Agent Orange (with direct start)  5.11- A1

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Type:  Trad, Aid, Alpine, 3 pitches, 250 feet Consensus:  5.11- A1 [details] FA:  Ray Ringle and Herb North, Jr. Submitted By:  Geir on Jul 27, 2012 You & This Route  |  Other Opinions (1) Your todo list: Your stars: Your rating: -none- [change] Your ticklist: [add new tick]

Agent Orange Direct to Agent Orange. First two pi...

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Description 

Wonderful features, fun climbing, and a pitch great exposure characterize this old route with a new start.

Agent Orange has typically been accessed by first climbing Cheap Thrills (10-), which has a grungy slot for its first pitch that is now occupied by a tree (see beta photo).

Recently Dave Merin, Aleix Serrat-Capdevila, and I established a direct start that heads straight over a large roof to gain the terrific shallow corner on which Agent Orange starts. The description below includes this start.

Pitch 1 (75'): Start just right of Naranja. Boulder up under a small roof, place some gear and pull around it on the right side. Work up to a stance above the roof, protect in a horizontal pocket, and gain the finger crack up and to the right. Climb this to two bolts under a large roof. Aid through the roof (A1) and continue up a stellar shallow corner with a finger crack (11-). Hanging belay at the top of the finger crack.

Pitch 2 (60'): Work up and right into a hand and fist crack (11-). Make some strenuous moves until about 10' below a roof. Traverse directly left (fun 5.10) and enter a V-shaped notch to belay. Pitch 1 & 2 could be combined with some careful use of runners.

Pitch 3 (130'): From the notch move up about 10', place some gear, then make a committing move left on to a face with good holds. From here head straight up the left side of the arete to a bolt. Move to the arete and continue to a ledge with a tree. Continue up the arete another 15' to a second ledge. From here, follow the ramp left 30' and work up to the bolted anchor for Jimmy Dean. A thrilling, exposed, and challenging pitch.

Descent: Two 115' rappels down Jimmy Dean

Location 

Starts just right of Naranja. See overview photo and Squeezing the Lemmon.

Protection 

Stoppers, doubles to blue Camalot. One #4 Camalot.

Photos of Agent Orange (with direct start) Slideshow

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Aleix on the direct start	Looking down at pitch 2	Aleix on pitch 3
Looking up at pitch 3 (about halfway up)	Petzl self-drive bolt with Leeper hanger - found a...