Mount Stuart, Lost Planet Airmen. Between the northwest face and north ridge on Mount Stuart lie several pitches of superb crack and slab climbing. On June 27, Tobin Kelly and I climbed through small séracs just left of the northwest-face route and up a long thin finger crack on excellent rock. Another tricky pitch up a moss-infested corner brought us to the fourth-class ground on the northwest face. After three pitches of scrambling, we followed a flaring chimney and comer up and left to the base of a long left-facing comer. Stemming, laybacking and thin jams went on for 140 feet to where I stepped out onto a small ledge. Two more pitches on good rock ended on the third-class ledges of the north-ridge route just below the summit. (IV, 5.10b.)

Alan Kearney