The approach, the climbs, the crag dog
Chris Harhi and I ventured up to Mission Falls early from Missoula and after some route finding mishaps in the nearby town of Saint Ignatius finally found our way to the trail and on to the approach, with Tucker the crag dog leaping from drift to drift behind us. The three mile approach starts off mellow and at mile 2.3 you start going up. And up. And up! Finally we crested the hill and saw the falls in their glorious entirety. We picked the top left route that one can see in the above photo, an 165' pillar system.
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The route goes up the central pillar Chris racking up, with the Mission Valley behind
We gained the anchor at the top and rapped off, just as chunks started coming down to the right and left off of smaller formations. It being mid-March, the ice wasn't super solid anymore, and we made the decision to make that our only route for the day. Down we came, and good that we did too, for no sooner were we back on the approach trail a massive pillar came crashing down. Last ice of the season I'm afraid! But the ice was hero quality, the approach was full-value, and Tucker the crag dog got plenty of exercise. Climb on!
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