Dylan on "Dr. Sky", a combination of Dr. Evil and ...
Description
The 2nd pitch of this Tony Lusk discovery is brilliant. Only about 50 feet, it is quite steep for the grade and one of the best 5.11 pitches on the mountain. The first pitch is just okay partly due to oddly placed bolts. Maybe Tony did it ground up. The 2nd pitch traverses under the "death block" visible to the right of Dr. Evil and then "steps into blue sky" and goes right up the overhanging arete separating the SW and SE faces. The route is broken into 2 pitches to avoid rope drag around the corner and under the block.
NOTE: You can do the start of Dr. Evil and then drift over to the "death block" and finish on Blue Sky. This route ("Dr. Sky") is great...3 stars easy in my book, and one of the best 5.11s on the mountain. Done that way, it is one pitch...80 feet long.
Location
Starts on the corner formed by the SW and SE faces. The start is RIGHT of Dr. Evil and LEFT of Minime. The first pitch then heads back LEFT towards the death block and belays.
Did the Dr. Evil start and finished on Stepping into Blue Sky (Dr. Sky). Don't know if I could give it three stars as the start is a bit sharp and there is a big ledge in the middle. The upper arete is really good and might deserve three stars. Yeah, it deserves three stars as it is a must do if you go there. I clipped two of my longest quickdraws together for the bolt on the ledge but you could easily downclimb and unclip a shorter draw after clipping the bolt above. Great idea to link these two climbs Jbak.
Sharp ? Eric you're killin me. You need to do some Windy Pt climbs (espec Beaver Wall) to recalibrate your idea of sharp. I think the combo route (Dr Sky) rocks. Every move. If this grade is your limit, you're going to NEED that rest. And, as you say, the arete is outstanding -- hats off to Tony. I can't think of a sport 5.11 I like better at the moment. Maybe I have a case of Vincitis though.
A "bit sharp" not sharp. To be honest I threw that in for Vince's sake as his beta uses a razor edged side pull. A more accurate term would be pointy and not that fun to pull on. But the upper arete makes the short section of less than ideal holds worth the momentary digital discomfort. If Vince hadn't been surfing all last week he might not have whined about his tips either. So to restate it; the holds are as smooth as a baby's butt and if they hurt your fingers stay off the surf board.
The death block is that huge wedged block you step out on as you start the arete. It's refrigerator sized and cracked all the way around. I wouldn't want to be nearby during an earthquake. It's well-wedged and looks safe enough though.
The Steep
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