Mr. Sandman 

The route 50' left of Mr.S.. short but 3Star...Mr. S. is quite good but 5.10c? S.K.

Two stars for sure, at a minimum. In two trips to Plotinus Wall, I found myself running up this pleasing pitch each time. The line has fine , thoughtful movement on largely excellent rock that is well protected. And it gets good sun. This leads me to musing about good climbing. Sometime in the middle 80s Alan Watts crystallized the one thought that has driven much of climbing for two decades or more. He said that "difficulty is the objective" - and (arguably) that statement set the whole quest in motion. Frankly, it may be equally important to recognize that "esthetics is the objective". In most circles, esthetics and difficulty equate nearly perfectly, but esthetics also allows that some moderate climbing contains some of the most pleasing movement you can find on rock. Mr. Sandman offered up pleasing, esthetic movement in a nice environment without amping up the difficulty quotient. What more could you ask for?

I would like to add my vote of at least another star for this climb. Grade possibly 10a although given the downgrading mentality for this area, let's call it 5.8 to be on the safe side. Whatever the difficulty, certainly one of the most enjoyable moderate sport climbs in the canyon and the best warmup on the wall.

Peter, thanks for the positive comments on this route and the area. As to the grades of the routes we (Vaino and I) have sent them to Rossiter and we have taken off a letter grade or two for most of the routes. When we first climbed the routes they were extremely dirty and needed a lot of cleaning. The routes have seen more ascents and consensus (i.e. Lucid Dreaming 5.12c/d Bobsled 5.11d and Lucky Strikes seems to be holding at 12b) grades are now settling in. We take pride in the fact that regardless of the grades, most climbers really like the routes, the way they are bolted and area.

I had been up to Plotinus Wall twice before, but skipped this route because of the one-star rating. What a mistake. It was reading Richard's comments that changed my mind and he is right on. This route is destined to become one of the most popular moderate sport routes in the Canyon given the high quality of the moves and rock combined with the tranquil setting away from the highway. Regarding the rating, I thought this route had no moves harder than Animation 5.9 (aka Jaycene's Dance 5.8) at Animal World, but anyone who skips this route because of the rating is missing out.

Another vote for the quality of this route here. This is indeed an excellent route on quality rock, with moves that are surprisingly aesthetic and continuous. This is one of the finer bolted routes I've ever done, bar none. Thanks to Bob and Vaino for this line.

These days I'm more inclined to see route ratings as unique to the area as much as being strictly conforming to the YDS. I.e. "an Eldo 5.9" or "a Vedauwoo 5.9" seems to mean more, if that information is available.

That said, I think this route is "a Boulder Canyon 9+".

Pretty good line and if nothing else, nice & long. There are a lot of good 10's at the cliff so that a 5.10 climber can make this a day's destination and do good routes all day- in which case, this should be one of them.

Pretty good route, but not the best in the area. So far, Sleepless In Boulder or Lucky Strikes seemed the best at the cliff.

The route seems easy at its grade, but a 5.9 leader might be a little tweaked on it, eh?

I first did this route shortly after it had been put up, and thought Bob's grade was right on. It has cleaned up nicely, and I found holds today that I had completely missed in the grit and lichen before. It is easier now, yes, but certainly not 5.9. Sandman is harder than a typical bolted BC 10a, and for that matter, Over the Hill. I'd call it 10a/b, and do be careful getting to the first bolt.

A two star route at a three star crag.

Even funner than it looks from the ground, but nowhere near as hard as Over the Hill. Easier than Bolting for Glory, too. I vote 5.9, if a majority grade makes sense.

5.9 **

Another good climb seriously overrated. I appreciate above posts that reference rating against several other long established lines in the region. To continue that, this is easier than Hair City and West Buttress, any 5.9 on Castle Rock,... and that list could easily continue. I can't think of a lot of 5.8s that are harder around here, so in that vein I'd have to say 5.8 seems more like it. I know this is touchy ground, but keeping the rating inflation under control seems like a good idea. - Cindy

Wow! I climbed this in January 2003, and maybe it's cleaned up or something since then, but back then it seemed like solid .10b or so up near the anchors. I must be missing something, but I can't see how this could possibly be 5.8!

Charles, I concur. The move left to the anchors is similar in difficulty to the cruxes on Bolt Cola or That's Weak - the closest thing we have to "reference" 10a's in BoCan.

One move at the bottom, one at the top. Easy in between. Pleasant but nothing special. 5.9.

There are 10 bolts as of 10/9. There is one low to the ground that is not in the photo above. That may have been added recently? This first and possibly new bolt is unnecessary.

Great route. The crux for me was moving above the second bolt (what used to be the first) as the moves down low seemed a bit awkward. The rest of the route was very enjoyable.

Excellent route, but definitely easier than 5.10c.

The easiest climb at Plotinus and one of the best. It's not difficult, but the moves are esthetic and fun the whole way up. An awkward move past the second bolt seemed about 5.8. The traverse left at the last bolt looks intimidating, but seemed about 5.9 once I got into it. It could be more difficult for shorter climbers to make the reach left to good handholds, however.

A comment on quality ratings: Some people seem to find easy climbing boring and uninteresting, and give easy (or unsustained) climbs few quality stars. In my opinion, a climb with a single crux, with lots of fun easier moves, should not be downgraded in quality just because it isn't sustained at the crux level. But perhaps I enjoy easy climbing and other people don't.

Did this again a couple of weeks ago, this time on TR. Had a hard time at the bottom. There's not much for your hands, and if you're feet aren't just right, you get pushed out. Also thought the last move was pretty hard. Perhaps I just wasn't focused due to being on TR, or perhaps this is low 10 and not 9 as I said in a previous post

very nice warmup, not too bolted. Go straight at the last bolt, undercling the upside down horn and reach for the jug by the anchors, then move left. I tried it both ways, seems about the same difficulty but going straight up is more fun. down below is just balance, trust your sticky rubber.

To the AC who rated this route 5.8: Please post your name so that we can at least direct the laughter at a face.

The move left, before the anchors, is about the same difficulty as Bolting For Glory, which I've done too many times to remember - bigger handholds, but smaller feet and an awkward reach. For first-timers going up to this route, if you approach it thinking that it is 5.9, then expect it to be one of the stiffest 5.9 sport routes around. If, on the other hand, you expect it to be 10a, then you will be prepared for the move below the anchors. I think the accurate rating sits right on the fence between 9+ and 10a, depending on the day, your climbing style, position of the Moon, Sun, and stars, and brand of coffee in your cup that morning.

In any event, if this route is only 2 stars, then every other 3 star route in the canyon is a pile. This is definitely one of the best routes of its grade in Boulder Canyon. Bob and Vaino deserve major props for their contribution to the climbing community. This area is first class.