Beginers multipitch routes in Eldorado Canyon

What are the best multipitch routes for beginers in Eldo?

Specifically what I'm looking for is this:

- 2 pitches or more, hopefully at least 3.
- Not very runout.
- Relatively comfortable belays.
- Descent pro.
- Route finding not very hard.
- Grade lower than 5.6.

I've been sport leading for a couple of years now (5.10-11), but for trad I want to stick to much lower grades at the beginning.

Also, my rack includes C4 cams 0.5" - 3", and wired nuts 4-13, and plenty of draws and slings. Is that enough for begineers routes in Eldo?

I've led a few single-pitch routes so I'm not looking for that, but if anyone highly recommends one (other than West Crack which I've done), that's welcome too.

Thanks a lot!

Well, the "grade lower than 5.6" is really going to limit you, as there are hardly any multipitches that easy in Eldo... But check out Breezy on the Wind Tower. 2 pitches, 5.5, good gear the whole way, nice big belay ledges, and an easy scramble / downclimb back to the trail at the top.

You might also check out the East Slabs on Whale's Tail. Barely 5th class, plenty of gear, and you can either downclimb the NorthEast arete or scramble to the rap anchors on the West side (atop West Crack, etc).

Your rack sounds just fine for starting out.

Make sure your anchor building skills are solid!

For what it's worth, Eli Helmuth puts on 2-day trad leading courses in Eldo that will really catapult your multipitch trad game:
guide.climbinglife.com/inde…

mountainproject.com/v/west-…

I'd second Breezy - good gear, nice belays, and there are 3 pitches (although I think most people walk off after the 2nd pitch).

The Bomb
Boulder Direct
Recon
Tigger

All on the Wind Tower. All 2+ pitches. All 5.6 or less. Easy route finding. Well documented descents.

Swanson's Arete
Red Garden Wall
5.5
3 Pitches
Great exposure!
Cozy belays, good gear!

Thanks for the replies everyone!
Very useful info, plus I also got Levin's book today and it's awesome!

LuisC wrote:Thanks for the replies everyone! Very useful info, plus I also got Levin's book today and it's awesome!

Best single guidebook ever published!

Dave Miller wrote:Swanson's Arete Red Garden Wall 5.5 3 Pitches Great exposure! Cozy belays, good gear!

Swanson's requires an "approach pitch". I wouldn't recommend P1 of Rewritten (5.6-7) or the W Chimney (slick 5.6) for someone asking for a 5.5 or lower.

The roof on Tigger is pretty intimidating for 5.5; I think the West Chimney approach to Swanson's (which goes at 5.6) is actually easier. Plus Swanson's is a much more fun climb than the Wind Tower choices. Maybe climb The Bomb and Breezy first to get a feel for the rock and funky placements. Most novice trad climbers would probably prefer to have C3's (or X4's, TCU's, etc.), but if you can climb 5.11 sport, you'll be comfortable enough with the climbing to seek out good stopper placements.

Cindy Mitchell wrote:The Bomb Boulder Direct Recon Tigger All on the Wind Tower. All 2+ pitches. All 5.6 or less. Easy route finding. Well documented descents.

The 3rd pitch above those routes on the right is a scary affair, 5.easy but on red siltstone dinner plates. There is no pro up there and every hold is suspect. I did it one time out of curiosity because I wondered why everyone rapped after the 2nd pitch. Glad I did it once, wouldn't do it again. Don't do it if the routes below are busy, you wouldn't want to knock anything down on those below.

Windridge, don't walk off p2, do the 3rd pitch butt jam, otherwise you will be cheating yourself. The rock there is solid.

I think it would be helpful to understand what you are trying to accomplish with the easier grades. Are you looking to improve gear placements? Improve climbing efficiency? Improve anchors? Improve bringing up a second?

Given your sport climbing level you can probably manage just about any of the recommended climbs (although Eldo can be very funky) but it might not be fun if you are trying to master 3-4 multi-pitch skills in a complex, crowded environment like Eldo.

I wouldnt recommend p3 of anything on wind tower. Its fun to do once, but I remember the rock being very suspect and the only memorable move was getting up into the flake. nah, skip it. Get to the red ledge and walk off if you are on the left side (tigger, breezy, wind ridge, sling the big rocks on the ledge for yer anchor!) or rap off if you do anything on the right (recon, boulder, bomb)

fossana wrote: Swanson's requires an "approach pitch". I wouldn't recommend P1 of Rewritten (5.6-7) or the W Chimney (slick 5.6) for someone asking for a 5.5 or lower.

True. I found climbing the 5.6 start for Rewritten kind of weird, so I always do the 5.8 Great Zot pitch one.

You should look at Cob Rock in Boulder Canyon as well. It has very good introductory trad climbs at the 5.easy level. Very obvious pro and routefinding, walk off descent. Same with the Dome in Boulder Canyon. The gear is much more straight forward than placements in Eldo.