North America, United States, California, Sierra Nevada, Balch Camp Flake, Flicker of Time Arête and The Passionate Life

Publication Year: 1998.

Balch Camp Flake, Flicker of Time Arête and The Passionate Life. On February 23, David Cotter and I climbed the east (right-hand) arête of the huge Balch Camp Flake, naming it the Flicker of Time Arête (5.9 AO). We started on the bolt ladder of the original 1954 route, then free climbed up the arête to the top. A day later, Jay Anderson and Ann Yeagle climbed the left-hand of the two very impressive and obvious wide cracks on the south side of Balch Camp Flake. This offwidth and squeeze chimney, which they named The Passionate Life (5.11c), had been attempted before, but never completed.

Richard Leversee