Grimselstrom  5.10-

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Type:  Sport, 11 pitches, 1300 feet, Grade IV Consensus:  5.10- [details] FA:  E Mueller, T Maurer, J von Kaenel, 2000 Submitted By:  Braxtron on Aug 20, 2009 You & This Route  |  Other Opinions (1) Your todo list: Your stars: Your rating: -none- [change] Your ticklist: [add new tick]

Approaching the end of p9.

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Description 

Long, outstanding route, albeit somewhat contrived. You may or may not like this fact, as it forces you to stay on the slab, away from the most enticing features. Then again, when the average pitch length is over 100' on beautiful granite, it's hard to complain.

Pitches with grades: 4a, 5a, 5a, 4b, 5a+, 5a+, 5b, 5b, 4c, 6a, 5c. Here's a grade conversion chart: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grade_(climbing)#Free_climbing_ratings>>>

Personally, the most notable pitch was #5, which to me is a bit of a sandbag at 5a+ (5.6/7), even when compared with other "old school" routes I've done. I recall standing on a relatively good "ledge" and surveying the impending crux. 4 meters after the next bolt, one must navigate a roof using only slab moves, then ascend another meter further to reach the (sanity) bolt. I almost forgot to mention that this is all on fairly polished granite.

The crux pitch (#10) has a somewhat tricky sequence through two shallow cracks. Pitch 11 is short, with the most friction-y rock on the entire route. By now, you'll probably feel like it's 10 grit sandpaper.

Rappel down the route. 2 x 50m ropes are req'd. With 70m ropes, one is able skip some of the belay stations.

Location 

West side of the reservoir. If you're hiking south, the start is just before a concrete slab. The route name is written on the rock, near the start. Park below the reservoir, hike up and part-way around the lake. Takes 20-30 minutes.

Protection 

Nice stainless steel bolts & rap stations. The most bolts on any pitch is 11 or 12.

• 2 x 50m ropes required!