5.0 topropes for 2½ year old in Yos?

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Mr_T

Trad climber
Northern California
Topic Author's Original Post - Sep 9, 2014 - 01:26pm PT
I have a 2½ that likes to climb. At that age, things need to be low angle face. Something like the 4th class apron slabs on Pywack would be perfect. Does anyone happen to know of a low angle boulder (maybe even just 20-30') that's in the Valley? I can't recall if there's something along these lines near Swan Slab or the Arches base.

Thanks

Edit: maybe base of the Nose might have something.
Srbphoto

climber
Kennewick wa
Sep 9, 2014 - 01:31pm PT
the face below penthouse cracks at swan slab
mouse from merced

Trad climber
The finger of fate, my friends, is fickle.
Sep 9, 2014 - 01:46pm PT
I just had a belly laugh when read this. It's priceless. You can't make this stuff up.

Who remembers Face from the A-Team, or Faceman, as he also was known?

From Wiki-land:

Lieutenant Templeton Peck (Dirk Benedict; Tim Dunigan appeared as Templeton Peck in the pilot), usually called "Face" or "Faceman", is a smooth-talking con man who serves as the team's appropriator of vehicles and other useful items, as well as the team's second-in-command.

Have fun and don't run out of ammo, Mr_T.
Jaybro

Social climber
Wolf City, Wyoming
Sep 9, 2014 - 01:50pm PT
Oh yeah! Wasn't he in the original battle star galactic a after that?
climbski2

Mountain climber
Anchorage AK, Reno NV
Sep 9, 2014 - 02:43pm PT
Before that. Galactica was in the 70's A-team was 80's. Lt. Starbuck. I laughed the first time I heard of a "Starbucks"

And for the OP..That first corner you come to on swan slab from Camp 4. Easy to set a toprope. As mentioned above. Kid will have a blast super easy access and there is other stuff to do in the area.
Mr_T

Trad climber
Northern California
Topic Author's Reply - Sep 9, 2014 - 05:26pm PT
Thanks so much! Will check out Swan Slabs.
the Fet

climber
Tu-Tok-A-Nu-La
Sep 9, 2014 - 06:48pm PT
the face below penthouse cracks at swan slab

There is a gully on the right side of that which may work for a 2.5 year old but may still be too tough. On the plus side it's very convenient.

I think anything 5.0 may be too steep. Especially when you are talking about face climbs which are reachy for a little one. I'd be on the lookout for LOW angle slabs that aren't in any guide book and setup an anchor with cams.
Srbphoto

climber
Kennewick wa
Sep 9, 2014 - 06:55pm PT
right next to the gulley, a little tension on the rope, Mom waiting on top and you got yourself a little honemaster.
bluering

Trad climber
Santa Clara, CA
Sep 9, 2014 - 07:23pm PT
Puppy Crack (Tuolumne) or Sunnyside Reg. Route.
Kalimon

Social climber
Ridgway, CO
Sep 9, 2014 - 07:23pm PT
All children love to climb but 2 1/2 yrs. old is a little young for such a potentially dangerous activity . . . what is wrong with the playground?
Mr_T

Trad climber
Northern California
Topic Author's Reply - Sep 10, 2014 - 09:47am PT
This is a short side activity, not the focus of the weekend (we're camped out, there are no play grounds in the valley). I could have titled this "20 mins on 3rd/4th class slabs with an experienced 2½ year old". Our little one has climbed outside a few times already. They love to put on their shoes and cruise around on slabby stuff. We've never taken them the gym - too much production and yes a park would be a better option. At places like Castle Rock, we've ended up exploring caves almost the whole time. It's more letting them explore vertically. Maybe scrambling up to the base of South Seas might be fun, esp if the rope swing is up and it's safe to do.
JEleazarian

Trad climber
Fresno CA
Sep 10, 2014 - 11:22am PT
the face below penthouse cracks at swan slab

That's where my daughters started. The gully on the right may be too difficult for a 2 1/2-year-old, though, depending on height. The Goblet, left of Monday Morning Slab is also nice, but has a much longer approach and some rockfall issues.

Has your child done any gym climbing? If he or she can get off the ground -- and enjoy it -- you should be in for a lot of fun.

John
GDavis

Social climber
SOL CAL
Sep 10, 2014 - 11:25am PT
tuolumne domes, like pothole. random bumpy featured slabs are best, having done that myself. I just anchored my nephew to me via swami and a sling, it ain't like he's tugging me off and we sure didn't go too high.
micronut

Trad climber
Fresno/Clovis, ca
Sep 10, 2014 - 11:44am PT
Steck Salathe
le_bruce

climber
Oakland, CA
Sep 10, 2014 - 11:51am PT
If you do go up to the Meadows, firing up the Stately Pleasure descent with your little one tied in (two adults needed, one to "lead" and one to "second" with the tyke, some traversing risk so little one can't just take indiscriminately without an adult alongside to keep things square) is a blast! Someone recommended that to me once, and our girl loved it. We had her first Nutella bagel on top. Hopefully that will forever embed in her a desire for summits.

Another slam dunk with young ones up in Tuolumne is the west end of Tenaya. Shallow water forever, sandy beach, bogs and stream to explore heading further west with all kinds of underwater bugs and creatures.

If no Meadows, there are some fun, big, slabby boulders over by the Indian caves, and off the paved path beneath the Five Open Books area. Not huge, but fun for the wee ones. I saw Lynn Hill playing with her toddler there years ago, played it cool though I wanted to tell her she was my hero, and filed it away in my brain, then took my girl there when I became a dad.

Felt close to Lynn while I was there. "Lynn spotted her kid on these very boulders!" Lynn if you're out there call me we'll take the kids to the park!



Mr_T

Trad climber
Northern California
Topic Author's Reply - Sep 10, 2014 - 01:13pm PT
It's a Valley only weekend. Otherwise the Pywack or Pothole slabs would be perfect.

I think scrambling up an approach like Nose or South Seas + Nutella bagels might work or maybe see how the boulders near the caves work. We do the 1 parent belay, one parent next to the little one system. I'd thought of putting them on a mini-trax but there's the finger in the mini-trax potential.
Ed Hartouni

Trad climber
Livermore, CA
Sep 10, 2014 - 01:32pm PT
they could chimney up Bad Ass Moma and make us all look bad...

Aunt Fanny is a possibility...

the walk down descent from the top of Church Bowl would be a possibility too... go around and up following the cliff base to the left, past Black is Brown and you'll see 4th class scrambling possibilities.

Similarly, at Manure Pile, walk the cliff base around to the left and spy gullies leading up to the top of pitch 1 of After Six, over where the start of God's Gift (?)... or if you were really interested you can diagonal up and left from the base of the original Nutcracker along "easy" rock which leads around to the ledge atop After Seven. Then you can continue up another pitch to the base of the chimney on After Six picking the 4th/easy 5th alternatives... (if you get that far).

Michael's Ledge on Lower Brother will let you get really far up and out, and is 4th class the whole way (though I'd tie the little suckers in good)...

Sunnyside Bench route could probably be negotiated with youngin's too.

Monday Morning Slab?

NutAgain!

Trad climber
South Pasadena, CA
Sep 10, 2014 - 02:25pm PT
I remembered Sunnyside Bench as an easy solo and thought it would be perfect for an intro kids climb. It's reachier for kids than you would think, and requires some awkward chimneyish technique. It took much longer than I would have thought to get my kids up P1, and we bailed after that because of time concerns. Plan an early start if you try Sunnyside Bench with kids unless they have done a lot of rock scrambling and had an intro to technical climbing.
HighTraverse

Trad climber
Bay Area
Sep 10, 2014 - 03:36pm PT
Anything on the base of Swan Slab with you spotting him.

I took my son up Aunt Fanny's Pantry (5.4) (Church Bowl) when he was about 5. He was hooked. You can belay from a tree on the big ledge at the top of the chimney. The whole route is likely too much for a 2 1/2.
The chimney off the deck may be too wide and strenuous for your son.

DON't push him!
Let him do his own thing as long as you're there for his safety.
When he says he's had enough, believe him.
Especially don't take him too high too early.
Take a couple of his favorite toys and snacks.
let him learn to love climbing and trust you as his partner. In 12 more years he'll be leading you.
tom woods

Gym climber
Bishop, CA
Sep 10, 2014 - 04:05pm PT
How about boulders?

We do this a lot. The 2.5 year old loves it, so does the 5 year old. Any old boulders will do. Find a way to get on top.

There is always a hard way if the easy way is too easy. They can do this for hours.
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