Alois nails it when he calls this route old school 5.7!
Pitch 1 is easy. A lot of scrambling at the start. You can use the tree as pro and then traverse under it to the crack that will lead you to the belay.
Pitches 2&3 are the old-school ones. The climbing is fairly sustained at no more than 5.7, but pro opportunities are not abundant, and (with some exceptions) placements are tricky. The majority of the cracks on this route are shallow and flaring. In addition, several flakes sound/feel hollow, and the rock is rough and grainy. Given that your placements consist mainly of small cams, crushing the rock surface could mean that a cam could pop out. Be careful with your placements. I'd rate this PG13 - not a good place for a beginner 5.7 leader.
The face climbing on large knobs near the end of pitch 2 is fun, as is the left raverse on pitch 3 (which protects well)! The bolts at the end of pitch 2 are old, but you can reinforce the belay with a solid stance and 2 microcams (00 Mastercam or equivalent) on your right. There is also a good large nut placement at your feet.
Pitch 4 features a few 4th/low 5th moves at the start and the rest is a walk-off. Go all the way left, or exit to the summit plateau via short bouldering problems directly above you.
Rack: bring a set of nuts, double cams in the small sizes, and singles in the medium/large sizes. A #3 Camalot comes in handy but is not essential.
ElGreco - Aug 10, 2012 3:43 pm - Voted 10/10
Old school indeed!Alois nails it when he calls this route old school 5.7!
Pitch 1 is easy. A lot of scrambling at the start. You can use the tree as pro and then traverse under it to the crack that will lead you to the belay.
Pitches 2&3 are the old-school ones. The climbing is fairly sustained at no more than 5.7, but pro opportunities are not abundant, and (with some exceptions) placements are tricky. The majority of the cracks on this route are shallow and flaring. In addition, several flakes sound/feel hollow, and the rock is rough and grainy. Given that your placements consist mainly of small cams, crushing the rock surface could mean that a cam could pop out. Be careful with your placements. I'd rate this PG13 - not a good place for a beginner 5.7 leader.
The face climbing on large knobs near the end of pitch 2 is fun, as is the left raverse on pitch 3 (which protects well)! The bolts at the end of pitch 2 are old, but you can reinforce the belay with a solid stance and 2 microcams (00 Mastercam or equivalent) on your right. There is also a good large nut placement at your feet.
Pitch 4 features a few 4th/low 5th moves at the start and the rest is a walk-off. Go all the way left, or exit to the summit plateau via short bouldering problems directly above you.
Rack: bring a set of nuts, double cams in the small sizes, and singles in the medium/large sizes. A #3 Camalot comes in handy but is not essential.