Calm Before the Storm  5.10a

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Type:  Trad, 140 feet Consensus:  5.10a [details] FA:  Trevor Bowman and Ian Cavanaugh 7/10/10 New Route:  Yes Submitted By:  Trevor Bowman on Aug 3, 2010 You & This Route  |  Other Opinions (3) Your todo list: Your stars: Your rating: -none- [change] Your ticklist: [add new tick]

Pulling onto the upper headwall on the FA.

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Description 

Another surprisingly good line on the quality stone on north face of the buttress! This one doesn't look like much from the ground, but climbs quite well and very moderate for the most part. Done on-sight, ground-up just before some nasty summer t-storms blasted the canyon...

Start about 15' left and uphill from the start for the classic Farewell to Arms, just left of a blocky chimney/slot system. Start up a fingercrack on the left margin of this slot, with ample blocky jugs, cut left up the crack about 20' up into more finger/hand cracks on good gray rock, pull discretely through the blocky middle section (which looks loose and jumbled from below, but is actually pretty solid and juggy),from the horizontal crack above the blocky section pull right over the small bulge, and jog back left a bit and up the obivous flared seam system splitting the clean, dark upper headwall. Most of this route is 5.8ish, with the crux being the final crimpy bit up the seam to the top of the rib (one could bail right or left before the final crux if so inclined). The rock through the upper headwall is the splendid, featured dark stone that makes this wall so cool; like the other lines on the wall, this headwall protects far better than it looks from the ground!

This is the only line on the buttress that tops out on the true upper rib, the others all end on the first step, and require a 20' 5.5 scramble to the actual top-out. The anchor requires some ingenuity...

Location 

On the north face of the buttress, about 15' uphill and left of the start of Farewell to Arms.

Protection 

2X cams to #2 BD, 1 #3 BD, extra small sizes TCUs, stoppers, extended slings, cordalette for anchor. Walk off either side of the buttress.

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