Yosemite - Kat Walk / Ho / Turret rappel route + Sons of Yesterday 5/27-28/00

I was eager to have some kind of climbing adventure on Memorial Day
weekend, but Nancy and the kids were not too interested, and I
didn't have any partner.  So I decided to indulge in a solo rappel
and gardening festival.

On Saturday, I hiked up the Cathedral Chimney (bypassing the upper
raps at 5.4), and went across the Kat Walk to the top of the Ho.

I had been eager to check out the Kat Walk first hand, after some
of my friends have had trouble on it (admittedly after dark).
The key to descending it from the DNB/Ho is to first reach it.
From the notch behind Thirsty Spire, scramble 50' up and left
to a big (4' diameter) fir tree, level with the top of Thirsty
Spire.  Tunnel between a flake and the fir tree, to an old
rap sling on a flake.  Then climb up and left, 150' mostly
3rd/4th class left of the buttress crest, to a continuous
ledge at a notch where the North Buttress climbs up from the right.
There are 2 large (3' diameter) healthy fir trees here (one on the
ledge, one slightly below it).  To climb further upwards would
be 5th class on shattered flakes above the firs.  The (western end
of the) Kat Walk takes this ledge straight left, angling
slightly downhill.  It mostly easy 3rd class, although utterly
exposed, so many parties might rope up (be careful not to knock off
cairns on people below).  At night, it would be definite 5th class.
There were a few wet areas, and one undercling section past a bush.
About midway across the face, the ledge peters out, just before
reaching a fir tree.  Here you have to climb up a small corner and
out left on a few steps to gain a small ledge.  Then climb back
down the far side, through a bush, to where the Kat Walk is
continuous again.  After another 100', a 40' fir tree is reached,
on the left margin of the wall.  Here you go left around the
corner (or up over blocks) to gain 3rd class ground.  Descend
diagonally to a burned tree, where you join the well-beaten path
from the top of the East Buttress.  Then of course the eastern part
of the Kat Walk traverses this trail to the Cathedral Chimney.

Of course, I had climbed the opposite direction, and I rapped from
the slings by the 4' fir tree, since I had a large pack.
I rapped down the Ho/Turret, and upgraded the worst anchors with
3/8" x 2.25" bolts plus lap links.  Using the "Free Climbs" topo:
18. (top of the last 5.10b pitch). Added 1 bolt (to back up the sling
    through the flake with hole)
16. (top of first pitch above Turret).  Added 2 bolts (replacing the
    wired nuts).  I put this anchor in down lower and to the left,
    at the top of the pillar, above a small ledge.  Now there
    is no chance of the rap hanging up in the thin corner below 
    the old anchor.  It is also easier to rap straight down to
    the next station at the 3" diameter live oak.
14. (below the long rap down the Turret orange slab).  Added 1 bolt
    so that the old fixed pin is now just a backup.
I reached the ground in darkness, as usual.  Someone has installed
small reflective dots on trees on the descent trail, which I
thought was sort of interesting.  At first I thought it was a bit
too techy, but then again, it is a lot like a cairn.  I didn't
sleep too well, because I had forgotten my mosquito netting... :-(

On Sunday, I hiked up the North Dome Gully.  Quite a struggle.
I intended to work on cleaning Xanadu (finish to Sons of Yesterday).
I located the best final pitch, which involves a friction traverse
to a 5.9+ corner (unfortunately well choked with moss hummocks).
It ends at a large pine tree.  Then an easy 4th class traverse
right on a ledge gains the rim, near the Royal Arches cascade.
   However, I concluded that its second pitch could never be properly
cleaned - it is back growing lots of grass, in spite of John Black's
major cleaning effort on it 2 years ago.  So I'm basically giving
up on this route.  I didn't do any more cleaning on it, or add
the lap links like I had planned.

I rappelled down Xanadu and Sons of Yesterday, then drove out to
Hetch Hetchy to sleep (away from the pesky mosquitoes).  Drove home Monday.