This overlooked classic takes a dramatic line up the center of the north face of the very aesthetic Pagoda Mountain.  Although the route is a bit "raw/dirty" at the moment, only due to a lack of visitors, the rock quality, route quality, position and big summit make this a moderate classic which compares easily to the nearby North Ridge of Spearhead - arguably, it is an even more aesthetic and inspiring route.

North Buttress

Crescent Ridge

Late to the Party - Bypass

West Ridge

Northeast Face

West Ridge Bypass

The slabby wall to the left of the

North Buttress

contains several options for routes, but a line up the center/center left of the face is one of the good ones.  This route was originally listed as taking 7 pitches to ascend, but with the advent of longer ropes and climbers more comfortable on easy or moderate terrain, 3-5 pitches seems more common these days.

The route ascends easy face climbing on moderate angle slabs to reach a system of shallow corners.  Climb these as the route gradually steepens until the upper ledge is reached.  Traverse right on this ledge to one of a number of easy summit pitches adjacent to or on the

North Buttress

.

Many variations are possible, all of about the same difficulty.  This makes for a leisurely solo, if the

North Buttress

is already occupied.

The climb consists of an initial technical buttress followed by a long, 3rd-class ridge and a final, tricky headwall.

Climb the beautiful, clean buttress staying close to the ridge for three or four moderate pitches, following knobs and crack systems.  The easiest route may venture to the east or west side for brief periods but always returns to the ridge.  Most of the climbing is 5.4 or easier.  The 5.5-5.6 crux is near the top of the fourth pitch, just before topping out on the initial buttress.  At the crux are three crack systems, two to the east and one to the west of the ridge.  The easiest climbing follows the leftmost of the three crack systems.

After topping out on the initial buttress, scramble up to the base of an upper white-and-pink slab crossed by a darker diagonal band.  Enjoy hundreds of feet of scenic 3rd-class scrambling as you approach an upper headwall.  Bypass the headwall on the left by a shadowy, exposed ramp.  There were small patches of ice in this area during our late-June ascent.  The climbing is only 4th class, but use caution as a slip here could launch you into the abyss.

Above the headwall, several hundred feet of talus take you to the summit.

Throughout the climb, the rock is solid and featured with cracks and knobs.  The pink- and grey-colored granite is bombproof, and the white granite is good but slightly friable in places.  For a rarely visited Alpine climb, it is amazingly clean.

The position is classic.  To the left is Pagoda's south cirque and beautiful Keplinger Lake.  To the right is Mount Meeker and, once above the initial buttress, unparalleled views of the south face of Longs and the Palisades.

Why this climb is not in any guidebook is a mystery.  It compares favorably with the other moderate classics in the Park, including the North Ridge of Spearhead and the Northeast Ridge of Sharkstooth, though it is slightly easier and shorter than either of those climbs.

Did you get a late start? Are there parties ahead of you on the

North Buttress

? Try this alternative. (FA: not sure, so I'm making up the name to describe this alternative start.)

Start approximately 150 feet climbers left of the

North Buttress

. Climb the left-facing flake system to the notch between the top of the lower buttress and the bottom of the upper buttress. At the notch, step left to the top of pitch 4 (see

North Buttress

) to belay at the start of the upper pitches.

Uber good route with a wilderness feeling and great position. Huck it past Spearheard and ascend the gully between Pagoda and Chiefs Head. This gully can have snow, ice, and rock fall in it year round(axe & pons??), we avoided this by scrambling rock on the left.

Once at the saddle, the climbing begins. We gained the ridge on the south side which I thought was the 5.7 crux. Once on the ridge, the climbing is straightforward and trends on the south side of the ridge with a few gendarmes to ascend and down climb.

Descend down the northeast ridge to the saddle between Pagoda and the Keyboards, then turn northwest down the scree and talus slope.

This is an improbable but easy way of getting from the Chief's Head/Pagoda col to the summit of Pagoda, or vice versa. You wouldn't do it as a climb in its own right, but it's a useful alternative to Pagoda's West Ridge if you're doing the Glacier Gorge Traverse (

mountainproject.com/v/glaci…

) or Rossiter's "Walk in the Park" (

mountainproject.com/v/a-wal…

) and you don't want to solo 5.7 or carry a rope. It's entirely on the South side of the mountain, which helps if it's cold or icy on the North side.

From the Chief's Head/Pagoda col, traverse right across 3rd or 4th class slabs to the start of a 2' wide grassy ledge. Follow this ledge 2/3 of the way across the South face of Pagoda, about 0.25 miles. Where the ledge ends, move up a few feet to a rubble-strewn ramp that leads back left towards the West ridge. Follow the ramp, but don't go all the way to the West ridge. Instead, after about 500', head up to a short corner at the back of a shallow bowl. Climb the corner (one or two easy 5th-class moves), and continue up easier terrain to where the rock steepens just below the summit. Traverse 100' right to gain Pagoda's SE ridge, and hike the last 200' to the top.

There's a downloadable GPS file at

caltopo.com/m/180A

.

Description

Location

Protection

Routes in Pagoda Mountain