Granite Peak, North Face. On August 4, 1963 I climbed the north face of Granite Peak, a new route and the most continually difficult ascent done on the mountain yet. There were 1500 feet of continuous class 4, exposed and interesting, with two tricky route-finding problems. From the Tempest-Granite saddle I dropped onto the upper reaches of the sizeable glacier below the face and moved up to a series of snow and ice patches, some quite steep, in the middle of the face. The last 800 feet or so involved first the ascent of the buttress to the right of the central couloir, then the crossing of the couloir and finally the ascent of another buttress on its other side. Although I was well prepared with pitons, light climbing rope and rappel line, self-belays were never necessary. Although I basically do not believe in climbing alone, this was the most rewarding and interesting solo climb I have ever done. The ascent from the saddle took four hours and the descent by the standard route an hour and a quarter.

Don Gordon, unaffiliated