By ElyseSokoloff
From Flagstaff, AZ
Jan 2, 2008
| So. Headed to Jtree next week for 5 days (woohoo!). Mike (the better climber by far) has declared himself to be my belay slave for the trip which rocks but leaves me needing help. I've always followed his lead (literally and figuratively, heh heh) and have just climbed where he's taken us. Jtree is a BIG place and I want to be smart about it and not waste our time.
I'm a very very beginning leader. I know there's a lot of 5.5-5.9 climbs out there but they are spread out. What would your approach be? Start at Roadside Rock and work our way back in? Check the weather and choose rocks according to best sun? Wander aimlessly from Lost Horse to HIdden Valley Campground and back?
Additionally ( to add to my issue) I don't want Mike to get bored. He's climbed a lot at Jtree (5.12 level) and I want him to be able to have fun too, not just scamper up in tevas what I've struggled on lead.
Thoughts? Questions? Answers? Flames? :) |  |
By 5.10b4me
From Alhambra, California
Jan 2, 2008
| I know there's a lot of 5.5-5.9 climbs out there but they are spread out. What would your approach be? Start at Roadside Rock and work our way back in? Check the weather and choose rocks according to best sun? Wander aimlessly from Lost Horse to HIdden Valley Campground and back? Additionally ( to add to my issue) I don't want Mike to get bored. He's climbed a lot at Jtree (5.12 level) and I want him to be able to have fun too, not just scamper up in tevas what I've struggled on lead. Thoughts? Questions? Answers? Flames?
:)
it can be cold this time of year so you might want the sun.
for a 5.5 to 5.9 climbs close together, you best stay at Indian Cove. | |
By susan peplow
From what day is this?
Jan 2, 2008
| ElyseSokoloff wrote: So. I know there's a lot of 5.5-5.9 climbs out there but they are spread out. What would your approach be? Start at Roadside Rock and work our way back in? Check the weather and choose rocks according to best sun?
You've got really good questions which leads me to believe that you're more prepared than most.
In your case, I'd splurge and get the Winger guidebook as it would serve you well. http://www.amazon.com/Trad-Guide-Joshua-Tree-Favorite/dp/097>>>>>
Some of the routes are completely junk (like avoid those on Mt. Grossvogel) but all-in-all the book is well thought out, has beautiful glossy photos, fair descriptions, sun orientation, etc. Best of all the routes all fall within the range you seek and it provides an easy tick list of things to do. Nice obtainable goals, I work well from lists myself!
Keep in mind that the sun is low which means that there is a lot of shade on areas that often have sun. Compare the guide with one of the Vogel guides to look for face routes in the the same grade range that is close. Thus giving you as much bang for your buck as possible. Humping around looking for the perfect route, with no crowds, the right temp, the right grade... is a hassle of the highest order.
5 days - weather permitting.... tick the whole book. That's 12 routes a day and most of the guide is set up so you can get a few routes in at each area.
Unfortunately, some of the best stuff in Rock Garden (shorter wall), Split Rock area, etc. will mostly be in the shade. Longer, moderates in full sun can be found on Lost Horse Wall.
Indian Cove is nearly 1000 ft lower in elevation than Hidden Valley and has easy access to most routes - if weather turns to muck go there.
Good luck & have a great time!
~Susan | |
By Adam Stackhouse
Administrator
From Escondido, Ca
Jan 2, 2008
| A good TR place (or lead) for you both would be Sports Challenge Rock. You can get on Clean and Jerk, then set up the Beaver for your buddy. More to come... | |
By Brian in SLC
From Salt Lake City, UT
Jan 2, 2008
| ElyseSokoloff wrote: What would your approach be? Check the weather and choose rocks according to best sun?
Yep. Chilly this time of year, and, short days.
If you arrive during the week, you might stop in and get some quick mileage at Trashcan. You can get dialed sewing up the easy crack leads, quick downclimb, do another, etc. Fun spot, super easy approach, and, horridly crowded on weekends. Also a pretty fair end of the day spot as it faces west and should be sunny. So, if you arrive in the afternoon during the week...
I'd pick spots based on the temps and wind. Indian Cove is warmer but some of the areas jammed with climbs at the grades your looking at also might be jammed with climbers. Was a TR fest last week, for instance, with very few folks actually climbing but a ton of nylon splayed out on the rock.
Hard to beat HVCG area, especially for sunny climbs. Easy to scope out for other folks and a ton of stuff to do. Echo Cove. If its not windy a trip out to Sheep Pass works. Sew up Lazy Day then let your boy do laps on the stuff to the right. Hardly a soul there the other day. Plenty of other stuff out there too, trek out to King Dome for instance.
I think the key is to just decide a location to park for the day, then take it from there. Susan's right about the Winger guidebook, especially for folks not familiar with J Tree. Really easy to negotiate especially sunny aspects and approaches, parking, etc with that guide, then fill in the blanks with the Vogel and/or Bartlett guides. And, its very easy to top out on a route where there's a harder route, right next door (usually from the same anchor or a short distance away).
Have fun!
-Brian in SLC | |
By ElyseSokoloff
From Flagstaff, AZ
Jan 2, 2008
| Adam...cool, I'll look forward to more. Although I might be more on the level of JB or JD than Clean and Jerk. heh heh
Susan...Thank you! I saw that book today actually, wasn't sure it'd be worth it. I'll be picking that up shortly.
5.10b4me...I'll look into that. Cool climbs for the husband too?
Brian...we are very lucky and only one day will we have to deal with weekend crowds (going Mon through Sat). Thank you for the specific suggestions.
I've got a good place to start but would love to hear more. Thanks, everyone for the input so far! | |
By Kevin Craig
Jan 3, 2008
| Atlantis Wall and the Shorter Wall (both in the Winger book) should have climbs of interest to you both. One climb on Atlantis that's an excellent trad 5.7 but not in the Winger book is "Minotaur." Get or borrow the new JTree West book which should have lots of climbs near the ones in the Winger book. "Diagnostics" and "Music Box" might be good climbs for you guys to swap leads on as might Planet X and Y (note that for my money, Planet X is a hugely sandbagged 5.8) but YMMV.
HVCG also has a bunch of routes in your range, but I haven't led any of them yet so I can't comment on them.
Have fun, it's an amazing place! | |
By D Winger
Jan 3, 2008
| Thanks to Susan & Brian for the plug for our book! | |
By 5.10b4me
From Alhambra, California
Jan 3, 2008
| Kevin Craig wrote: lots of climbs near the ones in the Winger book. "Diagnostics" and "Music Box" might be good climbs for you guys to swap leads on them.
Diagnostics, and Music Box are one pitch climbs | |
By Dave Smith
From Palmdale, CA
Jan 8, 2008
| D Winger wrote: Thanks to Susan & Brian for the plug for our book!
I'll throw another plug for the 60 Favorite Climbs book! The book is an outstanding guide for getting to know the park. With the thousands of climbs to chose from, my partner and I ticked away at the climbs in the book rather than wandering around trying to find climbs at our grade. Doing this I think we got more climbing in while we were new to the park instead of wandering around looking for what to get on next (and definitely found areas that we want to spend more time in on our future visits). Finally ticked off the entire book last month.
Great job Charlie and Diane! (So when can we expect your 2nd 60 favorites?) :-) | |
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