Toofast Topos 2: Cochise Stronghold Rock Climbing - 10/10

Just picked up Toofast Topos 2: Cochise Stronghold Rock Climbing from Summit Hut and I have to say it's probably one of the best guidebooks I've ever seen. The topos are absolutely first rate and without a doubt the best I've seen. The topo overlays on photos is brilliant and super helpful. The maps are exceptional, the photos are amazing and the stories are great. 

If you're going to the stronghold and have never been there before this is going to be a must have resource for you. 

Excellent work Geir!!!

I'd give the book a 5/10.

Pros:

-Author deeply cares about the area and has lead every route in the book. Also, does a lot of bolt replacement so this is a great way to support their effort

-Accurate, if occasionally conservative, gear beta / protection/safety ratings (the latter being quite rare in S. AZ)

-Truly excellent topos

Cons:

-50% of the book is self aggrandizing (me/friends lead scary stuff), hating on one particular FAist, soap boxing about traditional ethics. All this stuff should definitely be covered in the book in an "Ethics" section but it's sprinkled into every route description and story, sometimes multiple times.

-the latter is especially frustrating since the route descriptions are so long / topos are so detailed that sometimes you can blow your onsite by reading the book (hidden holds?! let me find those!)

-This guidebook is always trying to get you to bring two ropes. Many domes have options to get down using other anchors on adjacent routes with a single rope. I understand, but don't necessarily agree, with Geir's philosophy of always bringing two ropes.

The book has a lot of great elements to it but it's far from perfect. I hope future editions will remedy some of these issues that most, if not all, of my partners complain about. Except for folks who want detailed beta or are seeking out the R and X rated routes (Geir did a great job covering these) I recommend the East/West side books, even if they have accuracy issues in some instances.

Haven't used Geir's but +1 for Tanya's E/W books - they're about as good as guidebooks get imo.

Good to know about the two ropes thing. 

I guess I'm kinda of numb to the other stuff. Or just kinda of used to it. That's actually pretty common, especially in the older guidebooks. I just look at it as seasoning :⁠-⁠P

Geir’s book is fabulous for adventure climbing in the stronghold.
Unfortunately, the current climbing culture seems to be absolutely allergic to adventure and have little understanding of it.  

I have to agree about the self-aggrandizing, soap-boxing, and hating on other FAs being too prominent in the book. It's a bit ironic that the amount of praise a given route earns from Geir is approximately inversely correlated with amount of traffic it actually receives, and the hated routes are literally the gateways to the Stronghold for 98% of people. I think you can be pro-adventure but not hate on those who have lower risk tolerance than you. I avoid reading the descriptions because of these characteristics, but all in all the book has been really helpful to get on a whole bunch of great climbing in the Stronghold, so I'm glad it exists. 

beware of the geir topo of 'teenage wasteland' it is way off the mark on p2/3 and will lead you onto harder (out of character with the rest of the route) terrain.

I've found I can get accurate star ratings (for me) by adjusting the Toofast quality ratings:

+1 paw for routes put up by Scott Ayers

-1 paw for R-rated routes

-2 paws for X-rated routes

and yes, I am light duty.