The best (moderate) routes for the grade in the upper midwest?

What are the best 5.8-5.11b routes in MN, WI & MI?  Below is my quick list from the top of my head.  Please correct me where I am wrong.

5.8 Watermarks (DL, WI)

5.9 Upper Diagonal (DL, WI) 

5.10 The Bulge (TF, MN)

5.10b Tower Route (Necedah, WI)

5.10c Resurrection (Silver Mtn, MI) 

5.10d A Feathery Tong (P Head, MN)

5.11a Thoroughfare (DL, WI) with Y crack (Necedah, WI) a close second

5.11b Don't bring a knife to a gunfight (P Head, MN)

Dylan,

Sometime is a 10a, and what about all the other areas in the three states to climb???

Good thread idea.

Are we trying to get this down to one route of each grade? If you consider Son of Great Chimney to be 5.11a, then I think it beats the other 11a's listed here. If it's 11b, it's probably the best of that grade (full disclosure I tried it but never sent it).

Sadly I've never climbed at Palisade Head, though, so I'll have to concede that there may be better routes there. 

Let's add in easier and harder routes too for the fun of it. For above 5.11b, I nominate (out of the very limited selection that I've been on or heard much about):

5.11c: Son of Great Chimney (see what I did there?)

5.11d: hm no idea, I've heard Poseidon Adventure at Palisade is cool?

5.12a-c: Whatever the best 5.12 jug haul at Willow is, for some variety. I need help here.

5.12d: Bagatelle? Extra history points for being probably the hardest TR done in the world at one point.

5.13a: Whiskey a Go Go?

harder: idk never even considered trying anything that hard when I lived out there.

5.7: Nothing stands out as obviously superior, I'll leave this to someone else.

5.6: Brinton's Crack, I challenge anyone to tell me I'm wrong here.

5.5: Again, not sure.

5.4: For the position, the standard northeast side of Cleopatra's Needle. The climbing itself isn't that amazing, but the position is better than any other 5.4 in the Midwest that I can think of,

easier: I leave that to others to figure out.

Jon, it would be cool if you update your list for each grade with suggestions from this thread if that doesn't get too tiresome. It could become a cool resource.

And now to stop procrastinating at work.

Dylan C,

Lists like these have been done before for around these parts, I am just laid up right now and have noting better to do at the moment. I was thinking just moderates (5.8-mid 5.11) as above that it is no longer moderate...And yes, one route per grade, that way this time waste will last longer. 

jon jugenheimer wrote:

What are the best 5.8-5.11b routes in MN, WI & MI?  Below is my quick list from the top of my head.  Please correct me where I am wrong.

5.8 Watermarks (DL, WI)

5.9 Upper Diagonal (DL, WI) 

5.10 The Bulge (TF, MN)

5.10b Tower Route (Necedah, WI)

5.10c Resurrection (Silver Mtn, MI) 

5.10d A Feathery Tong (P Head, MN)

5.11a Thoroughfare (DL, WI) with Y crack (Necedah, WI) a close second

5.11b Don't bring a knife to a gunfight (P Head, MN)

I'd vote for Brinton's Direct over Watermarks and Cheatah (or Laceration Jam or Rapprochement) over Tower Route...

Yes, Mike, welcome. Now Rapprochement, good call there. Forgot about that one, way better than the Tower Route. 

Fire was on my short list for sure.  I also think it is harder than 5.9, just one of the disagreements I have with Jay's new book. 

Here are my area favorites that come to mind for each grade:

5.8 Swiss Cheese (Hillbilly Hollow, WI)

5.9 Upper Diagonal (Devil's Lake, WI)

5.10a Zig-Zag Crack (Hillbilly Hollow, WI)

5.10b Rapproachment (Palisade Head, MN)

5.10c Y-Crack (Necedah, WI)

5.10d Crank-n-Go-Go (Red Wing, MN)

5.11a The Carpenter (Jackson Falls, IL)

5.11b Early Times (Necedah, WI)

Thanks, Jon, for the thread! It was fun reflecting on these.

I like your style rating Y crack at 10c.

Here are a few of my favorites , though from the lists above there are more things I need to check out.

5.8 lost ego , interstate park, wi or superior crack palisade head. With the slight over hang it often requires climbers who fall off on top rope start over. I would love to lead superior crack.

5.9 upper diagonal Devils lake, wi

5.10a congratulations at Devils

5.11 anadonia at red wing

Jack be nimble and Up Your Crack  at wolf ridge are on my list to hit up so I can't rate them. From pictures and my  previous trips they look awesome. Hand cracks, roofs with old school books rating them at 5.8+ to newer ratings at 5.9/10a ish they are likely great climbs.

Have to say that Alpha Centauri (10d) at the Lake is a super fun climb, albeit the 10 portion is really just the beginning and it eases up.

jon jugenheimer wrote:

I like your style rating Y crack at 10c.

Yeah, it keeps kicking my butt on lead but that's me struggling sucking at anything even slightly overhanging. On TR, I've got it and feel it should be 10c. I climb slow to start with, and even slower plugging gear, so I pump out doing it on lead.

So, maybe it's a 10d or maybe it's a 10c. Until I lead it clean, I'll keep calling it 10c and blaming myself for the pump :-)