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What's your Index Top 10?

Wayne Wallace · · Seattle, WA · Joined May 2013 · Points: 952

Tommy’s sand box

Black cat bone

The Burden of Exsistence

Leaping Lizard 

Special K

Davis Holland

Agent Orange

Full beetle Bailey Arch

Upper Zipper 

Sweet Nuthin

Mitch L · · Seattle, WA · Joined Feb 2020 · Points: 0

Abbreviated list, as I am but a tadpole. Im looking forward to getting on others' suggestions.

GNS (for being first trad lead)

Rattletale

Princely Ambitions

Battered Sandwich

Special K

Ride the Lighting

Nate Redon · · Peshastin, WA · Joined Feb 2013 · Points: 2,567

Here are 10 skipping some of the usual suspects (Slow Children, Top Shader, Roadside...) that make these lists. 

  1. Tadpole -> Newest Industry
  2. There's Treasure Everywhere
  3. Beetle Bailey P2
  4. Leave My Face Alone
  5. Folsom Blues 
  6. Tempitchuous P3
  7. When the Levee Breaks
  8. Fear of the Dark
  9. Wildest Dreams P2
  10. Sweet Nuthin
blakeherrington · · Unknown Hometown · Joined Dec 2006 · Points: 1,198

These lists are fun to read, especially Matt Carroll's.

I like to think of routes that are great and don't get much traffic, despite being not super annoying to get to, or really difficult. (IE stuff that is strangely neglected without a good reason.)

I'd throw in 

-Sisu P1, an amazing long 5.11c/d knobs pitch that's right off the ground at the UTW.

-Full Sag (or end it out the Iron Horse roof)

-Senseless Thoughts of Paranoia

K Go · · Seattle, WA · Joined Oct 2017 · Points: 170

Bunch that others have mentioned including Chasing the Lizard and Battered Sandwich. I think a mark of my favorites is routes I always want to climb if I'm in the area.
Pressure drop is rad for us fat-fingered folks, and I like the varied top half too. Feels easier than Perfect Pitch to me.
Still haven't found the courage to lead Dr. Sniff but it is such a rad climb with 2 very different halves. I'll do 2 or 3 laps on TRS b2b because it's so much fun. 
Maybe not a favorite as I've only climbed it once but Leeper's Z Corner was the most memorable 5.7 I've every climbed, what a bizarre experience. 

James Wyland · · Unknown Hometown · Joined Apr 2024 · Points: 0

Dis es ze best.

1.  Sucker Punch 5.11b

2.  Redacted (aka Dwarf Tossing) 5.11b

3.  Natural Log Cabin/ Salad Fingers/ Higher Learning/ Kunselman’s Physics 5.12b

4. Anything/ or everything in the Quarry 5.11b

5. Wildest Dreams 5.11b

6. Black Sea 5.11c

7. Normandy 5.11d

8. Faeries Wear Boots 5.11b 

9. Hell Bent For Glory 5.10c

10. Milkman Loves The Sea: 5.7



IJMayer · · Guemes Island, WA · Joined Jan 2011 · Points: 350

I didn’t post a list because it seemed too standard, but I’ll second James’ vote for fairies wear boots for incredible variety and consistency at its grade (whatever that is..)

John Patton · · Unknown Hometown · Joined Apr 2019 · Points: 30

Oh nice thread! Adding to my todo list from here!

Here are a few that have not been mentioned that would be in my top 10

-Bravo Jean Marc 

-Even Steven 

Evan Atwater · · Seattle · Joined Feb 2018 · Points: 36

In no particular order and subject to change:


Narrow Arrow Direct

Normandy

Call of Cthulhu 

Sushi Farmer

And Say

Even Steven

Heart’s Desire 

Shirley

Slow Children

Natural Log Cabin

Honorable mention to some shorties that I really like- Pitch perfect, view from under the bridge, hot curly weenie  

Evan Atwater · · Seattle · Joined Feb 2018 · Points: 36
Nate Redonwrote:

Here are 10 skipping some of the usual suspects (Slow Children, Top Shader, Roadside...) that make these lists. 

  1. Tadpole -> Newest Industry
  2. There's Treasure Everywhere
  3. Beetle Bailey P2
  4. Leave My Face Alone
  5. Folsom Blues 
  6. Tempitchuous P3
  7. When the Levee Breaks
  8. Fear of the Dark
  9. Wildest Dreams P2
  10. Sweet Nuthin

I love how much you love when the Levee breaks

Darryl Cramer · · Seattle · Joined Apr 2007 · Points: 233

I am incapable of having a consistent top ten so I’ll just throw in two pitches that don’t seem to be talked about much but are fun, nonetheless.   

P1 Technicians of the Sacred – consistently challenging climbing leads to a traverse across a triangular roof.   Really fun climbing!  Early ascents were faced with some friable rock issues at the traverse, but I think the route has cleaned up just fine.  For some reason this route reminds me of a Smith Rocks route.

Domestic Violence – Face climbing and perhaps the odd jam lead to a nice stance below an intimidating roof and a strenuous layback above.  At the top of the layback the rock changes character and becomes slightly grainy with wide groove like cracks.

Teddy Kisch · · Gold Bar, WA · Joined Nov 2015 · Points: 0

My top ten:

Wildest dreams

golden road 

Black radish

Powerhorse 

I am in a top shader

Tempitchuous

Slapshot

Japanese gardens (p1-4)

And say…

Leave my face alone 


honorable mention: sisu pitch 1, rise and fall pitch 2, pressure drop. I feel like most Climbs at index would be in the category of at least honorable mention 

Ben Gilkison · · Leavenworth, WA · Joined Jun 2011 · Points: 992

As I read through folks top ten index climbs, I recognized many routes that I have climbed over the years, and it seems to me that each list is valid in one way or another.  Personally, I feel like my top ten climbs would probably rotate into position based on whatever day I happened to climb any 10 Index pitches, which is less frequent these days than in years past.  The mid-higher range routes seem to all contain some unique body contorting or razor thin balance and body English maneuver; so for what its worth, when my mind wanders into the idea of top ten, it just keeps churning out favorite moments when the friction was just right and I was really captivated by that sense of sticking to the rock, and not tipping over backwards.  Of course, if Symptoms of the Universe was side by side with Amandla it would probably be the preferred of the two. It is that good.  R.I.P Michal. 

Stig gles · · Index · Joined May 2013 · Points: 938

well put! 

Kevin Shoemaker · · Vancouver, WA · Joined Apr 2017 · Points: 85

Slow children 

Salad fingers 

Like honey

Iron horse

Japanese gardens full

Sedan delivery 

Top shader

A National acrobat

Hell bent for glory

Narrow arrow direct

Bonus thin fingers 

Now what a great day it would be to do it all in a day… 

Guideline #1: Don't be a jerk.

Pacific Northwest
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