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Peanut Butter & Chocolate
5.8,
Sport, 175 ft (53 m),
Avg: 2.6 from 34
votes
FA: Jeff Mahoney, Chris Wing, Katie Martin, Alex Lau, Carole Christianson, Shin Nimura, Mark Buntaine and Julian Lim
California
> Eastern Sierra
> Lone Pine Area
> Alabama Hills
> Alabama Hills S…
> Monument Slot (…
> Chocolate Block (aka…
Description
PB&C takes the long line from the ground on the dark rock (the chocolate), then crosses "Krugerrands" to get out on the lighter and slightly crumblier rock face left (the peanut butter). Hit the nice, thin ledge and move up through the slight bulge (careful of the obvious death flake on your left---the crumbling cookie---which most likely will be gone or at least diminished before too long). Pass a few thoughtful bits on the way up before the angle eases and you reach one of the best view top-outs in the Hills. Good movement, lots of mileage and sporty runouts make this a nice companion piece to the other chocolate-inspired routes on the formation.
Descent New 1/2" Fixe ring anchor and 3/8" hanger & chain installed to replace the snapped aluminum foil Kong-Bonatti with its companion spinner and laundry cord rap station.
40' rappel off the back (south) of the block, then work your way right (west) down and then through the cool tunnel/cave system which spits you out on the slabs above the parking area. Walk off with one 3rd class downclimb. You can also rap an additional 25' down and east and then walk through the cave system on that side. It's about the same amount of time either way. (With two ropes you could rap down and into the chimney, but then you'll spend another hour or more retrieving your fully stuck rope.)
Location
Starts on the face to the right of the "Krugerrands" crack. The first bolt is obvious.
[Hide Photo] Eeek, I wonder who got the jolt when this thing snapped? The anchor on top of the Chocolate Block as we found it. Kong-Bonatti aluminum hangers, one that's missing the important part (no oxidation,…
[Hide Photo] Keeping the ground-up ethic alive in the Hills. Almost halfway on the FA of PB&C. (Ignore the top-rope setups of the hecklers across the divide...) (Photo by Alex Lau)
[Hide Photo] "PB&C" (yellow line) crosses "Krugerrands"(red) after the 3rd bolt
[Hide Photo] Chris Wing just getting to the easier angle section on top. (Yes, it really is that high up. A nice, long, fun route.)
[Hide Photo] Onsight of Peanut Butter & Chocolate. Fun engaging runouts. Nice and long with much patina bliss. Photo by Žaneta.
[Hide Comment] Cool route and the longest one I have done in the Hills. The name is a bit deceiving as I expected the Peanut Butter to be the lighter grainy rock so common on Hills slab climbs - not so - it's fun plates all the way up. The death flake is spooky but common sense keeps you well to the right. Definitely sporty. My partner enjoyed finding our way down. Worth a repeat.
Apr 17, 2014
[Hide Comment] great route! good climbing and mostly solid rock until the last bit. a few solid 5.8 moves but always near the bolt. always a good hold when you need one. bolts are spaced nicely and great clipping stances. go do it! killer top out and fun adventure out with some tunneling.
May 21, 2014
[Hide Comment] Just did this today--great fun. It is sporty by sport climbing standards. Expect runouts up to 20 ft., give or take. If you're solid on 5.8, you should be okay, but I was definitely focused at times. We descended to climbers right after the rappel--to the left facing out--and swung round the formation to find a corridor that took us right back to our packs. A little tunnelly/bouldery but nothing dramatic. Recommended.
Nov 8, 2014
[Hide Comment] I've spent a long time climbing in the the Alabama Hills. While I greatly appreciate the route development in the area, I am dissapointed by the Runouts left by the FA party on what could be a great Alabama hills 5.8 enjoyed safely by those entering to the grade. Instead we have a 5.8 climb with approximate 15-20 ft runs on less than Yosemite grade rock. You could be a 5.12 climber and end up in the hospital on this one. I didn't realize the Alabama hills needed runout climbs, considering it's generally a moderate cragging destination. Just one guys opinion. The view at top is indeed great.
Nov 1, 2015
[Hide Comment] I appreciate your input, Mtnfly, however, I did not set out to make a runout route. I had no ego invested in putting it up: the line itself dictated what it became. It was done ground-up in good style and is well-protected at the crux points. ("Sporty runouts" in the description, along with "9 bolts for 165 feet" should give you enough guidance for what to expect.) Separately, I and the rest of FA party are nowhere near 5.12 climbers (and I am a good deal older than you). We too have logged many years of climbing in the Hills, and this particular line revealed itself as it stands, and it should remain as such.
Next time you're out there, I would recommend you climb "Chocolate Pocket," as that will give you an idea of how how much thought and care is put into the safety of the routes I put up. Had I left that route as it was originally done, it would warrant an R/X, but I added bolts purely to protect future climbers, and make sure it would get climbed a lot. (I only post routes that I want others to climb---I've got a few crappy R/X routes that didn't come together as well as they looked from the ground, and those hopefully won't ever find their way on MP or elsewhere. Again, this isn't an ego thing; it's about contributing to the climbing community.)
I respect your opinion to downgrade this route and give it a PG13, but you should also respect everyone else's opinion that it's a better route and not one that will put you in the hospital.
Nov 2, 2015
[Hide Comment] Let me say again, I'm glad you guys are out there developing routes. I don't trust the rock quality in the Alabama hills enough to justify ANY long runs between bolts. I did fine on this route, but I kept thinking if I break a hold in a few of these spots I would be seriously hurt. So goes climbing I guess. But totally your right to put it up how you like........just my thoughts. Might help that climber not willing to run it out.
Nov 3, 2015
[Hide Comment] Ok route and I see both sides of it as far as the runout thing goes. It is run out and it is pretty suspect rock in a few places. I actually pulled off a pretty good handhold around bolt 6 or so. That being said, runouts are usually because you cant stop to drill. On this route you can stop anywhere so im not reallly getting the runouts.
And watch out for bolt #5. The location is a biner breaker with the way the surrounding rock traps the biner. I multiwrapped a sling into the hanger then clipped that.
Feb 10, 2016
[Hide Comment] Okay, okay, UNCLE! I will go back and put bolts in everywhere I can stop. (I will take a look at bolt #5 and see if any of the rock sprouted and will remedy. Woulda done it yesterday, but didn't see these interwebs the last few days.)
Feb 15, 2016
[Hide Comment] A man of action!!! Got to say though... if there was bolts all over that thing I would have been bored to tears.
If you really want to make it so all us old duffers have even more fun, here is something to think about: Put a smooth pull station at the top for frontside rapping and.... Fix the bolt #5 location and turn it into a mid station so a reasonable rap off the formation is possible with one rope.
Feb 15, 2016
[Hide Comment] See? That's why you're the man. Good idea about the mid-station, being on the old duffer threshold myself (but yeah, boredom kills). I'll post an update after remediation.
Feb 15, 2016
[Hide Comment] For what it's worth I think the route is fine as is. The rap off the back is short and the walkoff is fun. Many of the climbs in the Hills are superbly protected but occasionally there is one that isn't. I think that is okay. Sporty in the Hills is runout in most other areas. Hoodgie on Hoodgie Wall comes to mind. An R designation in the Hills is often an old test piece with horrendous or death fall potential- Loaf Arete and Bad Bananas come to mind - each with 1 bolt compared to Pangborn's 11 bolts over the same height. Original Route is Fun on Hoodgie - 1 bolt and a good cam (or two) covers the same distance as Ankles Away just to the left with 9 bolts. I'm used to crappy rock and crazy runouts because I do most of my climbing at Pinnacles. I LOVE the Hills for a change of pace.
Feb 24, 2016
I don't recall the problem with bolt #5. The route was a little sporty, but the runs aren't that bad--if you're solid at the grade. Not all routes have to be mega-bolted. I enjoyed it. And now there's a more heavily bolted, somewhat harder addition to the left that I can't wait to try. Thanks for the hard work.
That rib of rock on the left of the bolt is the spine breaker. When clipped into the hanger the biner gets trapped under the rib and can't rotate freely or rides on top of the rib. NBD as long as you don't fall ;)
Feb 25, 2016
[Hide Comment] One of the best 5.8s in the hills in my opinion. Thanks for investing in establishing this climb! The character of the route isn't a surprise or anything - even with no beta you can just look up and see the relative scarcity of the bolts. If you're comfortable climbing to that first bolt then you're definitely comfortable enough to finish the route. Got to watch the full moon rise from the top of this a few days ago. Would recommend!
Also, there are still loose plates falling apart on the upper part of the climb. The pieces fall directly into the chimney 100 feet down. Be very aware of other parties down there!
Sep 8, 2017
[Hide Comment] Huge respect for the ground-up nature of this route, but the severity of injury that could be sustained due to no fault of the climber should be taken seriously (read: the holds are going to break one day). Heads-up climbing in places like Joshua Tree and Yosemite, where the medium is solid and reliable, is a different case than this climb which is going to have an unlucky leader hospitalized. In my personal opinion, runouts on less-than-stellar rock are just not within my risk tolerance. That being said, this climb is a great testpiece for head-pointing on wickedly windy days for a full-value experience. However, don't feel as though you are missing out on any exceptional movement or experience if you choose not to do it. If you want heads-up climbing, go do Stichter Quits in Jtree. At least nothing there is going to break on you.
May 6, 2024
[Hide Comment] i too feel this route is fine as is, as of 2/2025. felt fine with the runouts, longest btwn 3rd and 4th bolts that covers the stretch from top of initial block face past bushes and a crack onto the middle face section. pointed out to next leader that a BD Purple 0.5 can be placed halfway up the crack to cut that runout in half. she did and felt better with that. high enjoyment either way. as noted, pulling rope down the frontside has high potential to get rope stuck. we led and set up TR even, then last person rapped the backside and scrambled down. if desiring convenience, there're over a thousand other quick-n-easy climbs across Alabama Hills. nice to have a few like this
Feb 3, 2025
Avg: 2.6 from 34
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Mammoth Lakes, Ca
El Segundo, Ca
Santa Barbara, CA
Next time you're out there, I would recommend you climb "Chocolate Pocket," as that will give you an idea of how how much thought and care is put into the safety of the routes I put up. Had I left that route as it was originally done, it would warrant an R/X, but I added bolts purely to protect future climbers, and make sure it would get climbed a lot. (I only post routes that I want others to climb---I've got a few crappy R/X routes that didn't come together as well as they looked from the ground, and those hopefully won't ever find their way on MP or elsewhere. Again, this isn't an ego thing; it's about contributing to the climbing community.)
I respect your opinion to downgrade this route and give it a PG13, but you should also respect everyone else's opinion that it's a better route and not one that will put you in the hospital. Nov 2, 2015
El Segundo, Ca
Flaky Foont, WI. Redacted…
And watch out for bolt #5. The location is a biner breaker with the way the surrounding rock traps the biner. I multiwrapped a sling into the hanger then clipped that. Feb 10, 2016
Santa Barbara, CA
Flaky Foont, WI. Redacted…
If you really want to make it so all us old duffers have even more fun, here is something to think about:
Put a smooth pull station at the top for frontside rapping and....
Fix the bolt #5 location and turn it into a mid station so a reasonable rap off the formation is possible with one rope. Feb 15, 2016
Santa Barbara, CA
I don't recall the problem with bolt #5. The route was a little sporty, but the runs aren't that bad--if you're solid at the grade. Not all routes have to be mega-bolted. I enjoyed it. And now there's a more heavily bolted, somewhat harder addition to the left that I can't wait to try. Thanks for the hard work.
BAd Feb 25, 2016
Flaky Foont, WI. Redacted…
That rib of rock on the left of the bolt is the spine breaker. When clipped into the hanger the biner gets trapped under the rib and can't rotate freely or rides on top of the rib. NBD as long as you don't fall ;) Feb 25, 2016
Santa Barbara, CA
Also, there are still loose plates falling apart on the upper part of the climb. The pieces fall directly into the chimney 100 feet down. Be very aware of other parties down there! Sep 8, 2017
Las Vegas, NV
Los Angeles, CA
Oak Park, CA