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Suggested Page Improvements to Sunshine Wall


Ron Zynchino
Feb 23, 2020
Getting There Suggestion
The approach from the campground to the first gully is 15 minutes and straightforward if you know where you're going. The 2019 guidebook's description of this is of limited utility for those completely new to the area. This description should make things painfully clear.

From the campground, head west towards Agathla Tower. There is a path (not a road) that passes closely to left/south side of Agathla tower. Continue on that path, you should be headed west. You'll see that path continues up the Mesa, traversing to the right as it ascends. Follow this. Once at the top of the mesa, look left/SW and you'll see a path that heads in the general direction of the sunshine wall. (If you don't take this quick left at the top of the Mesa then you'll head NW towards Middle East wall)

As you follow the path, within a minute you'll see a rusted sign low on the ground that points left for Sunshine, right for Gully's. Go left to Sunshine. You'll follow this path, now heading basically straight south for only a few minutes to what looks like a random cliff. You'll be standing at the tops of columns wondering why the path would lead you to this point. Look down and to the right and you'll see a narrow slot between columns that is exactly one climbers body width wide. This leads to the base of the columns and to a new path. Once you are down, turn around and remember what this gully looks like from the bottom as this will likely be your route back to the campground.

Now at the base of the gully, go right/west towards Sunshine Wall, or go left/East towards Kotic Memorial Wall. 

Daniel Chode Rider
May 9, 2021
I think it would help people find these climbs easier if we lable these so they're left to right. That would be (a) Far End, (b) Tilted Pillars, (c) King Pins, (d) Coyote Wall and (e) Near End.

Daniel Chode Rider
Nov 23, 2021
Description Suggestion

The tallest, busiest, most solid, prettiest, most exemplary of Vantage, hardest, softest, most controversial... all such superlatives apply to the Sunshine Wall. Five distinct sections cover the upper basalt columns forming the south facing-wall of Echo Basin. Heaps upon heaps of classic cracks and bolted aretes are found on this the perfect winter crag. Now, to deal with the superlatives...

Tallest - 100 feet into the sky rise the biggest columns, taller than anything at Vantage except perhaps a rare route or two at Fugs Wall.

Busiest - there's something for everyone here, and thus everyone comes.

Most solid - while nothing at Vantage is 'solid,' some might say, the King Pins is the best rock in Vantage besides perhaps the center of Middle East.

Prettiest - subjective, but the wavy columns are packed and uniform enough to see the pattern of the basalt flow...

Most exemplary - you either know this is true or you learned it just now.

Hardest - well, there's 13c at the Sanctuary but the hardest gear climb in the Coulee is Red M&Ms 12a.

Softest - simply peruse the dozens of comments claiming George & Martha is 5.9 or 5.8 in Index, or PIYP is 5.6 if you can hand jam.

Most controversial - well, there's always Winter Walk Wall to speak of but where else in Vantage (or even Washington) have a route's bolts been chopped and replaced 3 times or more?

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