Simian's Way  5.11a

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Type:  Trad, 3 pitches, 400 feet Consensus:  5.11- [details] FA:  FFA Steve Wunsch et al. Submitted By:  Anonymous Coward on Oct 20, 2002 You & This Route  |  Other Opinions (9) Your todo list: Your stars: Your rating: -none- [change] Your ticklist: [add new tick]

Luke is just below the bulge.

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Closed for raptor nesting from February 1 through July 31 each year. MORE INFO >>> Mickey Mouse wall is generally closed for raptor nesting from February 1 through July 31. Details This information is a public crowdsourcing effort between the Access Fund, and Mountain Project. You should confirm closures, restrictions, and/or related dates. Keeping climbing areas open and conserving the climbing environment Private Property issues MORE INFO >>> The West Bank / Wild West / Secret Crag has been problematic for years due to access concerns. There have been negative encounters with gun-toting landowners who have alleged that the entire mountain is on private property. Typical approaches involve brief crossing of railroad property which appears to be prohibited. Exact demarcation of property boundaries are not always clear. When in doubt, be discrete or polite. Do not park your vehicle near the railroad tracks near Plainview. It is a well-known irritant to Plainview residents. This information is a public crowdsourcing effort between the Access Fund, and Mountain Project. You should confirm closures, restrictions, and/or related dates. Keeping climbing areas open and conserving the climbing environment

Description 

Begin about 50 ft. uphill from the obvious Green Dihedral below the first pitch splitter finger crack. With a 60m rope you can probably do this in two pitches if you set the first belay fairly high.

P1 Climb a steep juggy face for about 15ft, climb around a short flake and onto a good stance at the base of an awesome looking finger crack. Climb the crack with great gear and even better jams. Stop at the fixed slings if only doing this pitch. If continuing on, make a rising traverse left into a right facing dihedral and belay below a steep broken section directly below the offwidth. This is a definite 3-star pitch. 5.9+

P2 Climb through a steep chossy section with great holds so long as they stay put. Pull over a deceptively tricky bulge and crawl on in the slightly overhung flaring crack. When I did this there was a fixed hex + nut equalized with some rap rings at the crux bulge of the offwidth. The crux may be in manuvering around these pieces, but they do give piece of mind. After the bulge, the crack pinches down from flaring offwidth to flaring fingertips. Bring a purple Metolius. Pull one final bulge with some more trickery, and continue up much easier ground (some 5.8, lots of bird shit) until reaching a suitable belay stance. I stopped about 40 ft shy of scrambling at the top. 5.11a

P3 Climb a short pitch up a right facing dihedral and trend up and left towards the saddle once on easy ground. 5.8

To descend, scramble around the back of the tower towards the fixed rap stations. Route finding is a little tricky. By staying low, we found a rap station off of a questionable tree that led to a walkable gully below the fixed stations.

Protection 

Up to a #3.5 Camalot for the offwidth, optional #4 below it. Fixed anchors on top of the stellar first pitch.

Photos of Simian's Way Slideshow

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BETA PHOTO	Moving through the bulge. There are a few hand jam...	Above the bulge the climbing eases off to maybe 7 ...
Mike Keegan on Simian's Way, great first pitch, a ...