Suggestions on first bigwall in Zion?
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I know this topic has been discussed in previous threads, but I’m looking for updated opinions on a beginner-friendly big wall for spring 2025. I’m considering Touchstone, Spaceshot, or Prodigal Sun (I’ve heard Moonlight Buttress is frowned upon for aid and have seen mixed info on recent route conditions). I’m comfortable with trad up to 5.9/low 5.10 but have minimal aid experience (working on it before the trip) and am open to any style (fix and follow vs bivying). Any advice or other suggestions would be greatly appreciated! |
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prodigal sun is a great place to start |
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I've done prodigal, moonlight, and spaceship and they were all good. I did moonlight in 2002 when it was still fairly normal to haul and spent 1 night on it. It's a great route and after the 3rd pitch its a single crack system to the top. Prodigal is really good and felt a bit more challenging aid wise but had less free climbing than moonlight. did prodigal in 2003 and slept on it as well. the sweet thing about moonlight and prodigal is that you top out on the angels landing trail and just hike down. When we did space shot (2006) we fixed and climbed it in a day. there were a few blown out/tricky placements on space shot. I definitely wouldn't haul on space shot since the descent is a bit funky. they are all good and could easily be done in a day with some fixing. I would definitely bring some small trim cams since they fit well in blown out scars and remember that you should not use cam hooks in soft Zion rock. Have fun |
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Do Touchstone. Lots of sections can be free climbed if you are comfortable on 5.10. The aid sections are straight forward. Moonlight shouldn’t be considered an aid climb anymore. |
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Sheer lunacy makes for a great wall in a day or a fix and fire. Not a trade route but it makes for a great adventure with some amazing moderate free pitches in between aid pitches. |
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Henry J wrote: Touchstone and it's not particularly close. Touchstone has a single C2 placement, with lots of secure aid to moderate free. It's extremely straight-up as walls go, which reduces the faff of hauling/following etc. for a beginner wall. The aid crux is low, so it's either done during your "fix" day OR before lunch if you're going up to bivy. The ledge atop P5 is nice enough to not need a portaledge...if it's empty. Moonlight: free parties will probably be annoyed by ANY aid party, but definitely by a beginner taking 3 hours to inch up the grand dihedral. Prodigal: great route, but traverses enough to be a bit of a headache for a beginner team. Spaceshot: trickiest aid of any of these, and kind of an awkward start--the first three moderate pitches would be awful to haul, and fixing isn't super convenient either. |
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Jack Kelly wrote: Beta like this is extremely helpful. Psyched for the adventure - Thank you to everyone for your suggestions! Based on recent MP comments, it sounds like the fixed gear on P2 of Touchstone is looking pretty rough. Does anyone have any comments on current conditions? Maybe I'm overthinking it, but I'm wondering if it can still be done clean if the fixed piton is gone. |
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Henry J wrote: I will continue! It's fine. Enough has been replaced on the traverse that you're never far from something bomber, and if you use something sketch it's by choice. The cracked pin has been cracked for years and was still holding body weight this fall--you want to hitch a sling behind it (I clip a biner through the eye to make the hitched sling feel more secure, but really it's not coming off either way). When you're on this pin, there's a new glue-in at your feet. What is a *little* unsettling is the C2 placement above it. I've done it with an orange totem (super good enough) and a tricam (spicy but it held). If you blow THAT placement and actually fall onto the cracked pin, that would be exciting. There's some commentary about a string of C2 placements here--not true at all. If you get high on that placement you can place a textbook #1 in a good crack and then it's all bomber C1 from there. |
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Jack Kelly wrote: I saw someone whip on the pin in 2022 after blowing those C2 placements. It held! They didn't have the gear you described. I did, and it was challenging but doable for a new leader. Spot on description of the pitch and placements. |
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Do touchstone. The initial bolt ladder is a great mandatory lesson in standing high in your aiders, a little crux after. And then really fun climbing to the top. Doing it in a day without fixing is very doable and if it isn’t, it is easy to rappel at any point. |