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So I'm looking for a climb sometime between now and the end of the year. I am very curious to get some opinions on
what would be a good objective. I am looking to tackle a technical climb ideally with an elevation greater than that in
the lower 48.

As far as what I can handle I can lead 5.9 rock and WI4, I have been over 14K on a couple of trips with no ill effects, and
for routes I have done Keiner's on Longs, the Direct Exum on the Grand, the SE shoulder of Bugaboo Spire among others.

Lastly I have 2 weeks for vacation to burn so I can get up to 16 days off in a row (once you include weekends)

What should I climb!?

Tickets to Geneva are cheap in winter... climb some routes in the Alps. If you have two weeks, you stand a good chance of finding partners if your buddies from home are busy. Many of the goulottes come in around then, so you'd have some nice, hard options. We have some long routes here in the Sierra, though... and partners are even more plentiful. Any of the rock routes in the High Sierra guidebooks below 5.9 ish can be done in winter (not that the harder ones can't be done--they just don't sound appealing in the cold). Sometimes warmish weather stays into late November, though, and the climbs stay in rock climbing shape.

Hey Mattski,

What mountain is "the great prow on" is it in the New Zea land Alps because they looks like an amazing place to climb.

The Nose or the Regular NW face of Half Dome- you'll have to look hard to find technical climbs longer than those, "lower 48" or not The (full) Palisade traverse could burn up some of your vacation time too.

Ice9 wrote:So I'm looking for a climb sometime between now and the end of the year. I am looking to tackle a technical climb ideally with an elevation greater than that in the lower 48.

Lastly I have 2 weeks for vacation to burn so I can get up to 16 days off in a row (once you include weekends)

What should I climb!?

Sounds like you want to head to South America since anything taller than what is in the lower 48 is in the Yukon or Alaska and the season for those climbs are pretty much over. What about Ecuador? They have some big peaks, not sure how technical, but the season is pretty much now until the end of the year. From http://climb.mountainzone.com/2006/Ecuador/index_5.html:

"Ecuador's high peaks can be climbed at any time of year, but conditions on the volcanoes are usually most ideal during the dry seasons of November to January"

ExcitibleBoy wrote:

Ice9 wrote:So I'm looking for a climb sometime between now and the end of the year. I am looking to tackle a technical climb ideally with an elevation greater than that in the lower 48.

Sounds like you want to head to South America since anything taller than what is in the lower 48 is in the Yukon or Alaska and the season for those climbs are pretty much over.

Don't forget about Mexico for peaks up to 18.5k feet.

Oooh, what about Mt Keya: big (17,000+ ft and technical) and is in conditon Dec-Jan?

The deadly north face of Mt. Sunflower