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Petit Grepon, South Face (5.8, 8p)

Petit Grepon

Route:

South Face

5.8, 8p

This had been my first climb in RMNP. It was fun to return 13 years later and climb it again as part of a two-route link-up on the Petit Grepon. I climbed it for a third time on a glorious fall day in October 2024.

Region: Colorado
Elev: 12,001 ft
Rock type: Gneiss & Biotite Schist
Type: 
Trip Report 1:
Date(s): June 25, 2007 (Mon)
Partner(s): Steve
Trip Report 2:
Date(s): June 7, 2020 (Sun)
Partner(s): Will Starks
Trip Report 3:
Date(s): October 2, 2024 (Wed)
Partner(s): Erin Houlihan

Related trip reports:

Route Overlay

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Trip Reports for Petit Grepon South Face

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Original Trip Report

The following trip report is copied from another page for my 2007 trip to RMNP (my first ever trip to RMNP, before I lived in Colorado). My original 2007 trip report also includes a climb of Notchtop South Ridge.

Intro

If I was to climb only one thing in the Park during my visit, I wanted to climb the South Face of the Petit Grepon, one of Steck and Roper’s Fifty Classics. It is a 8-pitch 5.8 route on a cool spire just 4.5 miles up from the Glacier Gorge trailhead.

(By the way, I think "Petit Grepon" is a reference to a smaller version of a spire-like mountain called Grepon in the French Alps.)

Luckily for me, Lizzy’s roommate’s friend Steve was cool enough to be willing to climb this route with a strange girl from Canada. We met up the evening of June 24 (where Steve cooked the best dinner I had had all month), and the next morning we hiking out of the Glacier Gorge trailhead at 5am. We were at the base of the climb at 7am, and after climbing at a leisurely pace and enjoying the warm weather, had finished and were back at the car by 3pm. All of the pitches were fun and the rock was great and the views were awesome. We had a great time. What a fun climb! Thanks Steve!

Below are some photos of the climb. 

Photos

The South Face of the Petit Grepon. The overlay on the left is my original 2007 version. Belay spots are marked with white circles and rap ring anchors (double ropes needed) are marked with green circles.
The view of the Petit Grepon from the east makes it look pretty cool (which it is, of course).
Lake of Glass, 4.5 miles from the Glacier Gorge trailhead.
Fun climbing on Pitch 2. Steve and I swung leads.
Cool flowers on the route.
Steph climbing up Pitch 7. Steve and I swung leads.
Steve climbing up Pitch 8.
Steph on the top of the Petit Grepon. It’s a nice exposed perch.
Beginning the rap down. There are established rap ring anchors down the east face and then the south face; two 60m ropes are needed.
A marmot thought my shoes were tasty. It also stole my insole right out of the shoe – it brought it back to its hole to use as a marmot-sized thermarest I guess!

Intro

The South Face of the Petit Grepon is one of the Fifty Crowded Classics. This fun route route ascends chimneys and cracks up the center of the south face then veers right toward the arete. The final pitches go up the steep southeast side of the summit blade and are quite spectacular. Excellent rock and breathtaking exposure along with a moderate grade make this line one of the most coveted routes in RMNP.

I had first climbed this route in 2007, while on a month-long climbing road trip out of British Columbia (which was home at the time). This climb had been my first (of many to come) climb in Rocky Mountain National Park, as well as one of my first multipitch alpine climbs too.

In late spring of 2020, my friend Will and I enjoyed a two-route day on the Petit Grepon. We climbed the Southwest Corner first (perhaps an even better route than the South Face!), rappelled down to the base, and then headed right back up, this time via the South Face. We simulclimbed the South Face until we reached a typical Fifty Crowded Classic traffic jam near the top and had to wait a bit and pitch it out. What a fun day.

The following page gives a trip report for our climb of the South Face. Click here to see the trip report for the Southwest Corner.

Time Stats

Glacier Gorge Trailhead to Sky Pond: 2 hours
Sky Pond to base of route: 15 minutes
Climb Southwest Corner route: 3 hours 45 minutes
Rappel to base: 50 minutes
Climb South Face route: 2 hours (some simul-climbing, and some waiting as well)
Rappel to base: 1 hour 30 minutes (lots of waiting)
Base to Glacier Gorge Trailhead: 2 hours

Pitch-by-Pitch Photos

Approach

2nd
Hike to Sky Pond. Scramble up to base or route. Begin at the bottom of the south face.
Leaving the trailhead at dawn. No need for starting in the dark during the long days of June!
The Loch and Cathedral Wall in the morning sun.
Some snow on the trail.
The section between the Loch and Sky Pond.
The waterfall section getting up to Sky Pond.
Spikes were nice to have, as the snow was pretty icy in the early morning.
Just above Sky Pond.
Looking up at the Petit Grepon. The snowpatch at the base was avoidable.

Pitch 1

5.4
Climb either of two corner/chimney systems to reach a broad grassy ledge known as the First Terrace.
There are several options for Pitch 1. Somehow just get to the First Terrace.

Pitch 2

5.5
Climb the huge chimney in the center of the face and belay on a chockstone in the chimney.
Looking up Pitch 2.
The chockstone at the top of Pitch 2

Pitch 3

5.7
Climb to the top of the chimney and exit left into a somewhat tricky crack that leads to the Second Terrace.
Somewhere on Pitch 3.

Pitch 4

5.6
Continue up a chimney. Exit left, then angle right beneath a right-facing dihedral and belay on a sloping shelf at a piton.
Somewhere on Pitch 4.

Pitch 5

5.8
Work your way towards and then into a steep dihedral, and follow that to a grassy ledge on the east face. The crux comes at a bulge in the dihedral.
The crux section of Pitch 5.
Steph leading Pitch 5. (Photo by Will.)

Pitch 6

5.7
A long pitch with sparse protection meanders up the east face. There are several options of where to belay at the end of this pitch. For nice exposure, traverse left to a tiny stance (known as the "Pizza Pan Belay") on the corner of the spire. 
A climber at the Pizza Pan Belay. I belayed up and right to execute a pass.
Will on the upper sections of this Pitch (I climbed a bit higher than the Pizza Pan Belay, where the climber is below.).

Pitches 7&8

5.7/5.6
Climb a crack/flake above the belay and work up right on exposed face climbing to a ledge. Continue up jugs to the ridge and go to the summit. With careful rope management and especially if you belayed a bit higher than the Pizza Pan Belay, these pitches can be linked all the way to the rappel anchor on the summit.

We linked Pitches 7&8.
Another climber on Pitch 7.
Pitch 7.
Taken looking down while leading Pitch 8.
Pitch 9 jugs to the top! (Easily linked with Pitch 8.

Top

Yay
Will's summit photo.
Steph's summit photo. (Photo by Will.)

Descent

6 rappels
6 rappels with double ropes on climbers' right of South Face. See overlay for rappel locations.
On top, another party at the first rappel.
The first rappel from the summit.
Setting up Rappel 4 of 6.
A Fifty Crowded traffic jam at the rappels. I really enjoy being as efficient as possible on rappels, so these sorts of situations frustrate me a bit. But we sort of resigned ourselves to it when we went for the second route....
Fortunately, we had Jerry 'The Jet' (pictured in photo) to entertain us with rap poems about big-walling in the Valley while we waited out the conga lines at the rappels.
Rappel 5 of 6.
Rappel 5 of 6 is a rope-stretcher, especially if you are a lightweight.
Some marmot had a nice lunch of ski pole handle.

Intro

Erin and I snatched this gorgeous midweek fall day to climb the South Face of the Petit Grepon. Erin and I had both climbed this route before, but it sounded like a fun day.The route was even more fun that I had remembered, and it was a beautiful day to be in the mountains. There were three parties on the route—a quiet day on a Fifty Classic (but perhaps a bit unexpected for a weekday in October).

Below are some some pitch-by-pitch photos from the climb. What a blast!

Time Stats

Glacier Gorge Trailhead to base of route: 2 hours
Climb route: 3 hours 20 minutes (waited behind and eventually passed one party, caught up with another party and waited a bit more - par for the course on a Fifty Classic)
Rappel to base: 45 min (no waiting)
Base to Glacier Gorge Trailhead: 1 hour 45 min
Car-to-car: 8 hours 50 min

Pitch-by-Pitch Photos

Approach

2nd
Hike to Sky Pond. Scramble up to base or route. Begin at the bottom of the south face.
Approach. We left the trailhead at 7am, and arrived at the base of the route atound 9am, just as the sun was hitting the base of the wall. Perfect timing.

Pitch 1

5.4
Climb either of two corner/chimney systems to reach a broad grassy ledge known as the First Terrace.

We soloed this pitch.
Soloing Pitch 1.

Pitch 2

5.5
Climb the huge chimney in the center of the face and belay on a chockstone in the chimney.
Looking up Pitch 2. The climber is from a party ahead of us.
Erin just above the chockstone.

Pitch 3

5.7
Climb to the top of the chimney and exit left into a somewhat tricky crack that leads to the Second Terrace.
Erin leading Pitch 3, behind the follower from the party ahead of us. They kindly let us pass on the Second Terrace, a good passing location.

Pitch 4

5.6
Continue up a chimney. Exit left, then angle right beneath a right-facing dihedral and belay on a sloping shelf at a piton.
Looking up Pitch 4.

Pitch 5

5.8
Work your way towards and then into a steep dihedral, and follow that to a grassy ledge on the east face. The crux comes at a bulge in the dihedral.
Erin taking the harder (but more protectable) start to Pitch 5. To the right is 5.6 R. The direct way Erin took felt more like 5.9.
Erin leading Pitch 5. This is a fun and sustained pitch.

Pitch 6

5.7
A long pitch with sparse protection meanders up the east face. There are several options of where to belay at the end of this pitch. For nice exposure, traverse left to a tiny stance (known as the "Pizza Pan Belay") on the corner of the spire. 
Looking up Pitch 6.
Climber on the upper part of Pitch 6. We caught up with the next party ahead of us, a friendly father and son team.
Erin on Pitch 6, just above the Pizza Pan Belay (we belayed about 20 feet above). Fun in the sun.

Pitches 7&8

5.7/5.6
Climb a crack/flake above the belay and work up right on exposed face climbing to a ledge. Continue up jugs to the ridge and go to the summit. With careful rope management and especially if you belayed a bit higher than the Pizza Pan Belay, these pitches can be linked all the way to the rappel anchor on the summit.

We linked Pitches 7&8.
Erin leading Pitch 7. She easily linked with Pitch 8 to the top.
Old hex.
Pitch 7.
Pitch 8 5.easy.
Steph having fun. Photo by Erin.

Top

Yay
Erin on top.

Descent

6 rappels
6 rappels with double ropes on climbers' right of South Face. See overlay for rappel locations.
The first rappel.
The final rappel.
Pretty yellow aspen leaves.
Hiking out. The aspens were pretty but past their peak by about a week.

Previous and Next Adventures

Trip Report 1

Yosemite (various classic climbs), CA
Notchtop (South Ridge), CO

Trip Report 2

Petit Grepon (Southwest Corner), CO
Fremont Canyon, WY

Trip Report 3

The Bookmark (Sidewinder), Lumpy Ridge, CO
Petit Grepon (Southwest Corner), RMNP, CO

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