Lara Neumeier and Nemuel Feurle managed the free ascent of El Niño via the Pineapple Express Variation (800m, 8a+) on the North America Wall of El Capitan. The duo climbed the route ground-up and reached the summit after four nights on the wall.
From November 6th to 10th, Lara Neumeier and Nemuel Fuerle completed one of the rare free ascents of El Niño – Pineapple Express (800m, 8a+) in the Californian climbing mecca Yosemite Valley. The strong German-Austrian duo climbed the route ground-up and only practiced the first three crux pitches in the week before the push.
On November 4th, they brought supplies to the Calaveras Ledges, laying the foundations for their five-day ascent. They took turns leading the easier pitches, and both led all the important crux pitches. The hardest pitches on the route include:
- Black Dike
- The Missing Link
- Galapagos
- La Niña (the hardest pitch of the entire route)
- Black Cave
- The Dolphin
- Lucy is a Labrador
Experience report by Lara Neumeier
"After Climb of El Corazon on El Capitan last year with Babsi Zangerl I was motivated to try another big wall route on El Capitan. At the end of October I returned to Yosemite Valley with the goal of climbing El Niño.
After we had climbed some Valley classics in the first week, I spontaneously decided to work with Nemuel Fuerle, a super strong young climber from Austria.
Although we had never climbed together before, we were both highly motivated to tackle the wall and attempt El Niño together.
Lara Neumeier
On November 3rd, when a great weather window opened up, we decided to prepare for a push and try two days later. November 4th was our preparation day: we got food and water in the morning and packed everything up. At noon we went to the wall and hauled a bag and the portaledge up the Calaveras Ledges.
Day 1
We started at 5am with headlamps and climbed the first crux pitches (Black Dike, The Missing Link, Galapagos) both in lead. Since we had already checked out the first two key pitches the week before, they went quite smoothly.
Since I had already attempted the third crux pitch before, I knew the beta and scored it on the first attempt.
Nemo had not checked out this pitch yet and showed an impressive flash of the Galapagos pitch.
Lara Neumeier
After scoring these three pitches, we moved on and reached the Calaveras Ledges by noon. We then moved on to the Big Sur Ledges where we set up our portaledge just before sunset.
Day 2
The alarm went off at 5:15 a.m. The goal for the second day was La Niña, the most difficult pitch of the route. We wanted to climb it early in the morning in the shade to avoid the sun, which heats up the dark rock very quickly.
At first we had some difficulty with the ledge-heavy crux, but after a few attempts I managed to overcome the slippery and bat-poop-covered holds.
Lara Neumeier
We attempted the pitch in the morning, but our skin was already thinning. When the sun came out, the rock got too hot, so we chilled in the portaledge all day and waited for the shade to return in the evening.
Late in the afternoon, Nemo was the first to attempt the pitch, but hadn't yet found a good beta for the crux sequence. I tried it after that and to my surprise, I managed to climb the pitch on the second attempt!
After that, Nemo was super motivated to try again with my Beta and also passed it straight away. With this success, we went to bed relieved, ready for the next day.
Day 3
That day we climbed some challenging 5.12 pitches to the next crux pitch, Black Cave. It was my turn to try this one first and I fell just a few moves before the belay on the first attempt.
After I cleaned the route, Nemo flashed it and I was able to climb it on the second attempt, just before it got dark. We climbed one more pitch in the dark and then set up the portaledge.
Day 4
We made slower progress that day as there were some difficult pitches and the rope got stuck in Dolphins Chimney. Still, it was a great day and we got closer to the summit! In the evening we reached Lucy is a Labrador, the last crux pitch, but we decided to save it for the next day.
Day 5
Like every morning, we woke up at 5:15 am and were motivated to climb in the shade. I went through the moves of the last crux pitch Lucy is a Labrador again and climbed the pitch. Now it was Nemo's turn and he flashed it again!
From here on we only had a few easier pitches to climb to the summit. At 14 p.m. we were standing on the summit of El Capitan.
What a feeling to reach the summit of El Cap after sleeping on the wall for several nights!
Lara Neumeier
We had planned to do the climb in seven days, so we had plenty of food and water left over and enjoyed a well-earned lunch at the summit. The descent was exhausting, but the thought of a hot shower, delicious food and a comfortable bed waiting for us in the valley kept us on track.
One of the most difficult routes on El Cap
Originally established in 1998 by Alex and Thomas Huber, El Niño is one of the most challenging routes on El Capitan with 27 pitches and difficulties up to 8a+. The Pineapple Express variant, climbed by Sonnie Trotter in 2018, finally "liberated" El Niño in its entirety by bypassing eight meters of bare granite to the left of the Big Sur Ledge with a new 3-pitch variant. The variant includes the infamous La Niña pitch, the most difficult section of the route.
That might interest you
- Lara Neumeier repeats Rätikon testpiece Headless Children (8b, 260m)
- Nemuel Feurle repeats Sardinia classic Hotel Supramonte (400m, 8b)
- Steep and tough: Seventh Direction (8c, 220m) repeated for the first time
+ + +
Credits: Cover picture Lara Neumeier