[Hide Comment] Actually, I got it backwards. The anchors for the first pitch are straight up. On the second pitch, go up then sharply left. Continue angling up to the left to reach the anchors on a loose ledge, at the top of the second pitch. Each anchor consists of two bolts, one with a chain and one with a quicklink. May 12, 2002

[Hide Comment] I did the first ascent of this route with Martha Morris over a couple days in May of 1999. It did require a bit of cleaning in a few spots. An old 1960s route climbed up the rotten corner to the left of pitch 1 and right of pitch 2. I pulled most of the old pins out and put the route on the cleaner faces. I recommend this as one of the best longer beginner routes in the Pikes Peak region...with easy access, good pro, fun climbing, and some exposure on the upper part. I did toprope and partially bolt a pitch 3 on the steep headwall above belay 2. It goes about .10a but still needs some bolts. Bring a rack of medium stoppers for the first pitch as it has only bolts. Dec 4, 2002

[Hide Comment] We did this route last summer. The main difficulty was finding the start of the climb. I studied the cliffs for quite a while from the parking lot while comparing with Stewart Green's guide, found here:

stewartgreen.com/html/topos…

Once we found it, the route was a lot of fun. Very well-protected, Stewart! Pitch 2 was especially enjoyable.

The only drag was dealing with a stuck rope...and prusik looping 200 feet back up... Feb 4, 2007

[Hide Comment] Nathan and I did this route about a month ago. Watch out for the HUGE fire ant farm at the base. We set a belay about 10' up just to avoid the ants. I rated it 3 stars for the view - canyon view plus the city to the northeast. Well worth the climb. If you want something a tad harder, there's a 5.9 just to the left that uses the same 2nd pitch top anchors. We thought about going up to the 3rd pitch, but were unsure what we'd find since it appears to be a work in progress. Jun 22, 2008

[Hide Comment] The Antz are cool if you stay close to the base, one nut is good between the first and second bolt on the first pitch. Love this route you can take beginners and they wont freak, I will dub it "The Date Route" Sep 21, 2008

[Hide Comment] A fun climb but be prepared to be attacked by ants if you start at the tree and it's warm out. We climbed this once in March and it was great, once in May and the ants tried to eat us alive. Besides that, a very fun and easier climb. May 18, 2009

[Hide Comment] Fun, easy beginner climb. No ants at the base today. Like Nathan said, the hardest part is finding the start. Great position at the anchors for beautiful views. Oct 24, 2010

[Hide Comment] Led both pitches today, was fun.

NOTE:
There is a big, loose rock/boulder just above the first pitch anchors. I found this when I tested a cam placement to back up the bolts. I ended up climbing and standing on this boulder to complete the climb. Anyways, this boulder would wreck anything in it's way, so be extra conscious of it when climbing.

Descent is one of two options from the top anchors: take a pendulum rappel to Hanging Gardens first anchors then down straight, or down straight to Supersonics first anchors and then take a pendulum to the starting tree. My partner and I did the latter, using a 70m we had plenty of tail for both rappels. Nov 29, 2014

[Hide Comment] Mar 22, 2017

[Hide Comment] Climbed on 9/24/23 - a fun route overall. I took a newer climber up for an intro to multi-pitch. Both anchors were present and still in good condition. Sep 25, 2023

[Hide Comment] I highly recommend rappelling the sport route climber's left. Trying to rap Hanging Hardens forces a hard traverse to the P1 anchor that could swing you smashing into the cliff. Apr 22, 2024

[Hide Comment] How runout would this be without any stoppers and just draws? Apr 28, 2026