Riding With the King  5.9-

540 page views Good page?

Type:  Sport, 2 pitches, 130 feet Consensus:  5.9- [details] FA:  Richard Rossiter, Serena Benson 2000 Submitted By:  Ivan Rezucha on Mar 30, 2008 You & This Route  |  Other Opinions (3) Your todo list: Your stars: Your rating: -none- [change] Your ticklist: [add new tick]

Dana, pulling the roof.

Add Photo  Add Comment    Printer View

Private Property issues MORE INFO >>> The West Bank / Wild West / Secret Crag has been problematic for years due to access concerns. There have been negative encounters with gun-toting landowners who have alleged that the entire mountain is on private property. Typical approaches involve brief crossing of railroad property which appears to be prohibited. Exact demarcation of property boundaries are not always clear. When in doubt, be discrete or polite. Do not park your vehicle near the railroad tracks near Plainview. It is a well-known irritant to Plainview residents. This information is a public crowdsourcing effort between the Access Fund, and Mountain Project. You should confirm closures, restrictions, and/or related dates. Keeping climbing areas open and conserving the climbing environment

Description 

Riding With the King is the best of the easy climbs at Secret Crag, and so I am surprised that it hasn’t been written up yet. It has good position and excellent rock with the exception of the initial red band. The current beta photo on the Secret Crag home page shows a climber on this route.

Start right of the belay with a difficult move at the first bolt by climbing either directly at the bolt or to the left. Pass three more bolts and suspect rock and clear the overhang at a notch. From this point, the leader is out of sight. Another bolt leads up a right facing corner to a good ledge and an optional two-bolt belay. You may want to belay here to facilitate communication or to provide a tighter belay on the first move for your second. It is not necessary to belay here to avoid rope drag if you use long slings on the first four bolts. Beautiful climbing on some big crystals and pebbles and solid plates with a few more difficult sections lead up and then slightly left to anchors at the top.

Location 

Approach: From the large, left-facing corner at the far right of the Tier B ramp (Book of Dreams), continue, carefully, another 20 feet, staying close to the wall, to a sloped but comfortable belay ledge with a bolt.

Descent: You can descend the route in 2 rappels, but I've twice rappelled the big, left-facing corner. A 60m just makes it to the ground (tie knots in the end). There is also a big ledge and tree about 20' above the ground in case your rope is a little short.

Protection 

14 bolts plus anchors if done as one pitch. 8 draws plus anchors if done as two pitches. Include 4 long slings.