Song of the Cows  5.11b

464 page views Good page?

Type:  Sport, 80 feet Consensus:  5.11b [details] FA:  Wolfe, et al (2000) Season:  not summer Submitted By:  bernard on Sep 28, 2009 You & This Route  |  Other Opinions (1) Your todo list: Your stars: Your rating: -none- [change] Your ticklist: [add new tick]

Add Photo  Add Comment    Printer View

Description 

Begin on very thin face moves on Utah desert-like sandstone. There may be subtle variations in beginning, but the location of one way has it such that if you bail off in the first few feet of painful crimping, you'll stem off a good size tree behind you. Up to delicate, fractured holds and thin plate features (don't bully these and break them) to a roof-ish portion, lateral right and into a large hole that you can fully crawl into if you wish. Spin out of the hole and using a large semi-detached sidepull/layback/hand jammable feature, pull up through a little bit more than vertical section. This big flake thing is key and has a thin portion near its top that is very helpful.

DO NOT BULLY this portion of rock and break it off. [DO NOT grip the very extreme top of this feature and torque back on it and expect it to remain.] Its been there a long time and will continue if you use correct technique with it.

Moving off the top of the flake/fin and up high to very hard to discern, small holds is a crux. Once up, do not kick the flake/fin that is below you now. Pull hard on small holds up to more small holds within a slight depression in the wall. Given luck and a good read of the holds, you can get somewhat of a rest in this spot....but its tricky. Boulder up and out of the depression on small holds, gaining a crack and associated holds on a bulge of rock up and right slightly. Tug through to more crack, horizontal slot, then up difficult, slabby moves on the bulge. Finish on a clean ledge where there are a pair of rusty cold shut anchors. You've got to stand on the ledge to get them. There can be vegetation complicating the upper portion of the route if it has not been pruned in some time.

The route is named for the sound of the livestock in the pastures below you, typically heard in the afternoon when feed is brought out.

Location 

This route is in the same location as B-52 and Full Moon. It appears vertical but is actually slightly overhanging, as are the other routes in this area.

Down to near the bottom of the old descent gully that diverges from the old approach trail that left the radio tower, before you get all the way to the bottom, shuffle around to a small landing/staging area for these climbs. Song...is distinguishable by its hole/cave 12-15 up. It will be seepy here if seasonal rainfall has been high. Often there can be a puddle in the bottom of the hole/cave.

For the sake of keeping the integrity of the fragile-seeming holds on the lower section, particularly the big sidepull feature...., might not want to climb this one if its been raining a lot.

Also take a wire brush for lichen that may have accumulated on the small holds on the upper portion of the route.

There is an old Mark Cole route immediately right of this one through steep, lichen covered rock. Some old webbing hangs on one of the bolts. There is an abandoned project to the left of the route with a fixed knifeblade about 15 feet up. There is an old Mark Cole mixed route (.11+/.12-) to the left of this....you will see old webbing strung between adjacently placed fixed pins way up high near its finish.

All of the routes here are closely spaced but judiciously so. None constitute squeeze jobs.

Protection 

fixed ( i am not terribly pleased with my bolt locations and hope to amend them, however the route is safe as it is currently )