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Central Area (aka Edge Rock)

California > San Francisco B… > E Bay Area > Indian Joe Caves

Description

The central area is between Edge Rock, Little Eiger, Cote Memorial Wall and Cleavage Rock. It pretty much has climbable walls on all sides.

There are 3 pairs of bolted anchors at the top of Edge Rock, 2 of which are useful for climbing in the central area. One set has shut ins installed (the one above Freeway/Pull Up/Arete).

Getting There

The easiest way get to this climbing area is to take the trail around the right, which takes up around the right and towards the top of Little Eiger. Then you can take the steep path down into the pit to get to the base of all the climbs in the Central Area.

To access the anchors, you need to climb up to Little Eiger, the the highest point in the Indian Joe Cave area. Then jump over "Hourglass" (the climb up the chimney from below) to the adjacent large boulder.

You can also use the anchors at the top of Little Eiger or sling the boulder to rappel to the top of Edge Rock.

It’s a little more difficult to access the anchors at the top of Cleavage Rock and Cote Memorial Wall. To set up a top rope you'll need to either lead or solo a route to get to the top. The Cleavage and Cote Memorial Crack are the easiest ways up.

Routes from Left to Right

5.8 5b 16 VI- 15 HVS 4c
 1
● Freeway (AKA Squeeze)
TR
5.10a 6a 18 VI+ 18 E1 5a
 1
● Arete
TR
5.10a 6a 18 VI+ 18 E1 5a
 3
● Pull Up
TR
5.10c 6b 20 VII 20 E2 5b
 1
● Face It
TR
5.10 6b 20 VII- 19 E2 5b
 1
● Grin and Bear It
TR
5.11b 6c 23 VIII- 23 E3 5c
 1
● On The Edge
TR
5.7 5a 15 V+ 13 MVS 4b
 0
● Assfault
Trad
5.6 4c 14 V 12 S 4b
 22
● Bat Crack
Trad
5.12a 7a+ 25 VIII+ 25 E5 6a
 1
● Code Red
Sport, TR
Route Name Location Star Rating Difficulty Date
● Freeway (AKA Squeeze)
 1
5.8 5b 16 VI- 15 HVS 4c TR
● Arete
 1
5.10a 6a 18 VI+ 18 E1 5a TR
● Pull Up
 3
5.10a 6a 18 VI+ 18 E1 5a TR
● Face It
 1
5.10c 6b 20 VII 20 E2 5b TR
● Grin and Bear It
 1
5.10 6b 20 VII- 19 E2 5b TR
● On The Edge
 1
5.11b 6c 23 VIII- 23 E3 5c TR
● Assfault
 0
5.7 5a 15 V+ 13 MVS 4b Trad
● Bat Crack
 22
5.6 4c 14 V 12 S 4b Trad
● Code Red
 1
5.12a 7a+ 25 VIII+ 25 E5 6a Sport, TR

Photos [Hide ALL Photos]

At the top of Edge Rock. Mid-day January sun was fantastic.
[Hide Photo] At the top of Edge Rock. Mid-day January sun was fantastic.
Grin and Bear it 5.10b (Left) On the Edge (Far Right) directly across from bat crack
[Hide Photo] Grin and Bear it 5.10b (Left) On the Edge (Far Right) directly across from bat crack
Freeway 5.6 (Right) and Yellow Brick Road 5.11a (Left)
[Hide Photo] Freeway 5.6 (Right) and Yellow Brick Road 5.11a (Left)
Bolts for Freeway 5.6, Face it 5.10c and Pull Up 5.10b as seen from the top of the Northeast Boulder
[Hide Photo] Bolts for Freeway 5.6, Face it 5.10c and Pull Up 5.10b as seen from the top of the Northeast Boulder
Yellow Brick Road 5.11a (Right) and No Hands 5.10a (Left)
[Hide Photo] Yellow Brick Road 5.11a (Right) and No Hands 5.10a (Left)

Comments [Hide ALL Comments]

John F Kim
San Jose, CA
[Hide Comment] Edge Rock has more routes than just Pull-up. They are shown in the photos. I didn't climb it but some of my friends anchored themselves to the boulder on top of Little Eiger then set a TR anchor on edge rock. We used it to climb Freeway (aka "Log up"), the slanted big crack, and Pull-up. The climbers who came with me generally found Freeway easy (5.5/5.6/5.7) and the upper part of Pull-up difficult. I think they would vote the lower part of Pull-up perhaps 5.9/5.10a and the upper part of Pull-up to be 5.10b.

The book "Bay Area Top Ropes" (SuperTopo--by Chris McNamara, Chris Summit, Valentine Cullen) says Edge Rock has 6 climbs: 4 on the northwest side (starting with Freeway), 1 on the southwest arete/corner, and one on the west side as the chimney between Edge Rock and Little Eiger. Jan 20, 2020