It begins on a bushy ledge at the base of a large chimney just right and uphill from Group Therapy.
(P1) Climb the chimney until reaching a ledge at about 135'.There will probably be rap slings at this point(5.7+). Belay here and wonder why there are rap slings.
(P2) The next lead is more than just interesting. I was able to place two marginal pieces of pro here to protect myself stemming the chimney to the jam above; one pulled; I doubt the other would have held a fall. A fall here would result in a bounce off the ledge then a plunge into the dark pit below 30'(5.9). On the ledge above the jam, there will again be rap slings. By this time, some parties will be late; some will be freaked out; and some will have lost all faith in the guide .
(P3 through P5) continue up the chimney/crack system to the top max 5.7.
Descent: go southwest to the gully and down. There will be one rap. The problems with this route are known to the climbing rangers at RR. The route description in the guide could be a misprint as per rating, pro difficulty and length; but I doubt it. The second pitch is deadly without a bolt.
Second pitch is seriously dangerous. No way to protect and a horrible landing. There were still bail pro, slings and biners at the top of P1 as of May 2004.
I shouln't have rated this route 5.7 when I entered it in the data base. I followed the guide rating which was an error. The second pitch is 5.9 pg13 vs. Some might justifiably call it X. A bolt should be placed to protect it.
Guys, that is not 5.9 and it's not unprotected. Take a bro, slap it in the perfect slot and you're bomber through the 5.7+ chimney section. After that, it's easy (albeit runout) climbing to belay. The trick is to go straight up about 10' before the crack in the back of the pod at the first belay- there's a perfect little lip that takes a green or blue (cant remember which) bro perfectly.
Spooky, yes, but not that hard. It's called Healy's Haunted House for a reason!
Oh, and before i forget- no bolts should be added to that route!
By J. Thompson From: denver, co May 29, 2005 rating: 5.7+
This route is OK, not good per se' but not bad either. The second pitch is definitely runout, but I'm sure it could be protected with a big bro as John mentioned. Please do not add a bolt; if you can't do the climb without a bolt then go climb one of the better routes at the grade in RR....josh
Hmmm, a buddy and I went up here the other day. We meant to climb Group Therapy but didn't bring a guide book and it sounds like we actually climbed this route instead. The second pitch had some kind of tricky chimneying right off the belay however there was a new looking bolt a little ways up. So either someone added a bolt or I have no clue what we actually did.
I did this route with my good friend Benoit Pin "the French Secret Weapon" about a year and a half ago-it was our second route on the wall, and I still think the most difficult I've done in the area. There was a bolt a few feet above the first belay. I've skipped bolts all over when they're surplus to requirements-this one, I was happy about. Chimneys aren't my strong suit, though-longtime locals would probably cruise that section in rollerskates. Felt stiff for 5.7 but definitely reasonable climbing in any case.
By John Hegyes From: Las Vegas, NV Apr 22, 2009 rating: 5.7
It's sad that Woody Stark didn't enjoy this route because I had a lot of fun on Healy's Haunted House today. The 5.7 rating is accurate considering that the route was first climbed by Herbst and company in 1974. Maybe the climb is a little stiff at 5.7 in this day and age.
There is indeed a new bolt protecting the former runout section at the start of p2. I was disappointed to see that. We brought a green #3 Big Bro which protected this section perfectly. The bolt is not needed so I didn't clip it...
This is such a great climb. Pitch 1 especially is not to be missed. Also, the route features three cool overhangs.
Standard rack plus we brought single Camalot #4 and #5 plus the green Big Bro.
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