Destination stories · Photo story
The Unnamed Wall in Hyalite Canyon
16 photographs · Tap any image to explore the gallery.
For a wall without much of a name, the Unnamed Wall has a lot going on. In Montana’s Hyalite Canyon, this stretch of cliff brings together ice pillars, mixed corners and steep dry-tooling terrain. The rock gives each route its shape; the ice changes how it climbs from one winter to the next.
It also holds a substantial piece of Hyalite’s climbing history. Older lines associated with Jack Tackle and Alex Lowe share the area with the more recent development around the Bingo Cave. You can find several generations of climbing ideas along the same band of rock.
A few decades in one cliff
The Unnamed Wall was part of the exploration of Hyalite in the 1980s and 1990s. Some early routes were initially identified by numbers. Their names became established with Joe Josephson’s guidebook, Winter Dance.
Tackle’s The Thrill Is Gone dates to the mid-1980s. Lowe’s routes include Come and Get It and Black Magic. These lines belong to the wall’s traditional mixed-climbing history, while the steep routes around the Bingo Cave reflect a different direction in movement and development.
This photo collection looks at four pieces of the wall: The Thrill Is Gone, Bingo Pillar, The Good Looking One and Panama Canal.
The Thrill Is Gone
The Thrill Is Gone follows a corner where the relationship between rock and ice can change considerably. In a season with more ice, terrain can be covered that presents a mixed-climbing problem in leaner conditions. The name stays the same, but the climbing can look very different.
The photograph of Andres Marin shows both the ice and the adjacent rock, giving a sense of the corner’s scale. It records the route on that day, rather than what you should expect on your next visit.
Bingo Pillar
Bingo Pillar brings a different shape to the wall: a column of ice against dark rock, with the cave’s steep mixed terrain nearby.
The wider photograph of Andres keeps the surrounding cliff and belayer in the frame. Close-ups show the movement; this view shows the size and position of the ice. Like the rest of the wall, the pillar’s formation changes between seasons.
The Good Looking One
The Good Looking One combines mixed climbing with ice. The images of Conrad Anker and Lindsay Fixmer show different parts of that combination.
Conrad’s photograph looks down into the rock-and-ice terrain, with his belayer below. Lindsay’s frame follows the vertical line of ice beside the rock. Together, the photographs show more of the route than either would alone.
Panama Canal
Panama Canal sits to the right of the Bingo Cave and adds a rock-focused dry-tooling pitch to the wall’s range. In the photograph of Michael O’Connell, the tools are on rock, with body position and footwork taking centre stage.
From the ice of Bingo Pillar to mixed corners and steep rock, there’s a lot of variety packed into the Unnamed Wall.
Planning a visit
These photographs provide historical context. Check current local access, ice conditions and avalanche information when planning a day in Hyalite, and use a suitable guidebook. A photograph cannot tell you whether a route is currently formed or safe to climb.