Day 4 - Mitchell Peak is the plan, the North Face Center route (Ecclesiastes) IV 5.9
photo 1. Getting ready at sunrise, Pingora in the background.
Ecclesiastes is a great climb, although it has some route finding issues at the start and some of the route was wet. The 3 pitches of right facing corner is awesome. It isn't your typical corner, and you climb jagged flakes up to the offwidth crux. You need a #3.5 or #4 BD Camalot to protect it - or you can use the #8 Hex that we left behind. Marc cleverly managed get the #8 hex in there out of my reach. Someone with long skinny arms has probably bootied it by now. I was bummed, but then 4 days later I found a #8 hex laying at the top of a route on Mt Haystack. Photo 2 is us on a ledge after the corner system.
photo 2. On a ledge at the end of the corner system.
The final 3 pitches are not a part of the "awesome" clause I used for this route earlier. It involves low class scrambling and chimneying and a final pitch of easy climbing up rock that Marc described as slightly better than cat litter. I think he was mightily exaggerating, but as he points out - I wasn't leading.
photo 3. Marc heading up the cat litter to the summit of Mitchell Peak.
photo 4. a pano of the cirque as seen from the top of Mitchell Peak
Day 5. - Rest day again. Our original plan of 2 days climbing 1 day rest doesn't look probably at this point. In addition to the approach, the full days of climbing is really tiring us out. We're very glad for the excellent weather however. In fact, its too hot! The sun just evaporates your energy away.
photo 5. a pretty photos of Pindora
photo 6. Our water source just below our camp site. Warbonnet Peak in the background.
photo 7. The moon next to a spire on Warbonnet Peak.
photo 8. Best friends at dinner.