Aug 19, 2018 — In an attempt to bag all Wasatch 11ers (11,000 feet or higher in the Wasatch Mountains), I wanted to link the lesser-visited South Thunder and even more seldom summitted North Thunder in a day, but some meager research that warned of the terrifying Class 4 on the ridge connecting the two plus my allowing too much time to pass with these on my to-do list made the scaredy-cat hype for this trip overwhelming. It ended up being one of my favorite Wasatch adventures to date, and the ridge wasn't a fraction as difficult as I anticipated.
From the Bells Canyon Trailhead (Granite Trailhead, officially), follow an extremely heavily trafficked trail to the Lower Bells Canyon Waterfall. The falls are gorgeous and worth the minor side trip. Continue farther up into Upper Bells Canyon, where you'll probably stop seeing people almost entirely. Though this is technically an official trail, it's is the kind of trail that probably gets re-routed regularly because it's narrow enough that social trails become the new primary trail. Regardless, it's easy to follow all the way up to Upper Bells Canyon Reservoir. This spot is extremely relaxing and worth a trip itself. Head along the north side of the lake, route-finding on steep terrain. I couldn't find a social trail, and maybe there was one, but you really don't need it. If you're half decent at following a topo map, it's clear where to go. You'll hit a boulder field. I stayed to the west of it to keep the scrambling minimal. To the north, you'll see the pass to the east of Bells Cleaver, which I used later to complete the route.
After the boulder field, follow the granite slabs until you reach a massive gully. I probably took the more difficult gully that went directly east up South Thunder Mountain's face. I recommend going up the northeast gully to end at South Thunder's north ridge before you ascend. From the Class 2+/3 summit of South Thunder Mountain, check out the absurd views of Lone Peak and the Pfeifferhorn before taking the north ridge over to the crux of the day. You'll see three major notable features: the big Class 5 gendarme that you have to circumvent, a short Class 3 headwall just after the gendarme, and the Class 4 headwall in the center of the ridge. After passing the gendarme, head up the Class 3 headwall and continue on the mostly Class 2 ridgeline until you reach the Class 4 stuff. If you had any doubts or trouble at all on the Class 3 part, definitely bypass the Class 4 wall. Apparently you can drop down into the Thunder Basin to avoid the Class 4 section, or so I've heard, but I didn't locate that alternative. Anyway, assuming you want to do the Class 4 wall, it looks intimidating because of the exposure on your right and sheer nature of climbing ropeless. However, the hold are absolutely massive to the point that if you aren't able to fit both of your entire hands into the cracks you're going the wrong way. The consequence is high here, but if you have any scrambling experience, it's not difficult climbing at all and the rock was really solid.
Once past the Class 4 section, continue through some bushwhacking to the summit of North Thunder Mountain. Locate the pass just south of Bells Cleaver to the west, drop off North Thunder (I went back down the south ridge), head north below its cliffy base, locate another boulder field gully (Class 2), and go directly up to the pass. From the pass, route-find down more boulders and you'll end up just above Upper Bells Canyon Reservoir again. Head back down Bells Canyon.
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Hire/refer me as a web developer or send me a few bucks if you find my site useful. I'm not sponsored, so all fees are out-of-pocket and my time preparing trip reports is unpaid. I really appreciate it!
