| Upper Bulge Routes |
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The Step 5.10a
| 1,387 page views Good page?  |
| Type: | Trad, 3 pitches, 600 feet |
| Consensus: | 5.10a [details] |
| FA: | Royal Robbins, Jerry Gallwas 1957, FFA: RR, Tm Herbert |
| Submitted By: | mschlocker on May 17, 2009 |
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Looking up pitch 1 of The Step. The crux is the r...
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Description A nice route off the left side of the FBT ledge. P1: The easiest pitch. Cruise up nice cracks up to below the small roof. P2: The crux. Pull the roof. Here you will learn all about the route's namesake. Well protected but hard. Continue up more entertaining climbing. P3: Head up a lieback flake and finish up Super Pooper or head left to finish on White Maiden's. This is how the pitches are in the guide but you could probably do it in 2.
Location Off the left side of the FBT ledge.
Protection Everything to 3 or 4".
Alexis following the 2nd pitch of "The Step"
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By x15x15 Jul 5, 2009
| I think combining pitches 1 and 2 is the way to go. It is much more comfortable for the belayer. Belaying below the roof is unnecessary. Plus, do Standup Flake as the approach and you add another star to an already great climb. |
By Jack Ziegler From: USA May 30, 2010
| probably want a number 4 or two for pitch 3, unless your are comfortable running it out a bit on laybacking there is an hard/akward mantel on the 2nd pitch to get to the belay, that i thought was harder than the roof. the roof is fun though |
By Chris Owen Administrator From: La Crescenta and Big Bear Lake Mar 3, 2011 rating: 5.10a
| I think "The Step" is actually on the third pitch, a foot long platform past the undercling traverse? That's how I seem to remember it anyway. |
By Murf Jul 24, 2011
| One of the few moderates I haven't repeated until lately. The pitches given in the guide make little sense, the P1 belay would be very short (as noted in the top in the previous guide but redacted out of the current). I would pitch it as follows: P0: Standup Flake: As noted above a quality approach to the FBT, you will likely move the belay from the tree to below the first pitch. Lots of loose rock, this ledge is like a gold medal trundle run. P1: From a fairly comfortable belay, climb up to the roof (5.8+). The rock at the roof proper is fractured but there's good gear just above. Pull the namesake and continue up move easier climbing until another short headwall. Another sequence of harder climbing is found, and on the ledge just after, it may seem like a good belay (especially if you've keep a few bigger pieces), but move 15' higher for a better belay. P2: Climb the wide lay backs above until a nice belay is found. A larger piece comes in handy here, but the climbing never gets too hard. From a ledge with a mountain mahogany, you can go either left (one the WM Finishes) or right. It is a short pitch to the top, but the rope drag would be painful, so perhaps hand a few pieces to your follower as he blasts past you to the top for a short 3rd pitch. Good climbing that doesn't get done a ton. You'll likely consider it hard for the 5.10a grade. But you can make anything hard right? |
By JaredVagy From: Santa Monica, Ca Jul 28, 2011
| Beta Tip: Try not to place cams overhead too far on the roof (like I did) or else you will rob yourself of a crucial hand jam. |
By Richard Shore Sep 30, 2011
| Linked 1 and 2 as suggested, then fired a full 60m pitch all the way to the summit via Super Pooper. Rope drag was HEINOUS on the last pitch, even with long slings on all pro. I had to pull up 20 feet of slack using both hands to finish the last short 5.7 slab section. Great route, but take my advice and break up the last 60m into two pitches. At 5.10a, this is a one-move wonder. Above the roof, the awkward mantle mentioned above is probably only 5.9, and the rest of the climb checks in around 5.8. Good for someone breaking into the grade, as the crux is well protected. |
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