South Ridge of Gimli – 5.10a (trad)
Description:
The premier climb in the Valhalla range, the south ridge of Gimli is a visually stunning line and a serious undertaking. A total of 7 highly exposed pitches are followed by some low 5th scrambling to the summit. The first pitch, a 40 meter dihedral with a tricky roof at the top, is considered to be the crux pitch - originally graded at a colossal sandbag of 5.8, it is generally graded at 5.10a now. There is an option to bypass this pitch with a 5.6 start on a ledge on the west face (actually skipping the first two pitches on the main route), but doing so would bypass the best climbing. The second and third pitches are 5.7 on well featured rock, with decent protection. There is also a 5.10a move (reachy, easier if you are tall), considered the most difficult single move on the route, exiting left from under the roof at the top of the otherwise 5.8 graded 5th pitch. Overall the climb gets easier the higher you go as the angle gradually eases off. A well trodden 3rd/4th class descent trail leads directly from the summit and back to climber's camp. The approach hike is about 2 hours and many parties choose to climb car-to-car rather than camping at the base.
Show Beta
Recent Sendage:
-
2025-09-06lead even pitches, beautiful area! -
2025-09-01Really nice rock with tons of face holds for feet and good jams. Exposure is amazing, beautiful setting and just a stunning mountain. We did it car to car in a day and was manageable but were pretty spent at the end. I didn’t find pitch 1 to be as sand bagged as expected and there is excellent gear throughout. Lead all the odd pitches.
-
2025-07-07Amazing climb in an amazing setting. Good gear all the way too. Would do over and over again.
-
2024-07-23immaculate position and incredible rock. Took a variation on p3 too far right and ended up climbing a sweet steep handcrack and chimney at around 10a. Found the descent harder than the climb, but maybe we just got lost.
-
2022-07-19Beautiful Spot, Fun Climb, Awesome Goats
