Roofer Madness

Hey so after attempting to do Roofer Madness from the third class ledges start on September 14, 2021, I believe that a significant part of the crumbly traverse must have fallen off since our ascent 29 years ago. It used to be around 5.8, and you could get your hands in a horizontal crack directly beneath the white roof. It would appear that what formed the bottom part of the crack has fallen away. This was always the rottenest part of the route, but it's particularly rotten now - and much harder - rotten and harder such that I didn't even really make much of an attempt. I feel it is my duty now to warn people to stay away from this route. I may still try to rappel in from the top and see if I can figure out an alternative, but I'm not sure that there will be one.

Roofer Madness is the biggest route in the Black Wall cirque, as it starts a little lower and tops out a little higher than every other route. It ascends the beautiful, north-facing buttress and arete that can be seen from the top of the main (east-facing) Black Wall when looking southeast. It starts on the climber's left side of the arete and traverses to the right side around mid-climb. The route is a little dirty in places and will take a few ascents to clean up. Give yourself a full day for this endeavor.

The route was partly cleaned on rappel in 1990 (only the first two pitches) and both the 1st and most of the 2nd halves of the route were climbed by Greg Cameron and Clare Dunning prior to the first bottom to top ascent by Cameron and Lowe in 1991 or 1992.

The upper half of the climb, beginning with the crux pitch, can be accessed by descending down 3rd and 4th class grassy ledges from the southeast and then traversing right (5th class) immediately beneath the lower of the two huge roofs. This path intersects Mer Dascht near the top of the third pitch, below the three bolts. This is a good strategy on a day in which rain is expected early. This part of the climb faces west (unlike Mer Dascht, which faces northeast, and the lower part of Roofer Madness, which faces north.).

The recommended access is via rappel down the Black Wall and then scrambling on scree to the prominent north-facing apron that forms the beginning of the buttress. This allows you to see the route before climbing it. An alternate access (now) is to do the Mer Dascht rappels. Roofer Madness starts a little right of the first pitch of this climb. Mer Dascht always stays well left of the actual arete that is the Roofer Madness arete. Roofer Madness starts close to the left of the arete for the first half and then crosses over to the right side of the arete around mid-climb. I mean, you are getting the full arete experience.

The route starts in a hand and fist crack situated in the middle of the apron that forms the (left-side) bottom of the Roofer Madness buttress. You are in the right place if you see two huge roofs looming a few hundred feet above you, one directly on the prow, and a higher one just on the right side of the prow. I use the word prow as synonymous with arete, and there really is an amazing arete which goes from bottom to top between the buttress-defining dihedrals of the Roofer Madness buttress. You will have to kick steps in some snow to get to the base of the route.

I modified this description on September 16, 2019 after rappelling and then climbing (on toprope) the upper pitches with my friend, Laurent. We stopped at the top of the 5.11a roof pitch. My original description was based on a 15-year-old memory (I'm sure I would have still screwed it up at 6 months). In this description, I have eliminated one pitch above the crux, since Laurent and I toproped it this way.

P1. Apron crack (5.10); 170 feet. Follow the hand and fist crack up and left past a grassy depression. The crack thins to fingers and, after another 30 feet or so, a branch of the crack goes straight up for another 80 feet to a small ledge. This crack involved a fair amount of cleaning prior to and during the first ascent. Fun pitch!

P2. Black slot (5.9); 80 feet. Follow the finger crack up and a bit left to a blackish-colored slot, which is the continuation of a prominent right-facing dihedral that begins at the base of the buttress. Ascend the slot (5.9 - 5.10), and find a belay stance.

P3. Wander on the left side of prow; 130 feet. Work up easier ground, staying on the left side of the prow, to a belay on the left side of a large roof.

P4. A crumbly traverse (5.8?); 50 feet. When nearly even with the roof, traverse straight right along a prominent but crumbly, horizontal fracture system underneath a short overhang to a ledge. At this point, you are on the right side of the prow and about 70 feet beneath a huge roof with a crack leading to it that branches into two after about 15 feet. This pitch is a great example of something that is common in the Black Wall cirque --. Roofs become ledges along horizontal fractures (and vice versa).

P5. The crux hand and fingers (5.11); 70 feet. Ascend the right-hand  crack to a hanging belay immediately beneath the roof. If feeling particularly strong, this pitch and the next can be done as one (hey, it's only 120 feet of climbing).

P6. Angling roof (5.11-); 50 feet. This is the defining pitch of the climb because this is the biggest roof, and the only one that you can't climb around.. Follow the crack up and right through the 45-degree-angling roof (5.11a with a little wide climbing) to a very exposed belay on the right side of the prow. Your rope will hang nearly 40 feet from the wall and, if you have to bail, you will need to down-aid this roof (I've done this twice). This is a spectacular pitch. There is one fixed pin in the middle as well as a pin at the belay. Note that parts of this pitch can be wet at times (It wasn't at all wet 2 days ago).

P7. Discontinuous cracks (5.10); 170 feet. Work up and a bit left on tricky, somewhat hard-to-protect 5.10 climbing and then back right underneath a roof and then back left again. Continue left underneath the really big roof (the crack through this roof will likely go at 5.11+) to access the prow, where the route intersects Mer Dascht.On this pitch, you never actually turn a roof.  Instead, you navigate around them. A fixed pin exists a little over half way up the pitch. Depending on rope drag, you may want an intermediate belay here (we did on the FA). When cleaned up, this will be a stellar pitch.

P8. The finish; 130 feet. You can either continue up the left side of the prow on Mer Dascht (with bolts) or cross over to the right side where there is a rappel/belay station. The climbing above the rappel station is 5.7-5.8 crack climbing. The finish is at the first Mer Dascht rappel station.