One of my favorite Taylor Canyon face climbs. Thoughtful climbing up bulges and through horizontal breaks offers a few sphincter seizure moments. Intriguing and sustained movement links features up the middle of the wall. If you are going to lead this fabulous face, be more than solid at the grade. You will regularly be doing stiff moves above the gear and falling will certainly mean hitting a ledge. Gear can be worked out from the horizontal cracks and seams that trace across the wall. Back in the nether years doing this route was a big deal. It was serious business without springy gear. Leading it meant you had arrived!
Rustie was a awesome climber and this was one of his minor, bold testpieces.
Protection
Small to medium gear and of all things two bolts.
A two bolt anchor exists for belaying and rapping off.
Thanks for putting this up, Phil. This climb (probably the hardest face climb I ever did in Taylor) left my forearms so "pumped" that I couldn't close my hands for quite a while (this was owing not only to the crimps but the sheer terror with which I was holding on to them).
This baby doesn't let up, some of the scariest moves are right at the top, especially if you go straight up. I did this with Jack Panek in about '77 or '78, boy did we celebrate after this one.
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