Shirley & I climbed this in July of 2005 (via notch vs. complete ridge) from a camp below Ingalls Lake. Very fun! Mostly low 5th class and very well protected where harder. Descending down Cascadian C. was the lowlight of the day (loose scree & boulder fields). One of the Fifty Classic Climbs of North America.
My most vivid recollection from this outing happened the morning after our climb. A pressing need for #1 woke me up and so I got out of the tent and proceeded to relieve myself a few steps away. Eyes still half closed, mind fogged over with remnants of sleep...it was not till they were 20 feet away that I saw an elderly couple hiking in my direction. A further delayed reaction on my part did not help. A full frontal offensive is not what they expected that morning. I recall struggling internally with two options: to apologize or to play it off as if it hadn't happened... I do not recall what heppened next.
Photos
Crossing a snowfield before Goat Pass on the approach.
Crossing a snowfield above Stuart Glacier on the approach.
Looking back at Stuart Glacier and Goat Pass from the starting notch.
Passing another party a couple hunderd feet up from the starting notch.
Leading the low angle slab, roughly pitch 8.
Looking back at Shirley belaying me on this pitch.
Couple mini-me's on the low angle slab.
Shirley following the easy slab.
Shirley on the knife edge traverse of roughly pitch 10.
Same knife edge traverse of pitch 10.
Approaching The Great Gendarme.
Leading pitch 1 of The Great Gendarme.
Shirley starting up pitch 1 of The Great Gendarme.
Shirley on pitch 1 of The Great Gendarme.
Shirley atop pitch 1 belay on The Great Gendarme.
Starting up pitch 2 of The Great Gendarme.
Looking back towards Shirley belaying me.
Leading pitch 2 of The Great Gendarme.
Easy climbing just above The Great Gendarme.
Leading approx. pitch 15 near the top of the route.
Shirley just below the summit, roughly pitch 15.
Ingalls Peaks from the summit.
Looking at Shirley topping out on North Ridge from summit.
Shirley starting the descent down the NASTY Cascadian Couloir.
Parents refers to a larger category under which an object falls. For example, theAconcagua mountain page has the 'Aconcagua Group' and the 'Seven Summits' asparents and is a parent itself to many routes, photos, and Trip Reports.