From Indian Rock, you can quickly and easily descend to the east and rejoin the main trail out. Home | Climbing Areas | Free Darkness compounds all these challenges. At the summit of North Dome we assembled a makeshift tarp out of a cheap plastic … Aconcagua mountain itself has many routes, photos, and trip reports as children. Messages 1 - 18 of total 18 in this topic, Yosemite Valley, California USA, Apr 30, 2019, Yosemite Valley, California USA, Apr 18, 2019, Yosemite Valley, California USA, Apr 17, 2019, Yosemite Valley, California USA, Mar 31, 2019, The Kohala Ditch Trail: 36ish hrs on foot... to and from the headwaters. Descent Options – Rappelling the Royal Arches has only recently become a common form of descent. Do not attempt it at night unless you’re familiar with the descent. 0.5 miles. For example, the However this third option involves a lot more hiking than actual climbing! This view is from the top of Washington Column. Washington Column (5,912) Lunch Ledge (5,000). Royal Arches, Yosemite With the major Valley spires climbed, the pioneers of the 30's turned to the unclimbed faces. It is inexpensive, for tents only, and first-come-first-served. Approach: Royal Arches, Tioga Road, or ND Gully. No medical care was necessary. If you lose the trail (which I found likely) you will have serious bush whacking good times. Royal Arches is a better alternative for a Valley approach. Eventually break east crossing the slabs that were seen during the approach. Approach: Royal Arches, Tioga Road, or ND Gully. Park on CA SR-120, aka Tioga Road, at Porcupine Creek Trailhead 1 mile east of Porcupine Flat Campground on CA SR-120. Ken Boche, Dennis Hennek, Judy Sterner, Russ McLean, Sibylle Hechtel, Tim Auger & Mike Farrell. We had done it before and were confident on getting down. [. Climbing Half Dome and El Capitan was unthinkable. The third option is to hike up the North Dome Gully to the base of North Dome, allowing you to scope the descent on the way up. My wife skied Mount Watkins (8500 feet high, east of North Dome) in May (of an El Nino year) with her brother, climbing up Snow Creek trail. The Don’t descend too early; if in doubt and contemplating rappels, keep traversing.” This route is also used for decents off the top of Washington Column. Allow 1-2 hours if experienced with the descent and 2-4 hours if it is your first time. Mike McGrale, Urmas Franosch, Marlo Finney & Marty Lewis. Approach: Royal Arches, Tioga Road, or ND Gully. Refer to trailhead summary in Routes Overview section above to reach this trailhead. The descent required some short belays and rappels for safety. A Tuolumne Meadows/Tioga Road ski tour could be great fun, if a bit long and flat. North Dome is a area inside of Yosemite Valley. View North Dome Image Gallery - 71 Images. The 1400-foot Royal Arches, however, was covered with just enough features and ledges to forge a route.While the first part followed large, 4th class ledges, the upper half of the route looked more challenging. This is a common strategy for parties not wanting to haul gear up the route; it also avoids the slippery scramble with large packs down North Dome Gully, the alternate descent from the summit. YOSEMITE VALLEY APPROACH (Yosemite Falls & Snow Creek THs): For general transportation information, refer to the Yosemite Valley page. [, Trailhead: 2 miles east of Yosemite Village. People often climb it as an approach to North Dome Routes including: Crest Jewel, South Face, West Face, etc. © 2006-2021 SummitPost.org. On our descent down from Sherrill toward North Dome the cloudy sky began to release the pitter patter of light rain. (18), Yosemite Valley non-camping lodging options, Morgan's "North Dome Loop" Backpacking trip, A climb of North Dome Gully - Nov 2, 2002. I will update and credit you here. Route: 8.4 miles, +4440 ft, -910 ft. [, Trailhead: Start from Sunnyside Walk-in campground, 1 mile west of Yosemite Village. (71), Climber's Log Entries Across the valley Half Dome is lit up vibrant red, but all you can think about is the infamous North Dome gully descent and the treacherous “death slabs” that await below. Novel descent from North Dome and Sherrill 09-26-2010, 11:03 AM. Sherrill. Rock Climbing Sierra Here is a picture of the North Dome Gully with the descent route marked in red. Route: 6.3 miles, +4850 ft, -1310 ft. [. Beta | Forum | Trip Reports | FFA: 1960: Mort Hempel, Irene Ortenburger & Steve Roper. Sometimes the cliffs can be scaled but other times it is better to just go around. Walk-offs are considerably less risky especially if running on empty. The Column is far and away the Valleys most overworked wall. Our strategy was to climb in three independent teams and join at the top to walk off North Dome Gully via a … --The Tick, Routes Follow signs to "Mirror Lake" before turning uphill on Snow Creek Trail to join North Dome Trail. Progress was slow and our simple plan evolved into a nearly 23 hour epic climb through the night with a top-out at sunrise! Photos | Articles My friends and I actually camped on the small dome west of North Dome on Thanksgiving, after climbing the Yosemite Falls Trail. Schultz was having problems with his headlamp so Gillett went first in order to find the rappel stations using his functioning headlamp. By Dingus Milktoast By Dingus Milktoast QUARTER DOME IS FULL ADVENTURE The first clean ascent of East Quarter Dome's North … In retrospect, Russell believes that trying to navigate North Dome Gully without prior experience was a mistake, a concern the guidebook emphasizes. [, Ken Adam, Morgan Harris & W. Kenneth Davis, 16 pitches. If you have skied this area, please add information! Do not miss this gem on your travels to Yosemite :-). If you plan on using the North Dome Gully descent, I recommend that you (first) climb the Royal Arches Route and then descend the North Dome, since (1) it is good training, (2) you won't be pooped and carrying a heavy haul bag, and (3) you will be less stressed later. Parents refers to a larger category under which an object falls. This climb is not "officially" a part of North Dome. Make your way to Yosemite Village on Highway 140. Aconcagua mountain page is a child of the 'Aconcagua Group' and the 'Seven Summits.' Half Dome – Approach Slabs Rock Fall Half Dome with the “Death Slabs” approach below. Trailhead: Approach: Either Porcupine Ck. Information on YARTS can be found here. 5 pitch route on Southeast Face. 4.2 miles, +580 ft, -1180 ft. You can access Indian Rock from this trail. Topos | Guidebooks | Route Note that this option is only possible when Tioga Road is open (June-November). Half Dome and El Capitan rise from the park's centerpiece, the glacier-carved Yosemite Valley, and from its vertical walls drop Yosemite Falls, one of North America's tallest waterfalls at 2,425 feet (739 m) high. Park rangers made phone contact with the party, who denied injury but was nearly out of water after ascending the Royal Arches climbing route that day. Conversely, if you perversely enjoy lots of climbing, reverse your path. "Thank goodness. On Friday, June 12, a day after Yosemite opened back up, a group of us made an afternoon ascent of the Royal Arches route, a 15 pitch 5.7 A0 regarded as one of the all-time classics. I pondered for an hour on the merits of knocking down rocks on other climbers if I rapped the South Face Route or taking the big ride down the "death slabs." Im sure if your just entering the 5.7-5.8 range on trad, this climb is something, but for us (not to sound cocky) it just wasn’t all that it was hype up to be. Regardless, it was more of an adventure route than anything. The concept of a crux mutates from ascent to descent. Yosemite Valley non-camping lodging options Note: I had my wedding reception at the Ahwahnee Hotel. This is the most popular way of reaching the summit and is reached by the three class 1 trails: Porcupine Creek, Snow Creek, and Yosemite Falls Trails. Whether climbing into and out of deep canyons or scaling alpine walls where the approach and descent are far apart, you’ll face extended periods of time when … FFA: 1960: Mort Hempel, Irene Ortenburger & Steve Roper. The descent down North Dome Gully is the scene of frequent accidents. We had descended North Dome gully without headlamps using Moonlight to illuminate the way. Descent: Either rap the route or go down the North Dome gully trail. My brother Paul and I decided that we were going to spend a day hiking in the Catskills during my yearly visit to New York, by climbing North Dome and Sherrill. Generally, the consequences of a slip during a walk-off is much less than mis-rigging a rappel in technical terrain. Big Wall Rock Climbing Yosemite | It is possible to avoid use of the Rotten Log by a class 6 lead upward and to the left of the trunk. The Porcupine Flat campground is only one mile from the Porcupine Creek trail, and thus the best choice. The climbing quality was no where near worth the rappels to get down and I doubt it for the North Dome Gully Descent. North Dome Gully, one of the descent routes for Royal Arches, is notorious for its exposure, loose rock, and difficult route-finding. My Other Climbing Pages Snow Creek or Yosemite Falls + Porcupine Creek: If you hate climbing hills but don't mind long descents, try starting at the Porcupine Creek trailhead, visit North Dome, then descend either the Snow Creek or Yosemite Falls trail. The trail from the top of the column traverses east all the way to the forested gully and completely above the death slabs. A sort of delicate traverse and downclimb followed by a long hot steep dusty slog followed by a while on a trail. The climbers, who were from Boulder, Colo., were taken to … | About Us, Climbing AreasRock Climbing Yosemite | Joins North Dome Trail. Varying types of climbs from crags, topropes, multi-pitch climbs, as well as many hard Yosemite testpieces are include This is one of the most popular climbing guidebooks for Yosemite, and features an even spread of climbs of varying difficulty from 5.4 to 5.12 while covering over 230 of the best routes in the Valley. Follow this trail down hill heading slightly away from the dome. Tioga Road is closed during the winter so this route is for summer use only. For example, theAconcagua mountain page has the 'Aconcagua Group' and the 'Seven Summits' asparents and is a parent itself to many routes, photos, and Trip Reports. Near dusk on August 13, 2013, the Yosemite Emergency Communications Center received a report of two climbers requesting assistance near the top of North Dome Gully. Approach: Royal Arches, Tioga Road, or ND Gully. Soon we see lots of activity. Rock Climbing Tahoe | The drop is between 500 and 600 ft. Rather than crossing Indian Ridge at 8100' as you head north, away from North Dome, follow Indian Ridge to the northeast until you come to Indian Rock. North Dome Gully Though by no means enjoyable, this is the best and fastest descent option. There are rescue people all over the place looking for the missing climbers. Two Days in and Around and On The Flake. Easy way up from West Face vincinity. Either way, you can utilize Yosemite's shuttle bus (YARTS) to drive you back to your car. The best trail for Yosemite Falls trail is the Sunnyside walk-in campground in Yosemite Valley. The best bet is to go early, go midweek, go at night or go in the winter. 10 pitches. Let us know! At the next trail junction with the trail to Upper Yosemite Fall, the trail to North Dome takes a hard left and zigzags down into the forested gully under Indian Ridge and … Mike and Russell got their descent information from Yosemite Valley Free Climbs (Supertopo). Climbing Alaska. Getting there from the North Dome trail is easy. Approach: Start near Ahwahnee Hotel in Yosemite Valley. The Official Trip Report, Topic Author's Original Post - Apr 20, 2008 - 08:35pm PT, Topic Author's Reply - Apr 20, 2008 - 09:08pm PT, Topic Author's Reply - Apr 21, 2008 - 09:35am PT. Another option to consider is to arrange for a pick-up at Porcupine trailhead if starting from the Valley Valley. Rock Climbing Red Rocks | Rock Climbing Southwest | Be the first to beta test this topo - drawn in 2003 after several trips down and up the gully: There is a ? The unidentified climbers were using the North Dome Gully descent route when they were caught in the Monday storm. In addition to cutting three miles distance from your return trip, this would … Got feedback? The second photo (posted by Werner) shows the trail from the top of Royal Arches over to North Dome Gully. A COSMIC DESCENT Pain and salvation in the North Dome Gully in Yosemite Valley. 8 pitches. If you are willing to spend some serious money ($300+/night), a stay at the Ahwahnee is an unforgettable experience. Had told the rangers there was no sound and no lights. This continued for the rest of the day making everything a bit damp. you should not attempt this shortcut if you have a haulbag or are a beginner. Upper and Lower Pines campground in Yosemite Valley are the logical choices for the Snow Creek trail. It was a cool, cloudy, misty day. Trail or via Royal Arches in the valley. Rock Climbing Zion | Consider All Descent Options – The standard descent from Washington Column is to walk off via North Dome Gully. (87), Comments Finally we got to the Ahwahnee and then ran the last bit to catch the shuttle bus back to the truck. Right where the North Dome Gully trail emerges onto the North Dome/Washington Column saddle, there is a large boulder with a stack of rocks on it marking the North Dome Gully trail. Children refers to the set of objects that logically fall under a given object. This view is from the top of Washington Column. All Rights Reserved. This reinforces my simplistic world view." Just keep traversing north until the slabs get easier. The Royal Arches route has long been a popular free-solo, and the competition over the years has led to some astounding ascent times. There we got some food and a much needed shower before driving back up to Tuolumne. How can we improve SuperTopo? Descent to the valley floor can be made by rappel if one is careful to follow the route used for the ascent, or by traversing along the rim of the valley (E) to North Dome gully (see Washington Column). Downloads. Hmmmm, but I still had that damn North Dome Gully Descent - yuk! this is advanced beta for the north dome gully. (1), Images Certainly one could exit Yosemite Valley via either Snow Creek or Yosemite Falls trail. Hiking off the route via the North Dome gully was for many years the standard descent option and reduces the risk of becoming stranded on the rappels. Links | Terms | Privacy | FAQ | Contact Retreat is easy, the approach is short, and even the dicey North Dome Gully descent can't keep the masses from eating this one up. The way to the set of objects that logically Fall under a given object Lower Pines campground in Yosemite page. 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