The gate to Thompson Canyon's southern end is locked and is no longer a viable option for short and convenient access. The standard access is now via the longer, rougher Davenport Lookout/Thompson Canyon route.
New Mexico CRAG (NMCRAG) will continue to be in contact with the ranch owners and the Forest Service to see if it can resolve this issue. In the meantime, please respect the closure, spread the word and don't attempt to drive through the private ranch.
This information is a public crowdsourcing effort between the Access Fund,
and Mountain Project. You should confirm closures, restrictions, and/or related dates.
Very sunny mostly south facing cliff. Pretty secluded due to the lack of routes. Rock quality is somewhat questionable in most areas.
This wall is home to only 3 routes, from left to right
Project Child of Light - Currently the hardest route at Datil. Unknown (5.13a)
Child of Light was originally graded 5.14a by Timmy and has since been down graded to 5.13+ but I've heard it is still quite hard and it sees very few ascents. The project is rumored to be harder but I've heard that it has a bad habit of losing holds, so potential suitors tend to lose interest.
Getting There
Drive or walk up the canyon from the tower a little ways until you see the obvious steep wall on the left side of the road with a couple of nice looking black streaks.
The Classics
Mountain Project's determination of some of the classic, most popular, highest rated routes for Renaissance Wall:
This is a fairly continuous route on mostly pockets. Some loose rock to start then a steep bulge on descent holds takes you up to a blunt arete on the right side of the wall. Move up this for a ways then back left onto the face to finish. Fun powerful and pumpy climbing. Suffers from a lack of traffic and can be a bit dirty at times but it is easy to access the anchors at the top and rap in to brush it if need be. If you know the name of this route let me know and I will post it....[more]Browse More Classics in NM
By Monomaniac Administrator From: Morrison, CO Mar 9, 2009
I tried that bastard twice a year for 3 years (Child Of Light), and made zero progress. I could do every move, but I could never link more than 3 moves in the business. I guess its just not my thing. Helps to keep me humble (ya right!).
Based on your attemps, what do you think of CoL being down graded from .14a to .13c? It does not seem to me like a lot of people have done it.
By Monomaniac Administrator From: Morrison, CO Mar 9, 2009
Dale Goddard downrated it to 13d, and then Garth Miller flashed it, and that's when people started saying 13c. I think its probably more like 13d. Garth Miller has onsighted 14a, so the simple fact that he flashed it doesn't mean it can't be 13d. I know for a fact that Boone Speed spent several days on it and didn't send (see "Three Weeks & A Day").
I have a lot of difficulty trying to grade boulder problem routes. I think the YDS doesn't work very well on short cruxy climbs. As a boulder problem I would estimate V10, which I guess if I had to, I would say equates to ~13d in YDS terms. Anyway, if I were writing a guidebook, I'd call it 13d.
Its easy to fall into the trap of assuming if you can do route A, but you can't do route B, then route B must be harder. It might just be that you're relatively good at the Route A type of climbing, and/or bad at the Route B climbing style. That's certainly the case with me & CoL.
The rating variance can be amazing... for example, at Quartz Mountain in Oklahoma...I sent this overhanging boulder problem 'Munge Lunge', barely missed the flash..and the locals rate it V3+... having plenty of time at Hueco.. my hardest send there has been 'No One Here Gets out Alive' at V2... and I would propose that it's way harder than Munge... on the flip side, we did a V5 slab problem at Hueco that might get a 5.9+ or a 10+ at best were it at Quartz.
I walked up to check out the routes up here and was disgusted by CoL. I'm usually pretty measured in my opinions about how natural a climb needs to be (I am fine with taking the edge of pockets at sharp limestone crags for e.g.), but sheesh, what a f*cking abortion. The amount of manufacturing and sika on this thing is disgusting. I understand that I have no doubt climbed and enjoyed routes that have reinforced holds, and I also understand that knowing when to draw the line with hold reinforcement is a personal decision that involves a lot of grey area. That said, CoL is way past any such reasonable line. Congrats to the FA on defacing an otherwise beautiful (albeit unclimbable in its natural state) piece of stone.
Write emails to ALL of his sponsors AND tell them about all this BULLSHIT (drilling, chipping, gluing)...which by the way is STILL going on today (Bat Cave).
Maybe he will stop this shit after his sponsors bail on him?
RSS Feed
21 more...
Slideshow