[Hide Comment] Link it up in 4 pitches w/ a 60m. Aug 19, 2009

[Hide Comment] How this route is rated so high baffles me. Supertopo guidebook talks about climbing immaculate perfect granite and so on regarding Great Pumpkin. This route offers far from that, highlighting a massive hollow flake that should not be protected with pro due to the unpredictability that it would blow off the wall, changing rock quality top to bottom and and extreme run outs. I would gladly walk off fairview for any other climb. Jul 18, 2012

[Hide Comment] Can be climbed in 3 pitches with a 70m.

From bolted belay at the top of P1 you can rope stretch to the Bolted Belay at the top of the pitch that starts off the ledge with the tree. (link p2 & p3) Might need to use long slings for the bolt anchors to milk that extra foot of stretch out of the rope. Rope drag is not that bad, be sure to protect for the follower mantling onto the ledge. If they unclip from the tree rap before mantling and you have no pro until the bolt at the other end of the ledge, they face a nasty penji should they blow the mantle. Jul 22, 2013

[Hide Comment] What a spectacular route, every pitch offers a little spice and is consistently interesting. Easily one of my favorite routes at the grade! We did it in four pitches with a 70m. Mar 17, 2014

[Hide Comment] This route is a classic line by Mr. Kamps. It's runout...but if you climb well and have the head..go for it. Always fun. Jul 9, 2014

[Hide Comment] Classic face climb. If you're a bold face climber, you'll love it. For me - well - I think there are 5.8+ moves WAY past your last bolt - very scary - my hats off to Kamps and anyone else who can lead those upper pitches. Sep 11, 2015

[Hide Comment] This route should be called the Great Jack O'Lantern because it certainly is a little spooky. Scariest point is looking up at it from the ground yet maintains the stress when your on it, requires a solid head and comfort on run out slab climbing. Easy climbing for its grade, yet most likely rated what it is due to the seriousness of the runouts. Type one, type two fun, you decide! Dec 5, 2015

[Hide Comment] Let me point out to those unfamiliar with So Cal climbing history. This route was put up by TWO face masters, Kamps and Bud '"Ivan" Couch, who put up Valhalla (.11a) at Suicide, the route one had to lead to become a Stonemaster. Jun 15, 2016

[Hide Comment] Awesome, fantastic route--over and over again. Done it so many times and always a blast! Sounds like Trying hard had a hard time and was maybe wandering on some other route nearby... This is classic old-school climbing: follow the weaknesses where they take you. Jul 8, 2019

[Hide Comment] 10/1/20 - top lead bolt on route/P4 replaced with 3/8 ss fixe/asca Oct 1, 2020

[Hide Comment] Thanks, old5ten. Just clipped it for the 5th time yesterday. Noticed it was brand new; still had some of the rock dust on it. What an awesome line. Some clarification: the last pitch is, yeah, runout to the bolt. BUT it is NOT 60' like the guidebooks say (40') and it's not 5.8 right before you clip the bolt! 5.7 tops... It's still heads-up, pay attention; ya don't want to fall on this one. Oct 15, 2020

[Hide Comment] Fun route, not too scary by Tuolumne standards. Supertopo makes it sound like the first bolt 90' up is your only gear but neglects to mention that you get 5-6 decent pieces in before that point. Still slightly heady clipping it, but staying right before the bolt and left after keeps things reasonable. While the follower could swing a bit here, it's not bad. Pitch 2 is the money pitch, great flakes and cracks, lots of gear. 3 is hard for one move off the ledge (with a bolt in your face), then easy, the knob tie-off is good. I found pitch 4 way more casual than some people make it out to be. Still runout, maybe 20-30 for the first couple bolts, then 40 from the mid-anchor. But not 60' and it's all solid knob climbing, felt more like 5.6 than 5.8 and that's coming from a slab weeny. Case in point, we did an extra pitch from the top before we unroped. Jul 11, 2021

[Hide Comment] Fun knob and flake climbing that is well protected at all of the 5.8 moves. We enjoyed the climbing on this one much more than the climbing on Regular Route! West face of Fairview is loaded with gems. Sep 20, 2024

[Hide Comment] If you have strong toes (no judgement), like climbing primarily knobs, and not using protection for extended periods of time, this is the climb for you. It's very heady the entire climb that requires thoughtful moves with consequential falls.

This would be more fun with modern bolting but is essentially a sport* climb where you use a double rack on p2 and maybe half a rack on all the other pitches. Jul 21, 2025

[Hide Comment] Just climbed this one again and loved it just as much the 2nd time! This would be nowhere near as fun or exciting with modern bolting. It’s all positive knobs and flakes with gear or a bolt at every 5.8 move. Runouts are all on good knobs. Great route to work on your Tuolumne head game. Aug 31, 2025