Ingalls Peak/Southwest Face

This climb took place on Monday, September 1, 2014

This outing was scheduled to "rescue" a backpack lost on Sat, Jul 26, 2014. The pack fell off the west cliff from the top of the climb and landed in the gully below. There were several attempts to retrieve the pack before this one. Prior to the trip another party contacted us to say that they moved the pack from the gully to the trees at the rap anchor at the top of the SW face slab. So we had high hopes the pack would be present when we topped out.

Team of three climbers left TH at 6:15am. Great weather, cold in windy in the morning. Crossed over to the bottom of the SW face and roped up. The climbing was easy but pro was thin. Followed a shallow crack to a smooth slab. Transitioned on friction left to another shallow crack that topped out on a small ledge. Continued straight up on 4/5th terrain, very easy on solid rock with fair pro. An old piton suggested I was on route. At a full rope length (NO extra on a 60m rope!) topped out next to a pair of sturdy trees with a rap anchor... and the pack! Rap anchors were in good shape with fresh webbing suggesting the route had been recently used, likely as a descent option.

Return hike was uneventful. We encountered a two guys heading up to climb the S ridge as we descended.

RT 9.5 hours. Great day!