Placeholder Routes & Places

Trip Report    

Slippery Slab Tower/Northeast Face

Team of 6 left TH at 8:15am on a gorgeous day. Reached Trap Pass by 11am. Climbers trail from the Pass is obvious and in good condition. At a fork, the right trail is less bushwhacky than the left.
The gully to the first belay has about 10 feet of 4th class, and is easy after that. A little gravelly, but not too many loose blocks. We all scrambled unroped. Lots of slings around a tree and rappel rings at the first station. There is room for 6 at the belay, but it's a little tight.
There is a flake right near the base of the climb that looks like a nice place to put a first cam for a multi-directional placement. I was told by my fellow climbers that the flake started to move a little bit when pulled on! So look for somewhere else for your first placement.
A few loose rocks on route, test all holds.
There's a belay tree about a half rope length up. It seems it would be easy to skip this belay and just go on up to the next belay station, which is only about 15-20 feet further. Rope drag was not really an issue. But we used both belay stations, to give the students the multi-pitch experience I suppose.
I used cams .75-2, medium - large nuts, and a pink tri-cam.
The scramble from the last belay to the summit is easy but exposed. Some students might want a belay.
Rappel the climbing route. Good rap stations established.
Encountered numerous PCT through-hikers, but no other climbers.
We took our time enjoying the scenery, and made it car to car in just under 11 hours.
This is a very beautiful fall outing with incredible views. The climb is short and easy, but fun. The approach is refreshingly easy and straightforward. A great alternative to more crowded one-day basic climbs like the Tooth.