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Onewhowalksonrocks
Mountain climber
Ventura
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Feb 18, 2015 - 08:06pm PT
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Back in 1981 I thought that there was a rap route leaving the right side of the Oasis. I think I saw it in the Myers guide. I was told by the parking lot god that NPS had installed it.
I used something on that side during that summer to get off the Oasis. I could be wrong and often am.
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KabalaArch
Trad climber
Starlite, California
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Feb 18, 2015 - 08:32pm PT
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We climbed the RA in the 70's. And other than the Rotten Log, perhaps, that last pitch was one of the most memorable of the whole shebang. After a full day in the summer sun, entering the shaded slab came as a nice walk in the park, dampness, pine needles and all. Hanging in The Jungle, to water up; such a rewarding finish to a route that reaches the rim.
For almost total beginners, I guess our time was okay: early summer Alpine Start at a leisurely 9 or 10 o'clock. Had the whole thing to ourselves, too. Finished the NDG early dusk. Just Roper's, green edition: “If you need to rappel or rope up, you haven't traversed east far enough” - seemed like plenty of beta.
Besides, there just aren't too many moderate Grade III's which go to the rim , and so any opportunity to go for a short sky walk right on the edge seems as rare as it beautiful. Especially that nice open reach below North Dome, right over the main Arch.
Wonder whose bright idea it was to establish a rap route in the first place? Topping out and hiking down seems like one of the major rewards of the RA.
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Stewart Johnson
climber
lake forest
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Feb 18, 2015 - 08:36pm PT
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How about some solar garden lights down the gully
Chimpin!
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Mungeclimber
Trad climber
Nothing creative to say
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Feb 18, 2015 - 08:37pm PT
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Might need to get my RA on this weekend and test this out.
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crankster
Trad climber
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Feb 18, 2015 - 08:39pm PT
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Similar experience, Kabala. I don't see the sense in rapping that route.
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Onewhowalksonrocks
Mountain climber
Ventura
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Feb 18, 2015 - 08:47pm PT
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Kabala asked "Who put up the rap route?" I would also like to know why?
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Jan
Mountain climber
Colorado, Nepal & Okinawa
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Feb 18, 2015 - 08:56pm PT
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The first time I did the gulley I was already tired from all the chimneys on Washington Column and dehydrated. I climbed in a group with Chuck Ostin so of course we came down in the dark. (Sheridan Anderson had a cartoon of a girl saying to Chuck, "The sun is going down, don't you think we should get started?") as he was famous for nocturnal descents.
We came down the pink line I think until we were staring down the death slabs and had to go back up some and traverse over to the switchbacks. Loose sand on rock was what I remember everywhere. By the time we got down I was so dehydrated I was about to start hallucinating. I drank a half gallon of water in Camp 4, drank about four beers in El Portal, drank another quart of water before going to bed and didn't pee until the next morning. How you would get enough water up all those chimneys to not get dehydrated I don't know, but if I ever climb it again it will be in the fall, not mid summer.
Back in the day, I don't think it ever occured to any of us that it could be done without an epic as everyone had their own story. It was just part of the climb.
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Daphne
Trad climber
Northern California
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Feb 18, 2015 - 09:22pm PT
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I've only ever descended by the gully. But with my shattered ankle, the descent is now going to take a long and painful time. In the dark it takes between 3 and 4 hours to get down and I've only descended in the dark. The last part, the flat part, feels interminable. I was hoping to try the rap route next time-- to save on the pain in my ankle.
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Blakey
Trad climber
Sierra Vista
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Feb 18, 2015 - 11:35pm PT
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It's a long time since I descended the gully, we had little information
And just followed our noses, it didn't seem deadly at all. The most memorable thing g was passing the bivi Boulder some else mentioned.
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Patrick Sawyer
climber
Originally California now Ireland
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Feb 19, 2015 - 02:42am PT
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I have done both. Rap RA and the gully (first time, 1972). Gully wasn't that bad, neither was the rap.
Now wasn't somebody going to "build" a replica of the Rotten Log and put it where the old log was?
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NutAgain!
Trad climber
South Pasadena, CA
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Feb 19, 2015 - 09:51am PT
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One of the times climbing RA, with Joe Metz, we did like Clint's first time- going over to YPB and then down the Falls Trail. That was a great trip- hot and dehydrated while doing the dirt hills with two scrambles up and one slide down, and interminable slabs during the hottest part of the day , then some really cool canyons around Lehamite and Indian, with ferns and almost a tropical feel. And it's never a bad thing to hang out at Yosemite Point and enjoy all there is to see from there.
But the hike was clearly eh majority off the day, with the climb being the little bit to get the day started.
Here's my original report here,but with dead links to imageshack from before I kept my pictures on picasa (now google plus):
http://www.supertopo.com/climbing/thread.php?topic_id=241060
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brett
climber
oregon
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Feb 19, 2015 - 10:14am PT
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How do the folks lapping the route in 50 minutes get down?
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kev
climber
A pile of dirt.
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Topic Author's Reply - Feb 19, 2015 - 12:21pm PT
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Downsolo?
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NutAgain!
Trad climber
South Pasadena, CA
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Feb 19, 2015 - 12:33pm PT
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I soloed it once (paradoxically with a partner), with a rope on my back, and rapped down. Raps took as long as the climb. We had the ropes with the intention to use them whenever either of us got sketched out, but we were feeling good that day.
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BBA
Social climber
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Feb 19, 2015 - 01:18pm PT
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We went up the chimney on the Column and intended to go down the gully. Before guide books and the like, one asked Roper about going down and he said, "Go way over to the left or you'll die." So we did and didn't (die). The next time was when I hiked up North Dome for fun and decided to go down the gully solo - piece of cake except for fighting through the Manzanita to get to the Gully.
A worse way to go down from the Arches is Indian Canyon which I mention as matter of personal experience. At least there's water.
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Reilly
Mountain climber
The Other Monrovia- CA
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Feb 19, 2015 - 01:24pm PT
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In the alpine world I do believe NDG would be classified as "HIP - hands in pockets",
unless you've a particularly bothersome booger.
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the Fet
climber
Tu-Tok-A-Nu-La
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Feb 19, 2015 - 01:52pm PT
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For the car to car speed climbs my understanding is there is a another descent gully before NDG that requires some down-climbing.
Anyone thinking that 12-21 raps(depending on number of ropes raps and who you talk to) is gonna take less time than the NDG is probably clueless
Sorry Kev you are off base here. With one rope (two ropes just means more chance of getting a rope stuck IMO) doing the 15 raps takes me 2 hours. If you do the NDG instead you add another pitch of climbing (so maybe 15 minutes) and you add approximately two miles of hiking to the start of the NDG and back to the base of RA (maybe 30 minutes). So that leaves 1:15 to do the NDG, which is probably about what it takes.
Personally I have a bad knee and the NDG is the worst type of hiking for it. Downhill on loose ground, with big steps. So I'm going to move slowly and carefully. It would take me longer to do the NDG from RA than the raps.
I think the raps are probably more dangerous than the NDG on average, but we are talking about people who just did lead climbing up RA which is much more dangerous than either. I find it strange that people think rappelling is so dangerous but are willing to lead climb.
I'm not sure why so many people do the raps compared to the NDG. I would think most beginners would rather hike off than rappel. But I've done the NDG from RA once, and thought "this is dumb why am I adding two miles of hiking to a crappy loose gully descent". So ever since then I've done the raps. And that was before my knee got bad.
The only thing I miss when doing the raps is not the last pitch which isn't that fun for me, but the spring at the top. Anytime I get a chance to drink delicious, cold Yosemite spring water is good, but at the top of a climb it's sublime. The spring at the top of Middle Cathedral is another awesome top of the climb spring.
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Clint Cummins
Trad climber
SF Bay area, CA
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Feb 19, 2015 - 04:11pm PT
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The only thing I miss when doing the raps is not the last pitch which isn't that fun for me, but the spring at the top. It's easy to do the slab traverse pitch, drink from the spring,
then climb back across the traverse and do the raps.
That's what I did the last 2 times I did Royal Arches.
There is still one more (5.2) pitch after the spring.
It is a traverse left under the roof, on a sometimes slimy slab,
then you climb up about 30' on blocky rock.
There was a fixed rope across this traverse the last time I did it.
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gumbyclimber
climber
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Feb 19, 2015 - 05:55pm PT
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How do the folks lapping the route in 50 minutes get down?
+/- 20 minutes on the climb and running NDG.
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the Fet
climber
Tu-Tok-A-Nu-La
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Feb 19, 2015 - 10:50pm PT
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Thanks Clint. The one time I did the last pitch I unroped at the spring and free soloed the 5.2 early in my climbing career and thought it was kinda spooky. No wonder. I dropped the end of the rope down to belay my partner who was even less experienced.
The only thing I'd possibly disagree with on your topo is rap 15 and 16 seemed 4th class at most to me.
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