"Smee's Come-on" memory jog

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Roger Breedlove

Trad climber

Cleveland Heights, Ohio

Topic Author's Original Post - Sep 19, 2004 - 10:05am PT

I was flipping through the 1987 green Meyers & Reed guide and ran across a climb that Dave Bircheff and I did in 1976 on the base of El Cap, between Captain Hook and Peter Pan. It follows a long right facing arch on a lower angle slab to a vertical corner. It ends on the ledge below "Wendy," hence the name.

Bridwell told me a few years ago that the route fell off, or something. Anyone know anything about it?

PS: I like the old guide because it includes the wall routes and the free climbs with the first ascent information.

Slow day in Nurtingen, Roger

Melissa

Big Wall climber

oakland, ca

Sep 20, 2004 - 12:45pm PT

Hi, Roger...

Take this with a giant grain of salt...If Bridwell said it fell off, then it probably did. However, when I was up there earlier this year, my memory tells me that we at least thought that we identified the climb and that the zone below tinkerbell/peter left, which is where I kinda remember smee's and capt. hook being, was incredibly mossy and chossy.

Ed Hartouni

Trad climber

Livermore, CA

Jun 7, 2013 - 11:32am PT

BBST - did it fall off?

KP Ariza

climber

SCC

Jun 7, 2013 - 12:36pm PT

No it didn't Ed, you can clearly see it on google earth. I climbed it in 1984 with Eric Kohl. At the time we thought we had bagged an FA only to find out later we were wrong. We tore hummocks from the crack and cleaned it up a bit and it stands as a pretty darn fun route.

KP Ariza

climber

SCC

Jun 7, 2013 - 02:48pm PT

The Smee's corner is a huge formation, were it to ever fall down it would be a significant event, leaving wreckage that certainly wouldn't be mistaken. Here's a shot from 1984.

Ed Hartouni

Trad climber

Livermore, CA

Jan 26, 2014 - 01:13am PT

I was poking around up there in the fall this year and decided that Smee's Come-on didn't fall down, but stuff (large stuff) fell out of the second pitch of Wendy

the chimney on the second pitch of Wendy was an exfoliated slab which failed as some point. There is still a chimney up there, but not as much as there used to be...

hopefully I'll get up there sometime this year and check out the chimney... but there appear to be all manner of loose blocks hanging out on that cliff.

The "5.5 junk" first pitch of Wendy seems a tad sandbagged, maybe more like 5.8, and loose, and lots of great vegetation to cheer you one. Instead of doing this pitch, wander up to the start of Peter Pan and walk the ledge up and right to a big pine tree, then follow the ledge down and over to the start of the second pitch.

neebee

Social climber

calif/texas

Jan 26, 2014 - 01:15am PT

hey there say, ed... wow, thanks for the neat update, :)

donini

Trad climber

Ouray, Colorado

Jan 26, 2014 - 09:43am PT

I better get back to the Valley before the whole place comes tumbling down. Who is going to be the unlucky one to take the ride with Boot Flake?

Patrick Sawyer

climber

Originally California now Ireland

Jan 26, 2014 - 05:57pm PT

I am Jim. Because by the time I get back in shape, and have enough money to climb, the whole Valley will have fallen down, including Boot Flake. But if I am so lucky, it would be Mr Toad's (Sawyer) last wild ride.

Now, cough cough, I did see one huge slab fall, sort of huge, but it was on Mt Diablo back in 1974. Huge chunk of sandstone, left a nice finger crack (after some jokers nailed the new crack with pins). I was thinking what if I was climbing on Butt Rock (yes, it does look like a butt and where it happened) at the time. Squash or is it squish? Would have flattened a VW Bug.

So, to paraphrase the question about a tree falling and nobody hearing it. What if a huge chunk of rock fell in the wilderness, and nobody heard it, would it have really happened? Would it make a sound?