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| Messages 1 - 9 of total 9 in this topic |
Mike Kopang
Novice climber
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Topic Author's Original Post - Nov 14, 2002 - 07:03pm PT
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Has anyone out there climbed 'Absolutley Free' (5.9) recently?
Is it any good?
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Jason
Novice climber
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Topic Author's Reply - Nov 14, 2002 - 07:58pm PT
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No but I tried to find it and waisted an hour of my time scrambling around. I heard it was good though. My partner and I ended up doing Possitively 4th Street and Maple Jam instead. Both are excellent, with good photo opps for the overhangs as long as you have several leaders... if you're into that kind of thing. I didn't have my 35mm SLR with me, but next time I do those routes I'm going to bring it and also make sure I have a wide lense too (anything from 24 to 35mm will do I think).
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jim
Novice climber
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Topic Author's Reply - Nov 14, 2002 - 09:57pm PT
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a-f center is nice. recommend hawkmans escape to make it long day.
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raider
Novice climber
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Topic Author's Reply - Nov 15, 2002 - 09:56am PT
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Great route. Should be confident on 5.8 OW, crux is sustained tight hands, last pitch you can you straight up - bring the big cams, or follow a widening finger lieback seem to the right.
Take a look at the right side of AF when you are up there - looks like a true hardman route if there ever was one.
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Largo
Novice climber
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Nov 15, 2002 - 02:10pm PT
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The Right Side of Absolutely Free used to be a real test--not so hard, maybe 5.10b, but before cams you could not fall or it was into the next world. The crux pitch is a chimney that slowly pinches down to a wide hand/fist crack in the back of a flare, sort of like working up the bottom side of an hourglass (on the inside), and the upper crack was hard to protect as well, though secure. I remember getting only two hexes in for the whole pitch, and nothing for the first 30 feet. I suspect SLCD's have changed things somewhat, but that first bit is probably still a bit thin on pro, unless someone's jammed a trash can or into the chimney and tied it off.
JL
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raider
Novice climber
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Topic Author's Reply - Nov 15, 2002 - 03:57pm PT
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John, you are my hero. I meant a hardman route for the rest of us mortals. I'd be shaking heading up that route with a whole boatload of big bros. Hell, I'd be shaking with a top rope.
But do pray tell, what were your hardman routes, what are the ultimate valley puker pitches?
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Largo
Novice climber
Venice, Ca
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Nov 16, 2002 - 11:16pm PT
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As to the really scary climbs, SLCD's have taken the bite out of most all of them. It was really a matter of time and pro, and one of the scariest and most dangerous times to climb in the Valley was when folks were transitioning from pins to nuts (circa 1971-72), and the available nuts weren't so good. The original hexcentrics needed a bottleneck to be any good at all (polycentrics, as we now have, are much better). So there we were, not wanting to bash in a pin, and gripped that the crude nuts were were using might not hold a real fall. So for a two year period there if you wanted to bag a classic (especially a hard wide classic), you simply had to tighten up he sack and cast off. A few of us from Tahquitz and Suicide (our home crag) worked out on the Generator Crack (top rope) till we could climb it up and down with ease, and only then, when we had the technique dialed, did we go for stuff like the L side of the Slack, R side of the Hourglass, Twilight Zone, Left Side of Independence, et al, with such bunk pro. That was exciting work!
JL
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bettsey
Novice climber
san francisco
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Topic Author's Reply - Nov 18, 2002 - 03:16pm PT
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I climbed Absolutely Free oct 2002.
I'd warn that the guide book pro recommendation is poor! The final pitch of 5.9 has aprox. 20-25 feet of #4-4.5 Camaolot
size crack up to and around a bulge. Serious consequences to a fall moving over the bulge (still fist+ size). I believe
Don Reid's guidebook recomments pro to only 3" (too small!)
I didn't find the approach to bad. Head right from toe of butress for 3-5 minutes. there is a fairly distinct use trail.
The trail switches back left and up (west) onto steeper ground. Trail parallels the cliff for approx. 50 yards. At
an indistinct point, trail start dropping elevation. At this point, leave the trail continue diagonally up and left across
exposed 4th class stuff for aprox 100ft. aiming for a stand of 15ft. trees. I put on my rock shoes before the 4th
class stuff and was glad I did. You would not want to fall here (perhaps rope up).
After the trees, continue up and left (perhaps 3-4 minutes) into a notch at the base of the route. The notch is formed
by a 20-30ft. wall forming to the climbers back (ie. parallels the cliff)
total appoach time was perhaps 30-40 mins. Very nice route. Again, not having big enough gear was scary.
At top, headed up and right, then up and left after chimmney pitch for another 200-300ft of 3rd-4th class scrambling up before
hitting "micheals' ledge. Again, a rope miight be useful getting to the ledge. On on the ledge, we got down in approx. 45 mins without
any real exposure. Just lots of loose scree and dirt.
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