Organasm 5.8 C2
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| Type: | Aid, 4 pitches, 400 feet, Grade III |
| Consensus: | 5.10- C1+ [details] |
| FA: | Ron Olevsky & Mike Strassman - Aug. 1983 |
| Submitted By: | M.Morley on Mar 30, 2002 |
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Mike Morley leading first pitch of Organasm.
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Seasonal Raptor Closures MORE INFO >>>
The following cliffs will be closed to climbing beginning March 1, 2012: Angels Landing, Cable Mountain, The Great White Throne (beyond single- and double-pitched climbs), Isaac (in Court of the Patriarchs), The Sentinel, Mountain of the Sun, North Twin Brother, Tunnel Wall, The East Temple, Mount Spry, The Streaked Wall, Mount Kinesava, and the Middle Fork of Taylor Creek. All other cliffs will remain open to climbing. See www.nps.gov/zion/parknews/2012-climbing-closures-announced.h>>> for more info
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Keeping climbing areas open and conserving the climbing environment
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Description Organasm is an excellent intro into Zion aid climbing. At just 4 pitches, it's half the commitment of nearby neighbors Touchstone Wall and Spaceshot. Furthermore, pitches 1 and 4 may be free climbed at a modest 5.8 and 5.7, respectively. P1 (5.8) Free climb 5.8 crack up pillar, past a single bolt, and continue through awkward wide section to gain a decent stance at a sling belay. P2 (C1) Aid through a stellar roof through a splitter crack with bomber C1 placements. The crux of the route is probably cleaning this pitch, so be sure to read up on cleaning roofs BEFORE attempting (better yet, get some practice at your local area)! Continue past roof to a bolted anchor. P3 (C2) A fairly long (150'?) pitch. Aid through second (smaller) roof and out onto arête. Straightforward nutting and good cam placements up this vertical crack, which ends on a nice ledge with bolted anchors. P4 (5.7) Short section up easy 5.7 crack to top. For a topo of the route, check this out.
Protection - One to two sets of nuts (offsets work great)
- Extras in #.5 and #.75 Camalot size helpful
- Extras in #2 Camalot size helpful
- Two ropes if planning on rapping from top of P2
The use of cam hooks should be avoided for soft rock areas such as Zion due to potential to damage the rock.
Descent Descend to climbers' right via bushwack through gully to the north. Although fairly straightforward by daylight, just finding the descent gully would be difficult in the dark. Come prepared: bring a headlamp (and don't forget to check your batteries). If pressed for time, retreat is possible from the top of pitch 2 via one double-rope rap.
BETA PHOTO: The Organ
| Mike Morley aiding up third pitch (C2) of Organasm...
| Chillin' on big ledge atop third pitch of Organasm...
| Taken from the roof on P2.
| Several extra cams in the 2.5 friend size would ha...
| Going out the roof on P3. Bring a belay seat if y...
| Crank it bro.
| Pat's going through the roof...
| Rapping off the Organasm
| Pitch 1. Beautiful.
| Pitch Two. Also beautiful.
| Sac bumping cams out the fantastic P2. Some class...
| Getting into the real business of the roof on P2 o...
| The steep third pitch of the Organasm. Oct. 2011
| Pitch 2. The roof.
| The roof on pitch 2.
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By flaco Feb 1, 2003
| i know for a fact that the 2nd pitch(the big roof) goes free at wild 5.11ish hand jams. and ive heard the 3rd pitch goes free at hard 5.11 or 5.12. pitch 1 and 2 can be linked with a 60m rope(or less) but can cause quite the rope drag. also, you can rap off the top of the roof pitch(the 2nd pitch) with one 60m rope(just barely). |
By Dustin Wildermuth From: Flagstaff, AZ Mar 24, 2006 rating: 5.8 C1+
| The gear beta posted here said bring cam hooks. DO NOT BRING THEM! You will not need them and you will destroy the route for future climbers. |
By Gaar From: Springdale / Zion UT / Moab Dec 12, 2007 rating: 5.12b C0
| This whole thing goes free at 12b....the roof is an easy 5.11.. NO HAMMERS!!!!!!!!!! Be Carfull of your rope getting stuck turning the lip, either free or aid... Recommend Building a hanging anchor right after the roof, and breaking pitch 2 up. |
By Rich Farnham From: Nederland, CO Mar 28, 2009
| Fantastic route! Eventhough the descent sucks (wallowing down gullies filled with loose sand and stout bushes), I recommend topping out. P3 is great. I brought some of the typical aid toys (offset micro stoppers, tricams, lowe balls, etc) and didn't use any of them. There were a few marginal placements, but they were all on normal gear (black alien was helpful). P3 ate up medium to large stoppers. It is possible to rap from the top of P3. There is a fixed anchor on the ledge. I don't remember the specifics, but 2 bolts come to mind. It could use some new webbing. You could probably also rap from the top, but it could be ugly. You'd be rapping off a tree with the potential for snagged ropes or loose rock as you pull your rope. P3 is long, so if you are rapping, you'll likely need two ropes. As for avoiding problems at the lip, it is easy to keep your rope out of the main crack. There is a second smaller crack (visible in some of the images here) for much of the roof. At the lip, we clipped dirctly into a cam (0.5 Camalot?) in this crack which kept the rope out of the larger crack. |
By Klimbien From: OREM, UTAH May 5, 2009
| ON ALL the climbing websites and to everyone I talk to, when asked what my favorite route is, I state it loud and clear - ORGANASM! - I've only climbed the first two pitches, we only free them, but it is the way to do it. First pitch is awkward and I'd say is 5.8+. Second pitch is clean and fun, you have a really good rest before the roof that will take as many 2's and 3's as you'd like to put in it. The crux is pulling out of the roof but with a perfect .75 placement in an adjacent crack to lookers right that keeps the rope out of the main crack. Followed by tight hands to the chains, it goes free and is super fun route. |
By raygay From: Las Vegas, Nevada Jun 25, 2011
| Even on a 100 degree sunny day today, I found this route to be tolerably comfortable. I started early in the morning and was in shade all morning long and well into the afternoon. Maybe I turned the roof at just the right time, but I never had to climb in direct sunshine. I was very concerned about the stability of a large hanging flake just at the start of the large roof on P2. When I brushed it to place a cam while climbing on aid, it seemed to move. I was afraid to touch it again to see how loose it really might be. There were chalk marks around its edges, so climbers obviously have been using it as a hold, but it may not be as secure as it used to be. Beware. If it falls, it could be deadly. |
By Chelsey870 From: Philadelphia 1 day ago
| Is it possible to lead P1 and P2, and then rap back down (clean) to P1 to set up the ground rap off that anchor? I am thinking about doing this, but my girlfriend can not follow aid in roofs. So I was thinking we could get to P1 and then I could do P2 and clean back down to her. Thoughts? Or am I just stupid. |
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