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335 Hits
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74.92% Score
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5 Votes
Page Type:
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Route |
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Route Type:
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Trad Climbing |
Season:
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Spring, Fall, Winter |
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Time Required:
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Half a day |
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Rock Difficulty:
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5.4 (YDS) |
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Number of Pitches:
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3 |
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Overview
The Mountain Project page for this route calls it 2 pitches, but it's really 3 because the last part to the top goes at Class 4 to 5.easy, so some people might want to rope up for it. That said, the rock up there is so brittle that you almost have to downclimb "P3" due to poor anchoring options.
P1 and P2 do have bolted anchors. That's good. What's not so good, and which the MP page neglects to mention but I did in the comments, is that there's no meaningful protection, or even lol protection, on either pitch. Or at least I didn't find any.
Okay, P1 has a flaring seam at one point, but it's so flaring and the rock is so soft that nothing you place there would ever hold in a fall. There also was a shallow flaring crack just below the P2 anchors. The author of the MP page placed a few small cams on P1, so it's possible he took a different line or had more confidence in what he saw than I did.
So basically, despite the grade, go into this expecting to solo it. New to multi-pitch trad climbing? Excited about the 5.4 grade? Save yourself some stress and go climb something of the same grade that actually has meaningful protection and reliable rock.
If I haven't chased you off yet, then here's your prize: you get a summit almost no one else ever does, you get it via easy but fun climbing, and you get to enjoy the beauty of DBC Canyon without having to go through the hassle of actually getting into it.
Getting There
There are 2 main ways to access the crags.
The first is from I-70. Two miles west of the exit for UT 24, turn off onto a dirt road to the right. This road leads into Black Dragon Wash, where the well-known Black Dragon pictograph panel is. Open the wire gate, reclose it after driving through, and head for an underpass. Once through it, you'll be on a dirt road that parallels the reef for about 6 miles before bending east.
Before entering the underpass, check to see if it's flooded. If it is, there is another turnoff and gate on eastbound I-70. You can get to it by crossing the highway on a service road, which technically is illegal, or by driving for quite a ways to the first exit (I believe it is 131) that allows reentry to 70 in the other direction. Of course, if you're coming from the west, this turnoff is the one you want in the first place.
The second approach is from UT 24 via a turnoff about 7 miles south of I-70 and just past MP 153. This road is said to be usually in better condition than the one from I-70, and it connects to the road that parallels the Reef.
Note: the road paralleling the Reef receives regular maintenance but does change according to conditions. I've been on it when I could have driven a regular passenger car with little trouble, and I've been on it when there have been washouts making me thankful I was in a Jeep.
2.1 miles south of I-70 on the dirt road paralleling the Reef, there is an obvious parking area on the right. Park here.
Route Description
The approach:
From the parking area, drop into the nearby wash and follow it, keeping a sense of where the mouth of the canyon is. Eventually, head up an easy slab on the right and drop into another wash; this one takes you to the canyon. The photo below shows that slab.
Then head left over up loose slopes until you find the start of the climb.
The climb:
Although I could clearly see the peak from where I parked, finding the start of the route was difficult for me. I went back and forth and almost gave up until I spotted a scrambling line that might get me to the top.
The laugh was on me when, after, following that line, I found myself at the P1 anchors.
I hope that the pictures below will spare others from that confusion.
P1 goes at 5.4, P2 at 5.3, and P3 at 4th-easy 5th. P1 and P2 are supposed to be around 200' but seem a little shorter; 150' is probably more accurate.
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Essential Gear
I wouldn't bother with pro, but that's a choice you make. Do make sure to bring gear to rappel and belay off 2-bolt anchors. You'll probably want 2 ropes. I think I rapped P1 with my Beal Escaper, which enables you to rappel the full length of a single rope and still retrieve it. On the second rappel, I thought I could make it with a double-strand rap on a 70, but I came up short and had to downclimb about 15-20' of easy terrain.