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Right Side

5.7, Trad, 600 ft (182 m), 4 pitches,  Avg: 2.5 from 17 votes
FA: unknown
Colorado > Lyons > St Vrain Canyons > Middle Fork of… > Piz Badille > West-Northwest Face

Description

This route follows the right (south) edge of the main slab of the Piz Badille all the way to the top of the rock in four or five 50m pitches. It begins just left of the route "Sympathetic Mind Fuck", and one option is to start with that route and keep going (as Darin Lang mentioned).

Start from the left side of a ledge about 50' above the base of the rock. This area is less than 100' from the south edge of the face and is most easily reached by scrambling up from the right.

P1: Head more or less straight up the face, following cracks for pro. If you bear right near the top of this pitch you can hit a 2 bolt anchor (it is not clear to me if this is the belay for Sympathetic Mind Fuck or not). If you bear left you can arrange a good anchor on a ledge below a couple of overhangs.

P2: This pitch is probably the crux. Wander up through 2 sets of overhangs. This area is complicated and lacks clear features, but there is generally good pro to be had when negotiating the overhangs. Some loose rock is found in these overhangs, try to avoid this. One can easily venture onto terrain a bit harder than 5.7 on this pitch. We encountered a rusty piton and fixed hex on our ascent. One feature you want to head toward is a large horn sticking out from the skyline. This horn is about the size of a refrigerator and is passed on the next pitch.

P3: Continue upward through easier rock, passing to the right of the fridge-sized horn. Follow nice cracks up to a belay at a brand new 3/8" bolt with a chain (easily backed up with gear).

P4: You are nearing the apex of the face and will join "The Ridge" route on this pitch. Alternatively, if you start to traverse right, you can exit the rock and begin your descent early. However, it is recommended to stay near the ridge crest, passing to the right of some overhangs, and join the Ridge route at the narrow ridge.

Scramble easily up the ridge to the summit of the Piz Badille (as on "The Ridge"). You can descend either side of the rock.

Protection

Standard rack to #3 Camalot.

Photos [Hide ALL Photos]

The Right Side route follows this seam
[Hide Photo] The Right Side route follows this seam
This is roughly the route we took. There is a visible thin seam that appears from the right angle. That is more or less the start of the route. Find the path of least resistance/most solid rock through the roofs. Bring a lot of runners.
[Hide Photo] This is roughly the route we took. There is a visible thin seam that appears from the right angle. That is more or less the start of the route. Find the path of least resistance/most solid rock thr…
Crux of "The Right Side".
[Hide Photo] Crux of "The Right Side".
Easy scrambling along a narrow arete leads to the very top of the Piz Badille.
[Hide Photo] Easy scrambling along a narrow arete leads to the very top of the Piz Badille.
George Bell leading the third pitch on the Piz Badille.  The fridge-sized horn is visible on the skyline on the left side of the photo.
[Hide Photo] George Bell leading the third pitch on the Piz Badille. The fridge-sized horn is visible on the skyline on the left side of the photo.
Todd Pett negotiating one of the overhangs on the second pitch on the Piz Badille.  He is right at the old piton.
[Hide Photo] Todd Pett negotiating one of the overhangs on the second pitch on the Piz Badille. He is right at the old piton.
Todd Pett nearing the end of pitch 1 on the Piz Badille.
[Hide Photo] Todd Pett nearing the end of pitch 1 on the Piz Badille.

Comments [Hide ALL Comments]

George Bell
Boulder, CO
  5.7
[Hide Comment] There is no clear line and probably 50 variations to this route have been done. Jun 14, 2002
Eric Klammer
Eagle, CO
  5.6 PG13
[Hide Comment] Fun route on mostly solid and wonderfully featured rock. The crux may be in the route finding, as some of the early roofs may be a little tricky and you can find yourself surrounded by overhanging, loose blocks in a hurry if you're not careful. Linked up with "The Ridge" and walked off to the South. Didn't see any pins, just a stuck C4 about halfway up. May 4, 2014
Abbie R
Denver, CO
 
[Hide Comment] My partner and I accidentally scrambled up to a ledge level with the last bolt of "Sympathetic Mind Fuck" (scrambled up from the right - the ledge had a couple of trees). We were planning to climb that as P1, but we ended up traversing in and just climbing from the final bolt of it. It's also possible to climb directly to the anchor of that pitch from the ledge we were on. That would be a good way to skip P1, if you wanted, and get right to P2, which was definitely our favorite pitch. The path we took was to the right of the first roof, and to the left side of the second roof, staying to the right of the horn mentioned in the description. We didn't see a piton or a hex, but we did see the stuck C4 someone else mentioned. Sep 4, 2018
Rodent Bair
Aurora, CO
 
[Hide Comment] Fun "chose your own adventure" route. Led with an 80m rope and did it in 3 pitches, with the last pitch being a mini-pitch. We didn't find the 3" C4 to be necessary, but doubles between 0.1-2" are useful. Nov 7, 2021
Wild Cat
Lyons
  5.7 PG13
[Hide Comment] Mostly 5.6 and 5.7. Some 5.8 possibly, depending where you go. The route finding is a challenge and adds to the perceived difficulty of an onsight. Way better than The Ridge route. Aug 15, 2025