Bella Vista
5.7 PG13,
Trad, 510 ft (155 m), 5 pitches, Grade II,
Avg: 2.7 from 23
votes
FA: 2012
New York
> Adirondacks
> G: Indian Lake…
> Crane Mountain
> Belleview
> Bella Vista Slab
Description
A long, fun jaunt up the side of Crane Mountain. The top of this route is open and the view is excellent.
P1 110' 5.4 PG: Climb the slab up and right, running it out on friction 25' to the first bolt. Continue weaving upward, following clean patches and bolts, to a right-facing corner. Hop left, up on this, and make a semi-hanging belay. With a 60m rope, one can continue climbing another 25m to reach the short crack below and beside the crux headwall. A gear belay allows the second pitch to then run from there all the way to the oak tree in the central swathe of woods (top of pitch 3). This eliminates two belays, making this a 3-pitch route.
P2 90' 5.5 G 5.3 R: Climb a short vertical crack, then the slab above, moving up and slightly left to a flap. Go over this and up the unprotected slab above to the left of two short vertical cracks to the right of a steep headwall. Climb through this and make a belay (use the spruce tree).
P3 40' 5.7 PG 5.2 R: Climb up the headwall using a short vertical crack and the face to its left. Walkable slab leads to a slightly steeper end at a spruce tree anchor.
P4 100' 5.3 R: Step right onto the main slab and make a few dicey moves to the first gear at 25', then continue up easing slab to a point by a spruce tree on the left. Step into the wooded patch at an oak tree with a horizontal branch, and belay.
P5 200' 5.5 G 5.3 R: Scramble left, over blocks, onto a low-angle slab. Work up to its upper left end at a vertical crack in a steeper slab (possible to belay here). Climb the crack and short slab above its end to a stance, step left to a series of shallow scoops beside a seam and go up these to a stance below 2 small spruce trees. Step right around these and climb to the top. There are cracks where a gear belay can be established, or you can stretch the rope out to trees in the woods.
Location
At the lowest point of the slab above and climber's left of the Belleview Slab.
Descent: walk climber's right, traversing along a narrow ledge to reach a brushy gully. Walk down this gully to the lowest of several spruce trees, where there is a rappel anchor, near the top of Benediction. Rappel anchors lie along the general line of Bella Vista all the way down from here.
Protection
Standard Rack. While the crux move is well-protected, be aware that there are many 5.3 R runouts along the way.
[Hide Photo] Summit of BellaVista 07/21/2020 iPhone pano shot
[Hide Photo] 3 piece anchor at P2 belay station. Mark included the last bolt of P1 in the master point. Unnecessary in the eyes experienced climbers albeit emotional support to supplement lack of confidence in…
Las Vegas, NV
Whether the pro grade changes or not is a matter of opinion. There are still some substantial runouts, but the fixed gear greatly alleviates the risk-factor in these places; given that the areas are low-angle slab, there's a good chance a fall, even at the maximum in the fifth-class sections, would not result in serious injury. Compared to the runouts on, for example, Roger's Rock routes, Bella Vista would now be "G" rated.
But a few of the falls could be extensive, and on any long fall, risk of broken ankles or inversion is elevated. While a broken ankle is not considered serious, it certainly ruins the day - and as you and I are very aware - can be a life-changing event. While my "old-school" training is aware of these facts and takes it into consideration, there is a modern trend to differentiate between "no injury likely" and "medical attention required injury possible". My head sees no difference; the most trivial, "safe" falls can result in option B, while some of the scariest huge whippers can (and the plethora of online videos depict) be harmless. But the latest generation, raised on plastic and overhanging rock, does.
So I have not changed the pro rating on this one yet. We old-schoolers will be pampered, new-school folks will be informed.
I am sorry I was away the day you came up. I've wanted to see and climb with you for awhile, and of course, the one day I'm off the mountain, you visited. Let's try to get together before the season is out. May 6, 2017
Southern ADK
Huntington, NY
Southern ADK