Mount Washington, Southeast Spur. On an extremely hot July day Harvey Schmidt and I forged a new variant of twelve 180-foot leads on this classic alpine spur. Beginning at the moat at the right edge of the prominent buttress, we climbed 2½ pitches up a flaired dihedral (5.9) to attain the spur at the first large scrub pine. Scrambling led to the second crux, scaling a dead trunk and frictioning, unprotected, out off its highest branch. The spur steepened at this point and we climbed the crest instead of taking the less exposed escape gully to the right. We continued for six pitches on solid class 4 or 5 rock to the pinnacle summit (III, 5.9 + ).

Robert McGown