colbyjw's route beta is accurate. Few more details based on our climb of this route two days ago:
Pitch 1: 5.6-5.7, 120 feet (NOT 80 feet as Supertopo would suggest!!). Start up steep but easy (~5.6) dihedral and reach a huge ledge about 40 feet above ground. Enter a squeeze chimney on left side of a huge boulder. Wiggle your way ~20-30 feet up this squeeze slot (easy but tight!). Above enter another (wider/easier) slot and work your way up to a bolted belay station atop another nice ledge.
Pitch 2: 5.8, 100 feet. I thought this was the hardest pitch of the route. While pitch 3 deserves a harder rating, I thought this pitch was much more sustained and draining than P3. From bolted anchor, move up and left over low 5th class terrain to reach the base of a crack system. There's a flaring crack heading straight up from here (two bolts visible), a wide fist crack just to the right and an overhanging crack in dihedral on the extreme right. Your crack is the wide fist crack in the middle - OW is more appropriate I think (I got some big monkey hands and it was too wide for my fists). Fight your way up this wide crack (harder than it looks from belay) - stemming, face climbing, liebacking, and occassionally offwidthing for about 60 feet. This is probably the hardest 5.8 I've ever faced. Belay on good ledge with bolts just above the crack. The crack eats up pro in the range of #3.5 - #4 Camalot and #5 Friend.
Pitch 3: 5.9, 100 feet. This is the crux of the route but there are enough good rest stances (IMHO) that it doesn't feel as bad as P2. There are three good-looking bolts on the pitch and they're all clustered in the LOWER 2/3rds of the pitch (this is where you need them most anyway). Move up the slick calcite covered OW and clip a bolt ~20 feet above belay. More face/OW climbing and two more bolts bring you to the base of what I thought was the crux of the pitch. Just above the 3rd and last bolt (which looked good but in fact wiggled in my fingers) move up ~15 feet via a slick OW crack. I liebacked this section due to my lack of OW climbing skills. Above, as the crack widens, you can actually "dive" into it and chimney your way up. Exit from chimney (it constricts near top) involves pulling out onto the face (good pro, small cams/nuts can be had inside the chimney). Belay bolts await you just above.
Pitch 4: 5.7, 80 feet. This is the most fun pitch of the route in my opinion. From belay bolts, move left and enter into an easy (~5.7) chimney. Note that there's a "direct" crack to the left of this chimney (rated 5.8 or 5.9 by different published sources) and a hard looking OW crack directly above belay bolts. Move ~20 feet up the easy chimney and walk right into a space between the main summit and a subsummit tower. Stem up this opening (wide but easy) until you can commit to a good crack on the main summit side. Some balancy traverses/mantles bring you to belay bolts 5 feet below the summit.
Descent: We climbed this route on Christmas Day '04 and did not encounter a single soul all day. As a result, we decided to rap the route. We used TWO 60 meter ropes. From bolts just below summit, rap straight down with two 60 meter ropes to top of P2 of route (this is a long one, ~160-180 feet). Do two more double rope raps down the route using P2 and P1 belay bolts for rap anchors (single 60 will NOT get you down from top of P1). If you have two 50's, just rap the route belay-station-to-belay-station.
liebacked the top of 3? That was one smooth edge. My hat is off to you on that one Radek. I groveled and finally found an edge inside right, rightside in. Top of 3 was tough biz on lead I thought. Rock getting smooth, stuff missing, hangers (both now) a swinging. Cheers.
"liebacked the top of 3?"
having re-read my comment, I think it's below the very top - i.e. before it becomes a squeeze chimney thing. It's been a while though. Castleton, Ancient Art, Washer Woman - sounds like a full desert outing Dow. Good stuff!
rpc - Dec 27, 2004 12:46 pm - Voted 10/10
Route Commentcolbyjw's route beta is accurate. Few more details based on our climb of this route two days ago:
Pitch 1: 5.6-5.7, 120 feet (NOT 80 feet as Supertopo would suggest!!). Start up steep but easy (~5.6) dihedral and reach a huge ledge about 40 feet above ground. Enter a squeeze chimney on left side of a huge boulder. Wiggle your way ~20-30 feet up this squeeze slot (easy but tight!). Above enter another (wider/easier) slot and work your way up to a bolted belay station atop another nice ledge.
Pitch 2: 5.8, 100 feet. I thought this was the hardest pitch of the route. While pitch 3 deserves a harder rating, I thought this pitch was much more sustained and draining than P3. From bolted anchor, move up and left over low 5th class terrain to reach the base of a crack system. There's a flaring crack heading straight up from here (two bolts visible), a wide fist crack just to the right and an overhanging crack in dihedral on the extreme right. Your crack is the wide fist crack in the middle - OW is more appropriate I think (I got some big monkey hands and it was too wide for my fists). Fight your way up this wide crack (harder than it looks from belay) - stemming, face climbing, liebacking, and occassionally offwidthing for about 60 feet. This is probably the hardest 5.8 I've ever faced. Belay on good ledge with bolts just above the crack. The crack eats up pro in the range of #3.5 - #4 Camalot and #5 Friend.
Pitch 3: 5.9, 100 feet. This is the crux of the route but there are enough good rest stances (IMHO) that it doesn't feel as bad as P2. There are three good-looking bolts on the pitch and they're all clustered in the LOWER 2/3rds of the pitch (this is where you need them most anyway). Move up the slick calcite covered OW and clip a bolt ~20 feet above belay. More face/OW climbing and two more bolts bring you to the base of what I thought was the crux of the pitch. Just above the 3rd and last bolt (which looked good but in fact wiggled in my fingers) move up ~15 feet via a slick OW crack. I liebacked this section due to my lack of OW climbing skills. Above, as the crack widens, you can actually "dive" into it and chimney your way up. Exit from chimney (it constricts near top) involves pulling out onto the face (good pro, small cams/nuts can be had inside the chimney). Belay bolts await you just above.
Pitch 4: 5.7, 80 feet. This is the most fun pitch of the route in my opinion. From belay bolts, move left and enter into an easy (~5.7) chimney. Note that there's a "direct" crack to the left of this chimney (rated 5.8 or 5.9 by different published sources) and a hard looking OW crack directly above belay bolts. Move ~20 feet up the easy chimney and walk right into a space between the main summit and a subsummit tower. Stem up this opening (wide but easy) until you can commit to a good crack on the main summit side. Some balancy traverses/mantles bring you to belay bolts 5 feet below the summit.
Descent: We climbed this route on Christmas Day '04 and did not encounter a single soul all day. As a result, we decided to rap the route. We used TWO 60 meter ropes. From bolts just below summit, rap straight down with two 60 meter ropes to top of P2 of route (this is a long one, ~160-180 feet). Do two more double rope raps down the route using P2 and P1 belay bolts for rap anchors (single 60 will NOT get you down from top of P1). If you have two 50's, just rap the route belay-station-to-belay-station.
Dow Williams - Jun 5, 2008 9:06 am - Hasn't voted
Re: Route Commentliebacked the top of 3? That was one smooth edge. My hat is off to you on that one Radek. I groveled and finally found an edge inside right, rightside in. Top of 3 was tough biz on lead I thought. Rock getting smooth, stuff missing, hangers (both now) a swinging. Cheers.
rpc - Jun 5, 2008 1:36 pm - Voted 10/10
Re: Route Comment"liebacked the top of 3?"
having re-read my comment, I think it's below the very top - i.e. before it becomes a squeeze chimney thing. It's been a while though. Castleton, Ancient Art, Washer Woman - sounds like a full desert outing Dow. Good stuff!
Dow Williams - Jun 5, 2008 1:54 pm - Hasn't voted
Re: Route Commentjust trying to keep up with you mate....hey, finally thinking Bend, will email you