I wanted to recognize Amy (blazintoes) and Paul Barish on the likely first ascent of peak 5710, west of Grand Junction. Despite many reconnaissance missions, the smooth and featureless cruxes of this peak have stymied many a climber for years until March 28 of this year. Tom Pierce was instrumental to their success, leading them to the route and showing them the features despite deciding to not summit. A brief, technical trip report can be found here. I'll copy Paul's two comments below, as they can't be fully seen without a free account.
"I lead P2 and I’d like to make some notes for the next people to do it. The beginning of P2 is sketchy, delicate thin nailing with catastrophic consequences if you blow it. I worked very hard to stay in line with the ethics and avoid any drilling because it's a wilderness area. The belay area is large and it’s possible that if you blow it, your fall will stop on the ledge. It’s also possible that it doesn’t in which case you might kill your partner. I debated calling it A4 for this reason but A3+ feels more accurate. There is a solid tree well below the ledge that you could belay from (also where I fixed the rope for followers to jug a straight line instead of follow the 5.7X slab traverse) and that tree plus some gear would be a bomber anchor. If you don't feel that you can maintain this standard, (aka not place bolts or artificially enhance placements with a drill) then please do not do this climb. It's all there, barely. #1 beaks are the MVP. The only things we left on the mountain were the summit register and one sling around a tree on top of p2 to do a double 70m rap to the ground. Have fun, it’s extremely beautiful and rewarding!"
"We named the route White Whale because Tom Pierce who was instrumental in this ascent made 8ish attempts with different partners on 5,710 over the course of more than 10 years. During the planning phase he referred to this climb as his white whale, in reference to Moby Dick. Tom was present for the climb but due to leg pain he gracefully bowed out to save energy and not slow us down. The climb probably wouldn’t have happened without the time and energy he put into the area. I also was told that many people have been attempting this peak for years and calling it White Whale is in respect to the effort that many have put into exploring this stunning and elusive mountain."
Kudos to Amy, Paul, and Tom!
Image below from LoJ.
Elusive Western Colorado 5er Finally Climbed!
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Elusive Western Colorado 5er Finally Climbed!
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Last edited by bdloftin77 on Mon Mar 31, 2025 10:45 am, edited 1 time in total.
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Re: Elusive Western Colorado 5er Finally Climbed!
Amazing work you three! What a crazy get
Re: Elusive Western Colorado 5er Finally Climbed!
Like I told Amy yesterday, sounds proper fucked. Great work guys! Badass ascent of such an imposing formation.
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Re: Elusive Western Colorado 5er Finally Climbed!
Nice climb! I was wondering if it would ever be climbed. Thanks Tom for all your scouting trips!
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Re: Elusive Western Colorado 5er Finally Climbed!
Nice! Good Job guys. I was wondering when the first ascent would be pulled off!
I'm old, slow and fat. Unfortunately, those are my good qualities.
Re: Elusive Western Colorado 5er Finally Climbed!
That's so cool! Congrats to Amy and Paul on reaching this elusive summit and to Tom for all his scouting work over the years.
"We want the unpopular challenge. We want to test our intellect!" - Snapcase
"You are not what you own" - Fugazi
"Life's a mountain not a beach" - Fortune Cookie I got at lunch the other day
"You are not what you own" - Fugazi
"Life's a mountain not a beach" - Fortune Cookie I got at lunch the other day
Re: Elusive Western Colorado 5er Finally Climbed!
Congrats! Good to see desert first ascents still going up in great style.
Re: Elusive Western Colorado 5er Finally Climbed!
Very cool! Congratulations
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Re: Elusive Western Colorado 5er Finally Climbed!
Congratulations, Amy and Paul, on your inspiring first ascent of Peak 5710, and hats off to Tom for his invaluable support! Savor the sweet FA of this imposing and seemingly impregnable monolith. Well done, guys!




"Live as on a mountain." -- Marcus Aurelius
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Re: Elusive Western Colorado 5er Finally Climbed!
Excellent first ascent everyone!
On another note, LoJ shows 51 remaining unclimbed ranked peaks in Colorado (by members). Of those, only perhaps 7 are unclimbed because of technical difficulty. This creative ascent shows that maybe anything is possible for those too.
lp
On another note, LoJ shows 51 remaining unclimbed ranked peaks in Colorado (by members). Of those, only perhaps 7 are unclimbed because of technical difficulty. This creative ascent shows that maybe anything is possible for those too.
lp
"Ain't nothing to it, Listsofjohn made me do it!" -- Ice Cube