This camp starts with the same basic skills as the Mini Mountain Camp but then expands further and gets you out putting them into use. This application of the skills is highly important; until you know how to use the newly acquired techniques you do not really "own" them. Perfect practice makes perfect, as the saying goes. The entire itinerary of this trip is in the backcountry.

Itinerary
Day One: Our first camp on this trip is near Third Lake. This is a half-day, six mile hike on an easy trail. There are a number of small crags and cliffs here where we will work on rock skills for a half-day after setting up camp.

Day Two: A full day of rock climbing skills: knot tying, belaying, equipment selection and use, movement skills, and rappelling.

Day Three: Now we start to put skills together with an ascent of one of the arêtes of Mt Robinson. We have three arêtes to choose from; the Lichen, Friendship or Fornication Arêtes (We owe the latter two names to the irreverent group from the 60s known as the Armadillos who included local climbers Doug Robinson and John Fischer).

Day Four: We shift camp to the Palisade Glacier. This is a half-day walk and on the way we will stop and cover snow travel techniques including self-arrest, ascending and descending snow all in a high mountain setting surrounded by dramatic peaks.

Day Five: A full day of snow skills and includes plenty of practice in the prior days topics as well as new skills like anchoring on snow, use of crampons, and snow belays. We will also cover the rudiments of glacier travel though the Palisades glaciers are small and this is not the ideal place to learn glacier travel skills.

Days Six: We get out climbing the high peaks and put those skills into use. Likely peaks include Mt. Gayley, Mt. Sill or Thunderbolt Peak. These days will include a lot of ‘on the route' instruction and coaching to get you applying the right technique at the right time.

Day Seven: Maybe a morning climb before we hike out to the trailhead.

Notes
Guidebooks include Secor's “The High Sierra; Peaks, Passes and Trails”, “Sierra Classics” by Moynier and Fiddler and Peter Croft's “The Good, The Great, and the Awesome”.
Get the latter from Maximus Press.

The best of course is “Eastern Sierra Ice” by SP Parker.
Get it from Maximus Press

You can also get our very detailed unpublished SMC Guide to The Palisades here.

We highly recommend that you spend at least one night at moderate altitude (higher than 8,000') just prior to the trip. Spending a night in Mammoth would do the trick or better yet, camped at an even higher trailhead, such as one of the campgrounds in Big Pine Creek for a night just before the trip. Glacier Lodge is also a good lodging option. Please refer to our Planning for Success info sheet for more info.

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