BETA PHOTO: Routes on the left side of the south face of Surpr...
Description
The Fix climbs on the right on the same wall as Killer Fish Taco on the South Face of Surprising Crag. The fix hauls over a small roof at 20 ft. Overall I found this to be an enjoyable moderate on largely very nice granite. However, and here we go again with the big "however", I will ask the question whether the pocket in the middle of the face is natural. When I sank my fingers into a sinker pocket on granite, I almost choked. For my own ascent, I simply backed down to the very natural horrizontal seam and made the longer reach to a system of jugs, not a hard move. If the pocket has been manufactured, and I honestly could not be sure, then it seems quite meaningless. If it is natural, then it is a highly unusual pocket for Boulder Canyon granite. This was a fun route with good moves and good continuity, so it would be a shame if had been drilled.
If you are correct, Alan, and I don't doubt that you are, then the chipping/drilling really is more than foaming at the mouth. The upper pocket is clearly unnecessary - the jugs can be reached easily from the thin seam (was it chipped?). If the hand traverse over the roof has been chipped then that also seems unnecessary since it will go with a short dodge to the left. Now in the case we are talking about, the chipping/drilling entails hacking a line down to 10+ where all of the chipping/drilling was utterly unnecessary. If this riles the climbing community in general, then this is not surprising, and I will side with the principle of solving nature's problems as they come to us - clean as a whistle. Isn't that our job?
I'd say 11a if you go directly over the roof, a little less if you move to the right, then hand traverse back left. I don't think I've ever seen such perfect holds in granite.
South Face
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