PRINT: Rock Climb Te Dum, The Gunks

Te Dum

5.7, Trad, 170 ft (52 m), 2 pitches,

Avg: 2.7 from 170 votes
FA: Hans Kraus, Roger Wolcott, 1949. FFA: Art Gran, 1958
New York > Gunks > Near Trapps > a. Beginning of cliff…

Description

An interesting route with several variations. It is often described in 2 pitches, but it's much simpler to climb to the clifftop in one pitch.

Start just right of Inverted Layback at a 6"-wide crack on the left wall of a big dihedral. This is about 55' left of Disneyland.

P1: Climb the face by the crack for 25' (V1). When the crack flares, traverse up and right to an arete. Move right and up (crux) to small stance and a tree (optional belay) in a clean dihedral. From here, climb up and right, turning an easy roof on the right, and continue to the top. 5.7, 120'.

V1: The climb can also be started on the right wall of the initial corner, bypassing the wide crack.

Descend by an easy stroll, climber's right, back to the base.

Protection

Standard Rack, with optional larger (3-4") pieces.

Photos [Hide ALL Photos]

High Exposure guide Jason Beaupre with clients on Te Dum.

Te Dum Mid of First Pitch

Chris Gregory on the final traverse on Tee Dum (May 2017).

Melissa near the crux

super short pitch 2 Link em...

Te Dum Pitch 1

Comments [Hide ALL Comments]

Spiro Spiro

5.7

great climb. belay was uncomfortable. Oct 18, 2008

tuscanes
rosendale, ny

5.7+

Avoid the belay. Do it in one pitch. Mar 15, 2009

losbill

5.7

I agree. The belay is a pain with your second tied in below you since the corner is pretty narrow. Do it in one pitch. Also back up any fixed gear. The pins, if they are still there, were not good three years ago. Mar 21, 2009

Jim O'Brien
Branford, CT

Good 1st pitch- crux was not too bad, a quick nut placement calmed me down... The belay station sucked- bail here and belay your second from the ground or continue up the blocky dihedrial. May 4, 2009

Michael _

I climbed this in two pitches two days ago, and was able to backup the resident webbing (tree and fixed tricam) with three cams.

Everyone should try to listen to the advice Williams gives in his guidebooks and consider trees off-route. Breaking a limb off a tree can easily have negative consequences for it's life span down the road. Jul 20, 2009

Optimistic
New Paltz

Really nice route. Definitely linking the two pitches is the way to go. Don't rap or TR off the tree at the first belay, it has enough problems without adding your weight to the list. Sep 16, 2010

Matt Perkins
Seattle, Washington

The tree belay mentioned in above posts is very definitely uncomfortable. If you want to set up a belay, it is much better to establish your own anchors 5 feet above. You are still hanging but it is much more comfortable.

That traverse on the "second" pitch is good fun! May 17, 2011

Kevin Heckeler
Las Vegas, NV

5.7+

Definitely combine the pitches. No need to do it as 2, the second pitch is relatively easy and short. Doubles help but aren't necessary. Just extend your runners at the crux and in the corner before you do the traverse and you should be fine. Oh, and a great climb! Solid 30 feet of sustained and varying 5.7 climbing, with the remainder of the climb being easier (5.5-ish) but equally interesting. Mar 7, 2012

kenr

Lots of interesting climbing at the 6 and 7 level, with some thoughtful moves not typical for Gunks face climbing, one sequence pretty exciting. Pro not always easy to place, so good to have some previous experience with Gunks leading. Normally I'm a strong advocate of double-ropes, but in this case the diagonal line doesn't have many "bends" in it, seemed to go pretty well with a single rope. Apr 11, 2013

BrianRH
Jersey City, NJ

5.7

the crux stays pretty dry in the rain May 27, 2014

Gunkiemike

There's no fixed anchor at the tree any more. Probably a good thing all around. Jul 23, 2014

daisy s
New York, NY

Fixed anchor at the tree was there as of 9/23/15. It was a 3" tree backed up with a pink tricam that came apart when I looked at it. It's now a 3" tree backed up with a #8 nut, which I miss already. If I had been smarter, I would have skipped that belay entirely. The climb is really nice and interesting, though. Sep 24, 2015

Systematic

5.7 PG13

A bunch of really good climbing on really suspect rock. Builds up in difficulty but even the easy parts moved really well. I started on the right side and climbed past a couple pins to get to the crack on the right face.

Definitely link the pitches. The tree is not fit for anchor duties and does not have webbing on it as of 10.22.15. Oct 22, 2015

rogerbenton

Definitely skip the small, dead/dying tree, regardless of whether it's backed up with a nut/tricam.
Do it in one, or if you absolutely have to, build an ultra bomber gear anchor in the hand crack above the dead tree.
The moves around the nose are fun, with a great view. May 1, 2016

gunkie X
Solebury, PA

I climbed this for the first time back in March 1982 after a heavy night drinking. All three of us were hungover and we did the climb in three pitches. It was like a wall route; we almost needed a rescue. It was so cold. The climb took all day. May 18, 2022

The Weavers
High Falls NY

Done in one pitch this is a phenomenal long pitch of climbing. The exposure and moves are excellent. Jul 11, 2022