TRIP REPORT: Dragon Tooth

Dragon’s Tooth 5.6 A1 or 5.10

This was a very short but special peak to climb.  Dragon’s Tooth is located next to (North of) Dragon Peak out of Onion Valley.  I am hugely fond of all things related to Dragons, Hobbits, and the Lord of the Rings. So naturally, these two peaks have been on my short-list to climb.

We set out with equipment to climb Dragon Peak via its Nortwest Arete (5.8), and obscure and wildly exposed knife-edge ridge.  Our approach took us up the rugged North Dragon Pass, which crosses underneath the smaller yet striking Dragon’s Tooth. Upon reaching the pass we were blasted by a strong wind blowing out of the west, and combined with a recent cold snap the conditions proved to be more unbearable than anticipated. Our hands began to go numb from the cold despite wearing gloves, and we put on every layer we had including thermal leggings.

 

We decided it was in our best interest to do something shorter, so we turned our gaze back to the Dragon’s Tooth which was located oh-so-conveniently close. There was vague information listed in the guidebook about one climb on the peak – an old aid route up the north side.  We followed what seemed the most likely line based on the description and were pleased to find that the old aid crack was a free-climbable short hard finger crack. An old piton on top of our first pitch confirmed that we had found the route.  There were many options for the second pitch but I chose an exposed traverse onto the north face leading into vertical hand cracks with excellent jams.

 

On top, we were rewarded by finding the original 1946 summit register, still fully intact.  We were only the 5th group to have signed it in nearly 75 years! Its little moments like these that keep me coming back, despite all the hard work.

 

Below is a video to capture a bit of the experience.

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