Flying Warlocks
5.10,
Trad, 100 ft (30 m),
Avg: 2.2 from 6
votes
FA: Herb Laeger Mark Krebs
California
> Southern-Wester…
> Southern Sierra…
> Needles
> Warlock
Description
Flying Warlocks is a mixed route with a two 5.10 areas separated by easier climbing. As with many new routes, it needs cleaning up a bit.
Start in a A-frame feature with a crack in the middle. At the top, surmount the shallow roof with an interesting series of moves, which finishes on a ledge with a bolt. Easier climbing leads to a larger roof with another bolt. After the second roof, a large ledge is encountered. From the ledge climb the face to the left (not the wide crack) clipping a bolt and continue climbing to another bolt.
From here, there are two alternatives:
Continue up and right crossing the crack onto the face, heading for another bolt. From that bolt, head straight up to another roof on good holds. Contour left under the roof, above which there is another bolt. A hard 5.10 move (crux) surmounts the roof and leads to good climbing on positive holds through 3 more bolts and belay on the ledge. The other alternative is to climb directly left and slightly down to a small ledge with a two bolt rap anchor.
First Ascentionist's note
Herb Laeger and I (Mark Krebs) did this route and Ghostbumps in July 2004. There are two pitches to Flying Warlocks. Second pitch leaves the belay straight up to the obvious roof. Traverse left under the roof to its end. Reach up and around to a bucket and pull the roof. Then, move up and right to same ledge as Ghostbumps for rappel anchors. There are two 110 foot rappels to get to the ground.
Location
Flying Warlocks is on the North Side of The Warlock, about 20' left of
Ghostbumps, starting a the top of the incline/gulley.
Protection
Single rack up to a 3.5" piece, 9 bolts. The full route may be a stretcher for a 60m rope.
If you continue to the top (the first alternative above), you can easily work your way about 25' right to the second belay of
Ghostbumps and rap that route.
If you do alternative 2, you can rap 100' to ground, passing a second rappel about 20' from the ground.
The second anchor seems a mystery, as a 60m rope reaches the ground. However, as we pulled the rope, it got hung up irretrievably on a deep flake just under this low anchor. We had to 4th class it up and over to that anchor, free the rope, and then rap the 20'. Aug 5, 2009
Kernville, CA
Mark Krebs Jun 8, 2022