Illusion Dweller 

All-in-all a very nice line which eats gear and is no threat to a compitent leader.

Each one of the several cruxes is well protected, mostly by medium-sized stoppers. Each crux has a nice rest afterwards as well, to keep someone pressing the grade from getting too pumped.

advice for anyone who happens to poop there pants on the first 15 feet like myself...after you get to the first good hold teh difficulty significantly eases as your jams and feet become more secure. there are many, many good rests to place gear and the roof "crux" at the end has nice, gym-like holds. for me, the hardest parts were the begining and some insecure jams a litte more than midway up the wall. the flake left of the first jug 15 feet up is really lose and expands.

Great gear all the way up. The first 15' section is technical requiring good body english. I could not just power through it. Though stiff, I would call this first section 5.9. The crack angles right so I was constantly looking for good right footholds and smeared a few times for the lack thereof. Rack: I used a double set of cams from .5" - 3". Tri cams at the belay and a two bolt rap station exists at the ledge. Overall, a stellar must do route that has great pro. If you decide to top rope this route, use a trad anchor over the exit crack rather than the rap bolts. You will have to climb down 5' lower from the ledge to get to a nice horizontal crack where you can build an anchor. That way, when you pull the exit move over the roof, you won't run the risk of a short pendulum to the left where the bolted anchor is. Use good extension to avoid rope wear.

The actual FA: was Cox, Lennard and Steve Emerson (not Gary Ayres). Also Kandy Kolored Tangerine Flake Streamlined Baby is the actual name given by the FA team. Tobin Sorenson and Jim Wilson made a second "first ascent" in 1974 (adding a bolt-which has long ago disappeared) and called thier supposed new route Illusion Dweller. Sorenson and Wilson were credited with the FA for a while, and the name stuck even after the FA info was (incorrectly) corrected.

It seems sort of wierd to proposed this, but perhaps I should correct the name in the new guide, giving an "aka Illusion Dweller." Not sure how that would go over with people after nearly 30 years, but as time goes on, it becomes likely this will never be corrected.

Poll anyone?????

Yes, I am all for renaming the route. Hey, how about "Monkey on my Back" instead of "Figures on a Landscape?"....while we are at it!!!

"Tangerine Dweller"?

Keep the name Illusion Dweller as that's how it's been known for so long but mention the original name as well.

There are many routes in Josh with multiple names (some are well known and some are not) - Heart Of Darkness (aka I'm Gassed) Stand And Deliver (aka Spanish Bombs) For Peter (aka Crystal City Underground) Riddles In The Dark (aka OK Crank) Total Generic Package (aka Mr. Swing) Chocolate Chips (aka Omaha Beach) Coarse And Buggy (aka Left Out) Equinox (aka Et Tu) Dehab Clinic (aka Lee's Health Studio) Fatty Winds His Neck Out (aka Locals Only) Mama Woolsey (Effigy) Wonderful World Of Art (aka The Gerbilator) Buttered Croissant (aka Dummy's Triangle and Chongo Bolt Route) Dynamic Panic (aka East Xing Direct) Bolt Heaven (aka Dry Cleaning) Adams Family (aka Get Right Or Get Left) The Mojus (aka Slushie) Pinched Rib (aka Snake Dike and Death Dike)

and even some formations - The Old Woman (aka North Fourth) The Negropolis (aka The Naygropolis)

There's more but you get the idea.

I feel the first few moves are by far the hardest on this route. Getting off the ground is not obvious, nor easy. I think these moves are way too bouldery to be called "5.9"; the supposed crux at the roof, although definitely 5.10, is no where near as hard as the start--just exposed. Don't be deterred by those first moves.

Kandy Kolored Tangerine Flake Streamlined Baby, all the way, its a great name for a great climb.

This route deserves all five of its stars. The first 15 feet is not all that hard if you're a good crack climber. If you're not a good crack climber it's a nightmare. I've watched a lot of climbers on this route, and no one seems to climb it the same way. The final 10b boulder move at the top regularly spits out leaders, probably because they're pretty tired.

I climbed it today for the first time. There was quite a bit of rubber slime on the first fifteen feet which didn't help. All in all a fine route. I popped a couple of times at the top due to hand and arm fatigue. Small tri-cams in the crux-crack are bombers.

Hey this climb's so well known as "Illusion Dweller" that there's a beer named after it (OK it's just a brew pub in Boulder, but they do have an "Illusion Dweller IPA", but it's stated on the menu that it's named after a climb). Anyway, I say keep this name, it's way easier to say. Do you really want to tell people you did "Kandy Koated blah blah blah Baby" today (see I already forgot it). Illusion Dweller sounds pretty cool.

I too thought the start was a little stiff. 10a maybe, and you have to climb a bit to get pro. When I grabbed the loose flake left of the crack on the start "ooh...that's hollow!" The fool in the gallery watching me dropped the brilliant comment, "if it blows you can take it home as a souvenir" No if it blows, i'll deck and wing it at you on my way bubs.

Interesting climb. We did it to some degree today. I had no problem doing any of it but the crux at the top. Upon going for the shit (On lead of course) I felt the fall coming and instead of trusting my placements and belayer, upon falling I grabed at some part of the rock and lost a nice chunk of my fingertip and abraded heavily most of the others. Should have just let go. With loads of blood dripping, fingertips shot, I'd venture to say the hardest move for me was the one I did at home on the toilet after our "MINI EPIC"............and it for sure was a 5.10bm..............

locker buddy: how can you rate the route if you didn't do the crux... hummmmm???!!!

Gnat, it is 5.10b. I say that confidently. It is a long story. But I had the move the first try............then something beyond my control occured.........then I got injured and had to be lowered. The whole thing was really something. I would like to say that if any of you reading this was the party opposite us on Run for your life, thanks for the encouraging words and I hope you found it at least pretty entertaining.........and to bump the story up a notch.............all of what took place lasted well over four hours and more like five....it really was a mess and was really funny......no way to put it in words other than...........I'm glad it is over now to go back and do it clean.........................oh and it's nice to be alive....................

Did anyone else think this roof ("crux" at 10a/b) was much easier than the roof on RollerBall, whose 10b crux is supposed to be the lower technical section?

Great route, very popular. We found some trash at the bottom of the route...

I agree that Rollerball is much harder than Illusion Dweller. I also think that Rollerball is harder than Clean and Jerk, but YMMV...

I was stressing about the crux as I jammed the long way up to the 10b finish and was relieved to find that the hardest work was everything before it.

Great pitch almost as good as the Split Pillar at Squamish. Finger sized gear at the finish. I tried to clean it on rappel and with some contortions got all but a 20 year old blue Metolius tricam. Hope someone who reads about it here gets it :)

the first 15 feet was the mental crux for me. a very nice right angling line in a beautiful area warrants a definite three star classic.

A little mind game here, something I've wondered about with other routes as well; If the crux overhang were the first move, when one was fresh, instead of the last, would this route be easier?

The roof crux wasn't bad at all. Definitely would be a lower grade if it was at the start of the climb. However, because of all the climbing before, it did warrent a hang for a second. Commit to lay it back and power through it. I think I found myself leaning left up the majority of the climb even though the crack leans right. Awkward huh.
Don't try to lower off the bolts and have a second clean. You'll be about 10 feet off the ground if you're using a 60 meter.

This is one of my favorite J-Tree climbs. I have it pretty much wired by now, but the crux for me was always in the lower middle section. I never thought the start was that tough, and the "crux" finish is only the crux because of fatigue.

Led the route for the first time today. Haven't been on it in at least 5 years. I remembered the leaning crack being difficult so I was all psyched up for that. Figured the upper section would be easy as it's a lieback. Turns out after I completely sewed up the lower section (16 pieces was the final count) I must have run out of steam and ended up hanging at the top. I suck and nerves got the better of me. I'll be back and post my progress. Less gear & no hangs.

~Susan

If you are tall, the roof will feel easy compared to the rest of the route. It felt like Gunks 5.8+.

One of the best 5.10 cracks that I have done.

The first part felt really hard and sandbagged the middle was kind of boring but the roof was classic.

What can I say very very classic route. The gear is good the whole way. The crux at the top was commiting, but your well protected with gear below. It was my goal to lead this for a long time. When i finally did. I had a blast! I sent it clean styled the moves all the way to the top. When it was all over and rapped to the ground. I saw this beautiful woman standing there watching me. Well four months later we returned to the base of Illusion Dweller. I asked her to marry me. Eight months later we got married under the oak tree at Live oak picnic area October 7th 2006