Now I've climbed plenty of stupid choss in my life, and this one? Let's just say, it is a contender! Are you warming up for Fisher Towers? Why else come to the creek to climb dirt?
Start off on an ultra-thin corner with a thin crack (Lowe balls) and a skinny tower to the right. step off the tower when it is reduced to a stack of wobbling toaster-oven sized blocks and commit to a finger-tips lieback on a thin flake of soft rock with questionable small- cam placements to go up to a better stance. Start groveling up the inconsistent crack in a broken-looking notch/corner. This is followed through some poor jams in some dry-mud-caked rock with flares and poor gear. Continue past a small roof on bad jams in dirt with slick (dusty) feet on nothing. Don't fall when the few remaining footholds break off from under you. Finally, place a #4 camalot and pull into a right-facing corner up top where good rock and good gear take you up the only 40' of rock in 110' worth climbing.
The last poor fool to do this route about Met Jesus on his way down! The anchors when I arrived were terrible. A 1/2-cut 1" sling on a single bolt and a 9/16" sling on pinched behind a washer (no hanger) on an angled bolt. The 9/16" was burned more than 1/2 way through by someone lowering after threading it and was melted and burned black on the remaining amount (perhaps 3/16"). It was so crispy that it had to be cut from behind the washer to get it off. Both slings were bleached completely white.
The washer was spaced perfectly to pop in some 8mm cord behind it (I did) and I re-threaded the bolt as well with some newer webbing. There is now a locking biner and an oval up top.
If some poor bastard actually ever does the route again, at least he'll have an anchor to retreat from instead of "Meeting Jesus" up there.
Location
This route is immediately left of the big boulder at the base of Cube Steaks.
Protection
A set of Lowe balls to 5" cams, with at least doubles of everything that is not a good size. I used a lot of gear, but nothing in a "good size" like good hands or fingers. Beware of softer rock and 1/4" thick dirt coatings. Beware of loose rock.
This route gives both you and your belayer ample opportunity to Meet Jesus in a post-biblical sense. Make sure nobody is handing round at the base and that your belayer is crouched behind something with a helmet on.
2nd Meat Wall
RSS Feed
