Ascent Notes for: North Ridge - 5.6 Average Rating : 4.60/5

Beautiful, 6 mile approach. Solid 5.6 climbing, could be a tad harder if you go left on the East face above the Barb flake. Great exposure there with plenty of gear. Hardest moves seemed to be the slot on the last pitch, polished there but has good gear placements. Walk-off is no give away program. Nothing larger than a #2 Camelot needed the way we went (Rossiter version). I think we did it in 5 pitches or so with a 70 meter rope.

Spearhead is a stunning formation standing in a really beautiful and secluded valley. The North Ridge however is only an 'ok' route. The first few pitches ascend some ugly and sort of dirty gullies. The climbing gets cleaner and more exposed in the second half but none of the climbing is that remarkable. Though the fact that my hands were absolutely freezing probably didn't help to put me in a good mood. I also might have been off route near the end. I just aimed for the party ahead of me, but when I caught up to them they told me they thought we were all off route, so maybe I missed out on some better pitches.

In any case, this route isn't so much about the climbing as just getting to the top of Spearhead. The summit block is a diving board with a dramatic drop-off and the hike in is very enjoyable and mild (a relief after climbing in the Tetons where every approach is straight up talus and gullies). I'd love to come back here with a partner and do some of the routes on the NE face. Spearhead is really one of the coolest formations I've been on. If 5.6 is all you're capable of doing in a day considering the long approach then the North Ridge is absolutely a must do.

What a beautiful peak! The crux of the day was finding the start of the route (OBVIOUS chimney? I guess!). The summit is amazing to stand on. Don't descend the 1st obvious gully to the west of the route - instead head further west (skier's left) before dropping down or you'll end up above some cliffs and be forced to traverse over to the easier descent.

Awesome route. 4 hours car to car.

Beautiful long approach. Better hope you know the shortcut. First few pitches can be simulclimbed. Cruz pitch at top. Great belay at top of 5.6 corner, nice view down the face and to the sickle!

Nice mellow alpine route for aspiring beginners.

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A few notes on the route description.
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Pitch 1 - look for a slabby area leading to a nasty looking chimney. The way I did it was to climb an easy slab and then traverse a long way left underneath some overhangs. There is a rap anchor on a horn visible from the ground at the top of this pitch. Be careful getting started - finding the route may be the crux.
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Pitch 2 - Not as hard as it looks. Kind of gunks like 5.6
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Pitch 3-5 - these just wander around anywhere, and you can easily unrope or imulclimb this stuff. Mostly 4th class.
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Pitch 6 - Tough pitch to find. People seem to climb anywhere from the Barb flake to way in the middle of the face. The way I went was very runout but great 5.4 slab climbing, and was towards the center of the face. End on a slpoing ledge where the going gets very steep.
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Pitch 7 - Climb steep terrain off the belay, and then head left to the edge of the face. Grunt up a 20 foot awkward slot that protects well with small gear. Clipping the fixed pin near the belay is unnecessary and can cause heinous rope drag.
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Great route.

wonderful, mellow climb. Excellent low angle friction climbing. You can simo most of the route if you're comfortable, and it's a great way to move up the route fast. The summit is unreal!