Tower Take Two

By: Bill Urbanski

The last time I climbed Devils Tower, which was also the first time I climbed Devils Tower, I was lucky to get down unscathed, and unscorched by the powerful lightning storm that at first hastened then later interrupted our rappel.  The harrowing account of my first Devils Tower climbing experience can be found in grand detail and in living color at my home blog, The Urban Opus.

With copious amounts of rain the previous day, there was no sense of urgency to get on the Tower, so we slept in – till 6:00 AM.  Our first order of business was to organize our racks and packs.  I also took the time to cook a hot breakfast of oatmeal and coffee for the team.  By 7:15, the car was packed and we were on our way.

A Park Ranger cheerfully greeted us at the entrance kiosk and informed us that a pair of climbers had beaten us to the gate by about ten minutes.  I spoke briefly with the other climbers upon entering the parking lot and learned they too were climbing Durrance, the most popular route on the Tower.  But since we planned a different approach I was not concerned.

At 7:50 AM, David signed us in at the climber registration kiosk and the climb was begun.  We walked up and along the macadam path to a point below the leaning pillar, the first pitch of Durrance.  Turning left, we scrambled up a short path and found ourselves in the Bowling Alley, a slabby run-out area below the final rappel station.  This is also the beginning of the alternate start to Durrance.  Ropes were flaked, knots were tied, and gear was checked, and with the simple command “climbing,” David began his lead.

The alternate start is simple and short at 5.4.  David made quick work of it and Maraya followed and cleaned.  By the time I arrived at the belay station, David had already traversed left, without belay, to the base of the leaning pillar.  The team from the parking lot was still on the leaning pillar and we were forced to wait.

When it was safe to proceed, David took lead again on the seventy-foot leaning pillar pitch.  It was clear from the pace of the team ahead of us that it was going to be a long ascent.  But this was the first time David, Maraya and I were climbing as a unit, and we weren’t exactly speed demons ourselves.  In addition, David and I were swapping leads, so transitions at belay stations, rope management and pack hauling all added extra time to our project.

The second pitch on the Durrance Route is called the Durrance Pitch.  It follows two parallel cracks for seventy feet: one that takes protection well, the other, an off-width.  Rated at 5.7+, it is considered the toughest pitch on Durrance.  For the first fifty feet both cracks can be utilized, then the climber must commit to one or the other crack for the final stretch.

Last year, Patrick took lead here; this time was my time.  My crack climbing technique still needs a lot of work, so the Durrance pitch worked me hard.  By the time I reached that point of decision fifty feet up, I was already breathing hard.  I chose the left finish, topped out and set anchor.  Maraya and David followed, both getting a good workout in the process.

David took back lead on the Cussin’ Crack.  Only thirty feet in length, the Cussin’ Crack is the shortest pitch on the route, but its awkward start surely gives credence to its name.  David was the best choice to lead this pitch as his colorful vocabulary did not disappoint.  My video was not salvageable after all of the sound editing, so only still photographs remain to memorialize David’s efforts.

When our team reached the top of the Chockstone Pitch it was decision time again.  Once again, we encountered the team from the parking lot, still working Bailey’s Direct, a 150-foot chimney infested pitch and one of the finishing options.  Since I had already climbed Bailey’s, and because we didn’t want to wait, our team chose the other finishing option – the Jump Traverse.

There is no actual jump in the Jump Traverse, but there is plenty of air as you work across a chest high horizontal finger crack for fifteen feet.  A piton around a corner in the roof, if utilized, makes the Traverse a 5.6.  Keep hands off the piton, and you have a 5.8.   I was back on lead, and being 400 feet off the deck, I was in no mood to be a hero.  I chose the 5.6 variation.

It was a very different scene for me this time at the first rap station atop Bailey’s Direct.  (For the chaos of 8-9-10, click here).  A light breeze and bright sunshine allowed us to take our time as David lashed our ropes together with the Euro Death Knot (EDK).  David rapped first.  He got a little off track but quickly realized his error and made the necessary correction.

With all three of us at rap station #2, it was the moment of truth – it was time to pull the ropes.  We had made a very conscious effort to stay on the face of the columns during our rappel in order to prevent our ropes from getting stuck in the Tower’s infamous rope-eating cracks.  I pulled. The rope moved easily.  I saw the EDK getting closer and closer.  Then the rope dropped from the upper anchors.  Just as I extended my hand to catch the falling end – disaster.  The rope caught on protruding rock twenty feet above us, just beneath the roof of the Jump Traverse.  I flicked and pulled but to no avail.  It was hopelessly stuck.  David and I were forced to scramble back up through The Meadows to assess the situation.  David fixed an anchor and lowered me to the source of the stickiness.