AAC Publications

Wheeler Crest: Many New RoutesCalifornia, Sierra Nevada, Sierra Eastside

In the fall of 2015, I began exploring the expansive Wheeler Crest, repeating a few of the classicroutes with friends. We became entranced with the wildness of the place—long approaches, notrails, no crowds, and just the occasional bighorn sheep, peregrine falcon, or golden eagle to keepus company. We didn’t complain about the lack of attention, and those early efforts opened our eyesto the vast scale of the Crest and its mind-blowing potential for new routes.

On December 14, 2015, Myles Moser and Amy Ness started a line up the steep southeast buttress ofWells Peak. They climbed two pitches through an intimidating black diorite band before reaching theexcellent granite above, and then did one more pitch up a classic 5.10 crack before rappelling back tothe ground. A few days later, on December 18, I joined the duo for the summit push. We quicklyregained their previous high point and swapped leads through the virgin terrain above. The sunexposure on this subalpine tower was surreal—climbing in T-shirts on a forecasted 41°F winter day?Then shade hit the route and we soon recognized why there was still snow on the ground. Twopitches of thin face and slab climbing gained the headwall crack system, which we followed for twomore pitches to the top. The route ended on the peak’s prominent southern subsummit, from whichwe rappelled the line of ascent. Keeping with the Adam and Eve theme on the nearby Rabbit’s Ears,we called our climb Forbidden Fruit (IV 5.11).

The weather pattern then returned to “normal” after an extended five-year drought, and snow kept usout of the Wheeler Crest until the following April. Taking advantage of the short prime season (longerdays, cool temperatures, and, most importantly, running water), we ventured deeper into the canyons.Our efforts focused in the Grey Band, a series of pinnacles hidden behind the well-documented routesin Mayfield Canyon.

On April 5, Myles Moser and I made the painful uphill approach to the most prominent tower in theGrey Band, the unimaginatively named Big Grey Pinnacle. This 1,000’ tower was already home to twovintage routes on its eastern side, and we were aiming for a potential new line up its featuredsoutheast face. After scrambling up a blocky orange buttress at the base, we found four continuouslychallenging pitches (5.10+, 5.11-, 5.12, 5.10-), which included excellent cracks, imposing roofs,layback flakes, and a boulder problem crux. Pleased with our progress, we decided to leave thehaulbag on a vegetated ledge at the base of the headwall for retrieval during our descent. Racing thefading afternoon light, we continued up a rope length of moderate cracks and run-out face to theshoulder of the tower, and then a polished 5.9+ corner brought us to the top. I dropped our onlyheadlamp and the extra webbing high on the route, and rappelling off the tower into darkness becameinfinitely more interesting. Staggering back to camp hours later, bloodied and bruised, we had beentreated to a Bighorn Beatdown (IV 5.12).

Lost Pink Tower, showing the new route Love Line (III 5.10+). Photo by Richard Shore

On April 19, Natalie Brechtel and I hiked back up into the Grey Band with intentions of climbing theLost Pink Tower. Sandwiched between gray spires, this 700-foot peak of magnificent pink granite wasnot only “lost,” but also completely neglected by climbers for decades. Our proposed line wasobvious: a long, blocky ramp that led diagonally up and right from the base to the solitary weakness inthe center of the wall. This left-facing corner system was then followed for two pitches of stemming

and jamming to a small ledge (5.9+), and another varied pitch of chimneys, underclings, and liebacksbrought us to a tree belay. Broken cracks led up and left through bushes to the shoulder of the tower(5.8), and a right-trending ramp took us through a short headwall guarding the top (5.7). With thevirgin summit now deflowered, the Love Line (III 5.10+) had been conceived.

On April 23, Tony Lewis and I made the three-hour slog up into the Grey Band once again, with eyesfixated on the unclimbed 1,200-foot pinnacle hidden behind the Cobblers Bench Tower. Afterestablishing our base camp, we started up the toe of the pinnacle’s east buttress. A right-facingcorner (5.8) led up and left to a bush belay, from which three wandering pitches (5.10, 5.9, 5.8 R) ofexhilarating slab and face climbing went up, right, and finally back left to a ledge from which the uppercrack systems were finally visible. Exhausted from hand-drilling many bolts, we fixed a few ropes andscrambled back down to camp for the evening.

The next morning we woke to dark skies and a building storm. We quickly ascended the ropes to ourhigh point and tackled the short face crux (5.10+), which gained the long dihedral we’d been aimingfor. It was snowing steadily at this point, and weighing our options we quickly decided to pushonward. The corner was followed for another rope length to its end, where an unprotected rightwardtraverse along a dike (5.8 R) joined another dihedral. A sustained pitch up the bushy, flared corner(5.9+) led to a large pedestal and a final scramble reached the top. We snapped a few celebratoryphotos on the untrodden summit and rapidly descended the route by rappel as the weatherdeteriorated into whiteout conditions. Sticking to the Grey Band theme, we named our new tower theSuper Grey Pinnacle (IV 5.10+).

While climbing this route, I spotted a continuous crack system on the north face of Big Grey Pinnacle,a few hundred feet right of the original 1976 Rowell-Belden east face route. It was still holding snowand an attempt would have to wait until autumn, after the scorching summer heat in Bishop hadsubsided.

It was still quite warm on September 16, and Johnny Karagozian and I hiked up to the base of BigGrey Pinnacle at night to avoid the sun and the infamous “buzztails” that guard the strenuousapproaches to these towers. We were treated to a spectacular alpenglow at sunrise, and much to ourdelight the climb quickly went into a shady respite for the day. The route provided us with eightpitches of interesting and physical climbing—mostly 5.8 and 5.9 in grubby chimneys, flares, andoffwidths, but also an exposed 5.10 arête halfway up and a clean finger-to-hand splitter above. Thepeaceful day was only occasionally interrupted by the shrill cry of a curious and acrobatic avian, andour new route was named in his honor: the Peregrine Pillar(IV 5.10).

Over two weekends in early October, Tony Lewis, Andrew Soleman, and I returned to the WheelerCrest and established a new route up one of the last unclimbed monolithic features in the area, thesoutheast buttress of the Cobbler’s Bench Tower. Three pitches of moderate cracks and faceclimbing led to the bulk of the route, a highly featured yet technical slab up the ever-narrowingbuttress. We climbed six pitches before running out of steam on our first attempt.

A week later we returned and reclimbed the lower pitches, hoping the difficulty above would ease offand allow for a summit push. We kept to a minimalist ethic while taking a serpentine path up thesteep face, hand-drilling protection bolts from stances and utilizing natural belay anchors wheneverpossible. The result was a fantastic, sustained, and committing climb, with only two fixed belays over1,100 vertical feet and some healthy runouts on most of the nine pitches. A bit shaken from the headyclimb, we were elated to reach the summit and give our nerves a chance to cool off. After descendingthe gully between the Cobbler’s Bench and Super Grey Pinnacle, we left a bighorn sheep’s skull at thebase as a reminder to future parties of the wild beauty and serious nature of climbing on the WheelerCrest. Watch your step, because you might get bit by the Rattler (IV 5.11 R).

– Richard Shore

Images

Big Grey Pinnacle, showing the line of Myles Moser and Richard Shore’s route Bighorn Beatdown (IV5.12).

Myles Moser coming up the second pitch of Bighorn Beatdown (IV 5.12).

Myles Moser makes his way into the diorite band on pitch two of Forbidden Fruit (IV 5.11).

The Lost Pink Tower, showing Natalie Brechtel and Richard Shore’s route Love Line (III 5.10+).

Natalie Brechtel following the second pitch of Love Line (III 5.10+) on Lost Pink Tower.

Tony Lewis coming up the fifth pitch of Super Grey Pinnacle(IV 5.10), a previously unclimbed 1,200-foot formation.

Tony Lewis negotiates a slabby face traverse on the sixth pitch of Super Grey Pinnacle (IV 5.10).

The previously unclimbed 1,200-foot formation named Super Grey Pinnacle by Tony Lewis andRichard Shore, showing their line of ascent (IV 5.10).

The southeast buttress of Wells Peak, showing the line of Forbidden Fruit (IV 5.11).

Big Grey Pinnacle on the Wheeler Crest, showing the line of Peregrine Pillar (IV 5.10), climbed byJohnny Karagozian and Richard Shore in September 2016.

Cobbler’s Bench Tower on the Wheeler Crest, showing the line of the Rattler (IV 5.11 R), climbed byTony Lewis, Richard Shore, and Andrew Soleman in October 2016.

Johnny Karagozian jamming his way up pitch two during the first ascent of Peregrine Pillar (IV 5.10)on the north face of Big Grey Pinnacle on the Wheeler Crest.

Tony Lewis traversing to the belay on pitch four during the first ascent of the Rattler (IV 5.11 R) on

the southeast buttress of Cobbler’s Bench Tower.

Andrew Soleman coming up pitch seven during the first ascent of the Rattler (IV 5.11 R) on thesoutheast buttress of Cobbler’s Bench Tower.

Article Details

Author Richard Shore

Publication AAJ

Volume 59

Issue 91

Page 0

Copyright Date 2017

Article Type Climbs and expeditions