GR 396213 ('Little Tombstone') – East Ridge Attempt



'Lil Tombstone' with route

As part of my Opal 35 Project, I was keen to bag the obscure and remote 2800 metre summit located at GR396213. I refer to this summit as “Little Tombstone” since it is a far north outlier of Tombstone Mountain.  This little peak has a prominence of 160 metres from the saddle towards Tombstone Mountain (North) and an isolation of about 3 kilometres from the Tombstone Mtn. summit. Based on some photos and the topo map, I thought the East Ridge would be a moderate scramble.  



Nice 20 km bike approach on the Little Elbow Trail, then a short bushwhack and I was scree bashing up the East Ridge.  So much for the moderate scramble, around 2400 metres the terrain got interesting, steep slabs broken by short steps, the occasional vertical cliff band required short traverses; all covered in water ice and snow.  Crampons and an axe were essential since many of the ice patches were extensive.  This sketchy terrain continued to get steeper until I reached a near vertical cliff band around 2600 metres. 

Turnaround point

This band was 10 to 15 metres in height, covered in ice and snow and very blank with few holds.  I attempted two of the shorter sections, but the climbing felt like 5.2/5.3 with very small holds.  Had the landing zone been flatter, not a 50 to 60 degree slab and ice slope, I think I would have pushed the route, but I chickened out.  I think a combination of remoteness, being solo, bad landing zone, hammering winds, spindrift, concern about downclimbing, and the late hour with limited daylight all weighted too heavy on my mind; good decision to bail.  

When I turned to descend I was 7 hours away from the car.  About half of my bike ride out was without lights and from my turnaround I was only 3 hours back to the car; got to love the downhill bike rides!  Next time I come back for Little Tombstone I will attempt the North Ridge in the summer and pack some rock shoes.