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The beautiful Unicorn belay ledge below the 2nd pi...
Description
This route climbs cracks that split the east-facing wall to the left of The Slabs feature on the right-center of the crag. Pitch 1. Start in the downward-flaring chimney just left of the start to Granite Jungle. Struggle up this chimney, turning the capping chockstone (5.8), and thrash through vegetation up a ramp to the beautiful belay ledge next the The Unicorn horn. This climb would earn four stars except for this unpleasant pitch. Pitch 2. It's obvious- step onto the top of the Unicorn, plug in a 4 Friend, and start jamming the fist-narrowing-to-hand overhanging hand crack above (5.10)- a physically demanding but beautiful pitch. This pitch ends on Froggy Bottom Ledge, where traverse is possible to several other exits, or rappels down Coke Bottle Chimney. Pitch 3. The last pitch climbs the flaring corner above, and requires skills that are the polar opposite of the pitch below. Very marginal and tricky protection is required to suss out the delicate stemming and face moves to climb past the disjunction between the two cracks in the corner (5.11a R). Protection remains micro but improves above the crux, past a new Baillie-drilled bolt, and gains the sloping ramp above the corner. A belay is possible here to reduce rope drag, or step around the corner onto another thin face move and up to the top.
Protection
A double or triple set of fist to hand-sized cams make the 2nd pitch much more comfortable. Every micro trick in the book could be useful for the 3rd pitch- RPs, HBs, small tricams, Zero 1 & 2 Wild Country cams, etc.- but be prepared to do moves above protection that may not hold!
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