We Dive At Dawn

Best to rap (single rope) from anchors atop Driving Limitations, since there are no chains on the We Dive at Dawn bolts. Jan 3, 2003

I've climbed this route numerous times, and I'm firm in my belief that it is a solid 5.8. Also, it's an excellent route that deserves three stars. Nov 18, 2003

Definitely solid 5.8. The first move onto the face at the end (I guess you could call it a "direct finish"?) is pretty thin, but there are better hands if you move a few feet to your right. Dec 16, 2003

A further comment: Be sure to place two points before taking off on the first twelve feet or so. Place them as high as possible even if it means stepping up on the obvious hold and having someone hold the leader in place to do so. Also, it's a good idea to have the belayer stand on the rock at the base to supply a soft cushion if the leader falls and the pro goes along for the ride. That saved my bacon once. The initial moves are getting a bit harder due to the rock getting greasy. For an eight, this route has a history of numerous falls in the first few feet. Also, there is a tendency for the pro to pop out with semi- horizontal stress. Enjoy. Oh, one more thing, breaking right at the top bypasses a challenging final problem. Don't be a wuss. Dec 19, 2003

I led this one without putting pro in the first 15 feet. I would agree with Woody that you should throw a small stopper in. As for the "bomber cam" above mentioned, I saw nothing but poor alien placements in the first few feet.All the placements were solid and came along at just the right time for me. Solid and fairly sustained 5.8 for the first half to the ledge.I didn't have a large cam with me so the final face moves were really run-out. Traverse right if you really can't handle the runout but it is much more rewarding to do this one the right way. Feb 26, 2005

There was one ok small placement low but it wasn't more than 6 ft off the ground so what's the point. There's a perfect green C3 at about 12 feet on your left (just below the level of the bolt on the route to the right), a little work getting there but it's really not that bad. After that it can be sewn up if you wish. Jan 14, 2008

Anchors on top of this were replaced. The old chains were removed and brand new stainless rap-rings were installed courtesy of the ASCA. Part of on going project to improve the asthetics and safety of the bolts in the Indian Cove area. Jul 1, 2011

I just bouldered the start this past weekend, and it's definitely not a 5.7/5.7+; I'd be tempted to call it 5.8, and NOT a "minus." That said, this is a nice climb that I first did back in 1986. It seemed kinda' hard even then. Nov 11, 2013

Dive at Dawn, with the crux at the bottom, is a 5.8. I think the reason people rate this easier is that the rest of the route is fairly straight forward and broken by many steady, stable rests. If the crux section was furhter up, I don't think there would be much discussion. Jan 15, 2014

To reiterate previous comments: this is very firm 5.8, on its way to being a 5.9. The first crux is the first 20 feet, starting in a thin seam and continuing on to awkward, flaring cracks. The upper section of this first crux protects well, however, as I found out when taking my first lead fall on trad. A #1 Camalot saved me. After reaching the crack that joins from the left (right-leaning), climbing is easy but runout until you get to the summit slab. The large crack below the slab will take something as small as a #2 Camalot, if you want to reach deep down to place pro. Be sure to extend. For me, the slab at the top is the crux, probably mostly mental. I hate climbing on runout slab, and even with gear in the crack below, you will likely deck on the ledge should you fall. Jan 5, 2015

I moved well right for the top slab. I think a #2 is a little small to protect the last section, I used a #4 and still had to set it pretty deep and extend it. If you peel on the slab, you will at the very least bump off the ledge and may deck where the anchors used to be. Mar 8, 2016

Stout 5.8 start. Standing (I'm 5'10") on the rock at the base, I was able to get a pretty good red DMM offset nut in and it didn't block hold. Then 1.5 moves up, got a .1 or .2 (Can't remember which) into the small left side crack. Jan 4, 2018

Looks good, climbs great! crux is down low. How do people get off of this thing though? Nov 17, 2018

@Mike Womack descend via rings on top of the formation. Nov 19, 2018