What's the worst route you have ever done?

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mike m

Trad climber

black hills

Topic Author's Original Post - Oct 19, 2015 - 07:54pm PT

Mine was probably one I put up at a place called Estes creek. I did a ground up hundred foot crack but upon going back later to clean it and I peeled off about half the route. One particular section yielded a 6x6 inch 20 foot long rock beam that came off surprisingly easy. After cleaning the route turned out pretty good. It also had a great scenic view of a boot camp like youth facility and was possibly the place they hung out to drink when they ran away.

I am sure there are some better worsts out there....

donini

Trad climber

Ouray, Colorado

Oct 19, 2015 - 08:04pm PT

Can't really say, so many climbs, so many years. I will say that, whatever it was, it was better than my best day in church.

skcreidc

Social climber

SD, CA

Oct 19, 2015 - 08:17pm PT

Hmmmm, my situation is the exact inverse of Donini's.....except for the better than church part.

nature

climber

Boulder, CO

Oct 19, 2015 - 08:36pm PT

some choss pile in Humboldt that by now has crumbled into the sea.

climbski2

Mountain climber

Anchorage AK, Reno NV

Oct 19, 2015 - 08:39pm PT

Something on the Seward highway....Or Eagle Valley..or maybe something in Portage Valley..Well..for sure it was in the Chugach.

Fritz

Trad climber

Choss Creek, ID

Oct 19, 2015 - 09:12pm PT

I had to think about it for a few seconds, then

I ------RE-called the day I went climbing on Choss with Jesus.

(sorry, Mike, I shared this story with you before, but it really was the worst route ever.)

North Ridge Goat Perch in Idaho’s Sawtooth Range is a pretty nice route. Other places on Goat Perch are not as pleasant.

Summer 1982: I decide a “direct start” for the classic North Ridge Goat Perch route in Idaho’s Sawtooth Mountains would be an “interesting challenge.” I had already climbed the North Ridge of Goat Perch, and thought rock quality would be good.

I went in with Bruce: a friend that I had climbed with very little. That mattered not, since this man was in every way my superior. He had the good genes to the max and was: athletic, intelligent, tall, handsome, and fearless. In fact he was just out of the Navy and had been a fighter pilot and then was in the Blue Angels. Oh-----and he was a born-again Christian, but he tolerated my Pagan ways. He even secretly carried a six-pack of beer up to the lakes under Elephant’s Perch, for my drinking pleasure.

The first lead on our north-face Goat’s Perch route, was up a steep chimney/gully, with a jam crack at its back. At the end of the first lead, the choice was overhanging off-width, or an inviting ledge that went left to less-steep terrain above. Bruce led left and quickly turned a corner. The rope stopped. Then he called back, “there’s a little loose rock here.”

In the next half hour, he must have pulled off 10 tons of rock. The snowfield below was soon a blackened war zone. Slowly, the rope played out, then more crashes and booms would shatter the quiet.

At last I heard “On Belay” and followed the lead. The traverse was just horribly-loose, but then I reached the line that he had climbed up to his belay. Everything was stacked: small loose blocks, at a 70-80 degree angle. There was some “protection” slotted between obviously loose blocks. It was not an easy lead to follow, and when I reached Bruce I was both scared and angry.

“How could you justify leading that?” I barked. “Everything is loose and your protection wouldn’t have stopped a falling squirrel”

Bruce thought for a minute and then calmly replied: “It was pretty iffy, but whenever I got to a tough spot I asked Jesus where to go.” He then smiled and added: “he takes care of me.”

Never before had someone asserted to me: that Jesus took a personal interest in his climbing.

I was truly staggered. I clipped into the belay nuts, noting that they were worthless to stop a leader fall.

Rappeling was out of the question, since we were now above an overhang. Down-climbing did not seem like a good option either. After some water and a little small talk, I decided that based on prior success: Bruce and Jesus could lead the next pitch too.

That pitch was not as bad, but it was worse for me: since I was now in the direct line of rock fall. I hung the pack above me and cowered as stones clattered by. The only rocks that hit me were mercifully small. Once again, when I followed the lead, the rock was all loose. The protection that Bruce & Jesus had placed would probably not have stopped a leader fall. Another similar, but easier lead for Bruce & Jesus followed.

When I reached Bruce again, I realized we were very close to where the North Ridge route started. We had done a “significant direct-start variation.” I was able to do a traverse over to the ridge on reasonably good rock.

Bruce was however, very disappointed in me. I adamantly refused to continue up the standard North Ridge route with him and Jesus.

I did not write the route up, since any future parties might not have the divine protection that we had experienced. I also confess: I did not “see the light” and continue as a pagan.

MisterE

Gym climber

Being In Sierra Happy Of Place

Oct 19, 2015 - 09:15pm PT

Something on Camelback in Phoenix.

Urban, smoggy and loose. Yuck.

nature

climber

Boulder, CO

Oct 19, 2015 - 09:28pm PT

Urban, smoggy and loose. Yuck.

you left out Hot. F*#kling Hot.

thebravecowboy

climber

The Good Places

Oct 19, 2015 - 09:46pm PT

You carried a full pack that day, right Big J?

Clint Cummins

Trad climber

SF Bay area, CA

Oct 20, 2015 - 01:51am PT

Possibly one of my first ascents at Pinnacles, which we named "Flies on a Pile". (a reference to "Figures on a Landscape" and "Boogers on a Lampshade").

while belaying my partner up the first pitch, the rope inadvertantly moved across a patch of "perched gravel" and showered down rocks on a little kid on the trail directly belay. He started crying to his mom....

on the second pitch, I realized the route probably shouldn't get repeated so I just tried to get up it without placing more bolts after the lower hard bits. Perhaps only Brad has repeated it?

There are many other contenders, like "Gardening at Night" above "Aunt Fannie's Pantry" at the Church Bowl. It was the scene of one of the low points in my climbing, where I couldn't pull down the rap ropes, or ascend back up them and got rescued. (I hadn't brought proper prusik knots or ascenders, and tried to ascend using 1" slings, but it was extremely slow and I thought I might cramp up in the cold steady rain).

Gnome Ofthe Diabase

climber

Out Of Bed

Oct 20, 2015 - 02:46am PT

Really?
I'm from New Joysee, road cuts are fun.

Then there is the diesel grit that builds up n Garret Mnt, (the main face) it over looks Rt 80 coming from the George Washington Bridge, & Manhattan.
The great falls in Paterson during the crack epidemic of the 80's
(actually that is fun all year long but especially in winter when it freezes . . .don't mind the dead chickens from the ,voodoo practice or the human waste)
[photoid=40875
Three pitches of a girdle traverse, on the now blasted into a hi-way exchange
on the border with Ny; at a place called Suffren, we called the cliffs Tory ledges.
***
Out west there is some glass like thing in The city of San Francisco ? A thirty foot high
Exposed rock in a parking lot? How did I even get there?

And then I soloed something in Griffith park?

As well as trying to figure out how to climb off the top of a ground up FA in the Owens river Gorge. Any one ever find a .75 green Camelot in a slot thirty feet of hellish, choosy rubble,
Below the low angle blocky rim of that loose pile?
It must be near the 'mountaineer's' entrance/exit gulley....

In town, in Saranac Lake Ny the Adirondack home of al Joley. . .
On the back side next to Johnson house behind the Hotel Saranac,( the hot Sara for the three years I was there) was a building that had a lower half and corners made of cobbles set in a matrix of Sandy 'not the right mix' concrete.
We rigged a top rope out a window, that was neat I was never sober in the hotel intern part of the curriculum . . When. the flopphouse across the street burned in mid winter -
The heat from that melted the rope to the cement . It might still be there?

Sierra Ledge Rat

Mountain climber

Old and Broken Down in Appalachia

Oct 20, 2015 - 04:31am PT

I can't ever recall a bad climb.

There is no such thing as bad snow, only bad skiers.

The same could be said of rock.

mcreel

climber

Barcelona

Oct 20, 2015 - 06:09am PT

This is an interesting question. It's hard to single out a particular climb as bad, because I enjoy climbing just about any route. I guess that two poor climbs stand out:

The first was some climb on the E Side of Pinnacles N.M., a multipitch affair. I started up the first pitch, and a few feet off the ground, a big (like, 2 feet by 2 feet) chunk of rock I was holding onto with both hands pulled loose. The "rock" and I fell to the ground, it landed on my chest, and broke up into coarse gravel, so easily that it didn't even hurt. We bagged that, and headed back to the W side, where the rock seemed a little more fully baked.

The other was on "Dome de Chapelle" near Snell's field in Chamonix, in '87. Sport climbing had been the rage in France for a while already, and the routes on this limestone outcrop, which were smooth and slabby to begin with, were pretty well polished, too. The weather was warm and humid, the crag was crowded, and a thin French guy with a cigarette in his mouth was speculating on how the Americans would have trouble on the routes. Nevertheless, I still had a pretty good time, which goes to confirm the fact that any climbing is good climbing.

Ah, the what was left of last pitch of the Regular Route on Higher Cathedral Spire, shortly after the real pitch fell off during an earthquake, was not too fun. When doing the climb, we were not aware that there had been a quake shortly before.

christoph benells

Trad climber

Tahoma, Ca

Oct 20, 2015 - 06:35am PT

mt. service on the Juneau Icefield in alaska, as far as we know it was a 2nd ascent. And I know why...

I should put up a bounty for anyone who finds this summit box!!!,

Really though, kind of cool. Mountain named after Yukon poet Robert Service, the box contains Service memorabilia including his wallet and drivers license, and a handwritten note from his relatives.

the chossiest of all choss, and only requires an 80 mile boat ride, 4 mile swamp bushwack, and a 30 mile glacier and ski approach!

Ryan Tetz

Trad climber

Bishop, CA

Oct 20, 2015 - 06:43am PT

Oh this is an easy one...

The Riverside Quarry

clifff

Mountain climber

rollin hills of California

Oct 20, 2015 - 07:00am PT

After climbing Royal Arches several times I thought there must be a nice direct way up. After unintentionally pulling off a giant loose block on the first pitch that could have been lethal for us or anyone below we realized the whole area was a dangerous choss heap and gave it up.

Climbing the now established rap line could be a nice fun direct line up? Climb the rap line and do the North Dome Gully descent.

hooblie

climber

from out where the anecdotes roam

Oct 20, 2015 - 07:26am PT

well the route had potential, but when the mission shifted to escape ...

huge traversing runouts across wet slab. spongy mantles revealing
hopeless seams covered by grit and soggy sled sized mats of northwest moss
leading to teetering stacks of dinner plates. never even considered a name
but the whole concept of mountaineering took on real portent after that

Reeotch

climber

4 Corners Area

Oct 20, 2015 - 07:35am PT

Nature:

some choss pile in Humboldt that by now has crumbled into the sea.

Yeah, I think you named it "Vomit Launch", too . . .

mtnyoung

Trad climber

Twain Harte, California

Oct 20, 2015 - 08:16am PT

Possibly one of my first ascents at Pinnacles, which we named "Flies on a Pile". (a reference to "Figures on a Landscape" and "Boogers on a Lampshade").
while belaying my partner up the first pitch, the rope inadvertantly moved across a patch of "perched gravel" and showered down rocks on a little kid on the trail directly belay. He started crying to his mom....
on the second pitch, I realized the route probably shouldn't get repeated so I just tried to get up it without placing more bolts after the lower hard bits. Perhaps only Brad has repeated it?

You get no argument from me on that one Clint. The name fits the climb :)

(And we climbed it on a weekday since I knew of your inadvertent showering of rocks).