2017: The Year in 5.10 and Beyond

(Photo: That's me, leading Turdland Direct Direct (5.10d). Photo by Nancy.)

It is always fun to take stock of the year as the climbing season draws to a close.

We had a weird autumn this year. Summer seemed to drag on forever, and after just a couple of weekends with good temperatures we find ourselves with little left of 2017. While we often get some good days here and there during the winter months (so long as there isn't too much snow), it seems like our Gunks season is for the most part at an end.

So what did I accomplish in 2017? If you know me, you know I like to have goals. I always go to the Gunks with a list of things I need to get done.

The top agenda item for me this year was my project to finish off the 5.10 grade in the Gunks. More specifically, I wanted to send all of the "star-worthy" 5.10 climbs in the Trapps and the Nears, on lead. I came up with this goal in late 2016, when it occurred to me that I was already pretty close to achieving it. I figured that with a little bit of focus I might be able to get through all of the remaining climbs on the list in 2017.

My guru for this project has been Dick Williams. I view his assessments of the routes in the Gunks as definitive. When I look at Dick's ratings for difficulty, quality, and protection, I generally know exactly what to expect. When I rely on his description to do a route that is new to me, I usually walk away feeling like I get why he says what he does. Even if I find some surprises on a route, or occasionally disagree with Dick's opinion, I can usually construct a rationale to defend his point of view.

I used Dick's guidebooks for the Trapps and the Nears to put together my list of the 5.10 routes to which he assigns at least one star, and which I had not yet sent on lead as of the end of 2016. As soon as 2017 got under way, I started working on the list, checking them off.

As of mid-May, which was the  last time I reported to you on my progress, this is where things stood on my list:

Trapps:

Sonja (5.10a/b)

Stirrup Trouble (5.10b) (DONE in March)

Matinee pitch two (5.10d) 

Nemesis (5.10a) (DONE in March)

Birdie Party pitch two roof (5.10b)
Interstice pitch two roof (5.10d)

Mother's Day Party pitch two roof (5.10a)

Reach of Faith (5.10c) 

Turdland Direct Direct (5.10d) (ATTEMPTED in April but fell at roof)

Nurse's Aid pitch two (5.10a) 

Directissima Direct (pitch one 5.10b/c variation) (DONE in February)

Ent Line (5.10d or 5.11a) 

Space Invaders (5.10d) 

Tweak or Freak (5.10a) (DONE in April)

Bragg-Hatch (5.10d)

Creaky Joints and Trigger Points (5.10b)

Tennish Anyone? (5.10c) 

Near Trapps:

Topeka (5.10a)

Outer Space Direct (5.10b)

Criss Cross Direct (5.10a) (DONE in April)

Fat Stick Direct (5.10b)

Tulip Mussel Garden (5.10d) (DONE in April)

Elder Cleavage Direct (5.10b) (almost DONE but took hang on Pitch 1; have to go again)

Boob Job (5.10b) (DONE in April)

Wooly Clam Taco (5.10c) 

Hang Ten (5.10a) (ATTEMPTED in April but fell)

Whatever (5.10a) (SECONDED in April; have to lead)

Spinal Exam (5.10b/c)

In the second half of the year, I've made significant progress towards completing the list. But I'm still not finished.

I've accomplished nothing in the Nears since May. I went back once on a very hot day in June. I managed to fail for the second time on Hang Ten, hanging twice before I figured out where to put my feet as I pulled the roof. So my Nears list is exactly as it was halfway through the year.

But in the Trapps I have much to report. I redpointed Turdland Direct Direct (5.10d) with Nancy in early September, and on an assortment of different dates I attacked most of the other remaining climbs on my list.

Sonja (5.10a)

I've been both attracted to, and repelled by, Sonja for a long time, because it is a vertical crack climb. We don't have too many of these in the Gunks, and crack climbing is not my strong suit. People often describe this as a "thin hands" crack, but it actually varies. In the portion of the crack that I think is the toughest/steepest, there are textbook, gold-Camalot-sized hand jams.

(Photo: Attempting Sonja (5.10a) in the dog days of August. Photo by Gail.)

Because I am a crappy crack climber, I had to try this one on two different occasions before I got the send. On my first visit to Sonja with Gail in August, everything felt slippery in the heat. We both struggled in the crack. My so-called jams felt insecure. I had to hang a couple of times on my lead attempt, and I was soaked with sweat by the time I finished. I ran up it again for practice, getting it cleanly it on TR after Gail took her turn. I figured I was sure to send it on lead as soon as it got cooler.

In early November I went back with a new partner, Will. This time around, I got it done, though it was touch-and-go there for a minute as I got into the thinner hands part up towards the top. After I was done, I watched Will casually stroll up the thing on TR and saw that I still have a lot to learn about crack climbing. While I had executed a high-stepping layback move off the crack to get up to a stance near the finish, Will never deviated from straight-in jams and looked totally solid doing so.

(Photo: Cruxing out on Sonja (5.10a) in November. Photo by Will.)

I should go back and try to learn some more from Sonja but now that I've gotten a clean lead on the climb I'm not sure if I ever will. My first thought as I got to the top was "Thank God, I never have to do that again!" It is a very worthwhile climb, short but challenging. Steep and varied. You can place great gear over your head before you commit to anything so there really is no excuse not to lead it.

Mac Wall Roof Pitches

I have spent more than my fair share of days at the Mac Wall over the past several years. Sometimes I feel sick and tired of the whole wall. And yet, in all of the time that I logged at this wall prior to 2017, I never led the second pitches of Interstice (5.10d), Mother's Day Party (5.10a), or Birdie Party (5.10b). I think that I'm not unusual; few people bother to do these roof pitches, which is a shame. The Birdie Party roof gets done the most out of the three, but I hardly ever see anyone on that one and I've NEVER seen anyone on the other two!

When I finally got around to doing these pitches, I found out that they are all great. If you have a seventy-meter rope you are really cheating yourself if you don't tack on one of these roofs whenever you do any of the Mac Wall tens at this part of the wall. It is a simple matter to continue in a single pitch through any of the roofs to the fixed anchor that sits above.

I led the Birdie Party roof pitch in early November with Will. (I chose to start with pitch one of Mother's Day Party (5.10b), making for a very direct line.) I'd followed this roof pitch before so I knew what to expect and ticked it off without a problem. It is a typical Gunks 5.10 roof. With a heel hook and a couple of crimps, you are done. It is a little bit spicy after the roof. You need to move up on some non-juggy holds for a couple of 5.8/5.9 moves before you can get gear again. Once you do, you are very close to the fixed anchor.

Later in November I returned to the Mac Wall with Rob to do the other two roofs.

I started with Interstice, which breaks the overhang just a few feet to the left of Birdie Party's obvious flake in the ceiling. I was a little bit worried about Interstice because in the guidebook Dick describes the face above the roof as R-rated. But I believe Dick has it wrong in this one instance. I found this roof to be as well-protected as any roof in the Gunks. You can place a bomber piece above the lip before you pull over the roof, and once you stand up, you can get a good Alien or other small cam, although at this point the gear is strenuous to place because you are standing in an overhanging position on some small holds.

I actually blew it on my first attempt as I stood up over the roof, before I got to place the small cam, and the fall was totally clean. Then I started over from the level of the MF bolts and led through the whole roof so I'm counting it as a redpoint send and calling it done.

(Photo: Rob making the reach over the roof on Interstice (5.10d).)

I loved this roof. It is my favorite of the three. It takes a big reach to get past the initial overhang and then a few more good moves in a steep little concave section of the wall before you reach easier climbing and the fixed anchor. If you do Interstice in one pitch from the ground through the roof (which is what I did), you get three incredible cruxes, all completely different from one another. I think this is one of the very best tens in the Gunks, which is saying a lot.

After we got done with Interstice I led MF Direct into the Mother's Day Party roof. This roof is just to the right of the Birdie Party roof, directly above MF's bolted anchor. Aim for a rectangular notch in the roof. If you look to the right you can see the pin on MF approximately five feet further over.

(Photo: Rob getting through the rectangular notch on Mother's Day Party (5.10a).)

This roof presents a very interesting, bouldery problem. You have to make a big, committing move up into the rectangular notch (with pro at your ankles), and then move left to a bomber horizontal that takes good gear. Once you reach this horizontal the actual roof pull that comes afterwards is straightforward and easier. I got the on-sight on this one (with much stepping up and down), but I would say it felt harder to me than 5.10a. I think it is tougher than the Birdie Party roof and maybe as hard as Interstice.

I'm so glad my little 5.10 project led me finally to get around to these roof pitches! I will definitely go back to all three of them.

Reach of Faith (5.10c)

I can't say the same for Reach of Faith. I did all three pitches of this climb with Rob on the same day that we did those Mac Wall roof routes. I will likely never return to it.

I was curious about Reach of Faith, since no one does the route. I expected it to be dirty and loose. But Dick had to have some reason for giving it a star in the guidebook.  

I found the first two pitches to be poorly protected. The first pitch goes at 5.4, so the sparse gear isn't terribly troubling. The second pitch, on the other hand, is one of the scarier 5.8 pitches that I have ever led. There isn't any gear to speak of as you trend up and right over a couple of ledges with blueberry bushes. I finally found some pro when I reached a spot of rock that is lighter in color than the surrounding stone, but I was dismayed to find that all of the features there rang hollow. I felt like I was in a do-not-fall situation as I entered the crux 5.8 climbing, venturing left on a mystery traverse (with no additional gear) for ten or fifteen feet until I could head up through a notch and easier climbing to a belay ledge.

(Photo: Rob coming up the final bits of pitch two of Reach of Faith (5.10c).)

When I led the crux 5.10c pitch, I could sort of see why Dick granted the climb a star. This pitch is better than the other two, and you can reach it by taking Hawk or Southern Pillar to the GT Ledge if you want to check it out, though I'm not sure it is worth the trouble. You have to battle past a tree to get over an initial overhang, and then finally you are rewarded with a good mid-5.10 roof, with solid pro. Then you top out through a thick field of lichen.

I wrote up Reach of Faith for Mountain Project if you want a more detailed description.

Space Invaders (5.10d)

I'd done Space Invaders on toprope, but it was a few years ago and I couldn't really remember much of anything about the climbing. Call this an alzheimer's on-sight. I led it in November with Will.

This climb has a variation to the left and one to the right, but Dick's book only lists the right-hand version so that's the one I led.

I felt pretty good about how I performed on this one. The climb has lots of fun bits as you work your way up the overhanging, right-slanting crack. To my relief, I found great gear. I placed something every time I reached a good hold. And the climbing is really good, sequency and interesting.

Creaky Joints (5.10b) and Tennish Anyone? (5.10c)

(Photo: Leading Creaky Joints and Trigger Points (5.10b). Photo by Rob.)

I knocked both of these off with Rob on a beautiful October day.

I liked Creaky Joints and Trigger Points (5.10b). I wish it were longer. But the crux is my favorite sort of climbing: thin moves with gear placed under pressure. The business comes right away, as you step onto a a steep face with a slanting, thin crack. You can get gear before you commit to getting out there but once I was into the real climbing I really wanted another piece before making the crux move up. I placed a small nut in a hurry and I think it would have held if I tested it, but luckily I never had to, as I made the move and it was all over.

This climb is well worth checking out if you are down in the area.

I'd previously attempted Tennish Anyone? during a very hot and humid Memorial Day weekend back in 2016, and on that occasion I'd had to hang in the crux traverse. I'd found the crimpy holds to be difficult to use.

(Photo: Rob heading into the crux on Tennish Anyone? (5.10c).)

When I returned to the route in 2017, in perfect October conditions, the holds felt huge! This is a great pitch, a bit technical and demanding, different from the usual thing. With its crimpy moves sideways and then up, it reminds me a bit of Black Crack (5.10+) out in Lost City, but I think Tennish Anyone? is easier.  Not too many people lead it, since it is very easy to toprope the route after you do Wegetables (5.10a), but it is a very good lead. The crux is well-protected. There is a committing move up to a jug before the crux, which I protect with a tiny tiny nut that I think would hold. This move isn't really difficult, but it is smeary and might give one pause.

Ent Line (5.10d or 5.11b)

This climb has been my white whale of 2017, occupying too much of my time and frustrating my every attempt. I still intend to go back to finish it off but I'm starting to grow weary of my own failures on the route. I'm tempted to call it done for 5.10 purposes but I know that this would be dishonest and break my own rules, since I haven't yet led the thing to the finish without falling.

I've never done it the 5.10 way, in which you merge with Ants' Line through the overhang, after the 5.10 crux. Instead I've tried to do it the 5.11b way every time, staying left of the Ants' Line crux and blasting straight over the roof. 

My first attempt, with Nancy back in September, was a reconnaissance mission. Even though I had done the climb before on toprope, I was wary of the PG/R rating that this climb gets in the guidebook, so my main concern wasn't the climbing but the gear. I was also concerned about smacking into the big tree next to the wall. Of course, since I was worried about falling it became a self-fulfilling prophecy and I took a whip from the 5.10 crux, which is a tricky move where you have to step to the right using very small holds. The fall was clean, much to my relief, and from that point on I explored the gear with every move, stopping several times to hang and inspect the potential placements.

(Photo: That's me heading up Ent Line (5.11b). Photo by Gail.)

A week later I went back with Gail and tried for the send. It was a super summery, hot day, and every move felt difficult. Nevertheless I got through the 5.10 crux and made it all the way up to the 5.11 roof, where I fell off after making a weak throw to the ledge above the roof. This fall, too, was totally clean. Going up for the second time, the roof felt easy. So I walked away secure in the knowledge that I had everything worked out, and that I could come back on a cooler day and finish Ent Line off.

(Photo: Gail approaching the crux roof on Ent Line (5.11b).)

That cooler day arrived in October, with Josh. Conditions were perfect and I started up the route for my third attempt with confidence. The rock felt great and the 5.10 crux was over before I knew it. Everything felt right as I got set up for the 5.11 roof. But somehow I fumbled my footwork up there, and though I made a game effort to regroup and actually grabbed the shelf above the overhang, I slipped off and took the fall AGAIN. 

There were numerous people standing around on this peak-season weekend day. I know that most people don't lead this route, so just getting up there and leading Ent Line is pretty cool, I suppose. Several of the spectators offered words of praise about my efforts. I was happy to give them a show, including a nice whipper, but I felt like a chump. I couldn't believe I'd blown it again. Up until the moment I slipped off I felt like I had it.

I still have to go back. I'm disappointed in my performance but now I know what to do. I just have to execute. 

And the route is really awesome. It is relentlessly steep and the moves are tricky/beta intensive. The protection is very good at the cruxes but I hesitate to say that the gear is exactly what you'd want throughout. In between the first 5.10 crux and the 5.11 roof there are a few moves where hitting the tree is a real possibility and I wouldn't want to fall. But I feel very good about those moves and I think Ent Line is a safe lead for me.

Bragg-Hatch (5.10d)

On that same October day with Josh I failed at my on-sight attempt on Bragg-Hatch. 

This is a short but high-quality climb up a tricky corner below a roof. At the top of the short corner you escape right on some more tricky moves on crimps, for just a few feet, and then move up to easier territory.

I struggled to place a good nut at the top of the corner, but hung in there, only to fall as I tried to move to the right. My nut got totally welded when I fell on it and Josh could not remove it. I don't know if the nut is still there but if it is the climb will now be much easier to lead! Even if it isn't there I think I will find the climb easier the second time, and should be able to get the send without too much trouble.

(Photo: Josh on Bragg-Hatch (5.10d).)

Bragg-Hatch is very different from Creaky Joints, discussed above, but the two climbs are similar in that they both would be truly great if they were longer. Both climbs feature tense moves with gear placed in the midst of the action. They are both worthwhile climbs but I wouldn't make a special trip for either of them.

There are two options for finishing Bragg-Hatch, after the hard part. You can continue straight up a right-facing corner to a tree with slings. Or you can traverse right to a left-facing corner. I chose to traverse to the right and I enjoyed the 5.8/5.9 climbing up this corner. 

* * *

As of now, I have just four pitches left on my 5.10 list for the Trapps: Ent Line, Bragg-Hatch, the second pitch of Matinee and the second pitch of Nurse's Aid. These are all redpoints. I have led every one of these pitches, just not cleanly. So I think I know what I need to do.

If we get the right conditions in December I just might be able to finish all of these tens in the Trapps by the end of the year. I'm trying to stay motivated and to seize whatever opportunities I get. If the high is above 40 degrees you can expect to see me out there!

I hope I'll see you out there too, working on whatever your own personal project may be.