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dickcilley
Social climber
A cova Dos Nenos
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I was probably the first to climb in Jacks.It wasn't a sh#t hole then.It was magic.Nature doesn't make shitholes.People do.
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dogtown
climber
Cheyenne,Wyoming
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Stoney has to be in there somewhere?
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Chiloe
Trad climber
Lee, NH
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Topic Author's Reply - Jun 5, 2009 - 08:37am PT
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Obviously, Matt Samet knew what he was doing. Who'd want to write, or read, an article that
just named five crumbling crud-heaps like the roadcut at the end of my street? No, for the
game to be any fun, his Five Worst had to be places with popularity, devoted developers,
redeeming features and users who would rise to defend them when dissed.
So far we've heard defenses of Jacks Canyon, Potosi, Sport Park and the VRG. (Plus a chorus
of Pennsylvanians miffed that their crags did not make the list.)
What's missing?
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mcreel
climber
Barcelona, Spain
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How about Pinnacles NM? Don't like a hold, pull it off and try the next one. Don't like bolts? Pull 'em out with your fingers and put 'em in your chalk bag.
Or what about Blacktail Butte in Jackson? Greasy tweaky little holds all over the place, S facing, and too damn hot in summer.
Just kidding, I had a good time at both places.
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Bazo
Boulder climber
Ky
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And the winner is...
Grand Ledge Michigan. I can't believe I climbed there year after year..
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Reilly
Mountain climber
Monrovia, CA
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Kindly indulge my ignorance. I've been through the Virgin R Gorge a number of times on the way to better places and marveled at the hideous nature of the choss. Where exactly, if one were so perversely inclined, would one find the actual climbing area?
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Chris2
Trad climber
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"Roadcut" in Juneau Alaska.
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jfailing
Trad climber
Lone Pine
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Pinnacles is a total choss pile, but come on, there are some real gems there, not to mention it's a super scenic area. Yeah the bolts are like 80 years old (one of the 1st bolts placed in N. America is/was here... so I've heard), and the rock is hardly solid, but if you climb there a few times, you get kind of used to it - hardly one of the worst climbing spots ever...
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FinnMaCoul
Trad climber
Green Mountains, Vermont
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Den Rock in Lawrence, Mass where I learned to rope up. Urban blight setting, truly one of the shittiest cities in the States. Where the original guide used the grafitti to topo the routes (follow the dihedral to the left of the "F#CK", etc...). Always dodging dumped refuse and crack vials at the base, we once had to climb around the burned out shell of a stolen car that had been shoved over the edge and then torched at the base; the face of the rock was oily and black from the smoke of the fire.
It was friggin great.
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Studly
Trad climber
WA
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Pete's Pile in Oregon has to be one of the worse. Dirty, mossy basalt. Lots of loose rock. Above your head on the Schoolhouse Wall are these huge overhanging detached basalt columns just stuck there waiting to fall on your head if you speak to loudly. Its kind of a scary place for me to climb. It does have a stellar crack climb there called The Guillotine, 10a.
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Reilly
Mountain climber
Monrovia, CA
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Beauteous shot Locker! Nobody can deny that Americans love their country.
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shutupandclimb
climber
So. Cal..............d00d
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Worst crag in America.....................EASY,
Tick Rock in LA. It is (has):
Road cut
Ticks
maybe 10 routes of dubious quality
major thoroughfare within 50yds
assorted cig butts and trash around the base
the smell of urine on warm days
the site of a sometimes homeless camp (wino's and addicts not dirtbag climbers)
used syringes found at the base on several occasions
I think that may cover it
Does it qualify?
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Nefarius
Big Wall climber
Fresno
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We should head out there and put some grafitti up, locker! I'll bring the paint! :)
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Slater
climber
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The Trailer Park Crag off Hwy. 166 in Cali has them all beat.
Steve Edwards will agree.
In fact, if you DO find a good hold, take it home and show it off to your friends.
It's that easy. Matt Pollard was dumb enough to park his VW van beneath one of the routes (it's 25 ' off the Hwy) and on an ascent, the route fell off and landed on his roof and dented it in various places. I've been "pulled over" while on route twice by the CHP. I just lie and tell them I have permission from Cal Trans (which I sorta do?). Depends upon who at Cal Trans you talk to. I've since used the route to build a retaining wall at my house.
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Chiloe
Trad climber
Lee, NH
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Topic Author's Reply - Jun 5, 2009 - 03:35pm PT
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At One of the Five Worst Crags, earlier this week:
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Slater
climber
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yep, if you have to wear a helmet while you belay from the ground, that's a bad sign.
Here is Doug Englekirk at the Trailer Park, about to pick out his favorite hold to take home. He called the .11a route "insecure". Words from a .13 climber. He's making it look easy. I think the route is called Wife Beater.
photo Tom Slater (c)
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Chiloe
Trad climber
Lee, NH
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Topic Author's Reply - Jun 6, 2009 - 09:51am PT
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When I started this thread, with a post made between flights at PHX (free wifi), I meant to contribute
a micro-TR about some fun evening trips to One of the Five Worst Crags earlier this week.
Never got 'round to that, but to add color to the thread here are a few more photos.
The ambience is good and bad: you have to wait for breaks in the traffic to communicate with your
belayer, but when the breaks do come, lookit where you are.
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