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| South Face   | 
| Page Type: Route Location: Colorado, United States, North America Lat/Lon: 37.69290°N / 107.6103°W Route Type: Scramble/Rock Climb Time Required: Half a day Difficulty: Class 4 +
| Route Quality: | | | | Loading...
| Page By: truchas Created/Edited: Jul 16, 2004 / Jul 16, 2004 Object ID: 161526 Hits: 1276 Loading... Page Score: 0% - 0 Votes Loading... Vote: Log in to vote |
Approach
Follow nickd's excellent route description to the camping areas below Vestal and Arrow Peaks. It is an easy scramble over to the base of the ramp.
Route Description
 
For the route down, we chose the South Face Route. It will have less snow than the northeast side of the mountain in the Spring or Fall. Head south from the summit down a couloir of sorts. When the couloir starts to end and the sky begins (very airy cliff), head left onto a ridge. Descend down on the east portions of the ridge angling towards another couloir. When the descending gets too difficult, you will have to descend down into the chimney/dihedral. This is the crux of the route. Some parties may want a rope on this lower 5th class/class 4+ section, although the exposure is fairly low.
Work your way on down this chimney. when the difficulty eases up, scramble your way to the left over to the Vestal/Arrow saddle. You can either then head up the standard route of Vestal, or head on back down between the two mountains back to camp or Wham Ridge on Vestal. If the snow is good, you may be able to glissade some between Vestal and Arrow on the way down.
Essential Gear
This route borders on class 5 climbing. Some may want a short rope and a small selection of hardware.
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San Juan Range
