The Crack of Destiny. In March Joe Faint and I climbed a continuation of the Crack of Doom route which ends at the summit of Elephant Rock, instead of in the middle. Although three different routes go to the midpoint of the rock, a blank-appearing section had stopped efforts beyond, especially since there seems to be an unwritten taboo against aid climbing on Elephant Rock. The Crack of Doom proved a difficult start for what turned out to be easier climbing above. After a difficult move off the main ledge we soon reached the base of the blank section, which although as crackless as it had appeared from below, was knobby and relatively low angle. Surprisingly the climbing here never exceeded F6, although we placed a protection bolt fifty feet out on the exposed slab. Higher, we encountered a short F8 crack, but by sunset we were standing on the top of the rock only a short walk from our car which we had optimistically left above us on the Glacier Point Road. NCCS IV, F10.

Galen Rowell