PDA

View Full Version : Utah's Most Difficult Summit?



Iceaxe
07-27-2006, 08:40 PM
I was just curious what others would consider the most difficult summit in Utah? Not the most difficult route. But if you actually want to stand on a mountain summit which is the most difficult?

Kings Peak is a long ass hike but it is not really hard. Lone Peak might be the most technical peak I have climbed and it has some good scrambling with major exposure near the summit.

Or maybe the North Peak of Mount Olympus might be the most technical peak I have climbed. We did it from the West Slabs that goes about 5.6 but I'm assuming there are easier routes to bag it, but I'm only guessing at that.

What do you think? I'm really curious about this....

Lone Peak
http://climb-utah.com/WM/Files/lonepeak01s.jpg

Scott P
07-27-2006, 09:24 PM
I was just curious what others would consider the most difficult summit in Utah? Not the most difficult route. But if you actually want to stand on a mountain summit which is the most difficult?

Shane, it would certainly be in the desert. Some of the peaks there are still reported to be unclimbed. As far as climbed peaks, the most difficult I'm aware of is Timber Top Mountain in Zion National Park. If I remember right it's something like 8 pitches and 5.11+. I'll have to check on that.

We should ask Brian Cabe or Tom Jones what the rating on Mountain of Mystery is. I believe they were first to reach the summit in 2001.

South Split Mountain near Vernal appears to be extremely difficult, and it is possible that no one has stood on the true summit(?).


Kings Peak is a long ass hike but it is not really hard.

Having climbed all the 13,000 foot peaks in Utah, except for two un-named bumps on ridges, I can safely say that Kings Peak is the easiest 13,000 foot peak in Utah. East Lovenia is the toughest, but still non technical.

I have climbed 88 of the 115 or so 12,000 foot peaks in Utah (based on 200+ foot prominence). Red Castle (not Kelsey's Red Castle, but the one to the north on the topo map) appears to be by far the toughest alpine peak in Utah. I have not climbed it and some have even called it impossible. If anyone has climbed it, or knows anyone whom has or has tried, hopefully they can chime in. "East Hayden" is another one I haven't climbed that looks like it could be fairly challenging.


Lone Peak might be the most technical peak I have climbed and it has some good scrambling with major exposure near the summit.

The toughest peak in the Wasatch is probably Triangle Peak along the Wildcat Ridge, but it could be considered more a point than an individual peak. Some of the ones between Superior and Dromedary are fairly challenging, but easier than Triangle. All summits I know of in the Wasatch are still non-technical.


Or maybe the North Peak of Mount Olympus might be the most technical peak I have climbed. We did it from the West Slabs that goes about 5.6 but I'm assuming there are easier routes to bag it, but I'm only guessing at that.

Yep, there's a few easy class 2+ and class 3 routes up that peak.

Outside the Colorado Plateau, which has dozens or hundreds of technical summits, Tatow Knob in the House Range is definitely technical. It doesn't look near as hard as some of the other desert peaks though, such as in Zion.

Some of the Henrys are challenging too, and I failed on Mt. Holmes. I never did find a ropeless route up there, but it was in Kelsey's old book. I must have been off route? Next time, I'll just brind a rope. Some of the other minor peaks in the Henry's look tough as well.

The toughest summit I've actually climbed in Utah is the Balanced Rock Tower, but it isn't a mountain. The toughest mountain I've climbed is probably Temple Mountain in the Swell (which isn't that tough), but that should change in the future.

Iceaxe
07-28-2006, 07:24 AM
We should ask Brian Cabe or Tom Jones what the rating on Mountain of Mystery is.

After talking with Brian and Tom I was under the impression Mystery Mtn was more of a hike to the summit. I could be wrong. Tom and Brian spiced things up by rappelling off the front into the Narrows.


Shane, it would certainly be in the desert. Some of the peaks there are still reported to be unclimbed.

I guess you would first have to define "mountain summit". I don't know why I wasn't thinking of desert peaks..... Something like Castleton Tower is certainly a challenge to stand on. Zion has some tough looking summits.

Castleton Tower
http://www.suwa.org/images/1213/ctower.jpg

Scott P
07-28-2006, 08:37 AM
I guess you would first have to define "mountain summit".

Timber Top Mountain in Zion is definitely a mountain, and is heavily forested and almost sub-alpine. Towers such as Castleton wouldn't be considered a mountain, but peaks like Timber Top have more mass than most peaks in the Wasatch.

http://www.summitpost.org/images/medium/211037.png

For alpine summits (above timberline), I'll still go with Red Castle as the toughest.


I don't know why I wasn't thinking of desert peaks..... Something like Castleton Tower is certainly a challenge to stand on. Zion has some tough looking summits.

Interestingly, Castleton is a challenge, but considered one of the easier of the desert towers. Towers like the Titan, Pixie Stick, etc are considered much tougher!

Iceaxe
07-28-2006, 09:23 AM
How about Factory Butte?

I've thought about trying to climb that a couple of times.... don't know why.... other then its a cool looking formation.

Scott P
07-28-2006, 10:02 AM
How about Factory Butte?

I haven't climbed it, but I have the beta. I'll post something at the end of the weekend after I get home.

Iceaxe
07-28-2006, 10:04 AM
I haven't climbed it, but I have the beta. I'll post something at the end of the weekend after I get home.

Sweet.... Factory Butte is one of those things I look at and then want to stand on top of....... it must be the dumbass climber gene in me :lol8:

Scott P
07-31-2006, 09:50 AM
Factory Butte Beta

http://www.mountainproject.com/v/utah/san_rafael_swell/san_rafael_swell_south/105717155

http://www.mountainproject.com/v/utah/san_rafael_swell/san_rafael_swell_south/105718261

Iceaxe
07-31-2006, 10:27 AM
:2thumbs:

After reading the key appears to be bring an old iceaxe. :popcorn:

Scott P
07-31-2006, 04:35 PM
Temple Mountain sounds like more fun to me. You should climb it. No old ice axe required.

Brian in SLC
08-01-2006, 04:36 PM
After talking with Brian and Tom I was under the impression Mystery Mtn was more of a hike to the summit. I could be wrong. Tom and Brian spiced things up by rappelling off the front into the Narrows.


Shane, it would certainly be in the desert. Some of the peaks there are still reported to be unclimbed.

I guess you would first have to define "mountain summit". I don't know why I wasn't thinking of desert peaks..... Something like Castleton Tower is certainly a challenge to stand on. Zion has some tough looking summits.

Wow, Shane, didn't know you where so familiar with the SUWA website...(scarfin' their pic of Castleton)...ha ha...

Mtn of Mystery? I'd probably call it alpine 5.6ish. Tom whined for a rope at one point, so...(and the summit block had a move of easy 5th too). No way I'd have down climbed it. Cathedral doesn't have an easy hike up route, either. I don't recall Majestic does either. Mount Moroni? East Temple? Watchman? Etc etc. Timbertop for sure (hear tell someone mighta just free climbed it...whoo hoo!).

If you count desert peaks, there'd be a ton of hard ones. Towers of the Virgin? Sundial? I think they've only been ascended once, in a major expedition by some fuzzy ferriners. I recall 5.10r/x rating, with horrow show rappels to get off (ie, bolt holes that morphed into holes they had to place #3 camalots into to use for rap anchors, the rock was so soft). Be a few more along those lines in Zion.

Castleton is one of the easier desert towers. One of the harder free climbing ones is Zuess, next to (and much harder than) Moses.

If you limted it to named features on a quad, that might help.

Standing Rock in Canyonlands is a standard harder named feature. Titan Tower (ie, the Titan) in the Fisher Towers would be a harder one that's named. Oracle, Kingfisher, Cottontail, Echo, all pretty hard. Mud.

Monster, Washer Woman in Canyonlands.

Texas Tower is purported to be darn hard. Valley of the Gods has a bunch. Nearby, the Sewing Machine Needle. How 'bout the Cheesebox? Golden Throne. Stuff in Capitol Reef. Bottleneck Peak in the Swell. Hummingbird Spire in the Bridger Jacks. North Six Shooter. Argon Tower in Arches.

Lone Peak is easy by comparison, just a hike, especially up the backside.

Scott, do you know if Tatow Knob has been climbed??

Mountains that are tough. Tatow has to be one of the harder named "mountain" summits, methinks. Although, hard to argue that the peaks in Zion aren't mountains. I guess not desert spires, though.

Bunch of hard desert stuff.

-Brian in SLC

Iceaxe
08-01-2006, 04:57 PM
Wow, Shane, didn't know you where so familiar with the SUWA website...(scarfin' their pic of Castleton)...ha ha...

Someone has to keep an eye on them crazy-ass liberal tree-hugging pinko crack-pots :help:

Heck... SUWA even sent me a letter inviting me to join their Southern Utah cult... evidently they mistook me for Tom Cruise :haha:


:bandit:

rockgremlin
08-01-2006, 05:24 PM
Welcome to the site Brian. Stick around an post summore will ya? :2thumbs:

Scott P
08-01-2006, 06:47 PM
Scott, do you know if Tatow Knob has been climbed??

No, but I would assume it probably has by now. It was reported in one book in 1997 as "might be unclimbed as of 1997?", and I'm sure people have read that as an invitation to come try. We (Jan Brain, Cherl Shosnick, and myself) were there in early April 1997, and it didn't look that hard, but we didn't try to climb it, so I wouldn't be the one to ask.

I did hear several years ago that Brad Yates and someone else was going to try and climb it. Never heard if they did or not, and that was several years ago.

You should try it Brian.

Anyway Brian,

Although I haven't climbed either, I'm guessing South Split Mountain (near Vernal) is probably tougher than Tatow Knob. It sure looks like and apprears that way. I did climb the easier eastern summit, but the main summit looks pretty tough. Unfortunately, the photos I have don't show the scale of the peak, nor the height nor difficulty of the summit area, since they are 2D. The summit area is actually much bigger than it looks in the photo. That thing is huge in a Zion type way, and I think it is much tougher than it looks in the photos.

Main summit from the east summit:

http://www.summitpost.org/images/medium/98654.jpg

Main summit is just out of sight to the right:

http://www.summitpost.org/images/medium/98685.jpg

See many more photos on the page below:

http://www.summitpost.org/mountain/rock/153895/split-mountain-south.html

Unfortunately, they make the peak look smaller than it is.

Sombeech
08-01-2006, 08:50 PM
Welcome to the site, Brian. Stick around and keep handing out that crap to Iceaxe. :lol8:

tanya
01-09-2007, 09:42 AM
Welcome to the site Brian. Stick around an post summore will ya? :2thumbs:

I second that! :nod:

Scott P
05-13-2016, 07:44 PM
For anyone interested, here is a partial list of technical peaks in Utah, along with their ratings via the easiest route, when known:

http://listsofjohn.com/class5/class5.php?sort=e&state=UT