Wide cracks Tahoe/Tuolumne/N. Cal
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Ok, I now own a pair of #4's, a #5 C4 and #5 Friend, and a #6 C4 and #6 Friend. It's getting a bit warm in the Valley to use them on the routes I had in mind. So help me make a list of wide cracks elsewhere where I will be able to use them. Preferably within striking distance of Sacramento, or even Tuolumne. Preferably someplace climbable in the summer months and 5.8-5.10b or so. |
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Galen's crack, Tuolumne |
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There are some super high quality north-facing Valley routes with wide in your range that should be doable in the summer, including Steck-Salathe (.9-.10b wide) and Mental Block (.10c wide). A couple Sierra classics with excellent wide pitches also come to mind - the Harding routes on both Mt Conness (.10a wide, close to Tuolumne) and Keeler Needle (.10c wide, not N Cal but excellent nonetheless). |
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Try These on Donner to warm up to the wide: |
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polish route on the hulk |
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Pratt's Crack in Pine Creek |
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Tuolumne - best spot is Olmsted Canyon: |
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I did get to use a #5 on Diemos in Tuolumne this weekend, although it was pretty tame by offwidth standards. I want to check out The Yawn. Can anybody tell me about the gear one that? |
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You could protect the Yawn with a pile of 3's and 4's, but the 6 lets you keep a piece above your head and the 5 was easy to place. The climb still felt really awkward and hard to me, both Pratt's and the 10b at Olmsted are much easier/less stressful. |
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Pratt's is too easy if you seek OW burliness. The Yawn has one pitch of wide and strange chimney stuff, do you need a partner for it? Or for any other wideness? |
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The yawn in tuolumne. |
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csproul wrote:I did get to use a #5 on Diemos in Tuolumne this weekend, although it was pretty tame by offwidth standards. I want to check out The Yawn. Can anybody tell me about the gear one that?Yawn Double from C4#.3-4. I placed no wires, but did find good use for three smaller off-set cams. That gear call still (I only had a single 3 and 4) allows for quite a bit of run out for pitch 4. So if you are not comfortable running out Yosemite 5.9 crack, I advise tripling up on ones and twos. Helmets are advised, this route is not near as clean or well-traveled as what you are use to at Yosemite. This wall is northwest facing. You will probably not see much sun on the first three pitches until late afternoon. You definitely want to rack your approach shoes for the walk off. Take a ton of slings if you want to try and combine pitches which I did with a 70m. |
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i climbed it just this last week. didnt have a topo which sucked, cause i ended up leaving some nuts and rapping. I had 2 number 4 and 3 number 3. I am short and small so the 2 pitch was probably easier. I thought pitch 3 was much harder than I was hoping. Its big and i never got a hand jam. lots of 3 and i moved a 4 up which was kind of ruined the pitch for me. last pitch no need to place gear. good luck, I lead all pitches and found it physical and bad ass. |