Colin Sander

Moving quickly through big terrain ... we were blessed with the experience of climbing the Thunderbolt to Sill traverse in the Palisades back when skies were blue, and the Inyo NF was open.

We had an awesome send, even with long boulder fields to cross, & the unknown status of the North couloir bergschrund in the back of our minds.

It was passable, & super fun snow climbing. the ridge was unrelenting for us, though an inspiring party of 3 in tennies passed us on a daytrip. we pitched out a few sections, and did the infamous ‘creative rappel’.

The traverse finishes on 'Nee-ma-mee-shee' meaning 'guardian of the valley' in the native Nüümü / Eastern Mono language. We blasted the final stretch, finishing the ridge in about 7.5 hrs, with plenty of daylight left to enjoy the views. The glacial melt water once we hit the bottom was pure heaven. Enjoy the video 🎞🎞

@hornsby_type_r @colin_films @xendurance @arcteryxlabrea @exploreinyocounty @u.s.forestservice #sierranevada #climbing #classic #traverse #oldschool #rangeoflight #celebratewild #arcteryx #xendurance #blessings #views #granite #splitter #vibes