Never on Sunday

A more adventurous and spicy way to top out on Skyline! The fantastic final pitch makes this climb worth it; a 40' super airy, steep, fingers to thin hand crack. Glorious! No fixed anchors on route.

Pitch 1: (5.8, 80')

Climb up moderate terrain to a notch just behind the left side of Stigmata Tower.

Pitch 2: (5.10b, 130')

This pitch ascends an open book up the north side of this small prow. 1 bolt right off the belay. Belay at the base of the reddish colored tower.

P1-2a: (5.10a)

Climb "Don't Think Twice", traverse left to base of P3.

Pitch 3: (5.9, 100')

Step left around the North facing side of the red tower and climb OK cracks. Once on top, angle slightly right and belay near the base of the massive chimney.

Pitch 3a: (5.8 R or PG13)

Climb the river-facing side of the red tower. Gear is sparse, but there. Climbing is straightforward. PG13 if you have a Yellow BD 0.2 or Purple Metolius #0 cam.

Pitch 4: (5.10c/d, 140')

The money pitch!

Clamber up a few feet in the chimney, being sure to take note of the MASSIVE block that appears to be resting on next to nothing. Start stemming, and eventually get yourself onto the south-facing side of the chimney. Climb a few more feet up to a good ledge on the arete. You can build an optional belay here to manage rope drag if you want, but I didn't find it too bad just running it to the top.

Start working your way left out onto the steep and airy north face of the prow, and get ready for the fun. Finish up the obvious & steep finger/thin hand crack to the top. Don't try to find any left feet. There aren't any. Save some fingers/thin hand sized cams (BD 0.5 - 1) for the final crack section. I belayed way back against the toe of the next step, as there aren't really any belay placements directly on top.

Descent:

Walk off to the east, uphill, and join the main climber's descent trail down the south side. Very obvious from heavy traffic.

Start just about 20 feet climbers left of the striking red Stigmata tower. Look way up and to your left. The thin prow way up high is where you are headed!

Double cams from 0.3 to 2" with one 3" piece, and a good healthy set of stoppers. Extra finger sized cams, stoppers, and micros are nice, but not required. I had a set of BD offset cams and found them handy, as I often do in the Gallatin.