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Footloose 'N' Fancy Free
5.11a YDS 6c French 22 Ewbanks VII+ UIAA 22 ZA E3 5c British
Avg: 3.5 from 21
votes
Routes in West Face
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Footloose 'N' Fancy Free S 5.11a 6c 22 VII+ 22 E3 5c |
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Lance T 5.6 4c 14 V 12 S 4b |
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Monster Crack T 5.8 5b 16 VI- 15 HVS 4c |
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Scarecrow T 5.10b 6a+ 19 VII- 19 E2 5b R |
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Sword in the Stone T,S 5.8 5b 16 VI- 15 HVS 4c |
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| Type: | Sport, 150 ft |
| FA: | Leonard Coyne & Ed Webster, 1977 |
| Page Views: | 6,413 total · 33/month |
| Shared By: | Bosier Parsons on Dec 31, 2002 |
| Admins: | Leo Paik, John McNamee, Frances Fierst, Monty, Monomaniac |
Your Star Rating:
Access Issue: New 2018 partial West Face Closure
Details
New as of 2018: a portion of the west face of this formation (at least from & including Monster Crack, 5.8, to & including Sword in the Stone, 5.8, and Big Sky) is closed to climbing due to wildlife concerns. The impact on brown bats, great horned owls, red tail hawks, and Cooper's hawks have resulted in part of the West face of Kindergarten Rock (aka Grey Rock), Keyhole Rock (aka Sleeping Giant), and the area between to be closed for all human uses including hiking and climbing. This information was from Bret Tennis, Garden of the Gods Park Operations Administrator.
Access Issue: 2017 Seasonal Closures - Partial Closure Lifting
Details
From the Garden of the Gods Staff:
The closure for Gray Rock has been lifted. The closure on North Gateway remains in effect at this time.
From the Garden of the Gods Staff (3/1/17):
The closures are in place for the Tower of Babel- please refer to the attached images. As of this posting, there are no other closures, but we anticipate closures for North Gateway and Gray Rock similar to those in years past- but we're waiting until we see confirmed nesting behavior before enacting any closures. We will update this post as closures come in to place or are lifted.
A closure is now in effect for the North half of the East face of Gray Rock- please refer to the attached images. We are monitoring another nesting site of North Gateway, so it is possible that there may be some additional closures on North gateway, depending on what we see.
Tower of Babel:
Gray Rock:
Click hereuploads.mountainproject.com…, hereuploads.mountainproject.com…, hereuploads.mountainproject.com…, and hereuploads.mountainproject.com… for another way to view the images.
UPDATE (5/22): A closure is now in effect for the North half of the East face of Gray Rock- please refer to the attached images. We are monitoring another nesting site of North Gateway, so it is possible that there may be some additional closures on North Gateway, depending on what we see.
Click hereuploads.mountainproject.com… and hereuploads.mountainproject.com… for more images.
Previous years' information:
From the Garden of the Gods Staff (10/18/16):
All closures for the park have been lifted. We don't expect any closures until March of 2017.
March 2, 2016
Based on observed nesting behavior, climbing closures in effect for for North Gateway Rock/Tower of Babel and AKA Kindergarten Rock (AKA Gray Rock). We expect these closures to last until approximately August for the West Face of N. Gateway and Kindergarten Rock, and until approximately October for the Tower of Babel- we will update this thread when these closures are lifted based on observed behavior, which will ultimately determine the specific dates.If you have questions, please stop by the Garden of the Gods Visitor and Nature Center. Also refer to forum post for maps: mountainproject.com/v/garde…
We also want to remind the climbing community that white chalk is prohibited in the park. When placing closure signange/notifications, our park rangers noted chalk stains on several routes in the closure area (Anaconda and Grapefruit Dance), as well as the blowouts bouldering area (which were cleaned last year, meaning all the chalk here is new). We are again hoping that the community can come together and address this issue before it requires any action on our part. We'd also like to thank the PPCA for their efforts to remove chalk stains in these areas last year, and hope that local climbers might consider helping them remove chalk stains from the rock this season- check their website for more info on upcoming events- pikespeakclimbersalliance.o…
Finally, we want to remind everyone that you can fill out your permit online, any time! Visit parks.coloradosprings.gov/p…
to register to climb. This should only take a few minutes, and is valid until the end of the year (New Year's).
OLD CLOSURES
We were notified on 10/2/15 that all bird closures have now been lifted.
Per Stewart M. Green: the Garden of the Gods Park is now open to rock climbing as of Tuesday, June 2.
Update as of 8/4/15: as of this week, SOME closures have been lifted in Garden of the Gods. Grey Rock (aka Kindergarten Rock) is now entirely open. The Summit Ridge, East Ledges, and West face (excluding the West face of Tower of Babel) of North Gateway is also open.
Per Stewart M. Green: ATTENTION!! The Colorado Springs Parks Department has CLOSED ALL CITY PARKS, including Garden of the Gods, Red Rock Canyon Open Space, and North Cheyenne Canon, to rock climbing for the upcoming Memorial Day weekend.
This is due to record rainfall totals in western Colorado Springs which as caused severe trail and parking lot damage, saturated the sandstone cliffs, and is causing parts of cliffs to break off.
The parks will be re-evaluated on Monday to determine how the closure will last.
Please respect the closures and take care of our precious climbing areas!
Update as of 3/27/15:
North Gateway Rock and Tower of Babel closures:
--- Invalid image id: 110249045 ---
Kindergarten Rock:
Update as of 10/25/14:
Per Wesley Hermann, Park Interpreter, Garden of the Gods: All closures are lifted including Tower of Babel
Update as of 8/10/14:
Closures in Garden of the Gods Park for raptor nesting sites have been lifted. This includes the East face of North Gateway, the East Ledges on North Gateway, and the East face of Grey (Kindergarten) Rock. Closures for Migratory Birds are still in effect - this includes the Tower of Babel. We expect this closure to last in to early Fall. Please refer to the map attached. If you have questions, please stop by the Garden of the Gods Visitor and Nature Center.
Prior closures (pre 8/10/14): There are currently two closures in effect, both on North Gateway Rock. The first closures is for the Eastern Face (including the East ledges), which will include routes like Max's Mayhem, Snuggles/Fall Crack, etc. The second closure is for the Tower of Babel on the North end of Gateway Rock, and includes Anaconda, Ryan's Inferno, The Inferno, and Triple Exposure. The routes listed above are for reference, but may not represent all routes affected, and closures may be subject to change. We've provided a map of North gateway showing these closures.
North Gateway Closures- East Face and Tower of Babel.
North Gateway Closures- East Face and Tower of Babel.
Submitted By: GardenoftheGodsStaff on Mar 5, 2014
Addendum: March 29 - Based on new reports of nesting behavior and of raptors exhibiting signs of stress/defending their nesting sites, we are updating our closures to include Big Sky and Sand in the Vaseline (aka The Route to the Left) on the East face of Grey Rock (aka Kindergarten Rock). Other routes on the East face near the South Summit such as New Era will remain open, but we ask that climbers approach these routes from the South, and avoid the North end/approach of the East Face while the closure is in effect.
The closure for Gray Rock has been lifted. The closure on North Gateway remains in effect at this time.
From the Garden of the Gods Staff (3/1/17):
The closures are in place for the Tower of Babel- please refer to the attached images. As of this posting, there are no other closures, but we anticipate closures for North Gateway and Gray Rock similar to those in years past- but we're waiting until we see confirmed nesting behavior before enacting any closures. We will update this post as closures come in to place or are lifted.
A closure is now in effect for the North half of the East face of Gray Rock- please refer to the attached images. We are monitoring another nesting site of North Gateway, so it is possible that there may be some additional closures on North gateway, depending on what we see.
Tower of Babel:
Gray Rock:
Click hereuploads.mountainproject.com…, hereuploads.mountainproject.com…, hereuploads.mountainproject.com…, and hereuploads.mountainproject.com… for another way to view the images.
UPDATE (5/22): A closure is now in effect for the North half of the East face of Gray Rock- please refer to the attached images. We are monitoring another nesting site of North Gateway, so it is possible that there may be some additional closures on North Gateway, depending on what we see.
Click hereuploads.mountainproject.com… and hereuploads.mountainproject.com… for more images.
Previous years' information:
From the Garden of the Gods Staff (10/18/16):
All closures for the park have been lifted. We don't expect any closures until March of 2017.
March 2, 2016
Based on observed nesting behavior, climbing closures in effect for for North Gateway Rock/Tower of Babel and AKA Kindergarten Rock (AKA Gray Rock). We expect these closures to last until approximately August for the West Face of N. Gateway and Kindergarten Rock, and until approximately October for the Tower of Babel- we will update this thread when these closures are lifted based on observed behavior, which will ultimately determine the specific dates.If you have questions, please stop by the Garden of the Gods Visitor and Nature Center. Also refer to forum post for maps: mountainproject.com/v/garde…
We also want to remind the climbing community that white chalk is prohibited in the park. When placing closure signange/notifications, our park rangers noted chalk stains on several routes in the closure area (Anaconda and Grapefruit Dance), as well as the blowouts bouldering area (which were cleaned last year, meaning all the chalk here is new). We are again hoping that the community can come together and address this issue before it requires any action on our part. We'd also like to thank the PPCA for their efforts to remove chalk stains in these areas last year, and hope that local climbers might consider helping them remove chalk stains from the rock this season- check their website for more info on upcoming events- pikespeakclimbersalliance.o…
Finally, we want to remind everyone that you can fill out your permit online, any time! Visit parks.coloradosprings.gov/p…
to register to climb. This should only take a few minutes, and is valid until the end of the year (New Year's).
OLD CLOSURES
We were notified on 10/2/15 that all bird closures have now been lifted.
Per Stewart M. Green: the Garden of the Gods Park is now open to rock climbing as of Tuesday, June 2.
Update as of 8/4/15: as of this week, SOME closures have been lifted in Garden of the Gods. Grey Rock (aka Kindergarten Rock) is now entirely open. The Summit Ridge, East Ledges, and West face (excluding the West face of Tower of Babel) of North Gateway is also open.
Per Stewart M. Green: ATTENTION!! The Colorado Springs Parks Department has CLOSED ALL CITY PARKS, including Garden of the Gods, Red Rock Canyon Open Space, and North Cheyenne Canon, to rock climbing for the upcoming Memorial Day weekend.
This is due to record rainfall totals in western Colorado Springs which as caused severe trail and parking lot damage, saturated the sandstone cliffs, and is causing parts of cliffs to break off.
The parks will be re-evaluated on Monday to determine how the closure will last.
Please respect the closures and take care of our precious climbing areas!
Update as of 3/27/15:
North Gateway Rock and Tower of Babel closures:
--- Invalid image id: 110249045 ---
Kindergarten Rock:
Update as of 10/25/14:
Per Wesley Hermann, Park Interpreter, Garden of the Gods: All closures are lifted including Tower of Babel
Update as of 8/10/14:
Closures in Garden of the Gods Park for raptor nesting sites have been lifted. This includes the East face of North Gateway, the East Ledges on North Gateway, and the East face of Grey (Kindergarten) Rock. Closures for Migratory Birds are still in effect - this includes the Tower of Babel. We expect this closure to last in to early Fall. Please refer to the map attached. If you have questions, please stop by the Garden of the Gods Visitor and Nature Center.
Prior closures (pre 8/10/14): There are currently two closures in effect, both on North Gateway Rock. The first closures is for the Eastern Face (including the East ledges), which will include routes like Max's Mayhem, Snuggles/Fall Crack, etc. The second closure is for the Tower of Babel on the North end of Gateway Rock, and includes Anaconda, Ryan's Inferno, The Inferno, and Triple Exposure. The routes listed above are for reference, but may not represent all routes affected, and closures may be subject to change. We've provided a map of North gateway showing these closures.
North Gateway Closures- East Face and Tower of Babel.
North Gateway Closures- East Face and Tower of Babel.
Submitted By: GardenoftheGodsStaff on Mar 5, 2014
Addendum: March 29 - Based on new reports of nesting behavior and of raptors exhibiting signs of stress/defending their nesting sites, we are updating our closures to include Big Sky and Sand in the Vaseline (aka The Route to the Left) on the East face of Grey Rock (aka Kindergarten Rock). Other routes on the East face near the South Summit such as New Era will remain open, but we ask that climbers approach these routes from the South, and avoid the North end/approach of the East Face while the closure is in effect.
Access Issue: New Closure!
Details
New as of 2018: this formation is closed to climbing due to rock quality issues and wildlife concerns. The impact on brown bats, great horned owls, red tail hawks, and Cooper's hawks have resulted in Keyhole Rock (aka Sleeping Giant), the West face of Kindergarten Rock (aka Grey Rock), and the area between to be closed for all human uses including hiking and climbing. This information was from Bret Tennis, Garden of the Gods Park Operations Administrator.
Description
New as of 2018: this route on this face of the formation is closed to climbing due to wildlife concerns. The impact on brown bats, great horned owls, red tail hawks, and Cooper's hawks have resulted the West face of Kindergarten Rock (aka Grey Rock), Keyhole Rock (aka Sleeping Giant), and the area between to be closed for all human uses including hiking and climbing. This information was from Bret Tennis, Garden of the Gods Park Operations Administrator.
This route ascends the steepest part of the west face of Kindergarten Rock. Start on a ledge below a steep, green lichenous slab that leads up to a roof and a left-leaning, left-facing dihedral about 50 feet up.
Climb the slab past 4-5 pins on mostly moderate climbing, but with some fragile edges and flakes. About 5.8 with maybe one move of 5.9. At the roof, get ready for steep, sustained, pumpy climbing. Ascend the 5.10 corner which is well protected and take a rest at its top at an alcove. Pull through the overhang at the top of the alcove onto the vertical face above, and follow it past a few more pins to the anchor on a good ledge. The crux is the move just above the alcove. The climbing above this eases, but it is still challenging due to the pump factor.
Descent -- It is best to walk off to the south, as there are many very sharp edges on the face at the top of this climb. Top-roping, rappelling, or lowering from the anchor is not recommended. A climber died on this route in '93, due to slicing his rope at the top of the route. This was prior to the direct finish with 2-3 pins above the crux which were added after the accident. It is easy to see how one could be lured left onto unprotected and razor sharp face climbing, but just stick to the line of drilled angles, and you should be fine. This route is one of my favorites at the Garden. Go get it!
This route ascends the steepest part of the west face of Kindergarten Rock. Start on a ledge below a steep, green lichenous slab that leads up to a roof and a left-leaning, left-facing dihedral about 50 feet up.
Climb the slab past 4-5 pins on mostly moderate climbing, but with some fragile edges and flakes. About 5.8 with maybe one move of 5.9. At the roof, get ready for steep, sustained, pumpy climbing. Ascend the 5.10 corner which is well protected and take a rest at its top at an alcove. Pull through the overhang at the top of the alcove onto the vertical face above, and follow it past a few more pins to the anchor on a good ledge. The crux is the move just above the alcove. The climbing above this eases, but it is still challenging due to the pump factor.
Descent -- It is best to walk off to the south, as there are many very sharp edges on the face at the top of this climb. Top-roping, rappelling, or lowering from the anchor is not recommended. A climber died on this route in '93, due to slicing his rope at the top of the route. This was prior to the direct finish with 2-3 pins above the crux which were added after the accident. It is easy to see how one could be lured left onto unprotected and razor sharp face climbing, but just stick to the line of drilled angles, and you should be fine. This route is one of my favorites at the Garden. Go get it!
Colorado Springs, CO
Great route though...definitely one of my favorites in the Garden. Oct 27, 2008
Colorado Springs, CO
Colorado Springs, Colorado
I was wondering, if you can't rap down, then how will you clean your draws off the route? Can you top belay your partner up and he can clean or will that damage your rope too? I really want to give this route a shot, but I don't want to damage my rope. Mar 18, 2013
Colorado Springs, CO
Colorado Springs, Colorado
Colorado Springs
Hard for me to give this four stars because nearly the whole route was absolutely covered in pigeon shit, and those old drilled angles are starting to look pretty manky. Would really be interested in seeing this thing re-bolted with shiny new stainless, and throwing some new anchors on it down below the sharp lip. If the community feels the same way, I'd love to contribute to make that happen. Apr 1, 2015
The Pikes Peak Climber's Coalition is currently evaluating the fixed protection at the Garden of the Gods to make recommendations to the COS Parks, Recreation, and Cultural Services Department about which routes might need work this year. The next step is approval by the parks department, since rock climbing is now a managed process at the Garden of the Gods, and all fixed protection that is placed and replaced must be approved.
The PPCC is having a public meeting on Thursday April 23 from 6:30 to 8:30 pm at Venue 515 in Manitou Springs. You're welcome to come and talk to Brian Shelton and myself on the Fixed Hardware Committee.
Right now, however, I think that the consensus in the community would probably be to leave the anchors where they are at the top and continue to treat the climb as a route to do with a partner and scramble down the backside rather than doing it as a sport route with lowering anchors. We are planning on rappelling down the route and evaluating all the fixed pitons later this spring. Apr 7, 2015
Colorado Springs