[Hide Comment] P1 and P2 are straight forward. I ended up doing P3 and P4 as one long pitch which worked out well. Judging from the lichen on P3 and P4 these pitched are seldom done, but are worth while. Apr 23, 2007

[Hide Comment] First pitch didn't feel like 5.8, It felt more like 5.6. The next two pitches are considerably harder. Aug 3, 2007

[Hide Comment] This was my first real chimney of any kind and it was a hard lead for me, but about half way up I kinda figured it out and actually enjoyed the last 20 feet or so. Didn't know the grade before I started so I won't speculate on what it felt like... all I know is that the next one will feel easier.

Lead the second pitch as well but my calves were burning from LK the day before... at about the half way point I was actually wishing that it was more vertical! Sep 8, 2010

[Hide Comment] The chimney was by far the hardest part. That thing thrashed me. Sep 25, 2010

[Hide Comment] Freaky Deaky fun stuff all around!! First pitch is super straight forward but you better harness your inner Santa Clause because its all Chimney!! Second is pretty classic slab/crack climbing, quality stuff but the less then vertical pumps your calfs out. Third/fourth link up is fun and exposed off the belay and slackens up as you reach the eyebrows above. At the tree ledge we walked up right and rap'd off the two trees with fix slings down to the bolted belay on "Deep Throat" and then to the deck.

• two 60m ropes will do just fine if you want to save yourself a walk off*

Oct 18, 2011

[Hide Comment] Second pitch Definitely felt like the crux to me. First pitch is just so fun though, kind of wish it was easier to do it by itself. Third pitch wasn't that great though once you get past the super fun moves right off the belay.

Also, the beta page should be changed- there aren't any bolts on the third pitch. Sep 15, 2013

[Hide Comment] Climbed The Sperm to the top on 6/21/14. There are no bolts at the top of pitch 3. Instead, you can build a three piece anchor in horizontals at a small ledge where there is an old, broken, 1/8inch bolt. Pitch 3 is the best part of the climb with intricate moves in the crack right after the belay at the start of the pitch. Clip a fixed pin and then angle left and up to the previously mentioned belay stance. The slab upper portion (pitch 4) is not well protected after the anchor, but the climbing is easy. You could link pitches 3 and 4, but rope drag would be bad. Jun 22, 2014

[Hide Comment] Wanted to add a comment since there hadn't been any for a while. First scoped this climb out in March of 2016 and it looked wet, so didn't get on it. In both cases it had at least 2 days since last rain.

Came back in Feb of 2017 and it still looked wet, but decided to give it a go anyway.

P1: The opening (wide) bit of the chimney was QUITE challenging due to its soaked nature. The squeeze section of chimney didn't matter so much that it was wet, but was just a struggle overall. I don't believe the commenter who said P1 feels like 5.6. I suspect a troll. Even my partner who was following was screaming.

P2: I accidentally linked this with P1 because I'm terrible at judging distances, and spied the fixed anchor. Top of P1 has no fixed anchor. P2 crack was ALSO wet, although the face was dry. The face is quite slabby though, so you need the crack to keep steady most of the way. This felt more technically challenging than P1, but less physically strenuous. Could rap from top of P2 with two ropes.

P3: Best pitch of the route by far. Was the only dry pitch. Fun eyebrow moves go up and right, then eventually follow path of least resistance back left. Best belay is to the RIGHT of the big ledge where the fixed anchor used to be. As other comments have said, there is no longer any fixed anchor on top of P3. The horizontal a meter or so to the right of a fixed hex (which in turn is a meter or so to the right of the old anchor) will allow you to build a bomber anchor and put you in good position for the final pitch.

P4: Dry section of 15-20 feet leads to a runout (maybe another 15-20 feet) that culminates with some sketchy wet moves to finish off the climb. This is the worst protected pitch, although its also the easiest. Don't pass up any pro placements here, because you won't get much later on.

Descent Beta: When you top out P4 go to the obvious trail on the right. As of Feb 2017 the fixed slings and rings looked solid, but you need two ropes to get down rapping. We took the descent trail, which goes up from the slings maybe 20 yards, then connects with a trail going left and down the mountain. Trail doesn't seem to be used much so is quite overgrown, will involve crawling through some vegetation and sliding on your bum down leaf piles for quite a while.

Gear Beta: No need for anything bigger than a #3 C4 (can't even remember if I used one of those). First three pitches protect beautifully. Don't link first two pitches like I did, rope drag was terrible. Small stuff comes in handy for tight eyebrows.

Overall recommendation: wait until its dry (maybe summertime), otherwise not really worth it for the one quality pitch. Feb 13, 2017

[Hide Comment] The newest guide lists the top of the 2nd pitch at 200ft. Its more like 140 or so. You can just get down with one 80m rope. But make sure to tie knots in the ends of your rope if you have an 80m b/c its real close. Oct 28, 2018

[Hide Comment] who climbs with an 80 meter rope? Nov 2, 2018

[Hide Comment] Climbed pitches 1 and 2 on a Sunday evening, fixed a rope. Came back Monday evening and took it to the top! Caught some rain on the way down. Great route with a variety of climbing. Don’t stop at pitch 2 anchors if you have time to top it out! (Shoot for dry conditions).

Sean M’s beta is solid. I thought pitches 3 and 4 were great. The climbing on pitch three was fun and technical, interesting moves right off the belay and more sustained than I expected.

Pitch four was a little wandering, a little dirty, and a little wet but still worthy with a standard LG top out into some vegetation. I found the protection on the last pitch to be elusive but generally acceptable. Offsets cams and c3s were nice up there but I did place up to a #2 c4.

I cut the tat on the rappel tree and replaced it with some cord. We brought two ropes and got to the ground with two rappels using anchors on deep throat.

The view of the womb is incredible from this route, btw. Aug 31, 2021