Red Rocks, NV, hit list?

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Bad Climber

climber
Topic Author's Original Post - Mar 1, 2015 - 04:12pm PT
Tacoeans:

God help us, but my wife and I are thinking about going to Red Rocks for spring break (I teach at a community college). We sport climb up to 10c or so (flirting with some stuff a little harder) and trad a letter grade or two lower, give or take. Not into death climbs or off-widths--sorry friends of the wyde. We'll be able to climb mid-week, Monday--Friday, so at least we'll miss weekend crowds, although spring break at RR has got to be a little zooey. We'll be there last few days of March/beginning of April. Should be great weather, no? We may skip the camping scene and stay part of the time with the wife's side of the family and/or motel it. Is the camping scene as bad as I recall?

Anyway, would love to get recommendations. We've got the Supertopo guide and the old RR Select, but that thing is 20 years out of date. I know, I know. I've been climbing too long. But I still love it, Buddha help me.

I know the climbing there is wonderful. The last time there we made TWO attempts at Frogland but got shut down both times by large, incompetent parties and didn't feel like sitting at the base for hours on end to get started. We also got into a damn footrace to the base of Dream of Wild Turkeys. Experiences like that make me uncertain about going back, but I keep seeing pictures of awesome climbs, and lots within our range, so I'm determined to take another crack at the place. With so much rock, we should be able to get on some routes with out radical cues, eh?

Thanks for any help.

Cheerz and beerz,

BAd

Ed Hartouni

Trad climber
Livermore, CA
Mar 1, 2015 - 04:23pm PT
no wyde?
stay home and harden the f*#k up...

report back when hard... we'll provide a list.

[/kidding]

head out into the canyons and have some adventures... easy to do there. Maybe a bit chilly but once you it the sun line you'll be lovin' life
Bad Climber

climber
Topic Author's Reply - Mar 1, 2015 - 04:25pm PT
You kill me, Ed. Yeah, I need some testosterone pills or something....

BAd
Ghost

climber
A long way from where I started
Mar 1, 2015 - 04:31pm PT
Stay away from anything with multiple stars. Climb anything else within your capabilities.

Example? There is a permanent conga line on Crimson Chrysalis. But a relatively short way to the left you probably won't have much trouble getting on Ginger Cracks. (Unless it's now received stars in a guidebook.)

It's hard to find a bad climb at RR.
ruppell

climber
Mar 1, 2015 - 04:33pm PT
Bad

You're gonna be there during the Rendezvous. Good luck man. All the classics will have tons of people on them. Maybe try and keep you chin up and just deal. Or go somewhere else.
Bad Climber

climber
Topic Author's Reply - Mar 1, 2015 - 04:39pm PT
But isn't the Rendezvous a weekend thing? We won't start climbing until the Monday. Or is it a week-long siege-a-palooza?

Edit: Yeah, just checked the dates. We step in on the Monday after it ends--thank goodness.

Nice to know about avoiding stars! Heh.

BAd
Ghost

climber
A long way from where I started
Mar 1, 2015 - 05:00pm PT
Nice to know about avoiding stars! Heh.

It's just plain crazy. No other way to describe it. We once went up to climb Birdland, only to find two parties already on it, and four -- yes four -- more parties waiting patiently at the base.

And yet, just about 50 ft to the left was a climb (can't remember the name) of the same grade standing empty from bottom to top. We romped up it and had a blast. It was every bit as nice a climb as Birdland, and we couldn't believe that people would rather sit and twiddle their thumbs for hours waiting for a turn on a starred climb, rather than actually climbing. It's bizarre.
donini

Trad climber
Ouray, Colorado
Mar 1, 2015 - 05:02pm PT
You have to do Eagle Dance. Wonderful multi-pitch, mostly sport, climb that goes at 10c. It's south facing so it could be perfect for late March.
ruppell

climber
Mar 1, 2015 - 05:08pm PT
The rendezvous itself is over but the crowds are gonna be insane. Trust me I've been there the week following it many times. I'll give you some ideas based on my experience there.

Black Velvet: Triassac Sands, Wholesome Fullback, Everything on BV wall itself

First Creek: Hot Flash(newish)

Oak Creek: Sunflower

Juniper Canyon: Power Failure, Unimpeachable Groping, Ginger Cracks, Night Crawler, Black Dagger, One-Armed Bandit

Pine Creek Canyon: Chocolate Flakes, Small Purchase, The Walker Spur, Y2K, The Next Century, Risky Business(exceptional and not that scary)

Icebox Canyon: Frigid Air Buttress

I tried to leave out stuff that's too hard or has any real offwidth. Those should keep you busy for a while.



Rollover

climber
Gross Vegas
Mar 1, 2015 - 06:05pm PT
+1 ^^^^ WL
Weston is spot on as usual..
Great beta!!
steelmnkey

climber
Vision man...ya gotta have vision...
Mar 2, 2015 - 06:43pm PT
I'd avoid Birdland like a scalded cat if I was you. That thing draws gumbies worse than ants at a picnic. Seriously.

My wife cruised into Vegas one weekday early afternoon... had heard fun things about Birdland, figured a super late start and weekday combo meant we could just hike down with a light rack and rope and knock it off. We got there, and there were two parties above us. We hung out for the best part of an hour letting them a couple pitches above us (they were up at least a pitch plus change already - probably started at breakfast). Then we launched... ran right over them. This bozo was climbing like watching paint dry with a FULL friggin' backpack on!!! WTF?!?!?!?

My advice: Don't do it, pick something else. Eagle Dance is fantastic and a lot of fun. Refried Brains, Sour Mash, Dream of Wild Turkeys, Black Orpheus, Nightcrawler is very cool, Frigidare Butress is good fun and a short approach, Ginger Cracks (and there's other stuff over there in the same spot). Jubilant Song was a lot of fun and sort of a cool backcountry feeling route. Stay away from anything 5.7 or 5.8 that has stars unless there's like a full hour plus approach. They'll be swarmed over spring break with "climbers" who know virtually nothing about climbing.

Goober with full backpack on Birdland (you can see we're in FULL conditions):


As far as I could tell, Birdland was an easy fun route, but we'll never know. We ended up rapping of so we wouldn't have to contend with the obvious sh*tshow those guys were going to come up with when they started going down.
Gal

Trad climber
going big air to fakie
Mar 2, 2015 - 07:14pm PT
Just did Cookie Monster - great for a shorter day - really great fun.
Ginger cracks is fantastic.
Requiem for a Tadpole - excellent - and you can avoid the offwidth pitch with a stellar 5.9 workaround on an arete - it's on brownstone wall, so far back and away
Y2K is super fun.
Rawlapindi (sp) instead of Birdland (it's just to the left - good times, slightly run-out but def doable.
I LOVE group therapy (and there's a couple more near it if it's packed (but build your own anchors might deplete the masses a little bit)

edited: and lol steelmonkey, good thinking on leaving the shitshow that is birdland hahaha
Prod

Trad climber
Mar 2, 2015 - 07:58pm PT
I was there during the rendezvous 1 time and had Windy Peak all to myself. Jubilant Song is a classic.

Prod.
The Alpine

climber
Mar 3, 2015 - 08:51am PT
If you'd like to up the difficulty to 5.11, Drifting on the Jet Stream wall is MEGA!
mhay

climber
Bishop, CA
Mar 3, 2015 - 09:06am PT
As a general strategy at RR I always go out for the day with a list of climbs; the priority route, and then the nearby back-ups. You may end up approaching with more gear than you carry up the route, because you're packed for different routes, but it's good training, right? Leverage other's herd mentality to your advantage. For example, Unimpeachable too busy? Do Power Failure. It's a better route IMHO anyway.

And I second all route suggestions listed above, and the Handren guide is great.
TGT

Social climber
So Cal
Mar 3, 2015 - 09:12am PT
The first 4 pitches of Refried Brains offer really nice and varied climbing in the 5.8-5.9 range.

Seems to not draw a crowd like the other Black Velvet climbs.

Dark Shadows and Birdland tend to turn into a circus. But, the popularity is justified.


Dark Shadows is the last thing you want to do before leaving because the rope end WILL end up in the stream on the last rappel.
Vegasclimber

Trad climber
Las Vegas, NV.
Mar 3, 2015 - 09:38am PT
Hey, Birdland is great...

For booty gear left by the gumbies.

Weston as usual was spot on with his tick list. If you need any other info (places to go, eat, etc.) feel free to shoot me a message.
ddriver

Trad climber
SLC, UT
Mar 3, 2015 - 10:30am PT
Good ideas above for sure. Some good starter routes for you would include the Lotta Balls Wall routes, Group Therapy/Tunnel Vision, Johnny Vegas, Olive Oil, Dark Shadows, Birdland and Frogland. Most of the others mentioned are about one notch up in difficulty or commitment.
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