Peak 13,198, Ruby Wall. The east face of this peak is a vertical, 900-foot wall that is reflected in the waters of Ruby Lake, near the Mono Pass trail. On July 10, Mike White and I approached the face entirely on snow for the last 1500 feet, due to the extreme winter. The climb begins near the middle of the wall in a chimney system that is not obvious as seen from the lake. Continuously challenging pitches of 5.8 to 5.10 led us to the point where a scary ramp slanting leftward allowed us to traverse into the easy summit dihedral two pitches below the top. (Grade IV, 5.10.)

Galen Rowell