Miss Manners

So, we're looking at the topo after doing Two Jews Blues and decide to do the 11a just to the right. The route was apparently done by someone named "Rish". After a big 3-man effort with much minor slipping and sliding, we get up it. Now I'm writing it up, looking at the topo again, and I realize that "Rish" = "R-ish", and not the name of some Indian climber. If we had known that this climb was R-ish, we wouldn't have even tried it. So, if you see any more climbs by this fellow Rish, do be careful.

This climb is similar to the first pitch of Two Jews Blues, but a few degrees steeper and much harder. The holds you use to pull over the ceiling are the last positive holds for a long time. You climb past the 4th through 6th bolts and on to the thin crack on the left on nothing bigger than fingernail edges and one-finger one-pad bumps. I don't know how to rate this other than hard. The topo I have calls this 11a, which seems about right if Two Jews Blues is 10a. This would be S compared to Two Jews Blues but not S compared to old-style South Platte slab climbs (from what I've heard).

Two Jews Blues is near the low point of the left side of the crag. It is the line of bolts up the slab right of a right facing corner formed by a smaller slab leaning against the face. Start right of Two Jews Blues and just left of a large Ponderosa Pine growing near the face.

Climb up past 2 bolts to a ceiling. Reach over to a positive edge and clip the third bolt, then move straight left through the ceiling at low 5.10. Walk up and right on the edges and then sustained friction climbing leads past the 4th through 6th bolts. Staying just left of the bolts, the climbing starts hard and gets harder with the crux being moving past the 5th bolt. If you are at your limit at this grade there will be no physical or mental rests. After getting stabilized with your feet above the 5th bolt, make a few more moves before you can clip the 6th and last bolt. The climbing eases up a bit here, but is still hard 9 or easy 10. Climb up a few more moves and then diagonal left (a bit runout) to a thin, left-facing flake (Craggy Tur climbs in from the far left to reach this same flake). Easier climbing leads up and right to the anchors.

We lowered to the ground with a 70m rope. I measured the excess rope with my arm span and it looks like a 60m rope will also reach, but be careful. A 50m will not reach.

Continuations:

I have not done these, but they look good. Angling left from the belay, several good bolts lead to some bolts that pass the roof on the left side of an aesthetic rib. I don't know what this line is. It may be new, since it's not on my topo.

You could also continue with the 10c second pitch of Craggy Tur (in the Hubbel South Platte guide), which climbs up and right from the belay, through the ceiling and up a nice-looking thin crack with a bolt (10c crux). Craggy Tur moves a bit left from there and eventually to an anchor that is supposedly a single 2-rope rappel to the ground. Several variations continue up from that point.

Per Bob-a: A fairly continuous slab climb on great granite with good protection.

Pitch 1: Climb up the steep slab to a small roof, tackle the roof and then tip-toe up the steep slab (crux) reaching a thin crack/flake that leads to the belay.

Pitch 2: Angle a little left from the belay and reach left-facing corner. Follow the corner up to a roof. Crank over the roof and get established on the slab (crux) follow the bolts to a belay.

Pitch 3: Follow the lower angle slab past a couple of bolts to a rap-station. Rap the route.

6 bolts to a 2-bolt anchor with slings at a good ledge. All bolts are 3/8" and recent. A 1" cam can be used to protect the moderate moves to the first bolt. When you reach the thin crack after the last bolt you are a pretty runout. Although the climbing gets much easier here, you can get gear in the flake with small stoppers or maybe a micro cam. But if you do this, you should remove it when lowering so the second has a straight up toprope after the 6th bolt.

Per Bob-a: Quickdraws and few small to medium pieces.

Per Start about 25 right of Two Jews Blues at a large pine tree at the base of the rock.

Per Bob-a: Start about 25 right of Two Jews Blues at a large pine tree at the base of the rock.