August 17, 2002

Starlight was peak number 2 on our agenda for the day, Thunderbolt was already done, and we looked forward to North Palisade, Polemonium Peak, Mt. Sill, and Middle Palisade. Having started with Thunderbolt, we began our ascent of Starlight at the notch between Thunderbolt and Starlight. We ascended the ridgeline, which was mostly 4th and easy 5th class, 5.5 max, and just before the top we contoured right (southeast) and then climbed directly to the base of the Milk Bottle. The summit register was at the base, and we signed in, took some photos, and then Scotty soloed up to the top of the Milk Bottle (5.4), and I threw him a rope so I could have a belay on my climb. It's easy, but very exposed. We downclimbed our route for a short way, then traversed toward the notch between Starlight and North Pal. We traversed southeastward for a while, and then climbed back up over the crest and then down to the notch. We were stopped just above the bottom of the notch by a vertical section and a wide gap in the rock at the bottom. There were numerous rappel slings here, so we broke out our rope for the 1st time, a 100 foot piece of 8.8 mil, and we rapped into the notch, and swung over on the rope to a flat boulder, where we touched down. From there, we began our ascent of North Pal. For Scotty's take on this peak, click here.