SummitPost.org

What else could you do? Here is what this site says about the chimney

Estimates range from Class 4 (old school) to 5.6 (grade inflation?).

http://www.summitpost.org/u-notch-chimn ... ion/155564
And you talk about consensus.

Old thread, but I visited John Fischer's old high camp yesterday so I thought I would post. Although I have climbed in the Palisades several times since with different guides, I had not been to the old PSOM high camp in 30 years. My last climbs with John were July 3 and 4 of 1987, Swiss arete on Sill and Underhill couloir on Thunderbolt. The approach to the high camp we took then, and the one I used yesterday, was exactly what Jed describes in his article. I beg to differ with those who suggest it is an approach that only makes sense in early season. Later on you might have to climb a bit of moraine from the fragile little meadow that Jed marks as a possible sub-moraine camp to the high camp location, but it isn't a suffer-fest to do so. On at least one occasion that I remember going to the high camp with John, I think to do North Palisade, we did in fact climb moraine rather than snow, and it wasn't bad at all. Also, John had found a water source up there, he had rigged up a short hose as I recall. I was up there with him several times at various times of the summer and we never melted snow. I don't remember the exact location of the water source, but as I recall it was west and a bit downhill from the camp location proper, which is on a rock promontory. The camp itself has a great position from which you can see everything and get to every route before anyone coming from Gayley camp. Much easier to get to Sill by traversing east across the glacier and not having to gain much elevation as compared to climbing up the glacier from Gayley camp, or doing the loose boulder horror show.

powderjunkie wrote:I have not climbed the route, but I would assume the consensus rating of the chimney to the summit of north pal is correct at 5.6.
here is a link to the stats page for the route on mountain project
http://www.mountainproject.com/scripts/ ... =105804285

I had free-soloed the chimney July 1st. Too bad you wrote it is 5.6. How now the other members of the forum will be arguing it is class 3?

too bad?

Why don't you tell us what YOU think the rating is now that you have free-soloed the chimney.

powderjunkie wrote:Why don't you tell us what YOU think the rating is now that you have free-soloed the chimney.

I agree with Secor's 5.4 rating. But it is only 10 feet what squares with this level. Overall about 30 feet of class 5, 90 feet of class 4 and 30 feet of class 3.
Here is the video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NASwdKPOz-M