Mountainproject describes Mt. Dade, but only briefly mentions this route: https://www.mountainproject.com/area/11 ... mount-dadeThe hourglass. Class 2. [...] In early season this fine 1000-foot climb is filled with snow, and the angle approaches 40 degrees in places. Later in the summer it has patches of ice surrounded by loose scree.
Summitpost has this:
Has anyone here done this route? Based on my fairly limited winter mountaineering experience, I'm left with a lot of unclarity. My first dumb question is what is meant by "early season" here. It seems like it's basically a snow and ice climb, which makes me think the "season" would be winter. But this doesn't seem to make sense when the summitpost description contrasts "early season" with "late summer." Is it a permanent snow field? Is it a snow field that melts out in the fall only?The Hourglass is usually covered with snow, or ice in late season. The couloir is about 1000 feet high and steepens to about 40 degrees. In early season this is a straight-forward climb, but in late summer you either have to climb ice, or choose the small chute to the right of the Hourglass, which is steeper and contains much loose rock. In late summer the parts of Hourglass not covered by ice contain very loose scree. Once above the couloir, it is an easy ascent over moderate angle slabs for another 1000 feet.
So basically, what is the best general time of year to plan a climb on this route? Would that be a time of year at which the road would not be open all the way to Mosquito Flat?
Is the idea to climb it during the time of year when it's got snow, not ice? I would think that a 1000-foot ice climb at 40 degrees would require roping up, since inability to self arrest would leave you in big trouble. Describing it as class 2 seems to imply that nobody would use a rope, but maybe this depends on conditions? If using a rope, would you be using ice screws for pro? Would there be any point in bringing pickets or rock pro?