July
Trad climber
San Francisco
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The route was sustained and refreshingly varied for what is mainly a face climb.
The first pitch may present route-finding challenges, but we avoided this by keeping in mind that we were ultimately headed towards the tree at the top of the second pitch, which is visible from the base; this landmark grounded our bearings for direction.
There also appear to be two new bolts at the top of the first pitch.
We linked the last two pitches as well. The rope drag isn't too bad so long as you extend your draws. There are ample options for gear anchors at the top, and with a 70m rope from the tree belay, I made it to a huge ledge at the top with about 20+ feet of rope to spare. There were a few spots 10-15 feet lower that could have worked as well, so perhaps it's possible to do the whole route in three pitches with a 60m.
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razmonster
climber
Mammoth Lakes, CA
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Climbed this for the second time the other day and finally found the anchors at the end of the first pitch. They aren't easy to spot unless you're close by (typical). It helps to know that the anchor is almost exactly centered with the middle of the horseshoe shaped cut-out feature above where you have a curving crack on the left and right (the route goes up the right side). We climbed the route in three pitches with a 70m rope. It's a bit of a stretch from the ledge with the small tree to the top but it's doable. Chances are your partner won't be able to hear you if you link the last two pitches so work something out ahead of time. The last knob pitches are sustained in that you don't get a break somewhere in the middle (especially if you link it up). It can be a real calf-burner.
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Chris McNamara
SuperTopo staff member
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I just got this first ascent info correction from Randy Vogel:
I was perusing your Tuolumne Guide (nice topos) and saw that you list Kamps and Bud Couch on the FA. While he did use that name for a while, he prefered his real name, Ivan Couch. A number of years ago all the route info in the Tahquitz & Suicide guide was changed to reflect this.
Ivan died a few years back, hed was a very talented face climber who helped advance face climbing standards in California in the late 60s and early 70s. Perhaps when you revise/update your guide you might consider changing the FA credit to Ivan Couch.
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