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Raisin

5.9 R, Trad, 170 ft (52 m),  Avg: 2.5 from 8 votes
FA: unknown
California > Yosemite NP > Yosemite Valley > Valley N Side > E Yosemite Fall… > Sunnyside Bench
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Description

This is a great climb up a beautiful section of the wall that also happens to be about 40ft from one of the most popular walkways in Yosemite Valley. If you climb this on a weekend, you can expect to draw a large crowd.

Start by scrambling up a ramp that leads in from the left, and then step out onto the face and climb the arete of a small right-facing corner. There is some gear to be had in the corner itself. From here climb up to a faint arch and then up and left past two bolts on nicely featured stone. The final crux is more blank but protects with a good small cam in a crack. From this ledge, move right and do a boulder problem to reach a second ledge (watch the loose rock). There is a single bolt anchor here which you can back up with gear.

There is a newer variation which has been added to the left of this route. From the arete in the beginning, move left to a bolt and continue up and left on the face with a few more bolts. Towards the end you traverse right along a dike to rejoin the climb at it's final crux. Be sure to extend the final bolt, before the traverse. This variation takes some of the bite out of the "R" rating. This is not to be confused with Stretch Mark (5.11b) which is the bolted line still further left.

To descend, downclimb the 2nd/3rd class gully to the left (the lower section of the Sunnyside Bench Route)

Protection

Pro to 1" but mostly small.

Comments [Hide ALL Comments]

[Hide Comment] IMO the best face pitch for the grade in the Valley.

In 12+ years living in yosemite I have never seen anyone on it. What does that say for the popularity of R rated climbs. Kinda too bad. Great fun climbing with cool features. Also FYI, the pitch isn't over til it's over. Apr 14, 2013
King Tut
Citrus Heights
 
[Hide Comment] All of those routes, Raisin and those to the West are very good climbing on nice featured rock with thought provoking moves.

When you get to the top of one you feel like you have done a full rock climb. Jan 1, 2017
bmdhacks
Bellingham, WA
5.9+ X
[Hide Comment] This is the kind of 5.9R that you should feel comfortable free-soloing hard 5.9. At least, the way my partner and I climbed it, the last good pro ended way way below the cruxy final move of the climb. And the last move was hard.

Maybe we were off route, but getting off the mungy ledge just below anchor bolt involved sidepulling and crimping super sharp flakes that tended to just come off the wall.

It may be possible to toprope this climb with an 80m rope, but definitely not with a 70. It'd be a really fun toprope for the grade. Oct 22, 2017
[Hide Comment] I gotta say that this route here sounds more like the climb "Prune Face", as led by Mike Caldwell on April 19 1973, than the climb called "The Prune". If interested, check my comment under The Prune. Mar 30, 2024