Rest A Sherd

This is a new desert classic. It's Wingate sandstone but of the Long Canyon variety so expect a little flakiness and dustiness in some sections. It ain't The Creek, but in my opinion it's a true masterpiece of movement and difficulty so please go check it out. It is but one minute from the road and the climbing is highly creative and engaging. We enjoyed afternoon shade, the beauty and stillness of the river in summer, the birds quietly walking the sandbars, and the camaraderie of yet another random desert mission with good friends. Oh yeah, and some ice-cold brewskis once the deed was fully done. Rest assured you're in for a great time on this route!

The name is a reference to something most locals will understand. What I'll say is this; If you find any archeological artifacts in the vicinity ABSOLUTELY do not remove them. Out of respect for the desert itself and for those that came before us, not to mention the law, anything you see must be left at rest.

Ed and I originally went out to scope something else but as we approached Jughandle Arch Ed said "What's that splitter?" Well, now we know. We whirled over into the pullout and went up there, but not before realizing that we didn't bring the hammer. It looked so good though that I was willing to check it out and the ensuing somewhat-sketchy free/aid climbing mission, complete with taking a detached block to the chest, proved this route to be worthy of the $300 cam nest (including a black Totem!) I left at the top that first day.

We returned the next day armed with two secret weapons; a power drill with all the fixins and Herb Crimp. After much haggling and banter we settled on where we would add the three bolts to protect the intro section. The climbing here is a mandatory desert experience and fun in its own right. The rest is the business on bullet Wingate needing nothing bigger than a single .75 Camalot. It should be noted that this route was climbed without any bolts several times and can be done without them. They were added in the name of safety and the hope of protecting people from a potential catastrophe should any of the somewhat-loose bits give way unexpectedly.

On our third and final day out there it was still really hot in the shade, the dog days of summer still in full force. 5.12 is what I think is a conservative estimate because it's difficult to tell how hard something is or how hard you're trying when it's absolutely still without a breath of wind and 90 degrees in the shade. Of course Herb flashed the thing on TR so that didn't help my cause for wanting to grade it harder. I will say though that for the less vertically inclined or those with fatter fingers it may feel harder than the stated grade. All I know is that it took everything I had at the moment to send it and doing so left me with mild heat exhaustion...again. How does this happen every summer?!

To the right of Jughandle Arch. There is a pullout on the river side of the road just below the route. It starts up on a good ledge that's easy to identify and access.

I would suggest at least a double set from the tiniest cams to BD .5 or red Alien, along with a single BD .75, a sling or two and draws for the three bolts. The anchors are good bolts with links. Please rappel when cleaning.