This is a one pitch route that begins from the top of the flake that marks the start of Pear Buttress. It can thus be used as a start to Loose Ends, Pear Buttress, or Visual Aids. From the start of Pear Buttress, scramble up around to the left to get up to the top of the flake, or start from just below the top on the left. The route begins from the middle of the flake and follows two very thin but good cracks up to the sloping ledge of the three above mentioned routes. There is a good (as I discovered empirically) placement for an orange Metolius TCU right at the crux. NOTE: while it is possible to start up the flake of Pear Buttress and traverse left on its top to the route, I can't recommend this, as the rope drag will likely pull your shallow stoppers out of the rock, leaving you to solo 5.10 slab moves until you can get that TCU in (as happened to a regular partner of mine when he attempted this). I recommend continuing with Visual Aids and Cheap Date for a challenging route with 3 pitches of exquisite, mid-5.10 finger cracks on perfect rock--an unheralded link-up that is one of the best routes at Lumpy Ridge.
Protection
Small stoppers (including RPs), small camming units, and a #3 Friend.
Did this today 5-6-01 with Charles after a morning of climbing in Boulder Canyon. I wanted to mention that like Chucky said, avoiding the Pear Buttress flake is a good choice. You can start the route by 4th classing up a little chimney to the left of the flake. Have your belayer perch on the top of this big block with his/her feet pressed against the slab. Comfy little spot. The leader can continue around the left and up an easy slab to the start of the route.
A fun TR (or no pro) variation to the start of Thindependence or Pear is the 5.9+ slab directly below the twin cracks of Thindependence. Staying on the lefthand margin of this face (utilizing the arete once or twice) is a great 5.9 face line with perfect crimps.
Kind of a taxing lead (placing gear in your only holds), but man, it is sweet. It needs to longer. Take some small RPs and small TCUs or a green Alien.
Placing small nuts alleviates the problem of plugging up your fingerlocks with cams. There is a good nut constriction every 4-5 feet in the first 30 feet (crux). Gear beta (don't read if you don't want it): I almost emptied my rack of all nuts in the #2-#4 BD stopper range in the crux first 30 feet, and didn't place a single cam.
Real hard to lead clean. Much harder than some other Lumpy 10c's I've done. Lumpy is hard in general. Like Joe, I used almost all nuts on the hard part--a green Alien in the right crack and a bunch of brass in the left crack.
By Steven Lucarelli From: Glenwood Springs, CO Apr 24, 2006 rating: 5.10c
What a great pitch, very high quality. The gear is really good so I would recommend not wasting your energy placing to much gear since there are no good rests.
By Tony B From: Boulder, CO Jul 4, 2008 rating: 5.10
Easier than Visual Aids, at least if you try to continue straight through and upward as a 40M pitch.
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