What is the most classic moderate trad route in california?

Hello fellow climbers! Im looking for opinions. For those of you familiar to California, what would you consider to be the most classic moderate trad route in california? By moderate I mean within the 5.7 to 5.9 range. Do not include big walls or aid routes.

Pratt's Crack in Pine Creek :)

regular route fairview dome toulumne meadows

Royal Arches, Yosemite, CA

III 5.6 (5.7 A0)

1936

17 pitches of everything. Chimney, crack, face, slab, 4th class, ledges, 5.9 or pendulum, real descent or rappels

All day fun.

Nothing else could be the "MOST CLASSIC"

And I am sticking to it ;)

But if it's 5.6, that means it's easy not moderate! Or does the A0 move take it out of the running?

I would have to say Matthes Crest, although Regular Route on Fairview is pretty close.

Hey Greg,

We did Matthes Crest together with Rachel in 2000. It is super good.

My Royal Arches rating came from the 1964 Yosemite Valley guide.

I am now using the Supertopo rating 5.7 A0.

supertopo.com/rock-climbing…

Snake Dyke on Half Dome is a great moderate trad route. Kind of a long day car to car, but if you don't mind getting a little hiking in it's well worth it.

J tree is stacked with moderates that r super fun. mental physics
lightning bolt crack, sail away, shit the list list is endless.
Bring your trad shoes though!!!!

Where exactly do the Needles fall into all of this?

J. Albers wrote:Where exactly do the Needles fall into all of this?

White Punks on Dope!

Steck Salathe.

My vote goes to Bishop's Terrace or Nutcracker in the Valley.

Braille Book.

Brian in SLC wrote: White Punks on Dope!

I think WPoD is a distraction to getting to the really classic climbing of the Needles. I'd had the experience of going to Needles in Summer of '09 and for various reasons only climbed WPoD. I thought it was a cool climb, great rock, but sort of a let down compared to the hype. Then, this August I got to the Needles proper, climbed some classics like Thin Ice, Igor Unchained... A completely different experience! Oddly enough, my partner for this last trip had also only climbed WPoD before, and she completely agreed that she could take it or leave it in comparison.

While it's not in the 5.9 range, I would more highly recommend Anti-Jello Crack (5.10A) on Dome Rock for both quality and ease of approach if you aren't going to the Needles proper. I'm honestly baffled why WPoD is as highly touted as it is.

For classic moderates, I'll go local with Corrugation Corner at Lover's Leap (5.7). It's only three pitches, but they are all good and you will have the exposure of a 5.10 route mixed with a variety of climbing and a beautiful summit. I'd imagine though that the best moderate in California would be something truly back country and long, like I hear Charlotte Dome is. I'll have to report back on that!

How are we defining moderate?
I've always heard this term bandied about, but never really sure what the consensus is.

Does it go easy, moderate, hard? If so for trad is it about like this:
easy 5.0-5.4
moderate 5.5-5.9
hard 5.10-5.14
this would be spliting them up mathematically with five ratings in each category.

Corrugation Corner is the most over hyped route in the history of the world. Nutcracker is good, but there are better routes.

How 'bout West Crack on DAFF or The Central Pillar of Frenzy; both are better than Corrugation or Nutcracker. The Regular Route on Fairview is pretty damn sweet.

J. Albers wrote:Corrugation Corner is the most over hyped route in the history of the world.

Hah. I actually think that'd be the nearby Bears Reach. I heard it billed as the "best 5.7 in the world" from some visiting Brits once.

J. Albers wrote:Nutcracker is good, but there are better routes. How 'bout West Crack on DAFF or The Central Pillar of Frenzy; both are better than Corrugation or Nutcracker. The Regular Route on Fairview is pretty damn sweet.

West Crack was good, but not classic for me. I'd repeat Nutcracker, probably not West Crack. I haven't done Central Pillar of Frenzy or RR on Fairview.

"Classic" is a double-edged sword, sometimes it makes you expect too much from a route like I did with White Punks on Dope. Whatever the order we put them in, we're all pretty much naming a familiar staple of climbs. More than anything, "classic" gets us on all these routes that epitomize an area or style so we have a basis for comparison and slander.

At 5.9, I'll retreat to Traveler Buttress being a classic moderate. Although, it really tests the bounds of that "moderate" designation ;).

I think this might be a troll, but my vote is for Snake Dike.

Jasmine Kall wrote:Pratt's Crack in Pine Creek :)

This one is definitely on my tick list, looks awesome!!!

There are a lot of good suggestions so far, it's kind of hard to pick just one climb when there are so many different styles of routes. RR on Fairview and Pratt's Crack are currently high on my to-do list.
I'll add in a couple that haven't yet been mentioned:

Tahquitz:
-Whodunit (5.9): 5 incredible long pitches, and every pitch is memorable
-Traiter Horn (5.8): Really cool moves which lead to incredible exposure! Can't beat it!

Yosemite Valley:
-East Buttress of Middle Cathedral (5.10c or 5.9A0): For an easy long route, I liked this better than Royal Arches. All pitches except for one felt 5.7 or easier.

If you like ridge traverses:
-Thunderbolt to Sill (IV 5.9): Wow, just wow. Not too much technical stuff here, but you get a boatload of exposed 4th class and you get to tag 1/3 of the California 14ers in one outing.

Can't forget Joshua Tree... although there are some many it's hard to narrow it down, how about:
-Double Cross (5.7): Does a jamcrack get any more classic?
-Pope's Crack (5.9)

Perhaps not considered moderate but it's still a right of passage; Matthes Crest... Very classic.

Grack Crack, Glacier Point, Yosemite ????