Trip Report
Without a net
Saturday April 25, 2015 2:51pm
More than jus the name of a Grateful Dead album, it's the way life is!

It's also the name of a 200' four pitch (?) 5.8 Chimney route on Merrimac Butte North of Moab...... With virtually no pro!

Put up by the late great Charlie fowler, desert hero and alround good guy, and Sue Wint. In 1991..
"The route is a classic offwidth Chimney" Said he.

It got on my radar as myself and a clutch of desert ruffians were driving down the hill from rigging an adventure race. - the adventure racers had to do a three hundred foot rappel, we had to insist that they buckle back their harnesses!

The mighty Ed Oak, pointed toward Merrimac Butte, a summit I had never trodden. "Ever do "Without a net? Three hundred feet of 5.8 chimney. Full value, all I got in were. A couple wires in four pitches"

The hook was set!

My original plan was to hike in from highway 313, solo and down climb the route ( a style I figured appropriate for the name..)and hike out.
A few days later I got a crack of brunch start & drove around trying to figure out where to start. Settling on a basecamp I set out on a trail that promised to be " straight forward" I took one book for the approach descrion and one for the route description - that can be Sumemerized as, " go up"

After a few miles, many wrong turns and a lifetime of crypto biotic soil avoidance I was getting close. A Hillary step of choss and juniper roots, stick out of horizontal, stuff, like ladder rungs, and I was in the final drainage.
A few more slogs and I was at the base of the route
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Credit: Jaybro
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Hmmm, I was expecting a chimney I could see all the way up...
bail!
The hike was pretty.
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 the route goes behind the right margin of the prominent flake.

One of the things I discovered was that the saddle between Merrimac and Monitor buttes, was a popular destination with the four wheel crowd...
... My buddy, Michael " boom - Boom" Jeffereson Aka Ferretlegger
! mad scientist emeritus, and medical transport specialist, had recently obtained a new to him, bad ass Tacoma with 35" tires!
[photobid=405684]
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A few days later, after consulting many 4wd guides and maps, we were off again, Michael chanting something about gear ratios, lack of winch, adventure....

In a little less than the time I had taken to walk up, we were there after passing the towers of determination,
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and the killer Bunny
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it scares, no terrifies, me to even talk about it...
It was a spine shaking drive and with two bladders with an average age I estimate to be over 60, we took many stops...

And there it was;
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Oops I mean,
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Our approach from the north had revealed a weakness through the escarpment. From the rig it was a mere couple dozen minutes to base
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We passed under a climb for another day
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anchor & Chain 5.11 wyde!! 2 pitches
anchor & Chain 5.11 wyde!! 2 pitches
Credit: Jaybro
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But on, to our easy day.....
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Hi mike!
Hi mike!
Credit: Jaybro
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I belayed on a ledge maybe fifty feet up and reluctantly left a blue cam, or " Donini" for an anchor, then began an awkward, slightly wider than my femur, chimney romp to the top, passing varying terrain, but few placements. I could have used our one blue near the top, but did get a green Camelot ( the little type, not a 'regular' green, in on the three pitches I ran together.

After a short bit Mike, I haven't done this particular kind of sh#t in twenty years" - boom- boom Jefferson parastalsed onto the ledge next to me.
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This was the last photo I got, because I laid my phone down on the ledge, were the cold of the rock conducted the heat and charge (>50%!) clean out of said unit. I think I didn't mention that it was windy and never made it Much above thirty all day...

But all that was left was the "chasm of Doom", so, no big photo op, anyway.... No tales to tell....
One double rope seventy meter rap got us to the bottom where we drove out seven mile in about an hour and I was able to finish my taxes before dinner. I also forgot to mention that it was the ides of April!

  Trip Report Views: 2,245
Jaybro
About the Author
Jaybro is a social climber from Wolf City, Wyoming

Comments
Daphne

Trad climber
Northern California
  Apr 25, 2015 - 03:39pm PT
!!! AWESOME!!!
NutAgain!

Trad climber
https://nutagain.org
  Apr 25, 2015 - 03:46pm PT
Excellent verb choice: parastalsed

If the Ides of March are bad, I can't imagine the ones in April.

phylp

Trad climber
Upland, CA
  Apr 25, 2015 - 04:14pm PT
Terrific TR!
Gnome Ofthe Diabase

climber
Out Of Bed
  Apr 25, 2015 - 04:52pm PT
Second times the charm,


Gremlins & Trolls, will not lift a finger to help.
but never let it be said the same of Gnomes,
especially rock gnomes.
They can be counted on to pull at least their
Own weight plus more !
Mike Bolte

Trad climber
Planet Earth
  Apr 25, 2015 - 04:59pm PT
Jaybro - that was an awesome TR. Way to go you two!
MisterE

Gym climber
Small Town with a Big Back Yard
  Apr 25, 2015 - 06:16pm PT
Great TR, Jay! Love the stories of the ascents of the old classics!
crankster

Trad climber
No. Tahoe
  Apr 25, 2015 - 06:41pm PT
Looks like a fun adventure.
JEleazarian

Trad climber
Fresno CA
  Apr 25, 2015 - 06:49pm PT
Excellent TR, cooled-off phone notwithstanding. Having seen Mike climb (admittedly 40+ years ago), I can only imagine that it was a lot of fun. Thanks much.

John
Rhodo-Router

Gym climber
sawatch choss
  Apr 25, 2015 - 06:59pm PT
Yeah!

That Hypercrack (that's it, right?) looks sweet too. In an evil-suffering kind of way.
marty(r)

climber
beneath the valley of ultravegans
  Apr 26, 2015 - 11:53am PT
Seriously??? A drained iPhone, a killer bunny AND a Ferretlegger? Yours is a charmed life!


Let's make a plan for that other wide thing.


And a re-reading of the 'ex machina' report from said 'legger. Pure gold, that.
Studly

Trad climber
WA
  Apr 26, 2015 - 12:06pm PT
Getting it done, nice!~
hellroaring

Trad climber
San Francisco
  Apr 26, 2015 - 12:22pm PT
Desert adventure...pretty sweet!!
Prod

Trad climber
  Apr 26, 2015 - 12:22pm PT
Sweet.

Prod.
perswig

climber
  Apr 26, 2015 - 12:31pm PT
A Hillary step...

Stopped reading after this, assuming another political thread.
Cute bunny, though...


Dale
thebravecowboy

climber
The Good Places
  Apr 26, 2015 - 12:52pm PT
sandy long chimney, narrow, eh? at least the sandwiches were free...

I am so jealous!
Vitaliy M.

Mountain climber
San Francisco
  Apr 26, 2015 - 02:18pm PT
Very nice, hope to see you at the ST meet in a few days homez!
Jaybro

Social climber
Wolf City, Wyoming
Author's Reply  Apr 26, 2015 - 10:36pm PT
Yo yo, you bet!

And Marty, yes let's!
Ezra Ellis

Trad climber
North wet, and Da souf
  Apr 26, 2015 - 03:15pm PT
Awesome Jay!
Thanks!!,
mouse from merced

Trad climber
The finger of fate, my friends, is fickle.
  Apr 26, 2015 - 05:34pm PT
Jaybro Nopro.
Strange interface with Ferretlegger, muchacho.
You have a lot of guts for using parastalsed.
Jaybro

Social climber
Wolf City, Wyoming
Author's Reply  Apr 26, 2015 - 06:18pm PT
Ah, he's my Droog and he kicks ass! What's a little shittalk among friends? As a chimney climber emeritus he knows the value of the parastsis technique and can define the noun from which the verb came!💩
SteveW

Trad climber
The state of confusion
  Apr 26, 2015 - 06:38pm PT

Charlie Fowler did an easy route? Wow!!!!

Nice tr, Jaybro.

35" tires--man I'd hate to have to pay for those things!!!
Darwin

Trad climber
Seattle, WA
  Apr 26, 2015 - 08:43pm PT


Yet another best TR ever. Big kudos to your off the couch buddy, and finally what different worlds: April 25th in Washington on the way to my crag.
Mungeclimber

Trad climber
Nothing creative to say
  Apr 26, 2015 - 11:43pm PT
dusterly doright!
Jones in LA

Mountain climber
Tarzana, California
  Apr 27, 2015 - 07:16am PT
First class adventure! Thanks for sharing this, good sir.

Rich Jones
Roxy

Trad climber
CA Central Coast
  Apr 27, 2015 - 08:16am PT
it scares, no terrifies, me to even talk about it...
It was a spine shaking drive


hahaha, I appreciate that comment as I can sometimes find myself feeling skeered on a 4x4 approach (as a passenger)


survival

Big Wall climber
Terrapin Station
  Apr 27, 2015 - 10:51am PT
Me jealous of the desert part, not the wyde part...HA!!
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