Voyage of the Trash Cat

NOTE: This is a long new route. It is much more alpine in nature than most of Potrero. The first 10 pitches are straightforward on generally sound rock, sporting a 400’ long continuous splitter crack!! The final 5 pitches follow a ridge and are quite loose. We almost gave up on the ridge until working on pitch 14, uncovering a rad pitch hiding under the choss. Only time will tell if the rock on the ridge will ever reach equilibrium, but for now, and until this thing receives a decent amount of traffic, shedding is guaranteed. This route follows a large gully system and rocks dropped off at any point anywhere off the route will funnel their way down the entire rest of the route. Use caution climbing under other parties. 

You are a Mexican street cat. And lucky for you, it is trash day in Hidalgo! All of the locals will put their bins out, and some, coveted few, don’t even put lids on their trash cans. A veritable buffet! And for you, my Trash Cat friend, there is a three course feast in your future. 

“The Appetizer” 

The route starts in The Amphitheater, the same massive gully as La Sombra Luminosa, climbing the corner on the right rather than the left. It shares the same first pitch as “Las Auras”. The climbing on these initial pitches require less pure crack technique than the middle headwall, a great warm up to the style to come. 

P1 75’ 5.7 (5 Bolts) “Approach Pitch” Climb a low angle water polished groove to a huge ledge. There is sometimes a fixed line on the left side of the amphitheater that can allow you to skip this pitch. 

Move the belay to the base of the large corner to the right. 

P2 60’ 5.9 (8 Bolts) Start up the aesthetic corner system; laybacking, jamming and stemming up to a decent stance. It is best to link this into the next pitch.

P3 60’ 5.9+ (8 Bolts) Continue up the corner. Near the top, trend left up a short slab to an excellent belay ledge. 

P4 115’ 5.9 (11 Bolts) Head up the low angle face, aiming for a stem-box. Follow this to a massive ledge. 

P5 90’ 5.7 (3 Bolts) Ramble up the gully and slabs to a good belay ledge where the wall steepens again. 

“The Main Course”

The meat of the route climbs a nearly 400’ tall headwall reminiscent of Supernova. But unlike Supernova, the wall is split by an obvious, continuous splitter crack. The climbing is physical for the grade and requires good crack technique in all sizes, though it is mostly an excellent, meaty hand crack. 

P6 110’ 5.9 (10 Bolts) Start up ledges, making your way into the obvious laser cut splitter. Take the hand crack up to a decent ledge. 

P7 70’ 5.9 (8 Bolts) Follow the amazing crack to another decent ledge. NOTE: careful pulling your rope on this pitch, there is a tower a short ways up the pitch that wants to stick your rope. 

P8 90’ 5.9 (10 Bolts) Continue up the crack to an ok ledge below a pod where the crack widens.

P9 80’ 5.9 (10 Bolts) Again, follow the amazing crack, past a short section of fists to the lip of a massive ledge. 

P10 100’ 3rd class (4 bolts) Follow the fixed line across a massive ledge to the base of the hanging knife edge ridge that looms above. Please clip the bolts if you drag your rope across the ledge. This will help keep from knocking rocks down. 

NOTE: Use caution while on this large ledge. Rocks that fall off this ledge get funneled (Via a secret ridge) back down to the first few pitches.  

“Dessert?” 

The upper part of the route climbs an obvious knife-edged ridge. The position is incredible and climbing is interesting. However, like most of the ridges in Potrero, the rock is dubious. Careful movement and good route-finding are necessary. This final stretch should be approached more as an alpine climb where all rock is “guilty until proven innocent”. The first two pitches of the ridge are the worst rock, though the climbing is generally easy and low angle when the rock is poor. 

P11 115’ 5.9 (13 Bolts) Start up a few steep moves to gain the ridge. Then follow the low angle ridge up to an ok belay stance. 

P12 115’ 5.9 (12 Bolts) Continue rambling up the easy ridge to an awesome perch to belay. 

P13 60’ 5.8 (5 Bolts) Step down and right off the belay, then trend up, to another great ledge below where the ridge narrows. 

P14 150’ 5.9 (15 Bolts) Head up the easy slab, past a rappel anchor to where the wall steepens. Head up the narrow, exposed and steep ridge to a belay on a small ledge near the top. One of the best pitches on the route!

P15 90’ 5.8 (7 Bolts) Low angle rambling takes you to the summit of Torre de Gato! Once on the summit, you can pop up and admire the “Frankie Tower”, a small and delicate looking hoodoo that makes for the true summit of Torre de Gato. 

Descent: Rappel pitches 15, 14 and 13 (using the independent rap anchor) to the “awesome perch”. Make sure to clip the fixed draws while rapping pitches 14 and 13, these are here to keep your rope from falling off the ridge crest and knocking choss off. (NOTE: the fixed draws are currently made with rope. I didn’t have chain this season and plan to install chain draws next year, if someone does so in the mean time please let me know) From the awesome perch, rap straight down (skier’s right) into the gully behind the ridge. One more rappel takes you to the big ledge with the fixed line. From here, rap the route back to the base. Do not try to double rope rappel. Most of the climb is not fall line, even the hand crack pitches traverse more than appears. The wall has not been cleaned to accommodate double rope rappels, you WILL knock down rocks if you try.

Note on Sun Aspect: The route faces east. Pitches 6 and up catch sun in the morning until around 9-11AM depending on time of year. Otherwise it is shade all day. 

Note on Grades: This climb follows large corner systems and continuous cracks. As such it climbs much like a trad route. The route was graded with the assumption of good crack technique. In some areas, such as Yosemite or Joshua Tree, the crack pitches would be rated 5.7 or 5.8. But if you have limited crack experience, these pitches will certainly require 5.10 effort. Grades, however, are meaningless and subjective, so try and have fun and enjoy the endless splitter! 

The route starts up the right side of “The Amphitheater”. Take the standard north face approach to the plutonia cave. From here, continue up the main gully for a few minutes until another gully appears on the left. Head up into this. One short fixed line takes you up to the base of the first pitch. 

0.5 mi and 600’ of elevation. Expect 20-25 min

https://www.gaiagps.com/public/oeIlsKyWg964NvWR8JwoZxoB