Type: | Trad, 300 ft, 3 pitches |
FA: | Tom Howard, Jim Okel - 1981 |
Page Views: | 10,399 total · 80/month |
Shared By: | Jesse Morehouse on May 31, 2008 |
Admins: | Aaron Parlier, Steve Lineberry |
Seasonal Raptor closure in effect January 15-August 15.
NC Wall- All climbing routes between and including Tightrope and Bumblebee Buttress are closed.
Shortoff Mountain- All climbing between and including C.O. to and including Paradigm Shift are closed.
For questions contact USFS Grandfather Ranger District: 828-652-2144
For more information visit:
fs.usda.gov/alerts/nfsnc/al…
fs.usda.gov/Internet/FSE_DO…
or Contact USFS Wildlife Biologist Sheryl Bryan. sbryan@fs.fed.us
NC Wall- All climbing routes between and including Tightrope and Bumblebee Buttress are closed.
Shortoff Mountain- All climbing between and including C.O. to and including Paradigm Shift are closed.
For questions contact USFS Grandfather Ranger District: 828-652-2144
For more information visit:
fs.usda.gov/alerts/nfsnc/al…
fs.usda.gov/Internet/FSE_DO…
or Contact USFS Wildlife Biologist Sheryl Bryan. sbryan@fs.fed.us
All areas between and including C.O. (including Paradigm Shift are closed January 15-August 15.
For more information visit: fs.usda.gov/main/nfsnc/home
or Contact USFS Wildlife Biologist Sheryl Bryan. sbryan@fs.fed.us
For more information visit: fs.usda.gov/main/nfsnc/home
or Contact USFS Wildlife Biologist Sheryl Bryan. sbryan@fs.fed.us
Description
An incredible line with the 3rd pitch being one of the proudest pitches of 5.10a trad anywhere.
P1 (5.7) Climb right arching feature to hanging island of trees and shrubbery. Belay then move belay up and climbers right to spot below diehedral way up above you.
P2 (5.8). Climb to base of diehedral. I remember long slings being nice.
P3 (crux). This is why you climb this route! Climb diehedral to its top (5.9) which is actually the top of a pillar under a large horizontal roof. Keyhole a nut in the crack (yep, you heard right!) and commit to the roof. You would swear moves like these are in a gym but that nut dangling behind you reminds you otherwise. Awesome holds over the lip will get you to the top.
P1 (5.7) Climb right arching feature to hanging island of trees and shrubbery. Belay then move belay up and climbers right to spot below diehedral way up above you.
P2 (5.8). Climb to base of diehedral. I remember long slings being nice.
P3 (crux). This is why you climb this route! Climb diehedral to its top (5.9) which is actually the top of a pillar under a large horizontal roof. Keyhole a nut in the crack (yep, you heard right!) and commit to the roof. You would swear moves like these are in a gym but that nut dangling behind you reminds you otherwise. Awesome holds over the lip will get you to the top.
Location
From the descent gully turn left and walk a few hundred yards around the buttress. Start at the base of a gully-like weakness in the wall overhead. There are two starts, the left variation (aka Serentripitous) being slightly better quality. The original start can be recognized by the little offwidth towards the end of the pitch.
Asheviile,nc
Columbia, SC
originally WNC, now Broomfield
originally WNC, now Broomfield
Just rap out of the cave to the far climbers left. One single rope is plenty (only 70' or so), then do a short downclimb to the start of the 5.8 pitch in the gully/ledge. May 16, 2012
Ridgway, CO
Albuquerque, NM
From the parking lot, follow the trail as described. After 300 or 400 meters there is a right turn, marked with a trail marker sign that says Shortoff. Take that trail. Continue hiking (~45 minutes) until you get to a very clear sign where Mtn-to-Sea trail crosses your path. Two options from here. To rap down, backtrack a few hundred feet to the large clearing (we posted a photo of it). Walk to the edge and rap down here. GPS coordinates of the rap point are 35.830114,-81.902420.
If you want to do the first several pitches, continue on until you get to the spring (it has a PVC pipe coming out of the hillside; it's very obvious). This is the descent, as mentioned above. Consider stowing your bags here if you brought them; the climb ends a few hundred yards behind you were you would rap down. There is a fifth class section in the gully that has a few fixed ropes on it as of Sept 2016. The path will angle to the left after leaving the gully, and Built to Tilt comes up quickly in a few hundred yards. From the gully, if you keep looking to your left as you descend, you can see the top of second pitch and the roof that is the third pitch. Continue on the trail until you see this big flat rock in the trail. A huge square rock will be on your right.
At that rock, turn left and head up to the wall. You'll see the first pitch, a nice 5.7 crack immediately left of a large offwidth.
P1 - climb that crack. It's pretty fun, actually, though the top has a lot of lichen. It ends on a tree-filled ledge.
P2 - walk up the ledge a bit until you see a big hole in the rock (called a "notch" in another post, but more of a cave really - it's quite large). Climb up the corner under the cave and head up to the base of the pillar under the roof.
P3 - The crack in the obvious dihedral between the pillar and the face. It's off balance - hard for 5.9 I thought. We belayed from the top of the pillar under the roof.
P4 - There's ample protection for the roof moves. Make a few juggy moves out on the roof past the pillar, cut feet, throw a heel up by your ear, and get up there. Great exposure and lots of fun.
I thought the first few pitches were kind of fun. No reason to avoid them. Sep 11, 2016
New York, NY
The money pitch is wonderful - going up the corner and then looking up at that roof you realize its way larger up than what it appeared to be. A fall pulling the roof would be bad, so just stay focused, use a heel hook or two and commit! The holds are all massive plate jugs. May 23, 2018
Asheville, NC