Rafe Wilson on the first pitch taken from the bela...
Description
Another fun Flatiron route with a reasonably short approach. This climb is approximately 300' long. The bottom of the east face of the Spy is connected to the north edge of the First Flatironette. Climb this face near it's north (right) edge to a five foot vertical step, where the Spy becomes a separate rock. Climb over the step either on the left (5.3) or right (slightly harder).
Now follow the narrowing arete to the summit. Very exposed and not much pro. Since you are on a narrow fin, a fall by either leader or follower could result in a pendulum down either side, and it might be hard to return to the route.
From the summit, continue west and pass an overhang by means of a jump. Hike back down the north side of the rock.
a note about getting off of the spy: near the top, after crossing the flat blocky section, stay on the fin and belay off a big flake on the top. to get back to the ground, scramble down off the fin (very easy and safe - this is not "the jump"), then climb up the slab directly behind you. "the jump" is off of the top left corner of the slab. not as bad as it looks at first sight. if one of you is more confident than the other, you can sling the top of the slab you jump to with a tied off cordelette and tie your partner off to give them a bit more confidence.
The Spy is actually a good climb with really solid holds. Seeing the level of exposure on all sides, if nothing else, a rope would have been a pychological booster! I'm not sure where the 'jump' was, it's been a while, but I remember getting off the summit as being pretty straight-forward.
By Ebb From: Vancouver, WA Jul 23, 2008 rating: 5.3 R
There's a real nice photo up above of "the jump." Definitely unnerving the first time you try it, but it looks much worse (from the jumper's vantage point) than it is! :)
This is a cool scramble with the exposure on both sides! Complete psychological mind trip! Be careful to descend to the north, as to the south it cliffs out. Maybe it was the snow, but I got mildly trapped about 20 feet over some pointy rocks while trying to get to the standard face of the first.
Great exposure on the thin rib! I found this to be a little more mentally challenging than most easy Flatirons climbs, but it really made for a unique experience.
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