What do you consider a "big wall?"

What do you guys think makes a big wall a big wall?

certain height, # of pitches, difficulty, having to bivy etc? 

Not saying I'm an expert on big walling, but my definition would be that the average party would take more than one day to complete the ascent.

Maybe some aid, a bivouac, over a thousand foot, and it was not original climb in a modern fast a light single push style.

Taggart Cole wrote:

...and it was not original climb in a modern fast a light single push style.

Except there have been many modern big wall FA's done in that style, so that defining condition doesn't really exist.

Marc801 C wrote:

Except there have been many modern big wall FA's done in that style, so that defining condition doesn't really exist.

Exactly my point. So maybe at least 1000 feet of climbing? Usually people associate big walls with hard grades and over 10 pitches. Would a 1000 ft 5.8 free climb be considered "big wall?"

Primarily aid routes over 8 pitches.

One that is big...

jon bernhard wrote:

One that is big...

and wall like in nature. 

Seeing as Wikipedia is always 100% correct   "Big wall climbing is a type of rock climbing where a climber ascends a long multi-pitch route, normally requiring more than a single day to complete the climb. Big wall routes require the climbing team to live on the route often using portaledges and hauling equipment. It is practiced on tall or more vertical faces with few ledges and small cracks."

There are many routes in Yosemite that are >1000ft, and easily go free. East Buttress' of both Middle Cathedral and El Cap are certainly not 'Big Walls.' The South Face of Washington Column is considered a big wall and is around same amount of pitches of those routes. The difference is that it requires primarily aid, and an optional ledge bivy. 

Adam Hammershoi wrote:

Exactly my point. So maybe at least 1000 feet of climbing? Usually people associate big walls with hard grades and over 10 pitches. Would a 1000 ft 5.8 free climb be considered "big wall?"

No, just a long free climb. It's not difficulty - The Nose is a big wall but can be done at 5.9 C1 -  it's length, usually aid, and taking more than a day (for most parties) that defines a big wall.

One that goes border to border...

The lead only wall at the gym 

Must have equation to define everything. X+y+z= big wall 

Disclaimer: not a big wall climber.  But I think the question should be is big wall a type of route or more so a style of climbing. 

BITD, a “big wall” climb was defined as multi day and aid climbing. Once “wall routes” started to get climbed in a day and then free climbed, the definition became less clear cut.

Two teams talking about doing the Nose might say, “We did it in a day”, the other might say “we did it wall style”. The wall style team would mean they hauled and had bivied. 

I’ve climbed El Cap a couple dozen times. I’ve climbed it in a day and in multiple days. I count all of them as a climb of a big wall. 

Curious about this myself, I did a bit of searching to see if I could get a better sense of the modern definition of big wall climbing. I like the posts in this thread, but I figured I'd share definitions from a number of reputable climbing sources to supplement what was said.

"Climbing on a large, sheer wall, which usually requires bivouacs and extensive aid climbing." -  Mountaineering: The Freedom of the Hills

"A tall cliff that normally requires multiple days to ascend" - Rock Climbing: Mastering Basic Skills by Topher Donahue and Craig Luebben

"Extended, multi-pitch rock climb that often takes several days to complete." - Rock Climbing Glossary by REI

"An especially high cliff that requires multi-pitch climbing and usually takes multiple days to ascend." - Climbing Terminology by Rock and Ice

"A big wall is a steep multi-pitch climb that
takes most people more than a day to climb." - How to Big Wall Climb by Chris McNamara

"Big walls are routes that usually take more than a day to ascend." - Alpine Institute

"A big wall is essentially a vertical expanse of rock which is too big to climb in a single day." - Big Wall and Aid Climbing by VDiff Climbing

It seems that most big wall climbs are greater than or equal to 1200 ft in height. The smallest big wall routes I was able to find with little googling (there may be shorter ones out there...) are the following:

Moonlight Buttress, Zion - 1200 ft
Tsaranoro Massif, Madagascar - 1312 ft
South Face of Washington Column, Yosemite - 1200 ft
Liberty Crack route on Liberty Bell, Washington - 1200 ft

Since big walls can and are climbed in a day by some, I think the modern definition boils down to this - a steep rock wall of grade IV or greater.

Nick Kaiser wrote:  
Since big walls can and are climbed in a day by some, I think the modern definition boils down to this - a steep rock wall of grade IV or greater.

A bit tautological if you ask me, since it is subjective what distinguishes Grade IV vs. Grade III :P 

Are we talking about a big wall? Or a bigwall?

Short Fall Sean wrote: Are we talking about a big wall? Or a bigwall?

Exactly. You can climb a big wall real fast but a bigwall is slow as fuck. 

1) Over 1,00 Feet?
2) Aid?
3) In Yosemite?
4) Hauling (of new climbers) required?

So...  Royal Arches is Big Wall?

Jordan Moore wrote:

Exactly. You can climb a big wall real fast but a bigwall is slow as fuck. 

Ooh, I gotta disagree there. If Honnold or I climb the Nose, it's a bigwall either way. But only one of us is doing it fast.