Capitol Peak difficulty

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Scott P
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Re: Capitol Peak difficulty

Post by Scott P »

justiner wrote: Sat Apr 25, 2020 9:31 pm
arianna2 wrote: Sat Apr 25, 2020 8:58 pm Great questions, helps us since we will hopefully be doing this one this year or next. Wondering how you all would compare the difficulty in route finding after the knife edge. Is it similar to south maroon? Harder, easier?
Don't take any shortcuts coming back down.
Good point. Most (almost all?) of the navigation errors on Capitol happen on the way down.
Is it similar to south maroon? Harder, easier?
I'd say the navigation on Capitol is easier, but the consequences of an error are greater.
I'm old, slow and fat. Unfortunately, those are my good qualities.
Ptglhs
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Re: Capitol Peak difficulty

Post by Ptglhs »

arianna2 wrote: Sat Apr 25, 2020 8:58 pm Great questions, helps us since we will hopefully be doing this one this year or next. Wondering how you all would compare the difficulty in route finding after the knife edge. Is it similar to south maroon? Harder, easier?
I would say easier route finding. There aren't as many possible lines up on Capitol as there are on the Bells. Generally stay as high up as possible while keeping the climbing class 3. If you elect for the standard route you will be below the ridge til the very end. There's slightly less loose rock on Capitol than S Maroon.
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DeTour
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Re: Capitol Peak difficulty

Post by DeTour »

Attempt to semi-hijack the thread here. Planning another run at Cap this August and I keep wondering if the ridge direct from the knife edge to summit - or a hybrid variation - might be a smarter route than the standard south face. I'm not interesting in making a very difficult route any harder. I am intersted if I can make it safer. Some have opined that they thought the ridge is better due to being more solid, something I take very seriously. I've read someone say it entails some fifth class work, others who say nothing that difficult.

To be clear, I'm talking about from the knife edge up to the summit, not the ridge to K2 from the Capitol-Daly saddle. I know I'm staying away from that K2 ridge.

I've also wondered if a hybrid - partially south face standard, partly ridge direct - is worth considering. It looks like the two routes come close to meeting at the last major notch in the ridge, photo 27 in the route description. Thought perhaps following the standard route to that point and veering up to the ridge there was worth considering. Except it looks like getting up the fin that follows that notch looks might be the most daunting part. (Directly under the "Northeast Ridge" label in the photo.) Is anyone willing to weigh in on this matter?

Image
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justiner
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Re: Capitol Peak difficulty

Post by justiner »

The ridge direct is objectively more technical - do be prepared to use your hands for upward travel and take in the exposure, especially to climber's right. I'd say ~5.4. The standard route is a lot of wandering, searching loose ledges, and chasing cairns - getting things kicked down onto you is your biggest worry, second by maybe tumbling, and if you're really not paying attention, trying to exit the mountain via a gulley before the knife edge (don't ever do that). If you want to bail from the ridge direct at the point you're describing, I think that's a fine time, but I don't think it would make things easier. The crux of the ridge direct is probably well before this photo. If I remember correctly, there's some v notches you need to chimney up and through which is a whole lot of fun. The terrain is anything but uncomplicated, due to the decomposed/shattered granite.

Here's another photo from basically that same view,
ne_ridge_capitol-sm.jpg
ne_ridge_capitol-sm.jpg (175.53 KiB) Viewed 2587 times
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blazintoes
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Re: Capitol Peak difficulty

Post by blazintoes »

Flatlander, Capitol gets more attention than it deserves because of the knife edge and it is merely theatrics and espionage. If you spy on it here and now long enough, it may psyche you out. If it were a 12er with the same features it wouldn't get as much attention. I've been up this peak 4 times and from my experience the knife edge is all drama and just looks good in pictures. There is so much more to this peak and I have more respect for it now after swapping leads last summer on the northwest buttress. Listen to Tom Pierce and Justiner. Both are experienced and give good advice.

My first time on the peak was solo in summer conditions with lingering snow on the K2 side and I was a green horn. The knife edge creeped me out after reading about it but decided to go for it. At the Daly saddle I decided to stay on the ridge the whole way to K2 and the scramble was delightful even though I had no rock climbing experience. Going up and over K2 I did not choose my exit wisely but lived. The knife edge afforded obligatory photo opportunities and I was elated. Finally, the long scree slog on the final buttress really damped my spirits and after going up and down I wondered why so many wanted to do it?

Capitol is a fun peak and there are some not so fun parts. Just have fun with it and stay on route, whichever route you choose.
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Re: Capitol Peak difficulty

Post by desertdog »

DeTour wrote: Sat Apr 25, 2020 10:31 pm Attempt to semi-hijack the thread here. Planning another run at Cap this August and I keep wondering if the ridge direct from the knife edge to summit - or a hybrid variation - might be a smarter route than the standard south face. I'm not interesting in making a very difficult route any harder. I am intersted if I can make it safer. Some have opined that they thought the ridge is better due to being more solid, something I take very seriously. I've read someone say it entails some fifth class work, others who say nothing that difficult.

To be clear, I'm talking about from the knife edge up to the summit, not the ridge to K2 from the Capitol-Daly saddle. I know I'm staying away from that K2 ridge.

I've also wondered if a hybrid - partially south face standard, partly ridge direct - is worth considering. It looks like the two routes come close to meeting at the last major notch in the ridge, photo 27 in the route description. Thought perhaps following the standard route to that point and veering up to the ridge there was worth considering. Except it looks like getting up the fin that follows that notch looks might be the most daunting part. (Directly under the "Northeast Ridge" label in the photo.) Is anyone willing to weigh in on this matter?

Image
I did the ridge direct route several years ago. Rock fall on the standard route drove our decision plus a friend had just gotten nailed with a rock on the standard a couple weeks before. My partner was a pretty strong rock climber and led, so that was good. I’ve never done the standard route so I can’t compare the two. I would say the ridge direct is mostly class 3 - 4 with some low 5. You can avoid some of the class 5 by dropping off the ridge a little. The exposure was fairly high. We brought some rope and used it on one place on the return, but you don’t really need it. I still remember the knifes edge as the thing that got my attention because of the air not the ridge. Worth considering this route I think.
The summit is a source of power. The long view gives one knowledge and time to prepare. The summit, by virtue of the dizzying exposure, leaves one vulnerable. A bit of confidence and a dash of humility is all we get for our work. Yet to share these moments with friends is to be human. C. Anker
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Re: Capitol Peak difficulty

Post by ltlFish99 »

I loved Capitol. We camped at the lake which was great. It was early July so the route up to k2 had snow which was nice as it was quite consolidated and made for quick passage. Coming down k2 the rock was a little loose. IMO the knife edge was moderate.
The exposure did get my attention.
The trip leader was kind enough to allow me to do the ridge direct route. He just asked if I was comfortable with it and thought it would be fine and 1 less person crossing the face.
This was my 2nd 14er and I had a lot of fun.

I must note that my experience was laced with the wonderful enthusiasm of being much younger than I am now and the entire mountain experience was completely new ( my first summer).

Therefore, my opinion of the difficulty is certainly biased as my enthusiasm was amplified by the fact that I waited so long to venture into the high mountains, and when I got there it was, for me at least way beyond my expectations!!
And that first summer was the best summer of my life.
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Re: Capitol Peak difficulty

Post by SchralpTheGnar »

We camped at capitol lake and the whole ridge from the Daly saddle to the summit on November, had the whole place to ourselves and the ridge was a blast the whole way, descended the standard route and had to deal with much more snow and ice. Highly recommend that route. I don’t even remember any real cruxes but we were all top roping at a high level then so it was pretty cruiser.
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Re: Capitol Peak difficulty

Post by shays_days »

DeTour wrote: Sat Apr 25, 2020 10:31 pm Attempt to semi-hijack the thread here. Planning another run at Cap this August and I keep wondering if the ridge direct from the knife edge to summit - or a hybrid variation - might be a smarter route than the standard south face. I'm not interesting in making a very difficult route any harder. I am intersted if I can make it safer. Some have opined that they thought the ridge is better due to being more solid, something I take very seriously. I've read someone say it entails some fifth class work, others who say nothing that difficult.

To be clear, I'm talking about from the knife edge up to the summit, not the ridge to K2 from the Capitol-Daly saddle. I know I'm staying away from that K2 ridge.

I've also wondered if a hybrid - partially south face standard, partly ridge direct - is worth considering. It looks like the two routes come close to meeting at the last major notch in the ridge, photo 27 in the route description. Thought perhaps following the standard route to that point and veering up to the ridge there was worth considering. Except it looks like getting up the fin that follows that notch looks might be the most daunting part. (Directly under the "Northeast Ridge" label in the photo.) Is anyone willing to weigh in on this matter?

Image
Did the ridge direct solo and came back down the standard route my first time up Cap a couple years ago - truth be told, I did feel much safer on the ridge direct. Less people, more solid rock. However, it is incredibly exposed on both sides and there are smaller mini-knife edges on the way up. Lots of little v-notches in the ridge with little V0 boulder problems to get up. If you have strong ridge scrambling experience or a good lead head while rock climbing try it. Obviously everyone's different but if you wouldn't think twice about soloing exposed 5.4 then you'll be fine on the ridge direct.

Oh and if you're in a good headspace, it is so frickin' fun. Incredible position and enjoyable scrambling. One of my favorite memories here in CO.
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Re: Capitol Peak difficulty

Post by Reg0928 »

shays_days wrote: Sat May 02, 2020 3:42 pm
DeTour wrote: Sat Apr 25, 2020 10:31 pm Attempt to semi-hijack the thread here. Planning another run at Cap this August and I keep wondering if the ridge direct from the knife edge to summit - or a hybrid variation - might be a smarter route than the standard south face. I'm not interesting in making a very difficult route any harder. I am intersted if I can make it safer. Some have opined that they thought the ridge is better due to being more solid, something I take very seriously. I've read someone say it entails some fifth class work, others who say nothing that difficult.

To be clear, I'm talking about from the knife edge up to the summit, not the ridge to K2 from the Capitol-Daly saddle. I know I'm staying away from that K2 ridge.

I've also wondered if a hybrid - partially south face standard, partly ridge direct - is worth considering. It looks like the two routes come close to meeting at the last major notch in the ridge, photo 27 in the route description. Thought perhaps following the standard route to that point and veering up to the ridge there was worth considering. Except it looks like getting up the fin that follows that notch looks might be the most daunting part. (Directly under the "Northeast Ridge" label in the photo.) Is anyone willing to weigh in on this matter?

Did the ridge direct solo and came back down the standard route my first time up Cap a couple years ago - truth be told, I did feel much safer on the ridge direct. Less people, more solid rock. However, it is incredibly exposed on both sides and there are smaller mini-knife edges on the way up. Lots of little v-notches in the ridge with little V0 boulder problems to get up. If you have strong ridge scrambling experience or a good lead head while rock climbing try it. Obviously everyone's different but if you wouldn't think twice about soloing exposed 5.4 then you'll be fine on the ridge direct.

Oh and if you're in a good headspace, it is so frickin' fun. Incredible position and enjoyable scrambling. One of my favorite memories here in CO.
I did the same thing. Up the ridge direct, and down the standard. I thought the ridge was MUCH safer and more solid.

And I agree, if you've got a good head for exposure its a really fun ridge!
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Re: Capitol Peak difficulty

Post by DeTour »

I really appreciate the feedback on the ridge direct. Sounds like we'll be sticking to the standard route, somewhat reluctantly.
justiner wrote: Sat Apr 25, 2020 11:57 pm If you want to bail from the ridge direct at the point you're describing, I think that's a fine time, but I don't think it would make things easier.
I was actually contemplating the opposite - the standard route to that point, bypassing the lower but really fractured fin(s) before it; and heading up to the ridge there. But that fin looks more intimidating in your photo than in Bill's.

Reasons: (a) I'm not a rock climber; no experience on 5.anything other than a very few climbing gym visits; (b) my partners are rock climbers, but they don't all love airy ridges; (c) frankly the largest factor, time - we're kinda slow, and maintaining a decent pace is pretty doggone important on Cap. Even with clear understanding of the slowness of negotiating the standard route, I have to think the difficulties of the ridge, any variation, would slow us further.

But at least I won't be looking up at that ridge the entire time wishing I had considered it more. Thank you!
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Re: Capitol Peak difficulty

Post by justiner »

I have to say as someone who at least pretends they're a rock climber, the allure of the ridge direct is that it isn't just ledge hopping on loose cr*p, but decent scrambling at an exciting position, with mucho air underneath you. The looseness of the standard route cannot be overstated. If there's people on the route, there's rocks-a-flying. It's just the way it is. If there's more than a few parties close to each other, you can cut the nervous anxiety with a knife, and I think that's one of the reasons why people really want to exit off the thing as soon as possible.
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