Lineham Left Gully

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The left route is THE line to do when coming up here. Most people see the intimidating headwall seen in the right most picture and assume the grade is a big sandbag. It is not. The headwall that is visible is actually avoided off to the left. The climb is more inline with high quality scottish gullies. Expect the ice to narrow doen to three feet in places, requiring creative stemming between the narrow walls. In character, it is like a steeper, longer version of the top pitch of Grotto Falls in thin conditions. There are two short vertical pillars that must be dealt with. Due to the cold nature of this valley, the ice on this climb is often very brittle. Short sections can also have ice crusted over snow that makes for tenuous moves, and runout climbing if you can't get in any decent rock gear. Kinfe Blades work great for the side walls. A few small tri cams can also work along some of the larger cracks. Two pitches usually gets you near the top of the headwall. Topping out usually requires a short third pitch. One of the understated classics in the range.