SoCal / Jtree visitor. Gear checklist and route advice?

Here's a weird one.
I'll be in LA, San Diego, Joshua Tree from the Dec 27th to Jan 7, I have no solid plans to be anywhere yet, mostly wandering around with my wife checking out the area. Open to visiting local crags while we travel around eating in-n-out burger and burritos.
The weird part, my wife really can't climb. But she can belay. So I need to be able to self clean by either rapping over the gear and pulling it, or re-climbing it after setting up a toprope. Hopefully I can meet someone out there to climb with a bit but I don't want to count on that.
I did this last year at Red Rocks, Zion, and Moab and it actually wasn't horrible. Got a lot of great input from here planning for that trip also.

I normally lead 5.7's comfortably at the gunks. I have lead some 5.9's there as well. Can toprope or follow most 5.10's. This does not seem to translate elsewhere equally.
I've lead a single 5.12 (sport) in New River Gorge and the 10's (sport) in Red Rocks seemed pretty easy. But I suuuuuuck at cracks since I have very little exposure to that here. So cracks would be something cool for me to get on.
I did though, get the wife up 3 pitches of a 5.4/5.5 or something in Red Rocks and she REALLLY liked it. (especially since it was a walk-off) But we try at the gunks and it's a complete nightmare. The climbing there is very much not straightforward. Something about the sun and the sandstone out west make her much more comfortable. That and the climbs tend to be pretty straight and easy to understand where to go.
SOOOO
I do have a guidebook,
but any locals want to chime in? What would be nice would be a scenic hike to a nice crag (or climb right from the parking lot after we are done with that crag) to:
sport or toprope some 5.10's
trad some 5.7ish stuff
take the wife up a 5.4/5.5 MAYBE a 5.6. Something that tops out somewhere cool so it feels like an "accomplishment" Multipitch would be a bonus.
Ideally I don't fall this whole trip. I fall, the wife gets freaked out. She wears a lab coat and squints behind her glasses a lot. This isn't her sort of thing.

Gear check!
Here's what I plan on bringing (minus the obvious harness/helmet/PAS/ATC/ 70m rope/Ect) Actually does everyone wear a helmet out there? Seems rockfall is hardly a thing. Would be sweet to not pack helmets but here we wear them 100% of the time. But rockfall is a real thing.

mastercam 0, .25-1 C4, WC Helium Friends for the larger plus the WC #5. Not thrilled about using the WC cams in cracks, but whatever.
Set of nuts, toprope anchor for bolts, cordelette,

Full set of mastercams, full set of OFFSET mastercams
10 x sport draws
5 x alpine draws


Maybe I should bring this? I'd like to hear some info on top rope anchors.
50ish feet of 7mm cord
5 more alpine draws


I may hit up Bishop if the weather works out. Seems like a cool place to visit.
So Not sure if I would ever need more than 5 alpine draws on top of the 10 sport draws, I could potentially link 2 pitches of sport together and rap back down. That's a big maybe though.
Are the offsets too much? Nuts worth bringing?

I have more too, tricams, more alpine draws, hexes, 50ft of webbing....doubt I'll need any of this.
Trying to pack at least somewhat light.

Thanks everyone.

Welcome... if you go to Josh. Do "the Eye" fun climb with a simple walk down the back..... you will use about 3-4 pieces of your rack. (those stoppers will do it all plus a few alpine draws)

If that works out OK wander over across the parking lot (HVC) and climb the upper right ski track..... one must rap to get off this one, but you can lower wife all the way to the deck and rap off of the bolts and clean the climb.

Both of these are rated 5.4/5.5ish, they are easier than 3 Pines.

When I bring people out for the first time, this is what I do.

Go to Gun Smoke... its one of the best boulder problems in the park, a big traverse in a warm location.

You might also like Malibu Creek. The stumbling blocks have sport climbing (5-6 bolts) and the Planet of The Apes Wall is all top roping. (bolts for anchors and about 6-9 feet of runners)

Then cruze down to Malibu and go to Duke's or Moonshadows.... to show the wife how much you really love her, both have really fine food.

enjoy your trip.

Awesome. Awesome advice. Thanks. I saw the eye climb but it's so hard to link together what to do while I'm in what areas. Thanks again.

gtluke wrote:Friends for the larger plus the WC #5. Not thrilled about using the WC cams in cracks, but whatever.

Where would you prefer to use the WC cams?

Kent Richards wrote: Where would you prefer to use the WC cams?

On my rack. They are much lighter and don't get caught on edges while climbing, because the heads can freely rotate. The C4's get caught and I get stuck, constantly. Mostly because I'm used to having the friends on there and I'm not used to the non-rotating double axle heads.
BUT placing them isn't thrilling. They are rated for passive use but in the real world, don't do it. Because the head can rotate, it will. So when you tip out a cam, the whole head can rotate 90deg and then it becomes much thinner, and pops out. They can't invert though, everyone seems to think only the double axle prevents inversion. the mastercams and the friends are rated for passive and can't invert.
There are some instances where the single axle works better. If you are trying to put a cam in sideways, the single axle is a smaller circular profile when collapsed. A C4 when collapsed is a bigger square. So if you are trying to put it in a smaller spot, maybe the single will fit where a double won't. Picture reaching over your head to put a cam in a vertical crack that's an irregular shape. You can potentially slide in a friend where a c4 won't go, and going down to the next size c4 is kinda tipped out.
You can also place a friend in a slightly shallower placement because the point of contact on a single axle cam is further forward. More handy in the smaller sizes at the gunks. Which is why I'll keep the mastercams forever. In large sizes you rarely see a shallow fist+ size crack at the gunks.
I will eventually replace those last few friends with c4's though.

gtluke wrote:Actually does everyone wear a helmet out there? Seems rockfall is hardly a thing. Would be sweet to not pack helmets but here we wear them 100% of the time. But rockfall is a real thing.

What difference does it make if anyone or everyone wears a helmet out there?

Wear a helmet it's totally your choice. Personally I wear one 50% of the time just so my son will wear his. Not a lot of climbs come to mind that you can climb and self clean, Most of the trad routes need you to build an anchor. If it's in the budget think about a guide for a day they can show you around and hook you up with some great climbs and beta. Enjoy your trip!

gtluke wrote:Awesome. Awesome advice. Thanks. I saw the eye climb but it's so hard to link together what to do while I'm in what areas. Thanks again.

I gave you good advise... park in the HVC/intersection parking lot (all roads lead there) park.... look at intersection rock... 100 feet in the distance.. the Ski Tracks are prominent... you going to go for the right one, but the bottom is steep, 5.10B steep, first climbed by Robbins in like 1956, free solo, in big Mt. boots... go around to the right and scramble up to a ledge, walk along ledge, climb up 5.1 friction to where it hits the crack, climb up that on large holes, full size hand holds and large feet all the way to the top.... Lower Wife from the bolts, rap from Bolts, cleaning as you go....

The Eye is about 300 feet east of parking lot.... cant miss the sucker, it has a cave/hole at the top, climb up to and belay in this cave... enjoy the view.... walk down back side following the path of least resistance....if you can't figure out what to climb next... well I can't help you, there are about 150 climbs around Hidden Valley that you can walk to.

Helmets??? Josh has almost zero rockfall. To or Not to is a personal choice.

And IMHO..... none of this is about shinny cams, yours will get all scratched up at Josh.

Weird, for sure.

Marry Christmas

This is similar to another recent thread. My suggestions are pretty much the same as Guy's: The Eye and Upper Right Ski Track. There are some fun two pitch 5.4s on nearby Turtle Rock. I also really like Fote Hog, a two pitch 5.6 on the Sentinel, though some find one section to be run out. The Bong is a fun 5.4 handcrack. A couple of fun 5.2-5.4s on Cap Rock as well. Enjoy.

Guy Keesee wrote: I gave you good advise... park in the HVC/intersection parking lot (all roads lead there) park.... look at intersection rock... 100 feet in the distance.. the Ski Tracks are prominent... you going to go for the right one, but the bottom is steep, 5.10B steep, first climbed by Robbins in like 1956, free solo, in big Mt. boots... go around to the right and scramble up to a ledge, walk along ledge, climb up 5.1 friction to where it hits the crack, climb up that on large holes, full size hand holds and large feet all the way to the top.... Lower Wife from the bolts, rap from Bolts, cleaning as you go.... The Eye is about 300 feet east of parking lot.... cant miss the sucker, it has a cave/hole at the top, climb up to and belay in this cave... enjoy the view.... walk down back side following the path of least resistance....if you can't figure out what to climb next... well I can't help you, there are about 150 climbs around Hidden Valley that you can walk to. Helmets??? Josh has almost zero rockfall. To or Not to is a personal choice. And IMHO..... none of this is about shinny cams, yours will get all scratched up at Josh. Weird, for sure. Marry Christmas

err, my bad wording. I saw the eye but it was hard for me to piece together with mountain project and the guidebook what else to do in the area, so I appreciate that you gave me things to do while I was in that spot. So thanks.
I'll probably be packing the helmets.
I can't wait to get out there. Though I THOUGHT this would be a winter break where I got to enjoy the sun. But it's been fantastic weather on the east coast and we have been climbing straight through December. Crazy.
But I'm excited to get on some different rock for sure.

Don't forget to tape up. If you're not solid on jams, JT rock will tear your hands up at the slightest hint of thrutching. Check out "the chief" for some mild climbing also. Good protection.

Guy Keesee wrote: Helmets??? Josh has almost zero rockfall. To or Not to is a personal choice.

Moderate routes are slabby (just about anywhere outside the Gunks), and slab falls flip people more often than folks think. It's happened to me a couple of times in 25 years of climbing. Wear a helmet. It ain't about rockfall.

Frankly, I think you're getting poor advice here. I've done all the routes mentioned, most of them many times, most with and without a rope. I would not drag a non-climbing spouse up the upper R skitrack and lower them. She would probably be uncomfortable on that adventure for a lot of reasons, and good way to shred a rope lowering someone over a slabby rounded summit.

I'd take a look at Lizard's Hangout: mountainproject.com/v/lizar…

It's in the sun, easy walk off/access to top, flat base. Both easy routes and slightly harder things you can toprope. This will give you about a dozen routes to play on without having to run around from crag to crag. I've done all but one or two of them, they are short but fun.

Another thing to consider is Morbid Mound. This is also sunny, easy to access the top, a stack of routes on the same crag with no need to move from place to place. Todd's site has good info, as does MP:

joshuatreeclimb.com/TopRope…
mountainproject.com/v/morbi…

Nearby the Morbid Mound is the Short Wall. Another one with a lot of climbs in one place, at a range of grades including many easy ones, in the sun, flat base, easy access to top, etc.

joshuatreeclimb.com/TopRope…
mountainproject.com/v/short…

The Eye is great, I've soloed the thing about a million times. But I don't think it would protect well for a leader (I've only soloed it, never done it on a rope). It's easy enough to walk up the backside though, if you wanted to drop a TR down it, no idea if you could slingshot TR it, it's on the longer side for JT single pitch. The Bong, same deal soloed it countless times, but the downclimb isn't to be discounted for someone that would use a rope on the Bong (4th class and not totally obvious where to go down). And while it's a good climb for the grade, it's a lot of messing about for one short route.

Will S is not wrong with some of his assessments, but I thought the OP said his wife could follow 5.6 or so. I didn't recommend anything with the understanding that she'd be lowering him from an anchor. That sounds like a hot mess. So, for example, when I recommended Upper R Ski Track, it was with the understanding that his wife would follow. She'd have to rap, but its two raps with a huge ledge midway thats big enough to wander around on. Nice summit too.

Frankly, unless you can find a route with fixed anchors up top, and there are some, though others would know more than me, you're probably better off toproping if you want to climb something your wife can't follow.

My girlfriend and I are headed to Joshua tree today. It'll be the 28th before we get there. Sounds like you and I climb on a similar level. Also she would love to have a girl around. We are always looking for climbing partners. This trip will be my girlfriends first time to do real muti pitch routes. My email is hogs09r6@live.com