Valhalla

Rock Warriors!!  Are you worthy??

Climb a dramatic line up one of the grandest faces of the park, culminating in an ascent of the great shield - one of the most impressive geologic features of the region. The climbing is mostly on nice edges and chicken heads, quite different in character from Kevin Pogue's nearby slabby classic "Cruel Shoes". Climb both routes for a fantastic, moderate sport climbing day.  Both routes end near each other at the summit.  Bring a picnic lunch to enjoy at the top with your rock warrior clan, in the feasting hall of Valhalla.

Pitch 1 "The Struggle"  12m, 5.8 C0, 4 bolts.  Pull through an awkward move on a short length of chain, get your bearings on a thin section above the rooflet, then continue up through huge holds.  Belay at the first anchor if you think your follower might need some coaching through the lower section.  Otherwise, you can directly link the next pitch.

Pitch 2 "Ride of..."  27m, 5.8, 11 bolts.  Continue on great edges, past a thin section, onto a slab, and up to a ledge at the base of dramatic, vertical plates.

Pitch 3 "...The Valkyries"  17m, 5.8, 11 bolts.  Pull some power moves straight up the plates, onto slabby terrain, and across to a narrow ledge at the base of the shield.

Pitch 4 "Odin's Shield"  29m, 5.8, 14 bolts.  Awkward moves get you onto the base of the shield.  The shield itself is one of the best moderate pitches in the park.  Superb!

Pitch 5, "SKOL!"  15m, 5.0, 3 bolts.  Aim for a final steep section that ends at the ridgetop.

You can climb this route in three nice pitches by combining 1 & 2, and also 4 & 5. Linking other pitch combinations would produce excessive rope drag.

Appreciation:  Putting up a route of this size was a substantial effort and expense. A big "Thank You" to:

- Jason Hardester, for helping to figure out a couple of key route puzzles and helping to work out the protection bolt locations on the first three pitches.

- Anonymous benefactors whose donations covered the lion's share of the hardware cost.

- Duane Ackerman, for mentorship in the exploration, design, detail, tools, and art of route setting, and for sharing the Bosch!

- Kevin Pogue, for paving the way to establishing well-protected moderate sport routes.

About 100 feet right of the start of Cruel Shoes.  Follow the cattle trail right, along the base of the rock.  Look for a few well-camouflaged bolts just right of a small tree growing out of a crack in the rock about 15 feet above the ground.  The starting moves are under a shallow rooflet 10 feet above the ground.  See beta photos.

Bolts.  All anchors are equipped for rappel.

Any existing descent option of Stripe Rock can be used.  Additionally, the Valhalla belay/rap stations are configured to rappel with a single 60m rope.  Some cautions:

- Rappel of pitch 5 - carefully stay in the fall line at the start of this first rappel.  The initial steep bit can be awkward.

- Pitches 3 and 2 are diagonal rappels to the right (climber's right).  Rap down some distance in the fall line, then move right and continue down.  Keep an eye on the bolt line, but don't try to follow it exactly. Remember that the anchor at the top of pitch 2 is hidden from above, tucked below vertical plates with a good stance in a groove.