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Ghost
climber
A long way from where I started
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Count me in the camp that says no route in Yosemite can have an O rating higher than... oh, I don't know, maybe O2. Yosemite is a big place, and there's plenty of room for confusion, and plenty of room get lost, but come on -- at least you know what valley you're in. There are plenty of places where even finding the right range, let alone the right valley, is a challenge.
"Well, I think so-and-so was in there back in the 60s, and I heard they they climbed a route on a really cool peak, but..."
Nonetheless, I think this is a cool idea and a good thread
D
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Largo
Sport climber
Venice, Ca
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Dynamo Hum, Camp 4 wall. Quite good, actually.
JL
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Ed Hartouni
Trad climber
Livermore, CA
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Topic Author's Reply - Feb 9, 2009 - 08:32pm PT
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Ghost, back off, it is the Yosemite Obscure System (YOS)
you forgot to mention that the topos are accurate, there is extensive satellite imagery available, and a large cohort of climbers to ask for beta.
Inspite of that, there are climbs that are largely unknown (I know, I've helped put up a few) but there are historic climbs that are lost...
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Lynne Leichtfuss
Social climber
valley center, ca
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Love the phrase, obscurity rating. Can it be applied to ones social life as well as your climbs ? hehehe and Smiles
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Ihateplastic
Trad climber
Lake Oswego, Oregon
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The Prude and Werner's Crack were both fun, easy climbs. Did 'em both a bunch of times with n00bs. Took several of my kids up Werner's. Did them both free-solo once or twice, too. Down-climbing the Prude was a tad dicey as I recall since it often had a fine dust on it which was probably a warning of bigger things to come.
The route started with a few face moves to a right-slanting thin crack and then some fun crack climbing to the rap point.
Werner's was a great one to take new lady climbers on because the initial face was so easy that they became confident and then you could watch them cry on the upper crack as it went from 1" to 6". "Don't worry sweetie, all will be just fine when you get up here..." Hmmm... as my daughter would say, "Creepy, dad... creepy.
Much like the Punch Bowl area on the Apron I don't think anyone ventures up to this place anymore. Not sure if ANY of the routes still exist.
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Jaybro
Social climber
wuz real!
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Show of hands, who has climbed, 'The realm of the lizard King'? Pretty sure I have met all (six?) who had done so '76 to '87 (?) Anyone done it since then? A very cool route for those into that stuff!
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Mr_T
Trad climber
Somewhere, CA
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Supertacos are for the masses. And Hotline remains O2 (cuz most of us have to yard on gear for 20 feet).
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Jaybro
Social climber
wuz real!
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Hotline is a very, very cool line, even if you do take a tension biscuit on the traverse, like I did.
Please tell me that such a premiere line, Hotline, can't possibly, have an Obscurity Rating? It's on the direct road to Astroman!. C'mon you pretend climbers... There aren't many climbs as cool as that, that you'll climb on that road... Maybe, Freestone.
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Rhodo-Router
Gym climber
Otto, NC
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Dynamo Hum was my first aid climb. Prolly took all day.
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Mighty Hiker
Social climber
Vancouver, B.C.
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Proposed ratings for bushwhacking here go back to the 1960s.
Grade V bush was something like: "House sized boulders separated by unclimbable gaps filled with devil's club and grizzly bear dens. Visibility less than five metres. Axes, machetes and other tools required to progress, and to fend off mosquitoes."
There are places much like that in the coast ranges.
Kevin, I think MazamaRick did Seaside once.
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Jaybro
Social climber
wuz real!
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Warbler, I knew that, and we must have exchanged the odd remark back then, or so. I've had various Yabo encounters, and I've had adventures with Cos & Werner (2 for one on an Owl attempt, '84) so, I guess I was trolling to see if anybody else has done that, worthy in my mind, route since then.
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ß Î Ø T Ç H
Boulder climber
pads are for girls
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" routes that fell off [like "Werner's Crack"] "
Was that the left-arching wide crack right above Mirror Lake ? I followed on that thing back in the 70s . The valley obscurity I would nominate is Potato Masher - a little 5.4 pinnacle way up on the Four Mile Trail ( in Roper's ?) . I remember the dude who lead it being pretty POed at such a long approach to such a dorky climb , but I enjoyed it .
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Largo
Sport climber
Venice, Ca
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Feb 10, 2009 - 12:26am PT
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Mouth to Perhaps, on the Apron - bet that one virtually never gets done, or even mentioned these days. Terrifying lead BITD with EBs, with a possible 60+ footer at the crux pitch off the Mouth. Rick Accomazzo led that pitch first try, with no hesitation. I swear to God it felt like 5.11+ following in those caveman EBs.
JL
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Ihateplastic
Trad climber
Lake Oswego, Oregon
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Feb 10, 2009 - 01:05am PT
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Yep, Werner's "WAS" the left-leaning crack above Mirror Lake. First pitch was a face with huge potholes to a tree in a corner and then walk left on the ledge to a 1" crack that started to curve left and widen to a 6 incher. I remember seeing people trying to arm-bar it! The thing is like at a 60-degree angle so all you needed to do was walk your feet in the lower face of the crack. The prude was 15 feet to the right. There were a few other nice short lines up there like Rurp Rape (.10C), Precious Powder (.11A) and A Question of Balance (.9) Never did the last one as it seemed to wander upward into munge and blocks. Probably the same blocks that made the whole area a death zone!
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MH2
climber
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Feb 10, 2009 - 09:10am PT
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As Ed says, probably every area has its relatively obscure routes. Since this is Supertopo we understand the YOS would be the center but I have heard of an SOS. A few Squamish locals keep a list on their refrigerator.
Just a one-minute walk from the climbers' campground at Squamish there is a fine obscure climb: Hiphugger. Not hard to get to but hard to see. Out of many times I've been in the vicinity the only climbers I've seen on the route are Tom and myself.
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Clint Cummins
Trad climber
SF Bay area, CA
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Apr 10, 2009 - 11:27pm PT
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Like Melissa and J, I find the old O7 for routes which no longer exist to be too limiting for the Obscurity Scale. I also believe there are a few well defined categories above O6 which may be useful for the Scale. So here is a revised upper end of the Obscurity Scale, with the old O7 now moved to O11, in the spirit of This is Spinal Tap http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Up_to_eleven
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07 - not described in any guidebook or other published source.
Merely listed under the first ascent info in the guidebook, which suggests a general location.
In theory, the route can be found, or may have been found but is not in guidebook yet.
Examples: Corn Corner, True Grit, Nashville Skyline, Deadline Dihedral
08 - same as 07 (route is barely published), but first ascent party are not locatable,
or have been asked but do not remember enough to locate the route.
Or, route is unlisted, but a vague description has been obtained, and an attempt made to find the route,
but it was concluded the route cannot be located or identified.
The route probably cannot be found or identified.
Examples: Fireside Chat [in First Ascent info, but exact location and description forgotten],
route left of East Buttress of Lower Cathedral [vague description given, route not found]
O9 - old route, not listed in any guidebook, and believed to have been done in
time to appear in the guidebook (i.e. unreported).
Route has not been located.
Have vague description or general location, but not checked or not located definitely yet.
Example: Time to Get Wild and Loose (near Falls Trail)
010 - old route, not listed in any guidebook or publication, and believed
to have been done in time to appear in the guidebook (i.e. unreported).
Route has been located, but nothing is known about it.
These are routes you may notice with old fixed pins or bolts, but are
not in any guidebook.
Sometimes the old fixed gear is found when you think you are doing your own first ascent,
and you are not sure if the old route was completed.
Since these routes have been found, perhaps they are not truly obscure,
but nothing is known about them.
Note: O10 does not apply to new routes, which are not in the guidebook yet,
because they were done after the guidebook was released.
It is also does not apply to old routes which are located and have known
histories, but were not reported in time for the guidebook, or not included for some reason
(An example of this is Lightning Bolt Crack, Mt. Broderick - reported
with photos on supertopo).
Examples for O10:
old route left of No Butts About It which joins East Buttress,
old route left of Sacherer-Fredericks.
O11 - route does not exist anymore - destroyed by rockfall.
(formerly O7)
Examples: Werner's Crack, Promulgated Pinnacle
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I've saved a copy of the revised scale, including Melissa's revisions on O4 and O7 (now O10) at
http://www.stanford.edu/~clint/yos/obscurity_scale.txt
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LuckyPink
climber
the last bivy
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Apr 11, 2009 - 12:02am PT
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guesswhat.. c'mon over to the Rock Ice Mountain Club June 2 cuz Ed H will be there with a digital views of Yos obscurities.. Melissa, Jaybro, Matt, Clint, Munge.. eveyone is welcome to thrash the ratings and name that climb over beer and pizza..Jerry D, caught, woodcraft, Knott and many other ST'ers have been or will be there
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WBraun
climber
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Apr 11, 2009 - 12:52am PT
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Deep Obscurity #089453 sector "Sierra Point".
"The Fistabule" FA Walt Shipley & me number rating unknown.
Layman's rating hard fisting in a crack.
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WBraun
climber
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Apr 11, 2009 - 01:06am PT
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What did you rate it.
We were a bunch a yo yo s on that thing, damn ....
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