PILOT KNOB
(13,738')US GRANT PEAK
(13,767')August 23, 2007
By Tim Briese
In our quest to climb the most difficult Bicentennial Peaks, Brian and I came up with an ambitious plan to climb Coxcomb Peak one day, Pilot Knob the next, and US Grant the day after. A very tall order, it seemed, but at least we had the first, and likely most difficult of these three behind us. We even talked briefly about going after both Pilot Knob and US Grant today if things went extremely well, but that seemed very far-fetched. The focus of our attention was Pilot Knob. I was a little uneasy about this one after being turned back last year on its scary and exposed summit ridge only a stone=s throw away from the summit. We were not prepared with the right equipment or mentality then, but we hoped we were ready for it now.
We left Ridgway about 4 a.m. and drove to the South Mineral Creek road west of Silverton. We four-wheeled a steep mile up the Clear Lake road to the upper trailhead for Ice Lake Basin and hit the trail at 5:15 in the dark with our headlamps. I felt good this morning as we clipped rapidly up the fine trail under a starry sky. We reached Ice Lake at 6:45 just as the sun began to bathe the incredible surrounding landscape in an early morning glow. The rugged hulk of Pilot Knob jutted into the sky a mile to the west. We left the main trail and followed a garden-like flowery drainage uphill to the west in the direction of the peak. We knew exactly where to go because we had followed this identical route last year. Upon reaching the base of Pilot Knob we made a tedious 300 foot climb up a very steep, loose slope to a saddle just north of the summit. This slope could have been even more unpleasant had we not found somewhat solid footing in a minor gully part of the way.
From the saddle we worked our way around the north side of the summit ridge on a climber=s trail across steep talus, then continued along the west side contouring across even steeper and looser talus. After going just over a hundred yards along the western base of the summit cliffs we reached a cairned gully that would lead us to the ridge above. We stopped here to put on helmets and climbing gear. We had each brought a pair of climbing shoes and proceeded to put them on. Brian was very pleased with the traction that his afforded but I was not with mine, so I put my hiking boots back on.
We promptly climbed up the gully on Class 3 and then Class 4 rock to the crest of the ridge above. The spine of the ridge consists of an incredible array of rounded, knobby domes of rock and grotesquely carved towers, with severe exposure on each side. It looks like something from another planet. I had brought along a few photos of the ridge that I had downloaded from SummitPost that gave us a feel for what we would be getting into. After climbing along the ridge a few feet to the north we found ourselves at the point where we turned back last year. We gazed for a moment at the intimidating tower just ahead, then carefully climbed along a slope on the left side to reach the tower. I climbed a four foot step to get on top of the tower, which was a very airy perch, I must say. I looked for a route to continue further but did not see one. Brian looked around the base of the tower on the left and saw nothing but air. My heart began to sink a little as the possibility arose that we might be turned back on this peak for the second year in a row! I crawled over to the north side of the tower and peered over the edge, however, and saw a gap that one might downclimb across to reach manageable terrain beyond. I was unsure of it but Brian came up to look and confidently stated that he could handle this crux move and promptly proceeded to do so. The great traction that his climbing shoes afforded provided him with a boost of confidence that was invaluable for this climb. We nicknamed those shoes his ASpiderman@ shoes!
Only a few feet beyond the first tower we came to a second larger one. It was obvious that the only way past this one was to follow a narrow sloping ledge around its left side. We could not see the route ahead all the way around the tower, and the exposure was great, so we elected to set up a rope belay here to be on the safe side. I placed a sling around a rock on the south side of the tower and proceeded to belay Brian around the sloping ledge. Then he belayed me as I followed. This section around the second tower turned out to be less difficult than it appeared, and many climbers might choose not to use a rope here. However, in a place like this where a slip would afford no second chances, I did not mind at all the investment of a few minutes time to set up the rope.
From this point it was a mere walk across a gravelly saddle and an easy scamper up a minor cleft to step onto the summit. We arrived on top at 9:50, and could hardly believe we were there! When we turned back last year we weren=t sure if we would ever climb this peak, but here we were, sitting on top. The summit was surprisingly spacious and gentle, considering that it was the culmination of such a gnarly ridge. At least a dozen climbers could comfortably sit on its pleasant gravelly surface if need be. It was an excellent vantage point from which to enjoy the surrounding superb views.
Some clouds were rapidly moving in from the southwest so we left after about ten minutes and began our descent. We belayed each other back up around the large tower, climbed back up the crux gap to the first tower, and went back down the gully to the base of the cliffs. As we took a break to repack our climbing gear, we reveled in the moment, sharing ecstatic words about what we had done. We scooted back down the loose dirt and scree slope into the valley and hiked back to Ice Lake, where we arrived just before noon.
We took a nice lunch break at the lake and turned our attention to the possibility of continuing on to climb US Grant. It seemed an expedient thing to do since we were already at about 12,200 feet elevation and the peak was little more than a mile away. The big question was the weather, which seemed to be holding up well enough so far. We decided to give it a try and abandon the effort if the weather deteriorated. We set forth northeast from Ice Lake on a thin trail that contoured around a grassy shoulder high above Lower Ice Lake Basin. In a little over half a mile we reached beautiful Island Lake, set in a basin below the southeast slopes of US Grant. Even if we didn=t get to climb the peak this afternoon this route offered a scenic alternative loop hike that we could follow around to return to the lower basin. We contoured above the west side of Island Lake on a grassy slope and then climbed sharply uphill on talus and grass in the direction of a saddle on the ridge west of US Grant. When the grass finally gave out we continued on scree and talus up to the 13,150 foot saddle, where we arrived at 1:15.
At the saddle we turned to the right and climbed the peak=s west ridge on loose gravel and talus. The ridge became increasingly rougher as we ascended, and after climbing a steep dirt gully we reached a small saddle where we were confronted with the crux of the climb. Directly ahead of us was a rock wall guarding the summit ridge that barred further easy passage. My jaw dropped when I saw it, for after climbing Coxcomb and Pilot Knob I was expecting something considerably easier, but this looked much more intimidating than I expected. We studied the wall and saw a crack on the left side that could be climbed to reach a narrow ledge above. The ledge could then be traversed for some distance around the corner to the right. There was no doubt that this was the route, for a large cairn built on a corner of the ledge cheerfully greeted our gaze.
We dropped our packs at the saddle, put on climbing harnesses and selected some gear in case we needed it later, and set forth. I went up the 15 foot crack first, finding it a bit easier than it looked at first glance. The lower part of the crack was probably lower 5th class, but after a step midway up the difficulty eased to mid 4th class. After Brian climbed up we proceeded to carefully traverse along the exposed ledge to the south, going on hands and knees in a couple of places where it narrowed to less than two feet wide. Although exposure is a subjective thing, we thought the exposure on the ledge was overly minimized in trip reports we had read. After going about 75 feet on the ledge we came to an escape gully on the left that we quickly climbed to gain the top of the summit ridge. From there it was an easy stroll about 50 yards east to the summit.
We stepped on top a few minutes before 2:30. It seemed surreal to be there, after being on Pilot Knob just a few hours before. We gazed down at Island Lake and around at the surrounding spectacular views for about ten minutes before beginning our descent. We scooted back down the gully and carefully worked our way around the ledge back to the top of the crack. I played it safe and asked Brian to belay me down, not wanting to spoil an otherwise perfect day by taking a fall now as we were finishing the last difficult climbing move. Brian came down after me unroped while I spotted his feet from below onto holds in the rock. We rapidly went back down the ridge to the saddle and returned to the beautiful grassy basin around Island Lake, pausing several times to gaze back up at US Grant glistening in the afternoon sunlight. We bushwhacked around the east side of the lake and headed south across the rolling tundra southeast of the lake, looking for the trail to take us back down into Lower Ice Lake Basin. After a few minutes we found the trail and descended on it about a thousand feet, rejoining the main Ice Lake Trail at a cairned junction at the east end of the basin. This trail is well worth finding because the terrain on this descent is steep and rather rocky in places. Afternoon shadows were growing long as we hiked back down the trail to the truck, where we arrived at 5:45. I estimated that we hiked about eleven miles and climbed 5000 feet of elevation gain on this twelve and a half hour outing. This was one of the more demanding days of climbing that I have done because of the physical and mental toll that it exacted.
Brian and I exulted in the afterglow of this magnificent climbing day as we drove back to Ridgway that evening. We could hardly believe what we had done over the past two days. In evaluating the relative difficulty of the three peaks we climbed, I would say that we climbed them in order from hardest to easiest, with Aeasiest@ being merely a relative term. It was a day not soon to be forgotten.
