Mark & Janelle Smiley climb the Diamond on Longs Peak, Rocky Mountain National Park, CO.   This route is about 1000' tall, 5.10a, at 14,000 feet above sea level.

This is the Smiley's first completed ascent of what they hope to be the "50 Classic Climbs of North America":  the list compiled by California climber's Steve Roper and Allen Steck in their book, first published in 1979.

A few other high profile climbers have attempted this list without success and many people have done more than half, but alpine routes include the West Ridge of Mt. Hunter, the Cassin Ridge on Denali, the heavily corniced West Ridge of the Moose's Tooth, the West Face of Mt. Huntington, the Hummingbird Ridge on Mt. Logan, the East Buttress of Middle Triple Peak , the South Face of Mt. Waddington in B.C., the East Ridge of the Devil's Thumb, and the Northeast Buttress of Slesse Mountain.  These will all be formidable objectives and will take great weather (luck) and some serious mountaineering skills to safely achieve.

We wish the Smiley's the best of luck on this hopefully long, amazing, and not too perilous journey!