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| Needlepoint Descent   | 
| Page Type: Route Location: Virginia, United States, North America Lat/Lon: 38.99510°N / 77.2524°W Route Type: Scrambling Season: Spring, Summer, Fall, Winter Time Required: Less than two hours Rock Difficulty: 5.0 (YDS) Difficulty: short moves
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| Page By: Bob Sihler Created/Edited: May 3, 2007 / Feb 3, 2008 Object ID: 290361 Hits: 952 Loading... Page Score: 86.04% - 1 Votes Loading... Vote: Log in to vote |
Scramble/ClimbThis is, as the name implies, best-known as a descent route to the base of the Dr. Needlepoint crag, but it is a good route for scramblers who have accessed the crag from upstream or downstream approaches.
It is easy to find this route from above, as it is just a few yards left (upstream) of Needlepoint Corner (see top-down view on this page).
Often described as exposed and dangerous even though it's really not that bad, this 50' route goes along the right side of the pointed promontory shown in photos on this page. It starts behind, above, and left of that promontory, and the hardest move is the one at the very top. Below the promontory, the route splits so one can access either Needlepoint Corner and the climbs there or the climbs upstream of the corner. When river levels are not low, Needlepoint Descent may be the safest and even the only possible way to get to the base of the Dr. Needlepoint crag without rappelling down. Guidebooks warn that this is an exposed and dangerous route to descend unroped, but most climbers will probably find it easy and no big deal after the awkward move right at the top, which is definitely tricker descending than ascending. The move itself is about 7 or 8' in height, and a flake on the right makes it a pretty easy move when climbing up it. Going down is a little trickier since the small face overhangs slightly, but there is a long ramp beneath that should guard against a fall from the cliffs, and the move can be downclimbed by facing in, holding the edge on top, and dropping down carefully.
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