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Peak Mountain 3

Knight's Gambit

FA Scott Kimball and Chip Salaun, 1979
CREATED 
UPDATED 

Description

This route ascends the south face, a short way around the corner from

Orange Julius

. It appears to not see a lot of activity even though it has a sweet hand crack and three different 9+ cruxes. Look for the first chimney (as you move east to west), just west of the Foxhead, a large squarish formation at the southeast corner of the Bookend.

P1. Find an easy start behind a tree up to a short easy handcrack. Surmount that to a ledge that leads into the chimney. Climb the chimney past a bolt on the face and get good gear at the left edge of the chimney and traverse left (or clip the bolt and traverse lower) for a spooky 5.9 move or two to the base of perfect Lumpy hand and foot crack. Jam for 40 feet to a stance. Traverse right and downward (9+) to a belay inside the chimney. (The bolted line tempting you up and left to chains is a 10d variation).

P2. Climb a wide easy flare (with lots of fat gear placements) until the crack closes at an overhang and obvious 9+ crux. A comfy belay pod is to the right after you solve this.

P3. Wander up and left (west) through wide flares and discontinuous cracks (5.7 or 5.8) to the base of an all too obvious chimney.

P4. Grunt on up the 5.7 chimney and then run the rope out as far as possible on easy ground.

P5. Another pitch (or simul-climbing) on easy ground is required to top out and descend as for

Ancient Mariner

.

Protection

Cams up to the #4.