to the foot of the snow -fan and then up its steep acclivity. W h e n p art w a y up, I began to realize the d an g e r of a snow-slide f a llin g on me from the upper couloir, as the sun w as sh inin g d irec tly on snow lodged on the steep face of the peak above. T h e fan had obviously been formed by such slides, but being averse to r e tu rn in g , I continued u p w ard s. N e a r the top I came upon a f railly -b rid g ed bergschrund, u s u a lly the o nly crevasse of consequence in Sierran glaciers. C rossing, h ow ever, to the left, I began to m ake m y w a y up a w id e chim ney en din g in a notch on the upper rim of the cliff, a p p are n tly the o n ly feasible route at that point, altho ugh fo rm in g the path of occasional snow-slides. Nevertheless, I pro ceeded, picking m y w a y alo n g the sides of the chim ney w h en pos sible, but at tim es c u ttin g steps up its ice-covered floor. H a v i n g s u r mounted the cliff, I w a lk e d a few rods to a mass of sedim entary m ateria l imbedded in the p re v a ilin g g ran ite , and w h ile e x am in in g it, a frag m e n t of ice struck the back of m y neck. I turned around and sa w a snow-slide perhaps fifty y ard s in length, sw ish in g alo ng the couloir and pou rin g over the notch thro ugh w hich I had ju s t come. T h e couloir obviously being dangerous, I scram bled up to the ar ê te bounding it on the south. A lth o u gh occasionally obstructed w ith loose snow, this afforded excellent and o n ly m o d e rate ly diffi cu lt clim bin g. T h e sun shone from a sky of purest blue, and the silence of the m ountainside w as broken o nly by the notes of rosy finches as they darted by, and once by a c la tt e r of f a llin g rocks in a nearb y couloir. N e a r the top of the m o untain the masses of snow became la r g e r and more frequent, some of them o b ligin g me to feel m y w a y alo n g w ith the ice-axe. O c casio n ally I flanked them by de to u rin g to w a rd s the bottom of the couloir to m y right or by co nto urin g alo n g shelves on the more precipitous drop to the left. J u s t below the crest, a heap of snow la r g e r than usual w as encountered. P a r t l y by floundering through it, p a r tly by going
around it, I got above and hoisted m yself to the top w h ere, some w h a t to m y surprise, I found m yself fac in g the cairn erected on the highest point of the m ountain, 14,049 ft. above sea-level. T h e n a r ro w knife-edge, w it h a sheer drop on w e st and south and a v ery precipitous one in the face w hich I had scaled, combined to render the sum m it a ra th e r th r illin g eyrie. T h e sharp w e st peak of the M i d d l e P alisad e across a gre at chasm in the su m m it a r ê te, the broad-faced p y ra m id of M t . S ill, the Gothic spires of the N o rth P alisade and beyond the la t te r to the right, the ru g g e d ly sym m etrical peaks of M t s . W in c h e ll and A gassiz , formed an assemblage of superb m ountains capable of aro using enthusiasm in the most blasé. T h e eye follow ed the axis of the ran ge for over a h un dred m iles— from M t s . W h i t n e y and W illia m s o n in the south to M t s . R it te r and L y e ll in the north. A s the w in d rumbled in the couloir on the south face and blew stro n gly across the sum m it, I took shelter in a litt le coign east of the crest. T h e r e I remained for h alf an hour lu n ch in g and w a t c h in g the rosy finches p la y in g about the rocks, ap p are n tly en jo yin g the m ountain tops as much as do mountaineers. In the descent I follow ed the crest of the same a r ê te as much as possible. It w as w ith o u t incident until I neared the brink of the cliff above the glacier. In v iew of the m o r n in g ’s experience, I w a s not especially eager to descend to the snow-fan. A f t e r a pause, I decided to continue over the a r e te to the m arg in of the cliff w ith the hope that it w o u ld afford a route down to the glacier. T h is cam e to pass, and I w a s soon stan din g beside the bergschrund. I hesitated to m ak e a leap, but e v e n tu ally I shot across, alig h tin g on firm footing. C o n tin u in g, I again encountered the schrund beyond a rocky projection, but cleared it w ith a bound and proceeded then n o r th w a r d across the glacier. I plodded through soft snow for a w h ile , but fin ally in dulged in a long glissade to a basin not far from the south end of the long, n a r r o w lake encountered in the morning. N o t relishing the prospect of clim bin g over the bluffs enclosing the lake, I w a lk e d across the ice and altho ugh it w as so m ew hat rotten, gained the fa r th e r end, w ith o u t experiencing a n y thin g worse than a pair of w e t feet. H a ste n in g down the declivity beyond, I soon arrived at the lake w h e re m y camp lay . T h e ascent had been a most excellent one. L a t e r in the season, w it h less snow on the face and p a r tic u la r ly in the couloirs, v ery litt le risk w o u ld be run by competent climbers. I t ran ks am o n g the finest rockclimbs a v ailab le in the S ie r r a N e v ad a.
