We have 3 days left. It's still rainy and wet. We eat extra oatmeal packets during breakfast. It's the only extra food available. I mill about and chat with a few other climbers. In the process I score several packages of ramen noodles and a bag of mint teabags.
Before long I have 2 packets of noodles in my belly. It's nice to eat some extra food and feel warm despite the cold temperatures. Again today my hands and toes have been chilled all day.
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| Clearing weather! |
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| Finally, not a sucker hole |
Around 3 p.m. we depart camp. The clouds have slowly broken, and it hasn't rained in a few hours. Halfway up the Bugaboo-Snowpatch Col we sketch our way across hard snow to the base of Sunshine Crack. We haven't done much in the past few days, and I feel bloated from all the salty soup I've eaten today. Climbing feels awkward.
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| Pitch 2 of Sunshine Crack. Soaking wet at the crux. |
The sun comes out. Some sections of the climb (like the pitch 2 OW, which I lead by walking a borrowed 5" cam alongside me as a I climb) are still quite wet, but the climbing is very enjoyable. Around sunset we begin to rappel from the top of pitch 7, just above the crux. The pitches are short, and we're down on the ledge in 3 rappels.
We're back in camp eating by 10 p.m. Camp is quiet, and there are only 8-10 tents left at Applebee. The sky is clear, the air is warm, and we're getting going again in a few hours.
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| Amazing splitters |
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| Our first sunshine since Beckey-Chouinard |
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