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Salamanizer
Trad climber
The land of Fruits & Nuts!
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Sep 19, 2012 - 02:39am PT
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Well there ain't no shame in bailing early. Better to abort when you know the gig is up than to stick it out and suffer through a long night in a hanging belay.
I'll be looking forward to the follow up TR with pitch by pitch beta.
You couldn't have picked a better partner Ed. That Zander is a total enduro beast I tell ya.
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LongAgo
Trad climber
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Sep 20, 2012 - 09:41pm PT
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Kamps told me this was a winner climb - remote place, neat views, some intricate climbing. Yup, so I found in days when pins were still on the rack with nuts, making protection in some scar areas easier me thinks than with all nuts and cams, maybe. We saw no bolts in those days, but a couple of rap slings.
Clint, that "old piton" at the crux 5.10b roof might be mine. Partner Couch forgot to remove it! And flared jams over the roof sound right if I recall. I also believe we did traverse right more or less as topo shows where you indicate "The route naturally goes straight up, it is protectable (somewhat), and more aesthetic." Bravo to a more direct line. We just followed what Kamps scrawled on a piece of paper (long gone) and it had a traverse.
What's great about this route is its old and obscure and far enough away to be done infrequently, apparently, giving lovely clouds of speculation and uncertainty about what to do and why. So today's climbers get some wonder and awe about the old boys of the FFA making their way with clunky shoes and pins, and maybe curse and praise those boys all at once. Good for the brain cells, never mind the soul.
Tom Higgins
LongAgo
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JEleazarian
Trad climber
Fresno CA
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Apr 29, 2013 - 01:43pm PT
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Chiloe doesn't mention it, but he wrote a nice article about the climb that was published in a very early volume of Climbing magazine. I'd read it right before my first trip up. In it, he described a wet lieback high on the route in such frightening terms that I intentionally had my partner lead the easy first pitch. Knowing how we would pitch it out, that insured that my partner would get that lieback.
It turned out that in dry weather, I'd worried needlessly.
John
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Vitaliy M.
Mountain climber
San Francisco
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Apr 29, 2013 - 01:58pm PT
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Good bump, and thanks for the report Ed. I am really interested in attempting this route. Was supposed to last weekend but than read trip report that Clint posted. WOW that was a wild one. Jugging on crappy anchors and poor pro...still, gotta go do it..
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Chiloe
Trad climber
Lee, NH
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he wrote a nice article about the climb that was published in a very early volume of Climbing magazine.
I'd forgotten all about that! Wonder if I still have a copy, somewhere.
In it, he described a wet lieback high on the route in such frightening terms
We were turkeys in those days, of course.
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JEleazarian
Trad climber
Fresno CA
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I still have a copy of it if you don't, Larry. Let me know if you want a copy.
John
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survival
Big Wall climber
Terrapin Station
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Great thread, worth another look, with such notable players posting up!
I missed this first time around, I didn't know Cheech and Chong did this route!!
Salathe and Nelson, what a team. Then there was Salathe and Steck, Powell and Reed, Robbins and Frost, Chouinard and Frost, Pratt and Roper, Pratt and Harding, Harding and Merry, Harding and Rowell, Hennek and Lauria, Cheech and Chong
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PAUL SOUZA
Trad climber
Central Valley, CA
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My buddies Karl Runde, Ted, and Phil did it this past Saturday. I didn't get many details though.
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Vitaliy M.
Mountain climber
San Francisco
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Dec 20, 2017 - 01:36pm PT
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Years ago I asked ED about this route and he gave me a topo. Yesterday, my friend and I spontaneously climbed the route with only a mountain project overlay, which was enough. So badass that FFA was done in the 60s, wasn't easy to protect it with tiny nuts and small cams now. Thinking about them doing it with pre-modern climbing shoes. Very impressive.
The route is pretty good with the business of it/crux being able to protect pitch 3 and 4 - the shallow seam which was nailed out by Salathe etc. We didn't bring any screamers but tiny cams and DMM offset nuts from blue and down were very useful. Doubles from tiny to #1 and single #3 and #2 cams, with a set of offset from smallest to orange/yellow metolius would be my reccomendation. And ability to climb low 5.10 on mostly ok but at times very small and marginal gear. With pitons, this would be a very easy nail up to practice on - but people shouldn't nail this one any longer.
We climbed the route without clipping pins or bolts for all clean and free ascent (brought to you by pinscars) because Doug Hemken mentioned that it would be a good challenge to try doing that and it would be first route to go on all natural gear on the SW face or whatever. So we did that out of curiosity, but route would be better if bolt on top of p3 is replaced with two good bolts and if a bolted belay is added on top of p6 at a good stance. Just my 2cents, but I wouldn't do it as from what I read about the history of the route Salathe wanted it to be a nail up and not have bolts. Times change and people do not bring pins to make bomber anchors on such routes nor do they use pins on established free routes to further chisel them. Bolted belay in spots I mentioned would not at all bring down the difficulties of the free climbing but only eliminate a small cluster of gear on two sides of the shitty flake on top of p6 and bring it to a very good stance (above a fix pin) and belay on top of 3 would be on top of the block where old bolt is, instead of a semi hanging belay 3 feet below, on good camalots (0.5, 0.75 and a small one).
Anyway, a cool climb which should be done more often and here are a few photos:
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snakefoot
climber
Nor Cal
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Dec 20, 2017 - 01:51pm PT
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nice shots and the last one on the summit is reversed, ha.
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Gnome Ofthe Diabase
climber
Out Of Bed
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Dec 20, 2017 - 01:53pm PT
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Merry Christmas V thnx for the bump of this thread!
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Largo
Sport climber
The Big Wide Open Face
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Dec 20, 2017 - 03:07pm PT
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Man, I wish I would have gotten around to doing that route. I tried to do all of Sacherer's routes and Kamps' as well but never got this one. What a classic!
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Vitaliy M.
Mountain climber
San Francisco
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Dec 20, 2017 - 04:24pm PT
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Which of their routes are some of your favorites? They climbed hard and proud for their time. Wasn't North Buttress of Middle a Sacherer FFA? That route is an experience, for a low to mid 5.10 leader me back when I did it lol. We finished it in good time and all but I remember climbing some of those pitches thinking WTFFFF.
Weird how that photo got reversed.
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Ed Hartouni
Trad climber
Livermore, CA
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Topic Author's Reply - Dec 20, 2017 - 10:38pm PT
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Nice V!
I still want to go back and do this... there are a lot of climbs that don't get done that should.
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Vitaliy M.
Mountain climber
San Francisco
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Dec 20, 2017 - 10:58pm PT
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Bring plenty of small to medium nuts and tiny cams. Or pins, if you want very solid pro :)
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le_bruce
climber
Oakland, CA
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Dec 21, 2017 - 10:44am PT
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Sweet!! You guys must have been moving fast to do the approach, climb, and hit the summit in daylight during these short days.
Wasn't North Buttress of Middle a Sacherer FFA? That route is an experience, for a low to mid 5.10 leader me back when I did it lol. We finished it in good time and all but I remember climbing some of those pitches thinking WTFFFF.
A few weeks back I met a climber who took at 70+ ft fall on that route sometime recently.
70 ft!
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Vitaliy M.
Mountain climber
San Francisco
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Dec 21, 2017 - 11:50am PT
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Crazy sh#t. I remember a biggish rumour on 5.10a pitch up high and if you don't protect the layback you can take a ride there too, but not 70ft. I wonder if it felt like 70 ft or actually was :) whenever I take a flight it usually feels way longer haha.
We did the route in under 12 hours car to car without being in much of a hurry, taking a few water/food breaks on the approach and a summit stop. Also took the longer more scenic option for the way back. But I wouldn't reccomend it, there is a lot of ice up there now and some of it is falling during the day. Was a big sign saying "closed due to rock fall" which we ignored. Would not ignore if it pointed out it was ice causing the closure. Even so, it isn't that bad and icy spots are easy enough to navigate that I didn't feel in any danger.
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