- Edit (TBD)
Description
This is an adventure climb traversing the Three Musketeers, given two stars for quality and one star for the adventure factor. From the base of the northwest face of the First Musketeer, climb 30' up the wide crack and chimney (5.6) between the First and Second Musketeers to the summit of the First Musketeer. Continue 15' up the ridge (5.6) to the summit of the Second Musketeer and 15' up the crux overhang (5.7) to the summit of the Third Musketeer. Descend and traverse 15' across the ridge (class 4) to the summit of Tooly and set up a gear belay. Protection is adequate. The rock of the first crack and chimney are solid but the rock along the ridge is brittle, requiring caution (a canteloupe-sized handhold broke off at the crux on the first ascent). Rope drag can be problematic, especially at the crux, and can be reduced by setting up an intermediate belay at the summit of the First Musketeer, although the anchor is less than ideal.
Descent: Downclimb the class 4 gully and chimney on the northwest (uphill) side of the gap between Third Musketeer and Tooly.
Location
The Three Musketeers comprise the northeasternmost pinnacles of Looney Tunes. From the road at the northeast end of the ridge, scramble up a class 3 gully to the base of the northwest face of the First Musketeer.
Protection
A set of cams including big #4 and #5 cams (I used five cams for protection and two more for the anchor), a runner (summit of First Musketeer) and two double runners (summit of Third Musketeer and summit of Tooly, the latter useful if top-roping Tooly 5.6).