< MT. WHITNEY ASCENTS

Technical difficulty
Technical Climbing: 5.8-5.9

Physical difficulty
Strenuous

Length
3 days, 2 nights

Dates 2010
Custom dates or combined withthe East Face of Whitney for our Grand Tour

June 17-20

September 20-23

Price
$ 995 for the Grand Tour. Custom rates for the Fishhook alone.

Ratio
1 guide; 2 climbers

Prerequisites
Advanced rock skills and comfortable
on 5.8

Inclusions
Price includes guiding, permits, group climbing gear, tents, kitchen gear, breakfasts, lunches and dinners (you bring hot/cold drinks and snack items). Scheduled dates include USFS trail fees. Private programs do not. Local accommodation is not included.

RESOURCES
Details, itinerary and equipment list
Map
Read about out Recent Trips


CONTACT US
174 West Line Street
Bishop, CA 93514

tel. (760) 873-8526
fax. (760) 873-4800
office@sierramountaincenter.com

 

Mt. Russell via the Fishhook Arête

 

Climbers who are intent on the ascending Mount Whitney often overlook Whitney’s smaller neighbor to the north. We believe that they are making a mistake. Mt. Russell offers great views and one of the best long rock routes around. As one of the fifteen peaks in California that are over 14,000’ in height Russell is popular, but generally via a less-technical route. The Fishhook Arête could also be called the South Ridge of Russell. It lives up to its name with a lower aesthetic curving swoop that takes four pitches to climb and then an arête direct to the summit.

The Climb
We have two options to start the ascent:


• The direct start is 5.9 and features intricate face climbing to link tiny crack systems. This start starts inthe shade and can be cold and chilly.
• The variation start knocks a grade off and renders the route 5.8 (the variation is 5.7, the 5.8 is higher up). Thisvariation has the benefit of being in the sun if the weather is cold.

Slideshow image

Both starts meet at a notch where the climb becomes a true arête: narrow and steep for several pitches, this area of the climb is exhilarating and fun. The first pitch out of the notch is superb – steep, but covered in perfect holds and by now the sun has warmed the rock and it is hard to imagine a better place to be. After ten or so pitches of mostly easy fifth class the route ends right on the summit.

This is our video description of what it is like to climb FishHook Arete.

For better quality video you can go to our YouTube Site and click the "watch in higher resolution button".

Notes
The best guidebooks are Supertopo's “High Sierra Climbing” by Chris McNamara. and Peter Croft's “The Good, The Great, and the Awesome”.
Get them from Maximus Press.

You can also get our unpublished SMC Guide to Whitney 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 at Whitney Portal or the Cottonwood Campground would do the trick. Please refer to our Planning for Success info sheet for more info.

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