Northwest Chute

Approach

Starting from the Meysan Lakes TH, hike the trail to its end, then follow one of several good use trails up to Meysan Lake. Follow along the east and south shores, then climb one of several chutes up to the high plateau between Mts. LeConte and Mallory. Head south to the north side of Mt. LeConte. All the routes from this side start here.

Route Description

Climb west down a loose class 2 chute for 100 feet until you can traverse south into the next chute. This is the Northwest Chute. Climb this chute for 300ft to the summit. Halfway up you will encounter the crux known as the Waterfall Pitch where large granite chockstones block the chute. It is rated class 3, but is not to be underrated. Many parties rope up for this pitch. The left side is easiest, but requires a near-vertical climb up a 10-foot section with decent holds. There is often water or worse, ice, in this section making climbing tricky. In late season of a low-snow year it will be dry. Once past the crux, the climb to the summit is trivial.

Essential Gear

Bring a rope if not comfortable on class 3-4 terrain. The Waterfall pitch is at the upper range of what I would call class 3. In fact I would rate it class 4 if it hadn't already been rated class 3 by Secor and others.

Most of this route is steep class 2 climbing.

Miscellaneous Info

If you have information about this route that doesn't pertain to any of the other sections, please add it here.

Images

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