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Ksolem
Trad climber
Monrovia, California
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Tahquitz ranks up there with some of the classic choss heaps of the Cascades and Rockies.
Yes and no. There are some great climbs with little risk of being made into hamburger by falling granite refrigerators...
The White Maiden.
The Vampire and it's neighbors on the bulge.
Fred and its Flintstone Slab neighbors (although Fred has that triangular flake/block near the start. It could last 10,000 years or come out tomorrow. I cringe when I see someone up there with gear behind that thing.)
Everything from Traitor Horn/Open Book on up around on the SW face.
I was hiding in the shade of the tree at the start of Fred one day with Chelsea Griffie. It was oppressively hot and the sun was baking the rock. Then, CRACK! BAM! It took a minute to figure out what happened. It wasn't rock fall. It turned out that the heat had caused a section of what appeared to be solid clean granite about halfway across to Angel's Fright, and about 4 feet up from the ground, to exfoliate from the face. The exfoliation was about 2 inches thick, pieces were spread around the ledge. Its point of origin on the face was obvious.
and then suddenly my boyfriend screamed at me to RUN.
Whew. A close call for sure all the way around. Thank God no one got seriously maimed or killed.
I always sit behind a big tree when I'm hanging out there.
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GDavis
Social climber
SOL CAL
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Yikes! That story is nuts. Thanks for sharing Amber.
Heads up out there folks. Despite its proximity to an urban center, Tahquitz is in many respects an alpine style crag. Bring your route finding skills, situational awareness, and a sixth sense for danger.
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mersek
Trad climber
fullerton
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Unfortunately, there were two people right at the base when the rocks came flying down...
I knew I saw two people at the base of the climb! My partner and I were on Whodunit above csjamieson's party when the block fell and I could have sworn I saw some of the shrapnel narrowly miss someone at the base.
Glad to hear you two are okay!
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Olsen A
Trad climber
Los Angeles
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I seem to recall the death of a young climber in the spring of 2013 caused by rockfall on The Vampire.
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Carrier
climber
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Happy to hear that the injuries weren't any worse. I heared there was rock fall the next morning but no specifics and ended up climbing the long climb, wong variation, the following day. We were the only party on long climb. It seemed like someone had bailed as I found a completely set up anchor on the route. I made sure no other parties were around who could have left it and I cleaned the anchor figuring it was someone who went to help with the rescue. If anyone is looking for their gear please email me.
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BLUEBLOCR
Social climber
joshua tree
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Great thread, other than the leader fall. Sorry..
Thanks for all the educational posts!
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ryan_monroe
Sport climber
Pasadena
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Unfortunately, there were two people right at the base when the rocks came flying down... Glad you guys made it out OK! There was another group below us, without helmets (!) who were missed by <10ft, or so I hear.
If anyone is looking for their gear please email me. Generous of you! I have sent you David's contact info (he was the belayer of the injured climber)
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Carrier
climber
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Ryan I'm new to this super topo thing and for some reason haven't received an email from you with David , the belayer', info. My email is carrier.tfl@gmail.com. Can you try emailing separate from supertooo to see if that works . Thanks a lot.
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rottingjohnny
Sport climber
Sands Motel , Las Vegas
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Carrier... Get out while you can.. supertopo that is...
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ryan_monroe
Sport climber
Pasadena
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No problem! Email (and proof) sent. Or I could have just said that the anchor had a #1, #2 and a big nut...
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RhoadsClimbs
Trad climber
Madison, WI
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This mountain doesn't seem to have alot of random rockfall. Every falling debris I have ever seen or heard has been from climbers. The loose stuff is mostly high up and east (left) White Maiden, there's a rotten band after the chimney patch on Whodunit that is pretty gnarly to the left and right.
If it looks iffy don't place or climb on it unless you have to climb on it. Don't place behind loose stuff ever as if you fall you could pull it, run it out to solid gear or bail.
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GDavis
Social climber
SOL CAL
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If it looks iffy don't place or climb on it unless you have to climb on it.
I'm reading this as:
Don't climb Whodunnit or Long Climb.
Each has a large, pretty damn unstable block that you have to negotiate. The one on Long climb might have gone, it was above the ledge that starts pitch 3 and was marked with an X (haven't been on it in a few years). Whodunnit has a loose pillar on the pitch above the offwidth/chimney that is gonna go inevitably. wobbly as all get out.
So yeah, just don't climb those two routes anymore, or until they shed. Then hopefully there isn't MORE loose rock that got jostled after those two blocks fall.
OR just roll the dice in the alpine as we all do...
OR go sport climbing!
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skcreidc
Social climber
SD, CA
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Whodunnit has a loose pillar on the pitch above the offwidth/chimney that is gonna go inevitably. wobbly as all get out.
Greg, first time up Whodunnit, the leader of that pitch stopped right at that medium sized refrig pillar and built the anchor on it. I climb up and see the situation, my geology alarms went off big time; dude, lets anchor to something else, anything else. And don't touch that block ever again, lol! I love that climb, but never touch that block.
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GDavis
Social climber
SOL CAL
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Make sure to write that down on laminated paper and leave it at the base... unless everyone reads ST...
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skcreidc
Social climber
SD, CA
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Hmmm, good point Greg. Everyone belays from just above the chimney and if the pillar cuts loose the belayer is right in the path. Safest place to be would be at the bottom of the chimney...
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Ksolem
Trad climber
Monrovia, California
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This mountain doesn't seem to have alot of random rockfall..
Actually it does. I wouldn't call it random, but rather natural. Gravity never sleeps.
Of course people knock things off. But the biggest falls I've seen happened when no one was anywhere near the source. And the warm-up after winter is the prime time.
Does anyone remember when The Step released about a ton of granite? Then there's the one I described upthread, and the time I was climbing Zeno's Paradox and watched a basketball sized block impact right next to a guy while belaying his leader in the Mummy Pitch (it was early, no one was above.) He got shrapnelled, and screamed until he couldn't scream anymore. Later he had fit of common sense, and had a gear sale in Humber Park. And then there was the time I was sitting behind a tree under that NW Recess when a bunch of softball sized rocks came whizzing through. It would have been like getting hit by a cannon ball. It was 7:30AM, I seriously doubt there was anyone up there.
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RhoadsClimbs
Trad climber
Madison, WI
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I should clarify I guess. Climb the loose block if you have to but for the love of God don't place behind it, a take could rip it out.
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Ksolem
Trad climber
Monrovia, California
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What you want to do on those routes is to sneak up the rock. Quiet concentration, always aware. Just because the climb is going easily, and the day is beautiful doesn't mean that things can't go totally to sh×t with a single misjudgement of the rock.
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Gary
Social climber
Desolation Basin, Calif.
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No kidding! Did something easy over there with Juan de Fuca and he only let me lead one pitch. It was like climbing on a pile of marbles. Definitely in cat's feet mode, I was afraid to breathe.
I forgave him, though.
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