Second Grotto Wall  Photos:  Recent | Best | Popular Page Views:  1,127. Good page?    Administrators:  Alvaro Arnal, Ben Mottinger, Leo Paik, John McNamee, Frances Fierst, Monomaniac, Tom Erickson Submitted By:  Richard M. Wright on Jul 16, 2003 Make this area a Favorite What's New   Print a Mini-Guide with routes Add Route  Add Photo  Add Comment  Add Event

Olaf Mitchell seconding Mind Parasite 5.11 Photo B...

Description 

The Second Grotto Wall is the obvious bulk just uphill from Lower Grotto Wall and is characterized by a huge plaque on the upper left side of the crag. Take the faint trail and bushwhack to LGW. Then hump left around and up to SGW. The right side of the crag holds half a dozen long, high quality sport routes. Most take double ropes to rap to the ground as they are 140 to 150 ft long. Major attraction on the right ascend the blackish rock and include the classics The Zebra and Might as Well Jump. There is not a lot of warm-up sport-wise, but some moderate trad exists on the left side of the crag. Overall, this is a terrific crag with good sun, a nice setting, and enough hump (20 minutes) to keep the crowds down.

Getting There 

Use Matt's directions for the Lower Grotto Wall if you are coming from Aspen. If you are coming in from Denver/Boulder, it is probably much more direct to take US 285 to Johnson's Corner and then take Colo 24 North to Twin Lakes and the fork on to Colo 82. Travel West on CO 82 to the top of the pass, and set the odometer to zero from the West end of the tourist parking lot. This is also the parking for the Instant Karma cliff. Exactly 9.6 miles West of the Independence Pass parking, and on the left side of the road, is the parking for Grotto walls and adjacent cliffs. The cliff are largely on the North side of the road and just a heart-beat outside of the Hunter-Fryingpan Wilderness - with all of its restrictions.

The Classics

Featured Route For Second Grotto Wall

Plaque Right 5.9  CO : Independence Pass : ... : Second Grotto Wall

Persevere past the intimidating start to easier very fun and exposed climbing to the top. This route climbs the right edge of the Plaque at the right side of Second Grotto Wall. The crux start through the A-shaped overhang is protected by 2 pins well backed up with cams. Strenuous move on hand jams and big holds swing you out left onto the face. Follow the arête, sometimes right on the arête and sometimes just left, to the top past 3 more pins. There are a couple of mildly runout sections, but t...[more]   Browse More Classics in CO