High Sierra Topix

GENERAL OVERVIEW: This pass leads between Matterhorn Canyon and Spiller Creek

CLASS/DIFFICULTY: Class 2-3

LOCATION: Yosemite National Park HST Map

ELEVATION: 11,320

USGS TOPO MAP (7.5'): Matterhorn Peak

ROUTE DESCRIPTION: From Matterhorn Canyon ascend easy class 2 grassy slopes lined with smaller talus until about 150 feet on steeper terrain takes you to the top of the pass. It may be possible to maintain climbing class 2 slopes but I had at least one 15 foot section of class 3 before I reached the top.

From the top you have two options. The first which is the only one talked about in guide books is to turn right and climb slightly higher to enter a very steep loose chute. Looking at this chute at the time I simply said screw that! Perhaps once in it it's not as bad as it looked to me but I would use caution while in it.

The other option which I took is to turn left and begin up the ridge a bit towards Matterhorn Peak. You will find yourself on a steep hill side with loose sandy and sometimes vertical class 3 climbing. Extreme caution should be used to safely navigate down this.

To be fair my over all opinion of this pass might be a bit over stated in caution due to the fact that extremely high ice cold winds turned it into a terrifying experience.

Hi everyone, I just did this pass and I could not find the class 2 climb down to Spiller Creek. However, I have a theory about what went wrong. At the top of the pass I went south looking for the class 2 chute but I did not go far enough. I did find a chute but it was the wrong one. I needed to climb up the ridge a few feet and then traverse to the left (the Spiller side) until I got to the top of the next chute. From below it looked doable. Here's a picture:



The wrong chute was the one in the center of the picture at the low point on the pass. I think the correct one was the next chute to the left (center left in the picture) which from below does look like it might be class 2.

I hope this helps anyone trying to down climb this side!

From the Spiller Creek side there is a great ramp climber right. Look for a large boulder with an obvious dike where the talus gives way to the larger rocks of the pass. You can get on top of that boulder by scrambling around its right side. From there a continuous class two ramp diagonals up and left towards the center/low point of the pass. Rock quality is great and the vertical wall on its right side provides great hand holds all the way up. The ramp is also wide enough that you never feel exposed. Really enjoyable and I think preferable to the loose talus chutes on the left side of the pass. There's also several large cairns at the beginning of the ramp so you know you're in the right place.

I completely agree with this. I came down this yesterday