Tour de Horns Multi-Cache
-
Difficulty:
-
-
Terrain:
-
Size: 
(small)
Please note Use of geocaching.com services is subject to the terms and conditions
in our disclaimer.
A tough hike/climb to most of the peaks of the Low Horns on the
Organ Mountain Ridge.
This multi-cache will allow you to hone your Class 4 scrambling
skills and offers a long
day of off-trail, backcountry solitude. Your reward will be great
views east and west all day.
Low Horns of the Organs...stages/final in vicinity of high
points of peaks identified
The best place to access the
horns is from the west, by driving/hiking up the 4WD road to the
Topp Hutt. From here strike out cross-desert, and off-trail, toward
the Gertch wall. From here you can choose to hike up Big Windy
Canyon, north of Gertch, or around to the south of Gertch and up.
Both ways will allow access to the lower NW ridge/face of Horn #1.
Stage #1 is on Horn #1. Although there is plenty of scrambling to
get to this point, the base of Horn #1 is where the climbing
begins. A good source of information can be found online in
Ingrahm's Climbing Guide to the Organ Mountains
My pack on placing this cache...This gear is not merely
suggested...it's ESSENTIAL to stay safe
So what are you signing up for in
going after this multi-cache? A full day of Class IV
scrambling/climbing up several steep and exposed peaks.
Definition of Class 4: climbing that involves short
steep sections where the use of a rope is recommended, and un-roped
falls could be fatal. These peaks are quite remote and
require nearly two hours of hiking to get to. Needless to
say...safety should be your first and primary objective...NOT the
cache. If you get onto terrain you are uncomfortable with, or feel
you lack proper gear and skill for do not place yourself at
risk...no cache is worth serious injury or death! You will be
traversing the Horns from north to south, in the order they are
numbered. All your climbs, if you go the easiest route, will ascend
the NW ridges/faces of each Horn. With plenty of rope, and webbing
you should be able to rappel down the steep south side of each Horn
to the small saddle and the beginning of the next climb. In placing
the cache I did these horns 5-4-2-1 (backwards)...quite a lot more
up and down. Doing them backwards, and placing caches, it took me
12 hours...but I believe it can easily be done in eight. I climbed
them all solo, with no protection. I did, however, rappel off
sections of most of them. In fact, I climbed up sections that I
could NOT safely climb down. Thus I believe rope is
necessary!
This hike/climb is better done
with a partner as any little mistake can be serious due to the
terrain and remoteness. However you do it...let someone know where
you're going, make sure you have the off-trail, backcountry skills
necessary. Bring the gear necessary to keep yourself safe. Study
and bring topo maps along, pick a good weather day, bring first-aid
supplies, be careful, have a lot of fun, and enjoy the heck out of
your time on these peaks.
Congrats, FINALLY, to tlepinski
for the
FTF on this Birddroppings cache!
Additional Hints
(Decrypt)
Fgntr 1: Ybbx sbe ehfgl cvgba ba F fvqr bs ovt R-J fhzzvg synxr. Vg'f va gur ubyr qverpgyl haqre gur cvgba. Bgure Fgntrf: N fubeg qrgnvyrq qrfpevcgvba bs gur uvqvat fcbg bs gur arkg fgntr vf va gur fgntr lbh ner ng. Va zbfg vafgnaprf lbh pna frr jurer V nz qrfpevovat sebz lbhe fgnapr.
Treasures
You'll collect a digital Treasure from one of these collections when you find and log this geocache:
Loading Treasures