Fred Beckey Tick List

Hi All,

So if I could have everyone's attention away from the ranting trolling and shit talking about who has the right to climb where and when maybe we can talk about something positive, build our stoke and honor one of the masters:

I'm a big fan of Fred Beckey's routes. After reading Challenge of the North Cascades and climbing some in the PNW and Wasatch areas, it seems like every area I go to out west, the most obvious/sickest line up the biggest wall went down to Fred and company every time.

Some day I'd like to take an epic road trip sampling his rock routes across the west. I understand that he did a lot more than just rock climbing but I am a soft little baby compared to Fred and will never climb the Devil's Thumb or go to the Himalaya or any of that type of shit. If you have done any of his routes you think I should not miss, throw em up here! I don't mind a little bit of slogging, bushwhacking, scrambling or snow/glacial travel but I'm specifically interested in technical rock routes in North America of all grades.

I have done the following Beckey lines already so I'll start off the tick list:
Cascades:
Beckey Route (Liberty Bell)
Outer Space (Snow Creek Wall)

SLC area:
Beckey's Wall (LCC)
Beckey Route (Bell's Canyon)

Routes I know must go on the list but haven't done (yet!):
Triple Overhangs (Lone Peak Cirque, Wasatch)
Beckey-Chouinard (bugaboos)
Direct Beckey (elephant's perch, ID)

I know I know, there's this MP search function, but I wanted to get people's opinions on not just which routes are Fred's, but which of Fred's are the coolest, most fun, and the ones still deserving of the most respect after all the years.

Top of my todo list is Honeymoon Chimney. Plus as a bonus you tick a Kor route too.

The Hook 5.8, LCC also a Kor route.

Innersanctum, The Needles (California) - 5.9, 3 pitch (think Beckey's original name was different but that's what's in the guidebooks since the '80s).
mountainproject.com/v/inner…

Bastille Buttress, Whitney Portal (California) - 5.10+, 15 pitch
mountainproject.com/v/basti…

Pick up a copy of his book "Fred Beckey's 100 Favorite North American Climbs" Beautiful book, great hand drawn topos , route descriptions, and history. Has been hanging out on my coffee table since it came out. Awesome.

I don't think this one has seen a second ascent:
http://publications.americanalpineclub.org/articles/12196605200/print

^^^^^ correct link
publications.americanalpine…

South Face of Hermit Spire in the Needles area of CA is a very fun Beckey route.

Yes, Climb Baja I am aware of that but about a third of the routes in the book are FAs done by him.

Hey, did you post up some photos somewhere of him riding in that white van that you have a pic of on your profile?

to help out the suggestions, South Face of Charlotte Dome is a fun one

second whitney portal did beckey route 5.9 5 pitch on the el segundo buttress,pretty good, there are many of his routes in this concentrated area, and many others that are well worth the trip

yep that's it! supercool!

Another classic in the Cascades by Becky, the Direct East Buttress of South Early Winter Spire:
mountainproject.com/v/direc…

This doesn't actually answer the question, but before my first trip to the Bugaboos, I asked Fred what I should climb.

Fred replied "The Snowpatch Route."

"Why that one?"

Fred considered for a short moment and replied "It's a good route."

Here is a project I did a few years ago mapping SOME of his ascents listed in Challenge of the North Cascades

link to higher res:
sonofa.gpontecorvo.com/imag…

My 3 favorite Beckey routes I've done:

calculus crack, Squamish
Direct East Buttress of SEWS
Outer Space and Orbit, Snow Creek Wall

Fun Fact Beckey went to the same HS that I did- West Seattle High, as did the Whittaker Brothers

I would be interested to hear which people think would be harder to complete, Steck and Roper's 50 Classics or Beckey's 100. (To make it more fair maybe remove the unrepeated one and the illegal one from the 50 Classics.)

Jacob Smith wrote:I would be interested to hear which people think would be harder to complete, Steck and Roper's 50 Classics or Beckey's 100. (To make it more fair maybe remove the unrepeated one and the illegal one from the 50 Classics.)

I think the 50 Classics... Although there are less, you see harder more inaccessible stuff from Alaska, more A3 and A4. If one can climb 5.10 and has basic mtneering skills they could do most of Beckeys

North West Buttress of the Great White Throne, Zion

Fred's route on Shiprock had one repeat ascent as of 2001. At least that's what I remember seeing in the summit register then.

Angel's Crest in Squamish is another Beckey classic.

R.Walters wrote:Ben, that's a really impressive figure you posted. Any chance to get a higher resolution version to make it easier to read?

Walter- the link I listed is the highest resolution I can get online. I made it as an 11x17 print out, so it is hard to get a readable version online.

I just threw it in a web map, this way you can zoom and click around :)

arcgis.com/home/webmap/view…

ALSO feel free to update my master spreadsheet with FA data you know about Beckey...it is FAR from complete

docs.google.com/spreadsheet…

Benjamin Pontecorvo wrote: Ben, that's a really impressive figure you posted. Any chance to get a higher resolution version to make it easier to read? Walter- the link I listed is the highest resolution I can get online. I made it as an 11x17 print out, so it is hard to get a readable version online. I just threw it in a web map, this way you can zoom and click around :) arcgis.com/home/webmap/view… ALSO feel free to update my master spreadsheet with FA data you know about Beckey...it is FAR from complete docs.google.com/spreadsheet…

god's work