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Here are some obvious lines around the top of <a href='/v/new_mexico/albuquerque_area_climbing/sandia_mountains/106351352'>Standard S Route</a>.  Anyone know anything about them:  difficulty, rock quality, pro, etc.?<br /><br />Based on Hill's guide and the <a href='/v/new_mexico/albuquerque_area_climbing/sandia_mountains/106351352'>Standard S Route</a> page, 'U' seems to be the typical finish of <a href='/v/new_mexico/albuquerque_area_climbing/sandia_mountains/106351352'>Standard S Route</a> but I could be wrong.  <br /><br /><a href='/u/mtnrobb/106272107'>mtnrobb</a> posted a related question on the <a href='/v/new_mexico/albuquerque_area_climbing/sandia_mountains/106351352'>Standard S Route</a> page.

Id# 106359177,  Dimensions: 845 x 869 - View full size

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By Marc Beverly
From: New Mexico
Feb 16, 2009

The "Standard S" Route could have as well been called "Smorgasbord." It's an old alpine style mix-and-match.

By Chris Wenker
From: Santa Fe
Mar 2, 2009

We finished up the couloir marked "T" in this photo. It's about 30-50 feet wide, so you could go up either the right or left sides; we went up the dihedral on the right. It's about 275 feet long, with some OK belay ledges about 175 feet up. The first pitch has great rock, great pro, and goes at about 5.7. The last 100 feet had some iffy-looking stacked rocks in the dihedral that I didn't even want to touch, so pro was a little less good, but climbed at about 5.6.

Just as we were starting the exit pitches, we met a soloist who was going toward the standard (?) exit ("U"). He said he had previously been up the left side of this "T" couloir, and described it as "garbage." And the left did look a little less solid than the right side, so take that for what it's worth.

By Paul Davidson
Mar 2, 2009

I'm willing to bet that that soloist was once upon a time a quite famous boulderer.

By Bill Lawry
From: New Mexico
Mar 2, 2009

A veteran climber who climbed the Knife Edge on our day indicated that the 'T' finish was the only way he had ever finished the Standard S Route. But his last time was too distant to recall details. Thanks for posting current beta, Chris.

'U' Line: It starts just before the couloir tops out, at a pair of trees which are each one+ foot in dia. The tree lower in the couloir has a short horizontal trunk before going ~vertical and is dead; the higher tree is all vertical and alive. The pitch is around 150 feet long and ~5.6. Rock quality is very good until maybe 50 feet from the top. At that point we veered somewhat left and slung a tree before easy scrambling over loose blocks.

By Bill Lawry
From: New Mexico
Aug 23, 2009

'T' Line: I agree with Chris that the first pitch of "T" has great climbing at about 5.7 at a kind of bulge. There's a nice belay ledge right at 30 meters. As indicated by Chris, the stacked blocks mid-way on P2 are scarey especially if another party were actively climbing below!

An alternative to P2 of "T": At the nice belay ledge at 30 meters, cut directly left on small convenient steps and run-out moderately-easy terrain to a dirty ledge. Head up along the obvious crack into a low 5th class gully full or rocks and dirt. Don't let the rock and dirt of this pitch dissuade you as there is some fun climbing in working to stay on solid rock to the top.

By Chris Wenker
From: Santa Fe
Sep 14, 2009

"X" would appear to be the penultimate dihedral on Kline's and Hill's "Route 6," approached by traversing in on the ledge from the right. Although I have not been up there to climb it.




Photo 3 of 4

Here are some obvious lines around the top of Standard S Route. Anyone know anything about them: difficulty, rock quality, pro, etc.?

Based on Hill's guide and the Standard S Route page, 'U' seems to be the typical finish of Standard S Route but I could be wrong.

mtnrobb posted a related question on the Standard S Route page.



Submitted By: Bill Lawry on Feb 16, 2009

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