BETA PHOTO: Zigzag's line. Wonder how they came up with the na...
Description
P1 starts on the left side of the face and wanders up moderate slabs broken up by 3 roofs. Climb to the right of the 1st one where a missing piton used to protect the thin slab moves. Head straight up and pull the chickenhead-covered second roof, then slab up to the third roof where you'll find a solid piton to protect the lieback moves. Belay above the roof to the left in the Wings dihedral where you'll find a slung horn. Don't pass opportunities for gear on this pitch as the placements are mostly thin and well spaced.
Start P2 by traversing right along a flaring crack for about 30', then step across the slab (thin) to get into an arching double crack. Climb the stellar finger crack that eventually arches back left into the dihedral. Set up a belay in the squeeze below a detached flake.
P3 is the business: climb a few feet up to a bush then traverse right on the steep blank slab following a thin undercling, past 3 sad looking pitons that can be backed up in places. Step across a blank section to reach a flaring lieback crack. Heady and less than ideally protected climbing along this feature will bring you back left top the top of the buttress. Walk down a few feet to a solid tree anchor or keep going up the ramp for more trees.
Zigzag was cleaned this spring by Andrew Burr. It used to look like a jungle. Apart from a bit of exfoliation it is now really clean. Props for the hard work!
Location
Follow the updated approach to Lizard Head wall. Once you reach the base of Squeeze My Lemon walk out west along the trail that skirts the base of the wall. About 100' on this trail will bring you to a dead-end at the base of broken slabs just west of a tree-choked gully.
Descent: either find the new 2-bolt anchor on top of Assumption Of Risk (see descent info for Another Day At The Office) or scramble up and right towards a notch overlooking Altered States Gully. Downclimb 15' to the tree anchor at the base of The Slash. Bring a knife and replacement slings. Either way 2 rope raps.
Protection
Standard trad rack: nuts, cams through BD #3, optional #4 for belays on top of P2. Maybe doubles in small to finger sizes. Long runners to minimize rope drag, maybe double ropes. Possibly a screamer or two for the old pitons on P3.
Zigzag is a high quality line with varied climbing, from spicy slab to thin finger crack. Now that it's clean it deserves to be done on a regular basis. I gave it a PG13 although the guidebook doesn't indicate anything of the sort. P1 is thin, P2 has some exposed slab traverses that could result in nasty falls, and P3 has some questionable pitons. Felt kind of R in spots actually.
There's a large population of hornets living on the route right now: in the Wings dihedral above the 1st belay, in the flaring crack used to gain the double finger cracks on P2, and apparently in the undercling on P3. This made for an interesting and very runout variation on P2 (40+ feet). P3 was so greasy and infested with the little buggers that we had to finish on Wings. Wait for colder temps: the hornets will be gone and the friction will be good, meaning you'll save yourself the heinous squeeze/OW that is the top of Wings. Don't wait too long though, cause once the stump that used to grow in the crack on P2 falls off, the climb gains a few letter grades...
P1 is thin and the pro is kind of tricky/runout now that the first two pitons are missing. Very fun pulling the easy roof with all the chickenheads. The finger crack on p2 is great, another one of those LCC cracks that you wish was ten times longer.
Take care up there and bring lots of finger size cams. Props for the cleaning, it is definitely a killer route.
Lizard Head Wall
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