Had I not had to go uphill and out of site to use the bathroom before doing Vertigo last week, I would not have seen this beauty. D.t.D is just around the corner from Grandmother's Challenge in a shaded alcove. This climb stays shaded a long time. No one does the 2nd pitch and no one should want to do it.
Basically, start on big holds and a crack on the right side of the dihedral. This climb throws it all at you. I had fist jams, hand jams, thin hands, finger locks, side pulls, jugs, a couple of crimps, stems, feet in the crack and feet on small edges (don't worry, if I forgot something, this pitch probably has it). The other really nice thing about this route is that it is fairly sustained and stays interesting. The climb is nice and steep, especially the first section, and it may even stay dry in the rain. If you can't tell by now, I enjoyed the heck out of this climb.
Protection
The first pitch is about 140 ft. long and has chain anchors. I placed a #4 Camalot near the top for added comfort. Otherwise, bring a standard rack.
this is a spectacular climb, and quite long a sustained for the grade, but don't let this scare you. there are several excellent rests and the gear is incredible (many medium nuts camalots .5 to 3), just be sure to bring enough if you don't feel comfortable running it out. to get off i lowered to a height about 20' above the ground with a 60m rope, and then did some very easy downclimbing to the ground.
I find this route to be pretty stout for the grade especially because it used to be called 5.9! I would caution anyone who picks this as their first 5.10 in Eldo even though the gear is very good, the crux is thin!!!...Excellent route though, and totaly overlooked. This is a good alternative to other crowded routes in the area. Top o' the li
One can climb up and left on bad rock from the anchor at about 5.6R to access Green Slab Direct. Helmets and a belayer who is ready to sprint out of the way of the oncoming rockslide are a must. I seem to remember doing this in one 60m pitch from the ground. The climbing is way-jingus but it goes.
There is also a DIRECT FINISH to this that gets you to the tree. It's obvious, about .10+, and was a real favorite of Derek's. Don't let that last fact dissuade you though, it's well worth doing. Double ropes let you lead it all with no drag and make for an great rap back down.
Excelet Climb!!! Many short cruxes with rest in between them all. If it feel hard you are not milking all the rests. Take 2x2, 2 x 3 , 3.5, 4. It looks small from the ground but if get quite wide in places.
Keep in mind that you need two ropes to get down (unless you have a 70m rope). Summer '02 there was an accident here and I know someone that also let the end of the rope slip through the belay device and caught it with one had. Yikes!
Definitely a quality route, consistent for its grade. However, going slightly left at the start, rather than getting right into the big crack is recommended as it is the HANTA VIRUS HIGHWAY. Serious amounts of animal poop in there....
By Guy Humphrey From: Fort Collins CO Jun 22, 2003
I did his climb for the first time yesterday. It is indeed a must do for the grade. Next time, I would leave the large cams on the ground. Bring two #1, #2, and #3 camolats. A single 30M rap works well, with a short low fifth class down climb.
Caution: people have been dropped when toproping the route, with tragic results. If you are going to toprope, DEFINITELY tie a knot in the end of the belayer's rope, even with a 60m.Even then, downclimbing is required, and some scrambling by the belayer.
Excellent route. You will use all your climbing skills. Great pro. Crux in middle is thin. This is the perfect rain climb. We took our time and climbed dry through a good rain for 45 minutes.Climber and belayer stayed dry. It wasn't windy but just a steady rain.
Great route, a number of challenges and good pro before each. I found a #3 and a #3.5 Camalot very useful down low after the initial transition into the corner.
I've seen this one several times coming down the trail after doing other climbs and have always been intimidated. However, I rapped off the tree after finishing Grandmother's Challenge the other day and gave it a go. I am just getting into 10a Eldo leads and I found this one to be really fun and reasonable, albeit long. The gear is generally very secure and almost all moves are followed by good rests. Highly [recommended].
Redgarden - Lumpe to the top
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