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Nyctophiliac
5.12- YDS 7a+ French 25 Ewbanks VIII+ UIAA 25 ZA E5 6a British
Avg: 3.9 from 29
votes
Routes in 7. West End Wall
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A Flickering Flame T 5.12c 7b+ 27 IX- 27 E6 6b |
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Basalt of the Earth T 5.10b 6a+ 19 VII- 19 E2 5b |
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Bat Outta Hell T 5.12b 7b 26 VIII+ 26 E5 6b |
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Callused Earth Skin T 5.10- 6a 18 VI+ 18 E1 5a |
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Collar Blind T 5.10 6b 20 VII- 19 E2 5b |
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Disco's Dead T 5.13- 7c+ 29 IX+ 29 E7 6c |
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Discothèque T 5.11c 6c+ 24 VIII- 24 E4 6a |
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Eyes on Fire T 5.11+ 7a 24 VIII 24 E4 6a |
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Jade Feather T 5.12 7b+ 27 VIII+ 26 E6 6b PG13 |
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Like a Shadow in the Night T 5.12d 7c 28 IX 28 E6 6b |
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Mental Block T 5.10+ 6b+ 21 VII+ 20 E3 5b |
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Nyctophiliac T 5.12- 7a+ 25 VIII+ 25 E5 6a |
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Phantasm T 5.11 6c+ 23 VIII- 23 E4 5c |
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Plain Jane Glory T 5.11- 6c 22 VIII- 22 E3 5c |
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Shoshin T 5.13c 8a+ 30 X- 31 E7 7a |
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Soul Feather T 5.13- 7c+ 29 IX+ 29 E7 6c PG13 |
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Soultangler T 5.12c 7b+ 27 IX- 27 E6 6b |
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Stemistry T 5.13b 8a 29 IX+ 30 E7 6c |
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Take a Chance on Me T 5.10 6b 20 VII- 19 E2 5b |
| Type: | Trad, 125 ft (38 m) |
| FA: | JJ Schlick, Wade Forrest 2013 |
| Page Views: | 5,650 total · 42/month |
| Shared By: | JJ Schlick on Nov 10, 2013 |
| Admins: | Greg Opland, Brian Boyd, JJ Schlick, Kemper Brightman, Luke Bertelsen |
Description
Nyctophiliac is a Greek term meaning "friend of the dark" and is commonly thought of as a love of nighttime or darkness. For me, it’s steep black water streaks. This pitch is a jaw dropping, heart kicking, scream inducing, all natural gear line which climbs the center of yes, a brilliant black water streak.
This steep crack climb starts out with 50' of thoughtful "Overlookesque" trad daddy terrain with vertical fingers and small hands jamming. Several different block boulder problems (5.10) add some intrigue to the route.
A natural break after the intro offers a fantastic rest and the opportunity to eye the dark, overhanging finger crack which looms eerily above. 5.11- climbing off the break leads to a conspicuous orange jug and the entrance to the very definitive crux section. Despite the positive holds and finger locks(?) you'll use everything you've ever learned at Paradise Forks to gain the gravity amp jug which splits the crux into two sections. When things seem darkest before the jug, look around the arête to the right and be gifted a perfect sidepull rail.
Getting your feet onto the gravity amp jug is harder than you might first expect, and the moves here are wildly exposed. It's also the apex of the routes steepness. Fret not, however, because the gear on this line is as biter as it comes, and the air up there is clean. The original pitch stays in the lefthand black system and does not meld into Like a Shadow in the Night just right. I'd hate to see you cheat yourself of the full value experience.The second known 5.12 to be established at Volunteer. This pitch conjured memories of Acid Test Crack at the Forks because of the crisp jamming, dramatic stances, bouldery cruxes, and it's just a striking line. If you're a connoisseur of 5.12 basalt trad climbing, you are not going to want to pass up this out of the way line.
The top of this line sits in a low spot of the rim and is a snow catch drainage, thus the black streaks. Due to wildlife and spring thaws, it will require some seasonal brushing. If you want to go for the well protected onsight, talk your partner into going down and giving it a brushdown with a small whisk brush. It’s an effort well rewarded.
Photos
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