Cirque of the Towers

Camp in the Cirque of the Towers

Having a baby makes long climbing trips harder to manage, but they can still be done! Grace, Mylene, Ethan, Miriam, and I spent a wonderful week alternately climbing, playing, and hiding from the rain/snow in the Cirque of the Towers, August 23-31. Originally Grace and I had intended to trade off climbing and childcare duties, but for a variety of reasons Grace decided that I should do all the climbing. Having worked too many weekends in a row, she really just wanted to relax and soak up time with our little girl. Ultimately Grace enjoyed ambling around the cirque with Miriam, and Ethan, Mylene, and I got in two classic routes between storms: the east ridge of Wolf's Head, and the south buttress of Pingora.

Sunday: Drive/Approach

The drive from Denver to the trailhead took about 8 hours, and the 7.6 mile/2000' gain approach into the Cirque another 4.5 h. Really not bad, especially given how the Big Sandy/Jackass Pass route is talked up as an arduous thing. Numerous parties on the trail expressed skepticism that we could possibly make it into the cirque that evening. I admit to being tired at the end of it, but I suspect that had more to do with carrying 17 lb of baby girl plus all her equipment on top of my usual camping/climbing/food load. It's a nice trail, and an easy distance for half a day of travel. We made camp around 20:00 on one of the many gorgeous meadow benches to the west of Jackass Pass. Wildflowers, tarns and streams everywhere; all surrounded by gigantic granite spires. Zero mosquitos. Few people. Paradise!

Entering the Cirque

Monday: Weather

Monday dawned grey and wet. Wave after wave of clouds and rain swept over the cirque, and we escaped our tents during the sun breaks. Things cleared off in the evening, which allowed a fun flower photo shoot with Miriam, and encouraged us to make plans to climb Wolf's head the following day.

Miriam among the flowers, Cirque of the Towers

Tuesday: South Buttress of Pingora (5.6, II)

Ethan, Mylene, and I got up before sunrise to find the stars blotted out by heavy cloud cover. Nevertheless we headed out toward the base of the Wolf's Head. The rain caught us about a mile from camp. 

We took refuge in a small cave to try and wait it out, but an hour later we gave up and made a soggy run back to camp, sure that this would be another solid weather day. Naturally, once we were throughly wet the weather broke. Spectacular views of the towers through rents in the clouds; many photographs taken.

Mylene enjoys spectacular climbing on the 2nd pitch,
South Buttress Pingora Peak

Eventually we dried out, and were convinced that the sun was out to stay. We had to try climbing something. With uncertain weather and a late start, Wolf's Head sounded inadvisable. The south buttress of Pingora is the obvious choice in such a situation: a beautiful line, but with only 3 technical pitches and a well established rappel route down the same line as the ascent.

We started up the first pitch with some trepidation as the clouds seemed to be gathering force again, sure we'd be descending in rain or snow even if we made it to the top, which seemed doubtful. But the weather held. 

The climbing was fantastic. Two average pitches, and one that was truly spectacular. All full rope lengths. We had a leisurely picnic on the summit, allowing us ample time to oogle the east ridge of Wolfs Head, our next objective.

Wednesday: Weather

Wednesday morning things were still dry, but heavy overcast skies discouraged any kind of climbing ambition. After breakfast it began to rain; it didn't stop for 9 hours. Our tent began to leak copiously, straight through the fabled Bibler fabric. Perhaps most alarmingly, we were almost out of dry diapers.

Thursday: East Ridge of Wolf's Head (5.6, IV)

The rain slacked off on wednesday evening, and tapered to nothing overnight. In the morning the stars were burning bright, and we set off for the Wolf's Head. Having examined the standard approach to the Wolf's Head-Tiger Tower col two days before, we dubbed it the "grassy death-ledges", and opted for the alternate route via the Pingora-Tiger Tower col, over the tower, and thence to Wolf's head.

Ethan, making 4th class moves in the Tiger-Pingora gully.

Ethan and Mylene finishing the second pitch, east ridge of
Wolf's Head.

We started up the gully between Tiger Tower and Pingora as planned, but immediately encountered 5th class moves. So we changed to rock shoes and roped up. Once that was done it seemed silly to re-enter the gully when there was plenty of nice rock to climb, so instead I aimed more or less directly for the summit of Tiger Tower. One long 5.6ish simul-pitch brought us to within 30' of the summit, where I belayed beneath a 5.8ish crack. Three or four grunting moves dealt with the crack, and we were soon on the summit, watching a second party that had opted for the "death ledges" starting up Wolf's head. Our choice of route may not have been optimal, but it was fun! The party ahead later told us that they had water running down their sleeves as they groveled from one swampy ledge to the next, so we probably made the right choice after all.

The most annoying thin about our route was that there were some serious shenanigans involved in descending the west ridge of Tiger tower, including a short rappel and a very awkward down climb. the ideal route may be to angle further left from the bottom of the Tiger-Pingora gully, and skip both the grassy death ledges, and the shenanigans descending from Tiger Tower.

By the time we got to the start of the east ridge of Wolf's Head, it was already 11:00, and we were hungry. So we scarfed our lunches as fast as possible and started up.

Indeed. The first pitch gets your attention with a 24" wide, 30-degree slab. Easy, but protectionless and way exposed.

It's hard to describe just how good the first half (distance-wise) of the climb is. Perfect rock, fun easy climbing, huge exposure, awesome views, great protection. We belayed the first two pitches and then took off simul-climbing up a seemingly endless nirvana of easy slabs and beautiful cracks on a narrow ridge crest. Then we reached the first gendarme: unclimbable monolith.

Spectacular foot-traverse on the south-side of the crest, east
ridge Wolf's Head.

I attempted a north side bypass. Nope. Nice descent to a big ledge, but hard slab climbing with zero protection would be required to regain the ridge. South side: sneaky fun step around a bulge (huge exposure), up a tight chimney and then out onto another big ledge on the north side. 

Balancey step around another bulge... and then there's this 70-degree slab to traverse with little finger-wide ledges for your feet and nothing at all for your hands. Place a cam, run it out 20 feet. Clip a manky old piton at your ankles. Use deep breathing exercises to calm down. Remind yourself that the climbing is really quite easy. Run it out another 20 feet. Gasp with ecstatic relief as you sink a delicious hand jam in an unexpectedly good crack.

Mylene coming up the last bit of ridge, east ridge
Wolf's Head.

the next pitch was similar, with a short jog up a steep crack in an open book, and then a long beautiful hand traverse in a perfect crack, terminating in another intimidating step-around.

We're now just running short pitches, not simul-climbing. The rope drag is too bad with such a convoluted route, and the climbing too delicate, though it remains reasonably easy.

We go through another cave, and down a crazy easy-but-intimidating foot traverse on the south side. Place feet in a 4-inch wide horizontal crack. Stand up. Balance. Look straight down 1000' to Cirque Lake. Traverse for 20 feet. Look, ma, no hands! No gear either, unless you care to bend double to place it, and happen to have brought a #4.
Then it's up another chimney, though a tunnel to the north side of the ridge, and from there it's just easy scrambling to the summit.

We celebrate our achievement with sour patch kids and alpine mints (holland balls). Then it's a bit of a race against the sun to see if we can get out of technical terrain before dark. Not quite.
One pitch of down climbing, three rappels, a bunch of traversing in the dark and one more rap into the gully between Wolf's Head and Overhanging tower. Up over the pass, and back to camp a bit before midnight. Before Grace had a chance to get too worried.
It may sound as though we didn't enjoy Wolf's Head with all my talk of intimidating pitches and deep breathing exercises. Nothing could be further from the truth. This is one of the best moderate climbs I've ever done. The first part is an amazing romp. The second half is more serious and convoluted, but the rock is amazing, and the climbing incredible. The route should be at the top of anyone's list on a visit to the cirque.

Ethan takes the plunge into Hidden Lake.

Friday: Lounging, swimming

On friday no one felt much like climbing. It was another beautiful day, but we'd seriously underestimated Wolf's head, and needed a break. So we spent it lounging in camp and at Hidden Lake, where everyone took the frigid plunge. Ethan, I think, is the only one who stayed in long enough to classify his locomotion as swimming. Overall just a wonderful relaxing day in the mountains.

Saturday: Hike out and drive home

The hike out was uneventful, as well as the drive. We stopped at Anong's in Rawlins WY for dinner on the way home, and it may indeed be "the best thai food in the intermountain west". In any case, we greatly enjoyed it. Just skip the wine and the deserts, and I think you'll be impressed too. We rolled back into the Denver metro area around midnight; good timing for us to wind down before work on Tuesday, and for Ethan and Mylene to catch their respective flights on Sunday afternoon.

All in all a fantastic trip that I think we all, even Miriam, enjoyed enormously. Thanks to Ethan and Mylene for being great climbing partners, and to Grace for being a good sport and enjoying herself even after she decided she didn't want to do any climbing.

More photos here!