Eagle’s 33 Challenge

There are exactly 33 peaks over 9,000ft (2743m) with at least 300ft (91m) of prominence in the Eagle Cap Wilderness, which is located in Oregon’s amazing Wallowa Mountains.

The Challenge

The Eagle’s 33 challenge consists of summiting as many of these 33 peaks as possible. Well, ideally, all!

Most practical routes are likely going to be over 100mi with at least 60,000 feet of vertical gain. For comparison, the famous Nolan’s 14 challenge involves 14 peaks only (but admittedly all over 14,000ft) and typical routes are under 100 miles with about 45,000 feet of elevation gain. The Bob Graham Round in the English Lake District has 42 peaks and the distance is somewhere around 70mi with about 30,000ft of gain.

This overview map shows the location of the 33 peaks (blue circles) as well as the Eagle Cap Wilderness boundary (red). Click to enlarge or use the interactive map that is embedded below. Note that the start/finish does not have to be at the indicated location. Athletes pick their own start/finish.

The Peaks

I’ve used Andrew Kirmse’s topographic prominence data to determine the 33 peaks. Andrew, a former Google Earth engineer, computed the prominence of every mountain in the world down to 100 feet. I’ve used the 300 feet rule (P300) because it is a common prominence cutoff. The table below lists all 33 peaks over 9,000ft with at least 300ft of prominence that are all inside the Eagle Cap Wilderness boundary. Note that, compared to this SummitPost list, my list has 4 additional peaks (marked with “CT” in the table below and named by me) that meet the above criteria. Also, there are more than 33 peaks over 9,000ft in the wilderness area, however, the prominence of those not listed below is less than 300ft. An example is the 9,179ft Sawtooth Peak, which has a prominence of 159ft only.

Notes:

1. The Twin Peaks summit pinnacle is a 60ft crumbly pile of rubble that you do not want to climb, even with protection. Summiting it is not a requirement for this challenge. In fact, it’s highly discouraged to make any such attempt. Don’t get in trouble for 60ft.
2. As far as I can tell, the “Hurricane Divide even more south” (I was unable to find an official name) pinnacle cannot be climbed all the way to the top without some serious climbing gear. However, there are two saddles that can be reached that get you very close to the summit, the first one on the south side, then you can traverse on the back (east side) toward the north side of the pinnacle and reach another saddle. Once again, don’t get in trouble for another 100ft or so.

The Rules

1. 1. This is not a race. You do not need to register or qualify or anything. There are no fees. Anyone can do it anytime of the year.
   2. The challenge must start at an official trailhead (typically the access trailhead for the first peak) and end at an official trailhead (typically the access trailhead for the last summit).
   3. Start and finish trailheads do not have to be identical.
   4. The clock starts at the start trailhead and stops when the individual or entire team reaches the finish trailhead.
   5. There is no time limit.
   6. You choose your own route between the summits.
   7. The challenge can be done individually or in teams. If completed in a team, all team members must do all parts of the route. Relays do not count.
   8. The clock does not stop if the individual or team sleeps, rests, etc.
   9. The challenge must be completed in a single push. Sleep, rest, etc. along the route are allowed. No leaving the route and returning unless by using human muscle power only.
   10. Crews and stashing of gear, food, and water are allowed. All stashes must be retrieved.
   11. Each and every part of the route must be covered with human muscle power only. That includes: climbing, hiking, running, skiing, and paragliding. No motorized form of transport is allowed on any part of the route.
   12. The challenge can be completed in an unsupported, self-supported, or supported way.
   13. Announcing your intentions is encouraged, but not mandatory.
   14. The challenge must be tracked and documented.
   15. All wilderness regulations as well as Federal, State, and Local laws must be strictly followed.
   16. Strict leave-no-trace backcountry ethics must be followed.

A Note on “Summiting” and Signing Summit Books

There are 2-3 summit pinnacles (see notes above) that require technical climbing gear, depending on the route you pick. I’m not a purist when it comes to “summiting” and I believe that one does not have to stand on the absolute summit (i.e., absolute highest point) to be successful because Eagle’s 33 was conceived as an endurance, not as a climbing challenge. I do not think this challenge could realistically be completed if folks had to carry the necessary climbing gear for these last few feet of pinnacle climbing. It’s also not worth to die for that.

Many of the peaks do have summit books/registers, many don’t, some books are rotten, some containers cannot even be opened, some are hard to find. It is not a requirement to sign summit books to complete this challenge. But you must provide other reasonable proofs that you reached the peaks (e.g., GPS track, summit pics)

The Records and Attempts

FAQ

• How can I announce an FKT attempt? Contact me and I’ll post here or use your personal Facebook, on Twitter, or in some running-related group/forum/page.
• How can I submit a record? Contact Christof Teuscher.

Stay Informed and Connected

Disclaimers

• Records are not verified. The burden of proof is solely on the individual or team. Thus, the more documentation you can provide, the better. See http://fastestknowntime.proboards.com/thread/19/read-first for more info.
• The information provided on this website does not identify possible dangers. When you are attempting a record, you assume responsibility for your own actions and safety.

Somewhere after passing over Polaris pass, looking into Imnaha valley, I think.

They’ve got mountains!

Dollar Lake and Petes Point.