Flying Hawaiian 

People really shy away from this one. I know of solid 5.12 climbers who have not yet sent this climb. The moves aren't that hard, but they sure are intimidating.

This is without question the testpiece at the grade for Rumney. It is such a varied and well-defined line, with several cruxes that take both power and finesse and a willingness to go a little farther "out there" than on most climbs at or below the grade at this area. Flyin' Hawaiian definitely has a well-deserved aura about it.

i climbed this one for what was maybe my 5th time the other day and it is always hard and always so fun... dont worry about its scary reputation, grab a solid belayer and give it hell... as scary as it is, its safe...

so i was talking to my friend recently,(friend you know who you are) about how i never want to get on this route becuase it frankly scares the crap out of me. but he eventually persuaded me enough to take a look at it here and after looking at the pictures i am getting deffinatly pumped for the route and i really want to try it next time. essepsialy since said friend has a hancoring for danger and has begun to give me a slight hancorin for it myself. a side question though.... i heard from someone that you can make a small trad placement at one point that makes the route alot less intimidating....is this true?

Mike,

You may be able to get some very small gear in the corner but I don't think it would help the fall, you would just get smacked into the corner instead of falling down and out of it. FYI- I've never fallen on this route but the top mantle move is also one you don't want to fall on or above.

Good Luck!

thanks! i may be heading out there this sunday...so im really excited!

I might be the only one who thinks this, but I think part of the intimidation of this route is the quality of the rests. At three different points you can basically chill out and think about what is ahead, unfortunately I think you're given too much time to ponder what a fall from the dihedral or top out may be like. Personally, it'd be less intimidating to just keep on climbing through the rests. This climb is just an adventure through and through.

On a side note, the first time I got on this route I was baffled by the move from the horizontal in the dihedral to the left angling rail (is it supposed to be a lunge?) So I backed off slightly to try to rest in the corner by stemming. Well somehow I got turned around and ended up resting no-hands facing outwards. If you feel like goofing off, try and find that rest because it gave a great view and was quite exhilarating even though it was solid.

This is 1 of the best sport climbs I've ever done, anywhere, @ any grade. The aesthetic of the line, length, differing styles of the cruxes, topping out & clipping the chains between your feet all combine to form a truly unique climbing experience.