Rainbow Dancer

Rainbow Dancer is a committing route up the Shield flirting with the large arching roofs (rainbows) in the middle of the wall. Protection and route-finding can be difficult.

P1: (5.9+ R) Begin with some relatively unprotected face climbing following a bushy corner system up and then move right to left-facing corner and a bolted belay. 110 ft.

P2: (5.8) Enjoy really fun, clean corner climbing chock full of laybacking and stemming for ~160 feet to a nice belay ledge on top of the corner. Belay from two buttonhead bolt/hangers and a fixed nut. The cord attaching these fixed pieces could use replacing. 160 ft.

P3: (5.10+) Head pretty much straight up into a small right-facing corner with finger crack. Pull through the difficult but well-protected 5.10+ moves to gain a decent stance. From the top of the finger crack, head left traversing through interesting face moves passing a piton (maybe two?) before heading up vertical crack. Look for a fixed belay in the crack. In Aug. 2008 we could see slings up there but opted to set an uncomfortable hanging belay in the crack system about 12 short of the fixed anchor. 100 ft.

P4: (5.10- R) From the belay, place some gear high in the crack to protect the next slightly runout slab moves and then head pretty much straight right across the face. Before committing to the moves, plan ahead as protection is sparse and the moves may not be obvious. Tip-toe your way through the slab moves to the right to nice big, flakes. Continue traversing past two big flakes and then head up to the belay just below and at the right end of the big roof above. A piton and a buttonhead connected with shoddy webbing serve as the fixed anchor. This is the last place to rappel easily so take new webbing if you think you might end up rapping. 110 ft.

P5: (5.10) Bust out right out the end of the roof on some questionable rock and then move up. Once above the roof, traverse left above the roof through tricky 5.10 climbing aiming for the left end of the next roof. Finish up with some 5.10 mantle-like moves to a belay on a generous ledge next to a huge flake. 90 ft.

P6: (5.11-) Step left and mount the giant flake for some nicely exposed moves. A sling over the top of the flake will protect the moves to gain the top of the flake. Climb leftish towards a triangular roof, find some pro, and then trend right again to place yourself above the big roof and head towards a left-facing corner. Don't get suckered up the right-facing corner directly above the big flake--it gets hard and hard to protect up there. (In Aug. 2008 there was some fixed gear up there apparently from someone that bailed from that point.) Follow the left-facing corner up towards a whitish bulge/roof but move left across the face before reaching the white rock. Clip a fixed pin and swing left around the corner on super thin moves (5.11-) to a good stance. Head up into the right-facing corner and belay. 150 ft.

P7: (5.10) Traverse right past some crappy rock into a cleaner right-facing corner. Stem and face climb up the corner to a belay at a decent ledge at the top of the corner. 150 feet.

P8: (5.7) Climb up and leftish through ledges, loose blocks, face moves and the occasional nice corner picking the path of least resistance and best rock towards some large vegetated ledges below some clean faces. A good-sized tree could serve as a nice belay anchor. 165 ft.

P9: (5.6 or 5.9) From the ledges and tree head right towards an angling 5.6 corner and to the summit. Alternatively, head left/up on moderate but unprotected face climbing to a large dihedral. Climb the large dihedral (5.9) to the summit. Some simul-climbing may be necessary. 200 ft.