Best easy finger cracks in NorCal for learning

I'm a beginning (and very much on the struggle bus) crack climber. Between the Grotto and a couple of crags on the Sonora pass, I've been happily (by which I mean very frustratingly and angrily) falling my way up 5.7 and 5.8 hand and fist cracks. A few months ago pitch 4 on Royal Arches taught me that I don't know the first thing about finger cracks, as that 5.6 finger crack was the crux of the route for me. Other than the 5.9 finger crack at the grotto, what are my options? One of the things I've been learning is that spending too much time on one crack isn't that great for your education, as it more teaches you how to climb that crack than it does teach you how to climb cracks. So what finger cracks exist in NorCal that are 5.9 and easier other than pitch 4 of Royal Arches and The Grotto?

Crack climbing in the gym is surprisingly good training. I can't speak much for south bay gyms, but PGSF has a great set of cracks. For finger cracks, chances are even the "easiest" options will be well above 5.9. Until it feels good, you can practice alternating hands in crack and feet on holds, and hands on holds and feet in crack.

https://www.mountainproject.com/route/105862623/the-grack-center

For hand cracks, make you have some shoes that are not too tight, so your little toes are not creating too much pain when you twist your feet in the crack.
This is the normal first problem that people learning jamming have these days.

Grack Center is a good low angle crack so you can learn hand and foot jamming without time pressure when climbing a steep crag like the Grotto.

I have found the cracks at Granie Arch to be  good for teaching finger crack technique. Having a more experienced climber give you pointers on your jams and locks will go a long ways.
Some of my favorite sub 10 finger cracks of all time are at Calaveras Domes. Pitch 5 of "Sands of Time" really stands out. 

I would definitely suggest doing laps & laps on the cracks at PGSF. With the safety of a toprope & a patient belayer, you can really refine your technique. I have found a huge benefit of the gym cracks is that they are splitter. So you really have to work on your feet technique to get up them. Then when you get back outside you can use foot chips & smear galore & appreciate all the splendor of Yosemite granite. While learning, I stepped on face holds at the gym until my finger locks were strong enough to advance my feet. Also, give yourself some time to learn. The crack climbers technique manual also helped a few friends & myself figure out how to twist & compress our hands into cracks. We would read a chapter, then go to the gym & try to practice what the book was teaching.

Dinkum at the Consumes River Gorge is pretty good; https://www.mountainproject.com/route/105736208/dinkum

Tuolumne has a number of good finger cracks to hit up, like west crack and south crack.

The Valley has a lot good finger cracks, unsurprisingly. An old favorites is at the end of the day to lead the first pitch of Jam crack and set up a TR on the 10c/d finger crack climbs accessible from that anchor. Not "easy" but will force you to learn the technique. The second pitch of Jam Crack also has a nice finger crack as well.

Given how much laying back a finger crack can improve a lousy jam, i'd suggest you avoid "easy" finger cracks, since there will be even less incentive to jam it purely. Find a good 5.9 finger crack you can top rope without leading, and work that sucker.

Also, pick up the crack climber's technique manual. That thing taught me things about hand jams, and I thought I was an expert on those. The finger crack section was a godsend.

Grotto has a couple finger cracks. If you can lead 5.9 then you can drop a TR on any of them. Table Manners(left side only).  Rawhide.  Parts of Snake Dike.  Has Petsfed said, don't bother with the easy stuff.  Get on those strenuous TR's and then more moderate stuff on lead will be manageable

x2 for Glacier Point Apron the Grack -- really nice long splitter. 

Sugarloaf, Donner, and CRG.  Best training grounds for Yosemite/Sierra granite, cause it is, but lower and smaller, and less intimidating.

Maybe you should consider focusing on a wider range of cracks. Finger cracks will eventually come around, but imo they do tend to be harder than other. For me, this is somewhat like saying "hey, I'm a beginning sport climber and I'd like to find the best easy 45 degree overhang so I can learn".

Franck Vee wrote: Maybe you should consider focusing on a wider range of cracks. Finger cracks will eventually come around, but imo they do tend to be harder than other. For me, this is somewhat like saying "hey, I'm a beginning sport climber and I'd like to find the best easy 45 degree overhang so I can learn".

I’m not entirely sure that’s true. When I followed pitch 4 on royal arches I mentioned that it was super hard for me to my buddy that led the pitch. He expressed surprise at that and told me there were bomber ring locks. I don’t know how to do that and that’s a significant problem for me at the moment preventing me from doing climbs I want to lead but won’t because pitch whatever has 5.7 fingers on it.

And I am certainly working on every size below off width, I just don’t need help finding those cracks as I have already found them and am practicing on them.

+1 for Dinkum at Consumnes River Gorge. It's 5.9 and you can TR with easy access to the top of the route. You could also fool around with 10 minute crack over there via TR. Yea, it's .12a, but it's slabby and you can practice your finger locks on TR.

+2 for PGSF finger cracks and trying feet out, fingers in and the opposite until you can sync them together.

pineline has some finger locks. Harry Daley does too.

Is potbelly at knob hill a finger crack?

Ricky Harline wrote:

told me there were bomber ring locks. 

Could he have said bomber finger locks?  Maybe I’m getting forgetful in my old age but I can’t recall ever having to do a mandatory ring lock, never mind a series of them!, on anything in the grade range of Royal Arches. 

phylp wrote: Could he have said bomber finger locks?  Maybe I’m getting forgetful in my old age but I can’t recall ever having to do a mandatory ring lock, never mind a series of them!, on anything in the grade range of Royal Arches. 

Possibly but I don’t think so. I remember thinking the finger crack got wide in places and maybe if I were a better climber I would have done just fine via liebacking or not having shitty footwork or who knows what. It was obviously not mandatory, I made it up the thing albeit feeling extremely insecure. The point is there are times when having more tools in your toolkit is very helpful. Don’t you agree? 

If one is going about trying to learn various techniques for the various crack sizes, why skip a crack size? Finger cracks aren’t always straight in bomber finger lock after finger lock, right? If there is one thing I have learned about crack climbing it is to expect an astonishing amount of variety of technique required over even subtle changes to crack size and shape.   

  I am highly uninterested in learning how to climb wide fingers on lead and would vastly prefer to do that on top rope. 

Ricky Harline wrote:

Possibly but I don’t think so. I remember thinking the finger crack got wide in places and maybe if I were a better climber I would have done just fine via liebacking or not having shitty footwork or who knows what. It was obviously not mandatory, I made it up the thing albeit feeling extremely insecure. The point is there are times when having more tools in your toolkit is very helpful. Don’t you agree? 

If one is going about trying to learn various techniques for the various crack sizes, why skip a crack size? Finger cracks aren’t always straight in bomber finger lock after finger lock, right? If there is one thing I have learned about crack climbing it is to expect an astonishing amount of variety of technique required over even subtle changes to crack size and shape.   

  I am highly uninterested in learning how to climb wide fingers on lead and would vastly prefer to do that on top rope. 

Yes I completely agree, knowing as much technique as possible is invaluable. If you still live near San Jose, the cracks at PG Sunnyvale are excellent practice in every size. And you can do all of them on top rope. If you don’t already have it, The Crack Climber’s Technique Manual is very thorough in every size. Take it with you to the gym! Happy training!

Ricky Harline wrote:

I’m not entirely sure that’s true. When I followed pitch 4 on royal arches I mentioned that it was super hard for me to my buddy that led the pitch. He expressed surprise at that and told me there were bomber ring locks. I don’t know how to do that and that’s a significant problem for me at the moment preventing me from doing climbs I want to lead but won’t because pitch whatever has 5.7 fingers on it.

And I am certainly working on every size below off width, I just don’t need help finding those cracks as I have already found them and am practicing on them.

For sure - though a guy's "bomber ring locks" may be another one's "fuck that's exactly in between fat-fingers & thin hands". That changes things significantly.

That route at sugarloaf where you use the tree

remillard finger crack ,diablo diagonal crack ,castle rock degeneration (make it hard), prelude at pine canyon (1 bolt + tree)

find this thing on Sunnyvale mtn
 

http://www.mxi2000.net/mudworm/2016/03/a-climbers-guide-to-planet-granite-cracks