Easy to find - look for the cold shuts. Follow the shuts mostly straight up to the chains, with occasional detours (mostly to the right) to find the best holds. If you have read the description in the guidebook, you can tell this route has seen a lot of controversy. It intersects another less direct route (Of Mice and Men), which led to it being chopped shortly after it was put up. In the guidebook, it is listed as "Gripes of Wrath", but that is NOT its name. Climb them both and make up your own mind.
both still worth doing but...of mice and men is no longer the same( you can clip a bolt on "gripes" or whatever, I never got to climb it before Gripes either) so climbing them and considering them individually is sortof impossible now casue they cross!....I can see how the FA of Mice and men would be in a chopping mood... I understand the controversy... Gripes has a couple of fun blancy moves on it though....which I did enjoy...and of mice and men would have been tougher without having the option of cliping a bolt if you felt like it.
By Forest Hill From: Denver, CO Aug 2, 2004 rating: 5.10c
Ben may have been firmly in the wrong to have bolted over another route in putting this route up (crossing it multiple times!)
But since it's there, this is truly a very very fun route. Did it twice yesterday, tending to get sidetracked more onto Mice & Men while leading, and then top-roped firmly on Grips. Both lines are great great fun.
By James DeRoussel Administrator From: Tucson, AZ Jun 22, 2008
This is a well-known example of what happens when someone puts up new routes with disregard for history and ethics. That said, it is also a really fun climb.
This isn't a "both routes" scenario. The reason that this climb appears to be fun is that it's on excellent rock and has cool climbing - but it was a line that had already been done on gear.
This route should not have been put up in the first place, and it's a shame that it was rebolted with those stupid 1/2" spikes and cold shuts.
It's sad that such an excellent climb (of Mice and Men) has lost most of its flavor because ben felt the need to bolt a route right through it.
you've got balls, man. i agree that existing trad lines should not be bolted. it's probably better to talk to folks before chopping, though ... people like to be involved in those kinds of decisions, and at the very least, it makes it more likely the chopped bolts will stay out. :)
i'll try the line you're describing on gear some time (and maybe crap myself!)
This route has been here long enough for many too enjoy over the years, so removing its existence now would be kinda stupid. I'd bet a poll would lean towards leaving it alone. If a route crosses a trad route as this one does it should have been removed a long time ago.
Best of my knowledge 'Scott' never used Buttonhead Spikes! Also most folks I spoke with don't have very accurate info about the history of this place.If anyone has the most accurate info about the history of FA's here its Scott.
Just for the record, Ben added the bolts with Karl's okay. Unfortunately Karl may not have realized what his agreement did to a bit of a testpiece at the grade.
As far as Rickd's statement JF I think he was talking about the 5.8 to the right which according to SA was soloed by Mike Argueso before Eden Masters and SA did the bolt job.
I deleted my comment, it makes no sense any longer. I now know what I must do...work on my putting skills! You thought I was going to say something else, eh Geir?
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