| Type: | Trad, 400 ft (121 m), 4 pitches, Grade III |
| GPS: | 44.40782, -73.5037 |
| FA: | unknown |
| Page Views: | 3,559 total · 17/month |
| Shared By: | jmeizis on May 31, 2009 |
| Admins: | Morgan Patterson, Kevin MudRat MacKenzie, Jim Lawyer |
Several recent incidents at the Poke-O Moonshine Main Face have heightened tensions with neighboring landowners.
Shortcut Trail (aka the Smitty Trail): The main approach goes from the (now closed) campground to the cliff near Discord. There is a shortcut trail on the right that provides access to the cliff near Pentecostal. This shortcut trail crosses the edges of two parcels of private land, and was closed in the spring of 2014. As of Aug 30, 2014, this trail is open on a tentative basis. Stay on the trail; there are some cairns and Access Fund signage to help.
Northern Trail Closure (aka the Easy Living Trail): There is an old trail that connects US 9 with the cliff near Psalm 32. This trail is entirely on private land and should NOT be used by climbers; indeed, it has been closed and undocumented for many years. Both ends of this trail are now marked with signs courtesy of the Access Fund.
In short, while visiting the Main Face, approach from the campground, and stay on the main trail along the base of the cliff.
Description
This climb is past Bloody Mary at the far northern end of the cliff. It follows a right leaning ramp/crack system and then traverses right for a couple hundred feet with a very heady third pitch. One could rap down from the second or third pitch without leaving gear.
The first pitch starts at the top of a large block which can be approached from tne north side with some third class. It follows the right leaning ramp/crack system to the overhanging roof that caps this section of the face. From here you traverse right for a pitch to an alcove. Another traversing pitch takes you underneath an airy roof to a good ledge. From here follow the overhanging crack. Although improbable it is not as hard as it looks. Do not try the shallower dihedral up and right. It's not anywhere in the 5.8 range.



5 Comments