BETA PHOTO: The Black Crack and The Gill Crack, showing the tw...
Description
To think that John Gill originally climbed this as a boulder problem in the '60s is incredible. 'The Gill Crack' lies just to the right of 'Black Crack' on the South face of Castle Rock. Bring your best tiplock crack technique! Thin tip jams with marginal feet lead up a seam for 30 feet to the anchors of 'Black Crack.' Brute force won't get you up this one, you need to be able to make the best out of some pretty thin jams.
Protection
For TR, set up 2 'draws by climbing 'The Black Crack' just to the left. Plenty of nuts are necessary to lead this one...
Consider yourself accomplished merely to get off the ground here... I TR'd this one after leading Black Crack and had a grand old time getting 8' off the ground. I wish I was as good as JG.... :_(
Brute finger (tip) force - pain is guaranteed. Feet are pretty damn bad. If it was another foot or two I simply wouldn't have made it - as it was I'm not too sure I can say that I did anyway. . . .
This is a great line and it is not the finger wrecker that everyone claims it to be. There is one painful fingerlock for the left hand, but overall, if you know how to jam, it is not any more painful than any other finger crack route. I bouldered this today, trying to live up to Gill's standards, downclimbing Black Crack after hitting the jug. I just couldn't bring myself to climbing it in boots and sans a pad. Even with technology, like sticky rubber on my shoes, Gill will always be better then me...
I agree with Jason. As far as finger cracks go, this thing really isn't painful. If you are not too accustomed to climbing fingercracks, you may feel some pain. I have particular respect for Gill for doing lines like this in the style he did.
I suggest to use a pad to get off the deck before placing gear down low. You can get a good finger lock about 15 feet up, then place a bomber piece right at your chest. It will help you not fiddle with too much gear. I think I used a #0.4 Camalot there, and then yellow TCU after that.
Definitely not a finger wrecker... I pinched my right pinky because I slotted my hand for a bomber jam, but my untaped fingers looked way better than my all-taped fingers on some S Platte crack.
There are many positive jams/locks on this route to place gear, but just remember that anything you place above your head will probably be a hold you'd want to use.
Brute force sure doesn't hurt if you are not tall. I had to show up ready for a fight to make the redpoint. Watch how that yellow TCU gets placed, it is bomber in one orientation, and can rip in another, so pay attention to it if you don't have a great belayer. Great send, tape is your friend.
Castle Rock
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