Palisade Traverse... Temple to Thunderbolt

After much discussion/planning/re-planning... possible wife issues, we got down to business. 8/15/09 Drove up to Big Pine Thursday evening and hiked into a nice spot next to Third Lake. Woke up at 5 a.m. and hit the trail by 6. A bit over half an hour later we were at the base of Venusian Blind to simul-climb it in one long pitch. Hit the summit of Temple and then over to Gayley. Climbed the Swiss Arete on Sill (simul in one pitch again) and had a bit of lunch on it's summit. We still had a lot of time left and the weather was agreeable so we kept on: Polemonium, North Pal, Starlight, and Thunderbolt. Descent was pretty lose and with no crampons/ice axe a bit interesting. Overall, an awesome day out in the mountains! After a rather long hike back to camp and some very sore feet we finally got into the bags and slept in a bit the next morning before hiking back out for a well deserved meal in Lone Pine.

Looking down....

Mt. Sill

Self-Portrait

One of the MANY notches we had to contend with.

Gallery opening, April 2009

If you are in the Sacramento area I'll have my work at Appel Gallery all month on display. Feel free to stop by and check it out.