New and experienced climbers over 50 #38

Fossil, Art was a character, a certain type of brash New Yorker, who was an alien creature to many Westerners.  As is typical of the way the human race treats one another, he was probably in for some derision from folks who were accustomed to different behavioral norms, and his exuberance made him an easy target.  Within Vulgaria, he was, of course, subjected to the rough but ultimately loving banter that was part of the movement.  Pantomining moves he might not have been able to do sounds like one of those Vulgarian broadsides--I wouldn't put a lot of faith in the accuracy of such stories, although they are not impossible.  We might also inquire about the general mental states of both the accused and the witnesses on the occasion of these crimes against moral and ethical rectitude.  

Art did a bunch of climbs with Chouinard, including at least one back-country wall, and Chouinard was not the type to suffer fools.  Art was a very good climber in his time and surely one of the best in the East. 

As for the grade of Easy Keyhole, whatever it is, we have to remember that grades in general are subject to significant inertia and can only be significantly changed with a lot of effort.  I suspect that in the case of Easy Keyhole, it is a minor feature on a minor part of the cliff and just never had enough attention for anyone to really care about getting the grade right.

I got up to Mazama, Washington the last week of July for a few days of climbing with my bud Gabe. 

The highlight of the trip was doing Prime Rib on Goat Wall. What a treat! 11 pitches of sport climbing covering 1300 feet.

We didn't take many pics since it was going to be in the upper 90s that day and we needed to be off the wall by about noon.

Neither of us slept well the night before so the stoke level was a bit lower than normal. This pic of Gabe sums it up

We played a brief game of bail chicken on top of pitch two but there was no way I was bailing after driving eight hours to get there!

Gabe leading pitch 8

Me topping out

In the Methow River by 2pm

Overall a fantastic route and area. Highly recommended! 

The new guidebook, Mazama Rock by Brendon Sullivan is outstanding and highly recommended if you plan to visit this area.

Ken

rgold wrote:

Fossil, Art was a character, a certain type of brash New Yorker, who was an alien creature to many Westerners.  As is typical of the way the human race treats one another, he was probably in for some derision from folks who were accustomed to different behavioral norms, and his exuberance made him an easy target.  Within Vulgaria, he was, of course, subjected to the rough but ultimately loving banter that was part of the movement.  Pantomining moves he might not have been able to do sounds like one of those Vulgarian broadsides--I wouldn't put a lot of faith in the accuracy of such stories, although they are not impossible.  We might also inquire about the general mental states of both the accused and the witnesses on the occasion of these crimes against moral and ethical rectitude.  

Art did a bunch of climbs with Chouinard, including at least one back-country wall, and Chouinard was not the type to suffer fools.  Art was a very good climber in his time and surely one of the best in the East. 

As for the grade of Easy Keyhole, whatever it is, we have to remember that grades in general are subject to significant inertia and can only be significantly changed with a lot of effort.  I suspect that in the case of Easy Keyhole, it is a minor feature on a minor part of the cliff and just never had enough attention for anyone to really care about getting the grade right.

I want to follow up a bit on what Rich wrote. As he said, and for the reasons he mentioned, Gran was often not well-received out west, especially in Yosemite ( as was the case there for many 'outsiders' back then). And, sometimes, the 'love' he was shown by his Vulgarian peers was very much of the 'tough love' variety!!!! Still he was an excellent and very accomplished climber and has generally not received the recognition in that regard that he deserves. Not only did he put up numerous new routes in the Gunks and elsewhere in the East--many of them classics and several quite hard for the period, but he also established quite a few significant routes in the West. He was one of the first to pioneer Yosemite-style wall climbs in more remote mountain ranges, especially in the Wind Rivers and in Canada. In the latter country, some of the routes that he established in the Rockies in the early '60s were about a decade 'ahead of their time' for that range, in terms of difficulty and seriousness. I believe that even today they have seen few, if any, repeats.

rgold wrote:

...

The Gunks App has it at 5.3 and says that the opening moves are harder than they look.  Art Gran had some seriously off grades in the original guide, perhaps the worst being Jacob's Ladder at 5.8 when it is really 5.10c X and in 1960 was, I think, the first 5.10 in the Gunks (McCarthy freed Retribution and Nosedive a year later at 5.10b.). It seems that Gran sometimes graded the climber rather than the climb.  If he didn't think you were "that good," your route might get a lower grade than the actual difficulty demanded.

As for calling it a day at 2 pm, you've got the summer protocol backwards.  You go out at 2 pm when the cliffs go into the shade and climb until dark.

Retribution without cams to protect the crux would have been a bold lead. I used a green totem which I felt pretty good about but with the gear available in 1961 "the leader must not fall" would have been excellent advice.

Ken Tubbs wrote:

I got up to Mazama, Washington the last week of July for a few days of climbing with my bud Gabe. 

The highlight of the trip was doing Prime Rib on Goat Wall. What a treat! 11 pitches of sport climbing covering 1300 feet.

We didn't take many pics since it was going to be in the upper 90s that day and we needed to be off the wall by about noon.

Neither of us slept well the night before so the stoke level was a bit lower than normal. This pic of Gabe sums it up

We played a brief game of bail chicken on top of pitch two but there was no way I was bailing after driving eight hours to get there!

Gabe leading pitch 8

Me topping out

In the Methow River by 2pm

Overall a fantastic route and area. Highly recommended! 

The new guidebook, Mazama Rock by Brendon Sullivan is outstanding and highly recommended if you plan to visit this area.

Ken

Wow!!!  This looks so awesome!  

I have been meaning to plan a trip out there to do Flyboys but I will have to add this one onto the itinerary!

Well done on getting there and doing it!

And thanks for the guidebook rec.  I'll have to get it.

My daughter Nathalie just led her first ever sport climb up at Rumney last Friday so by next summer, she should be ready to swap leads on this one!

What a trip that would be!

Emil Briggs wrote:

Retribution without cams to protect the crux would have been a bold lead. I used a green totem which I felt pretty good about but with the gear available in 1961 "the leader must not fall" would have been excellent advice.

In-situ pitons. 

Emil Briggs wrote:

Retribution without cams to protect the crux would have been a bold lead. I used a green totem which I felt pretty good about but with the gear available in 1961 "the leader must not fall" would have been excellent advice.

I had a local help me on gear beta for that crux and it turns out tricams are useful sometimes! 

Emil Briggs wrote:

Retribution without cams to protect the crux would have been a bold lead. I used a green totem which I felt pretty good about but with the gear available in 1961 "the leader must not fall" would have been excellent advice.

Remember, the 1960s and earlier were the piton era--and for years after, there were many fixed pins adorning Gunks climbs ( and routinely clipped into, even during 'clean' ascents ). When  I first led Retribution--sometime in the '70s, there was definitely still a fixed pin protecting the crux, though I did have to place nuts climbing up the corner above.

M M wrote:

I had a local help me on gear beta for that crux and it turns out tricams are useful sometimes! 

I've been trying to convince Buck of that, but not doing a great job of it. I tried to demo a useful tricam placement on Rusty Trifle, and completely bungled it. He'll probably never carry one again!

The Gunks are sweet, but Ken's post is a reminder of what you don't get here - long routes where you can just keep climbing, pitch after pitch. That's what I miss about living near Whitehorse.

Re Easy Keyhole, let's please keep it at 5.2. That's what I keep telling myself - it's only 5.2!! - in order to get up it.

Alan Rubin wrote:

Remember, the 1960s and earlier were the piton era--and for years after, there were many fixed pins adorning Gunks climbs ( and routinely clipped into, even during 'clean' ascents ). When  I first led Retribution--sometime in the '70s, there was definitely still a fixed pin protecting the crux, though I did have to place nuts climbing up the corner above.

OK that makes it more reasonable. I actually came close to falling in the corner. It was August and I was sweating so much I felt like I was going to grease off.

M M wrote:

I had a local help me on gear beta for that crux and it turns out tricams are useful sometimes!

You see them a lot in NC and I used to use them too but have found in most cases a totem works better. But definitely times when they're the best option.

Buck Rogers wrote:

Holy COW!!!

Easy Keyhole (Art Gran's guide also has it at a 5.2!!!) is NOT Easy!

Man, I've done some off-widths out west (Kor Ingalls being one of them) and that first pitch KICKED MY BUTT!  Well, the first 30 feet did!  

Much has been said about this already, but just to add a few points: 

1 - I could be wrong, but i have a vague recollection of some kind of "keyhole" move on the climb. Perhaps the name is due to this feature, and the fact that the move is easier than it appears? 

2 - There is a tendency, especially in the Gunks, to discount the difficulty of the first few moves off the ground when coming up with a grade. I guess the idea being that you're not really "committed" yet, so it doesn't count as part of the climb.  The most extreme example of this to me is the start of Laurel, which is way harder than anything on its neighbor Rhododendron, despite Rhodo getting a harder grade. Maybe Rich and others could weigh in on this?

3 - This type of slippery crack and stemming does not lend itself to the strengths of the gym trained climber. Quite different from most Gunks routes, with incut holds, relative steepness, and horizontal cracks, which are more like gym climbing than most climbing areas. 

GO

Rich and Al,

Thanks for the clarifications about Art Gran. It sounds like his brashness probably made him a target for ridicule amongst the stoic left coasters of the time, who were probably over anxious for any sign of weakness from a right coaster who had the audacity to toot his own horn.

Rich, I do remember Peter Haan speaking of your superhuman strength and how you could have dominated Yosemite had it been your desire.

Emil Briggs wrote:

You see them a lot in NC and I used to use them too but have found in most cases a totem works better. But definitely times when they're the best option.

woe woe that was your outside voice bro....

comments like that will get you reported to the the Western NC Climbers Local 407 union for a disciplinary meeting in front of the board.

disparaging the tri-cam......peace be upon them......in open an open forum????    bruah  

GabeO wrote:

Much has been said about this already, but just to add a few points: 

1 - I could be wrong, but i have a vague recollection of some kind of "keyhole" move on the climb. Perhaps the name is due to this feature, and the fact that the move is easier than it appears? 

2 - There is a tendency, especially in the Gunks, to discount the difficulty of the first few moves off the ground when coming up with a grade. I guess the idea being that you're not really "committed" yet, so it doesn't count as part of the climb.  The most extreme example of this to me is the start of Laurel, which is way harder than anything on its neighbor Rhododendron, despite Rhodo getting a harder grade. Maybe Rich and others could weigh in on this?

3 - This type of slippery crack and stemming does not lend itself to the strengths of the gym trained climber. Quite different from most Gunks routes, with incut holds, relative steepness, and horizontal cracks, which are more like gym climbing than most climbing areas. 

GO

Gabe, Laurel is a 7 and Rhododendron is a 6- (in the gray Dick).

Easy Keyhole follows the crack to the left. I don't know what the keyhole feature is (pic from MP):

Some people layback the crack, which just seems wrong to me (and an unpleasant layback).
I don't think it's reasonable to expect someone to layback a 5.2.
Some people stem off the feature at the right. I think I did that, not sure. I think this is easier if you're Spiderman or have really long legs.
The rock is pretty smooth... The crack is pretty wide, pro is difficult.
PS So far as I recall, it's the first 20-30 feet off the ground which are cruxy, and have poor pro options. Maybe I'm just recalling a nightmare that I had about it...
PPS also, presumably the name "Easy Keyhole" is in contrast to the regular (5.7+) "Keyhole" nearby. It also follows an offwidth (?) diagonaling crack, but is vertical.

dragons wrote:

I don't know what the keyhole feature is (pic from MP):

So far as I recall, it's the first 20-30 feet off the ground which are cruxy, and have poor pro options. Maybe I'm just recalling a nightmare that I had about it...

Such a fun discussion on this crazy route!

I agree with Dragons, let's just call it 5.2 as that helps my mental state of mind when leading it!

I was definitely saying to myself, "What the hell is wrong with me, I know that it is a GUNKS 5.3 but come on man, you can do this!" and that helped me thrutch through the opening moves!

And after the first 20 feet or so, it is totally cruiser and such a great climb all the way to the top of all 3 pitches at a true "Gunks" grade of 5.3 (although I have to caveat that statement with the fact that yesterday was my 25th different route led at the Gunks which is not very many if you think of the 100's, possibly 1,000's, of routes that are there!  And I've only led two "easy" 5.6's at the Gunks so far with the rest being 5.5 and down so I am most certainly not an authority!).

But it makes sense that they might not have called it tougher than .2 or .3 if the bottom section didn't used to really factor in to the grading "back in the day".  Also, the first moves are not any tougher than Gunks .5 at most but it sure as hell surprised me out the gate yesterday!

I think that the "Keyhole" name comes from when you start the second pitch, way off to the right of the chains that are in the cliff to the left if you are only doing the first pitch, and you will not see it if you do not go right near the end of the first pitch instead of left to rap, that there is a 3 or 4 foot "tunnel" through the rocks that you can see daylight and the other side of the cliff.  Kind of looked like peering through a keyhole when I was there.

But I could be totally wrong on the meaning!

Look forward to doing it again with Dragons as they said that they would lead it with me again soon!

Edit:  I agree with Emil also!  I used to use tricams on Whitehorse in those little crystal pockets back in the early '90's but man, I just love Totems so much now and I find that they do everything that a tricam can do so I have a set of tricams but they are gathering dust.  And yes, Dragons wonderful demonstration of their "usefulness" in the Gunks only cemented my view on not digging them back out and adding them to my lead rack!

;)

Another Edit:  Forgot to add that I am in absolute AWE of you folks that were/are leading Gunks .10's now or even more so back in the 60's (even with pitons--you didn't have the modern shoes or ropes or harnesses!!!).  My delusion of grandeur here at the ripe age of 53 is to hopefully, one day, be able to lead solid .6's at the Gunks and maybe lead Madam G or The Ceiling!  Of note, I ran out of time in Rumney on Friday and lost the Rock, Paper, Scissors with my partner on Junco (5.8+) so he got to lead it but I cruised that one without any trouble and really wanted to lead it.  So wild seeing the grades there compared to the Gunks.

Jim U wrote:

woe woe that was your outside voice bro....

comments like that will get you reported to the the Western NC Climbers Local 407 union for a disciplinary meeting in front of the board.

disparaging the tri-cam......peace be upon them......in open an open forum????    bruah  

Starting a Tricam fight is a good way to liven up your day. Note I neither endorse nor reject the views expressed in the following video!

How to place tricams

Emil Briggs wrote:

Retribution without cams to protect the crux would have been a bold lead. I used a green totem which I felt pretty good about but with the gear available in 1961 "the leader must not fall" would have been excellent advice.

Not at all.  There's a good nut placement (memory fails--maybe a small hex or a tricam) right at the ceiling. (Before cams, I always had 3 or 4 tricams on my rack.) I've led Retiribution without fixed pins or cams a few times and I would not call it bold.  The gear at the ceiling does partially fill up a very good finger lock, so positioning it is important.

Emil Briggs wrote:

Starting a Tricam fight is a good way to liven up your day. Note I neither endorse nor reject the views expressed in the following video!

How to place tricams

Ha!  I rarely open random links but I took a chance on this one and it is safe and made me laugh out loud while at my desk at work!

fossil wrote:

Rich, I do remember Peter Haan speaking of your superhuman strength and how you could have dominated Yosemite had it been your desire.

Well that's nice to hear.  The list of Yosemite climbs I failed on is long enough to constitute a guidebook.  Peter must have had superman x-ray vision to detect hidden ability beneath external incompetence.

Alan Rubin wrote:

I want to follow up a bit on what Rich wrote. As he said, and for the reasons he mentioned, Gran was often not well-received out west, especially in Yosemite ( as was the case there for many 'outsiders' back then). And, sometimes, the 'love' he was shown by his Vulgarian peers was very much of the 'tough love' variety!!!! Still he was an excellent and very accomplished climber and has generally not received the recognition in that regard that he deserves. Not only did he put up numerous new routes in the Gunks and elsewhere in the East--many of them classics and several quite hard for the period, but he also established quite a few significant routes in the West. He was one of the first to pioneer Yosemite-style wall climbs in more remote mountain ranges, especially in the Wind Rivers and in Canada. In the latter country, some of the routes that he established in the Rockies in the early '60s were about a decade 'ahead of their time' for that range, in terms of difficulty and seriousness. I believe that even today they have seen few, if any, repeats.

Here is an account of one of Art's futuristic (for the time) routes. https://publications.americanalpineclub.org/articles/12196604100/The-East-Face-of-Mount-Chephren

The East Face.  Dunno exactly where Art's route goes. Photo by Ed Cooper

And here's another Gran account about the NW face of East Temple in the Wind River range with Yvon
Chouinard. This was the first big wall route in the Wind Rivers.. http://publications.americanalpineclub.org/articles/12196222002/North-America-United-States-Wyoming-Wind-River-Range-East-Temple.

The route follows the shaded right-facing corners near mid-face. With a variation avoiding the traverse to and ascent of the upper corner, the route is now free at 5.11.