San Ysidro Rock Climbing

With a good mix of routes and strong sandstone, San Ysidro is easily the best canyon climbing in Santa Barbara. There are a few dozen routes here ranging from hard slabs to vertical and sporty. The area is east facing and surrounded by dense foliage, so it is one of the slowest areas to dry out. Good all year round, barring recent rain. By SB standards, it gets busy, but that usually just means two or three groups on weekends.

There is a gully roughly in the middle of the wall which affords a 3rd class approach to the tops of the crags.

The following routes are listed left to right: (bold print indicates "classic"):

Left of Main Wall
1. Daddy's Girl (5.11a).
2. Two Fine Sons (5.10a).
3. Speed Zoo (5.6).
4. Return On Investment.
5. Haunted by Waters.

Main Wall
6. Brown Nose Frog (5.8).
7. Puny Prow (5.10). Single bolt.
8. The Big Sleep (5.11b/c).
9. Vanishing Flakes (5.11a) - CLASSIC. Difficulty seems to depend on the humidity and temperature; if you can get up to the drilled angle, life will be sweet. #4 Friend useful to protect the top.
10. Young William (5.12a R). Thin and runout testpiece with high ground fall potential.
11. Enigmatic Voyage (5.11b).
12. Rockocco (5.5). Take a couple of larger Friends.
13. Applied Magnetics (5.9) **. Climb a bit of history. Cool start to the route. Wired nuts keep it from getting run out.
14. Too Mucking Futch (5.8). Climb the crack. Pro: wires and small cams.
15. Face Lift (5.7) - CLASSIC. VERY popular. Be sure to take two long runners to reduce the rope drag on the first pitch. There are three variations to the second pitch.
16. Tigger Treat (5.8). From the belay of Face Lift, go up and split to the right (5.9).
17. Scrub Job (5.9). Traverse right from the belay of Face Lift.
18. Chavez/Mosher (5.10 R). Traverse farther right from the belay of Face Lift. It's thin for a long ways after the bolt.
19. Great Race (5.10a) - CLASSIC. "The best 5.10a in Santa Barbara" says Reese Martin. Don't chicken out: move left at the fifth bolt to get to the upper face. The direct start is 5.10b.
20. Peels of Laughter (5.5 R) **. Easy arete, but only two bolts on the entire pitch.
21. Many Happy Returns (5.9) - CLASSIC. Fun climb, seems easier; take a #2 Friend & some medium size wired nuts.
22. Amish in Space (5.10a R). From the ledge on the second bolt on Many Happy Returns, head left a bit then straight up through steep rock. A real trouser-filling lead.
23. Orangahang (5.7) - CLASSIC. Corner to a bulge.
24. Rick's Route (5.7) **. Thin face.
25. Fine Line (5.9) **. Thinner face climbing. Three bolts.
26. Ricky Don't Lose That Number (5.9 R). Don't worry about gear, there isn't any. On-sight, free solo first ascent.
27. The Weeny Roofs (5.10b R). Crux is setting up the roof moves. Four bolts.
28. The Heckling (5.10 R).
29. Teacher's Aid (5.8).