how long did alex honnold take to climb el capitan
Alex Honnold’s free solo ascent of El Capitan via the Freerider route took about 3 hours 56 minutes from base to summit.
Quick Scoop: Honnold on El Cap
- Route: Freerider (VI 5.13a), a roughly 3,000‑foot line on El Capitan in Yosemite.
- Style: Free solo (no rope, no protective gear), which is why the climb is considered so extraordinary.
- Time: He completed the ascent in about 3 hours 56 minutes, reportedly taking the final, easier pitch at a near run.
- Context: Most climbing parties, even very skilled ones, typically take multiple days to climb El Capitan by traditional means.
In other words, what many teams spread over several days, Honnold condensed into just under four hours of continuous, ultra‑high‑consequence movement up 3,000 feet of granite.
TL;DR: Alex Honnold took just under four hours—about 3 hours 56 minutes—to climb El Capitan free solo.
Information gathered from public forums or data available on the internet and portrayed here.