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The Dragon's Spine
5.8,
Sport, 350 ft (106 m), 2 pitches,
Avg: 3.3 from 15
votes
FA: P1 Bill Coe, Ujahn Davisson 8/15/2009 - P2 7/14/10 Solo, Bill Coe
Oregon
> Mt Hood Nationa…
> Coethedral
> Coethedral Main
Description
The Dragon's Spine goes for 2 pitches of unbelievably amazing and fun knob climbing.
P1: Follow the arete straight up near or on the spine. Wander back and forth passing the intermediate rap anchor (do not use this) at the half way point and continue to follow the best knobs to a belay 56 meters up located @ 90 feet under and slightly to the right of the top of the pinnacle which ends at the 2 stainless Fixe Sport anchors on a tiny stance. P2: Step up and right just enough so you don't land on your belayer and follow the 15 bolts up and tending slightly left past the sub pinnacles to the top of the main Dragons Spine Pinnacle.
Rappel: From the top of the pinnacle, rappel straight down as for Gothic Rocks, the route just to the left. You can do this in three raps. If the slings at the top look iffy for you, simply step around left to the other side where the Grey Ghost Stainless Fixe anchors are located. A 60m is enough for all raps.
[Hide Photo] looking from bewitched anchor at dragon spine
[Hide Photo] Dragons Spine overview of the upper part.
[Hide Photo] What that other picture of Mark and Shaun looks like when not zoomed in. Should help you find the routes start if the line of bright shiny 1/2" diameter bolts don't clue you in. Double click the le…
[Hide Photo] The top of The Dragons Spine Pinnacle as viewed from the North and a couple hundred feet up.
[Hide Photo] Mark Canavan (leading) and Shaun Coe on pitch 2 of Dragons Spine. This pitch is sweet, fun and easy. The Old Witch Pinnacle is partially visible on the left.
[Hide Photo] slings around the top of the dragon spine.
[Hide Photo] Looking down the rap from the top of "The Dragon Spine"
[Hide Photo] Mark Canavan(belaying) and Shaun Coe (following) on pitch one.
[Hide Photo] Bill on the start of The Dragons Spine on the Fa photo Ujahn Davisson
[Hide Comment] intermediate rap anchor (added later and shared with Gothic) on the left at the half way point is missing one of the bolts, link and clip. lots of loose rock.
Mar 1, 2015
[Hide Comment] I would say no harder than a 5.8... maybe as more holds break off it will grow into the grade.
Regardless, a very fun climb with some great exposure near the top. We rapped off the bolted anchors to the north and had some difficulty with ropes getting stuck on the way down. Be careful when pulling the rope.
Sep 17, 2017
[Hide Comment] Very dusty and dirty, but all the knobs held. Multiple fresh slings with good hardware at the top anchor. Since the pinnacle's top is so small, it's probably easiest to lower the leader off to the Gothic Rocks anchors just to the left of the 2nd pitch belay. Rappel as for Gothic.
The intermediate anchor shared with Gratitude to the right is missing a hanger. I would recommend that you plan to "link" the first 24 bolts of climbing to the small perch in one pitch of climbing. With judicious use of slings, this is very doable without significant rope drag.
May 11, 2019
[Hide Comment] This was such a fun route. Good holds and feet the entire way up with great exposure and views. We did it in three pitches. It's still pretty dirty and could use a bit more traffic but most of the holds are solid. As a belayer be careful for falling rocks and dirt, wear a helmet. The anchor at the very top is like a trad anchor rapped around the top of the spire with one solid ring and a support ring next to it. There's about 3 slings wrapped around the top and just for good measure we added a fourth. We did three rappels to get to the ground and went almost directly down from the top to the last two rappel stations.
Jun 23, 2019
[Hide Comment] On the first pitch there is a midway anchor to the right that is missing a hanger. But about 2-3 bolts higher up the route you can go left to another nice 2 bolt anchor.
Jun 26, 2019
[Hide Comment] climbed a dirt clod arete and dihedral on lava getting up to the traverse linking to the trench chimney leading up to the spire- spectacular views- my friends were topping out on the witch (bewitched) just to climbers left of the dragon spine- super dope but needs cleaned like no other
Jul 15, 2019
[Hide Comment] This route is rather dirty.. We pulled off foot and hand holds, but the bolting is very generous. We opted for the bolted rappels, as the slung horn was not confidence inspiring. I am not sure the bolts were much better in the end. There were spinners at every rap station. They are the stud bolts, so maybe if you bring a wrench you can tighten them?
One thing is for sure though, kudos to the developers! The work that went into cleaning and bolting is VERY apparent. All none developed lines are covered in moss and dirt.
Jul 28, 2019
[Hide Comment] Great route! RAPPEL ROUTE IS IN UNSAFE CONDITION as of 8/31/2019.
There are 3 belay/rap stations: - One you pass on the way up. - The "first" station you actually stop at. - And the peak.
The first station you actually stop at is bomber. The actual first was not. I was able to wiggle the bolts with just my hand. Those bolts are prime for ripping out, do not rely on them. I would VERY much recommend rapping down to the route left of the arete, and rapping to the ground from there.
Got in a bit of a pinch, and had to put the rope through the better of the two bolts, and a small ring on the arete. Thank god for whoever added that ring.
Other than that, it's great climbing! No knobs ripped off at any point. It's dirty, but workable. Cool pinnacle summit.
Aug 31, 2019
[Hide Comment] Let this be a warning to other climbers: do your due diligence before trusting your life to suspect hardware!
The description of the route has been edited to emphasize the fact that the first set of double bolts is not an anchor and should not be used for rappelling. There is a better rap station up and left about 15' (this is the Gothic Rocks rappel line) that also facilitates a rappel to the ground using a 60m rope.
If people keep leaving random hardware on otherwise solid stainless steel, someone is going to have to come back and cut that rusty shit off.
Sep 2, 2019
[Hide Comment] Lots of bolts. 24 draws for the first pitch. 10-15 draws for the second. The anchor at the top of the second pitch is a natural pro. Check it is ok before rapping. The second set of rap rings is sketchy af. It is missing a bolt, so we rapped off one ring only.
ADMIN NOTE: As the route description indicates, the top anchor is absolutely bomber even if it is littered with useless additional ropes/slings. The wariness around exposed nylon is unwarranted - studies have shown that even 10+ year old slings and rope maintain at least 75% of their strength. The "second set of rap rings" described is absolutely the wrong set of anchors repeated over and over in the comments. You want to rap LEFT of the climbing line, straight down, and rappel from another set of bomber stainless anchors with rap rings.
Oct 8, 2019
[Hide Comment] Hi Karen: There is a photo above that shows both bolts are there, but that one has had the stainless Fixe sport hanger removed and a steel nut (it's rusting) with a swaged wire on it above. cdn-files.apstatic.com/clim… .I wonder if someone was trying to booty the Fixe Sport anchors as the other anchor is so close? That got put there so that if there were 2 party's they wouldn't have to rappel the route the other folks were climbing. I put threadlocker on most of the wedge anchors, and wonder if someone thought they'd steal a set? They got one off and in trying to reverse the nut off of the 2nd one merely only made it lose some tension because the nut is locked on (threadlocker in the wet, cold and dirt is a hit and miss affair and I used the cheap Chinese Harbor Freight stuff).
I have a bad knee so I won't be heading up, BUT I have another Fixe sport anchor to replace the one which was stolen. If anyone is going up please contact me and I'll give it to you to put on the wedge anchor that is currently without a hanger. If you get up there and think popping the second one off (you might need a little butane torch to heat it up to break the bond if the threadlocker is working) that's fine, or put the 2nd sport hanger on. One of the 2. Meantime, just go with Nates good advise a few posts up and rap off the anchor a few feet over. But let me know and lets figure how to connect and I'll get you the 2nd hanger.
Oct 20, 2019
Avg: 3.3 from 15
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South Lake Tahoe, CA
Portland
Regardless, a very fun climb with some great exposure near the top. We rapped off the bolted anchors to the north and had some difficulty with ropes getting stuck on the way down. Be careful when pulling the rope. Sep 17, 2017
The intermediate anchor shared with Gratitude to the right is missing a hanger. I would recommend that you plan to "link" the first 24 bolts of climbing to the small perch in one pitch of climbing. With judicious use of slings, this is very doable without significant rope drag. May 11, 2019
Portland
La Crescenta, CA
vancouver
One thing is for sure though, kudos to the developers! The work that went into cleaning and bolting is VERY apparent. All none developed lines are covered in moss and dirt. Jul 28, 2019
There are 3 belay/rap stations:
- One you pass on the way up.
- The "first" station you actually stop at.
- And the peak.
The first station you actually stop at is bomber. The actual first was not. I was able to wiggle the bolts with just my hand. Those bolts are prime for ripping out, do not rely on them.
I would VERY much recommend rapping down to the route left of the arete, and rapping to the ground from there.
Got in a bit of a pinch, and had to put the rope through the better of the two bolts, and a small ring on the arete. Thank god for whoever added that ring.
Other than that, it's great climbing! No knobs ripped off at any point. It's dirty, but workable. Cool pinnacle summit. Aug 31, 2019
The description of the route has been edited to emphasize the fact that the first set of double bolts is not an anchor and should not be used for rappelling. There is a better rap station up and left about 15' (this is the Gothic Rocks rappel line) that also facilitates a rappel to the ground using a 60m rope.
If people keep leaving random hardware on otherwise solid stainless steel, someone is going to have to come back and cut that rusty shit off. Sep 2, 2019
Portland, OR
ADMIN NOTE: As the route description indicates, the top anchor is absolutely bomber even if it is littered with useless additional ropes/slings. The wariness around exposed nylon is unwarranted - studies have shown that even 10+ year old slings and rope maintain at least 75% of their strength. The "second set of rap rings" described is absolutely the wrong set of anchors repeated over and over in the comments. You want to rap LEFT of the climbing line, straight down, and rappel from another set of bomber stainless anchors with rap rings. Oct 8, 2019
Pacific Northwet
I have a bad knee so I won't be heading up, BUT I have another Fixe sport anchor to replace the one which was stolen. If anyone is going up please contact me and I'll give it to you to put on the wedge anchor that is currently without a hanger. If you get up there and think popping the second one off (you might need a little butane torch to heat it up to break the bond if the threadlocker is working) that's fine, or put the 2nd sport hanger on. One of the 2. Meantime, just go with Nates good advise a few posts up and rap off the anchor a few feet over. But let me know and lets figure how to connect and I'll get you the 2nd hanger. Oct 20, 2019