Hanging Teeth  5.8

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Type:  Trad, 4 pitches, 400 feet Consensus:  5.8 [details] FA:  Jim Bridwell, Vic Tishous 1968 Submitted By:  caughtinside on May 20, 2010 You & This Route  |  Other Opinions (3) Your todo list: Your stars: Your rating: -none- [change] Your ticklist: [add new tick]

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Fifi Buttress To Close! MORE INFO >>> The following areas are closed to all visitor use to protect peregrine falcon aeries from March 1 until August 1 of each year or until the young falcons of the current year have fledged: Fifi Buttress Immediately west of Leaning Tower. Closure includes all routes on Fifi Buttress. This information is a public crowdsourcing effort between the Access Fund, and Mountain Project. You should confirm closures, restrictions, and/or related dates. Keeping climbing areas open and conserving the climbing environment

Description 

Hanging Teeth... the right most of the 5 open books. I did this route two years ago, and at the time I thought I was off route and missed the traverse on the Surprise. Hey, it's the 5 open books, you follow the book, right?

Climb up the big and mostly clean corner. In the back, there isn't a true crack, but a bottoming shallow crack with the usual grunge n' munge in the back, and it's generally too big for normal sized gear. The biggest thing I had was a #4 camalot which didn't come close to fitting anywhere on the first pitch. There isn't any weirdness back there either, where you could fiddle a good nut or sling a chockstone. Just march on up that layback, with good, positive grip on the outer edge of the crack. The first 100 feet of the climb is protected by a slung tree and a rusty 1/4" bolt.

Cruise on up to the rooflet which you lieback out right and then pull, still on layback. There is a crack right at the lip of the roof, you can reach around and place a small piece before you commit to the move, pull it, get a good look at the piece and confirm your suspicions that it was junk. A few more feet of climbing leads to the belay tree.

The following pitches are less than memorable after that first mega pitch. Whereas the first pitch is clean, aesthetic climbing with sparse gear, the following pitches conclude with some more corner liebacking before getting into some rotten and loose climbing. At least you get gear!

Top out into the typical 5 Open Books scree funnel and try not to send anything on to your second or the (nonexistent) parties below. Enjoy!

Location 

The rightmost of the 5 open books. The trail drawing in the supertopo led us astray and made me think this was The Surprise. Confirm it's the Hanging Teeth by walking right... no more open books. If you have the supertopo, it's also easy to walk left a short ways and locate the Caverns, easily distinguishable by the toothy block start below the low tree.

Protection 

A standard rack won't cut it unless you run it out. The supertopo suggests 2 5-8" pieces. However, the climbing is secure. Well, secure as a lieback ever is anyway.