Best practice aid climb in Eldo or BC

Hey, any recommendations on the best two-pitch route to practice some C2? More than a two pitch route is probably too much. Thanks

Practice Rock in BoCan - several lines (C1-C?) to toprope and practice aid placements - some of which have some good pinscar practice - offsets, micros, hooks, cam-hooks . . .

Better go elsewhere if you are looking to pound iron.

I'm interested in this one too. Any other recommendations? Any in Eldorado Canyon?

Country Club Crack is my favorite. Not C2 but challenging anyways.

My original post indidcated I was looking for A2. I am looking for C2 of course! Thanks

Try heading up to Rincon on a cold day. The short, sustained thin cracks on the right side make for good aid practice, they might be more like C1-C1+, but they will keep your attention.

Your best bet for some aid would probably be china doll in Dream Canyon.
It can be a very nice solo. p1-p3 make for a fun pitch. Definitely don't nail because it is a free climb. You are also unlikely to have any crowds, although i did run into a fellow aid soloist once.

Kevin Stricker wrote:Country Club Crack is my favorite. Not C2 but challenging anyways.

I'll second that.

josh

Josh, Kevin...
How do you pass the crux face to access the crack? High step the bolt? Hook moves?

Shawn Mitchell wrote:How do you pass the crux face to access the crack? High step the bolt? Hook moves?

You can high step the bolt and reeeeeeaaaacccchhhh....

And then retch when your feet skate out.

Shawn Mitchell wrote:Josh, Kevin... How do you pass the crux face to access the crack? High step the bolt? Hook moves?

The start is a bolt remnant from the bolt war that happened there long ago...you can get a rivet hanger over it.
The you just top step(or less) the bolts.
It's NBD really.
I always got a great #4 HB offset in the bottom of the crack.

josh

How about The Aid Crack on Castle Rock?
It must be about C2 with todays gear.
It's only one short pitch though.

I can't reach the 2nd bolt on Country Club from the top step, but a small stopper or easier still a cam hook get you there.

Silver Raven (Eldo) is a really good one to practice cam hooks and thin nutting on.

Tombo wrote:I can't reach the 2nd bolt on Country Club from the top step, but a small stopper or easier still a cam hook get you there.

Ok I have to ask....exactly how tall are you?

josh

The aid crack would only be C2 if you skip the bolts, I thought staying in the bolted crack only is the way to make it C2. I did the crack just one to the left of the bolted line and I thought the placments were easier. However further to the left there are 2 other routes that look like they could be scary and probly not clean.

China doll is great but this time of year the days are short, count on P1-3 in a day, then come back and rap into the bolted belay station at the start of the crux pitch and finish it off another day would be my suggestion. I went there twice with 2 different partners who were new to aid, it took them too long for us to get on the crux pitch. So I came back solo and rapped in and linked the crux pitch and the pitch after to the bolted anchor. I had a couple screamers and scream aids, they gave some peace to mind. Also I had 2 sets of BD hooks and a set of hybrid aliens. I didn't find 4 back to back hooks instead I just made a couple free moves in my boots with only 2 back to back hook moves.

I did a couple other C3/+ routes in Utah after this and they made this seem tame. Maybe C2+? I don't mean to sandbag, but I really think it's easier then both C3 routes I did after it.

Aid crack on cob rock is kinda fun, if you have the right rack it's pretty cruiser. But with a slim aid rack you might find it a little scary as I did when I first did it.

Estes park looks to have some good stuff at lumpy, it's probly out of season now. plus it not in bc or eldo.