plaisirclimbr

Vantage is clearly NOT visible in that picture. I see both Frenchman Coulee and Echo Coulee but NOT Vantage. So why call it Vantage? Because that's what "everybody" calls it? I think not. And why should you do what "everybody" does, if it's WRONG? That's probably what lots of nice Germans did they were thinking about joining the Nazis - why? - because everybody is doing it! Just because wetsiders who don't know the actual name of geographic features choose to name climbing areas for the last town they drive through doesn't mean it's the right thing to do. As an east-sider, I think I'm going to call Seattle "Issaquah", cause it's the last dumpy town I drive through before I get there. BTW I just heard from some of you Issaquah guys about a cool new climbing area down south called "Terrebonne" - sounds pretty cool...

Went up to climb the Weeping Wall and spotted some new stuff high on the canyon wall. After a long steep thrash we arrived at a 60 ft. high cliff band with multiple climbable lines. We led one and top-roped the others

I just wish you wet-siders would call the area by its actual name (Frenchman Coulee). There's actually no climbing at Vantage that I know of - not even choss-fests. Do you say you're going to Terrebonne when you're actually going to Smith? Vegas when you're going to Red Rocks? etc. etc. Frenchman coulee (not "Vantage") IS a wonderful place to climb, especially during the cooler months.

Nice report - glad you guys had a good time. Good to hear the access cable is still in place. The route you didn't find is farther up the railroad grade (to the north) about 200-300 ft. Yes the rock is "chossy" (dealing with "choss" is just another test of climbing skills IMHO) but that area has great potential if someone is willing to put some time in with a crowbar. I've been there about a dozen times - quit going when they closed the road over Lower Monumental Dam due to the paranoia surrounding 9/11. Apparently it's open now during certain times, so I may have to make another visit.

Hi Mark- Glad you enjoyed my routes at the City/Castles. Wish I had more time get down there and climb them myself! kevin

Mark - Enjoyed your TR. If you enjoyed Cruel Shoes, Too Much Fun, and Theater of Shadows, next time you're down there, check out Big Time, Mantle Dynamics, and Continental Crust in Castle Rocks State Park. The drive should take 11-12 hours from Seattle. For all you wet-siders, Spring Mountain, 9 miles off I-84 between Pendleton and LaGrande would make a nice half-way camp spot - with excellent climbing.

Definitely do NOT go to Spring Mtn. Just the sight of all of those bolts, bolted cracks, bolted mixed routes, etc. would be enough to instigate a fit of retching that would leave you weak and dehydrated - then the mosquitos would swarm in and relieve you of any remaining bodily fluids - horrible place, I tell you, best just to stay away. Hike up Hurricane Creek - enjoy the views, not a bolt in sight...

Sooooooooooooooo sick of people dissing on "Vantage". Actually you can diss on Vantage all you want - it's a crumby little town with no climbing. Frenchman Coulee, however, is a really fun place to climb, great cracks, fun well-protected sport routes, good weather. So the rock is a little loose - isn't climbing supposed to be a little risky? Use some common sense, for Dog's sake! Been climbing there for 20 years now - never pulled off a loose rock without meaning to. Question: Why do Washington (maybe just wet side?) climbers feel they have to name every crag after the last town they drive through on their way there from Seattle? (even when the crag actually has a name?) If every place was like that, we'd be climbing at Terrebonne, Almo, Slade (KY), Las Vegas, Joshua Tree (oops, guess that one's OK). I think all the choss-dissing wankers SHOULD go climbing at Vantage (I think maybe there's a V23 or 5.15h up the north face of the Golden Harvest Motel) - and stay away from Frenchman Coulee, it's getting a little crowded from all those poor uninformed non-snobby folks that actually enjoy the place.

Actually, there is some good ice that is accessible from the Middle Point ridge trailhead (the pullout with bathrooms), but it's harder to find than the Weeping Wall. If you hike up the trail a quarter mile and then leave the trail and grunt straight up the steep hillside, you'll eventually strike a 30 ft. high band of cliffs. The ice is vertical and forms where a gully crosses this cliff band. You can see it from the main road if you know EXACTLY where to look, but otherwise it just blends into the snow on the mountainside. As far as I know, it's only been climbed a few times since I found it about 10 years ago.

Actually, there is some good ice that is accessible from the Middle Point ridge trailhead (the pullout with bathrooms), but it's harder to find than the Weeping Wall. If you hike up the trail a quarter mile and then leave the trail and grunt straight up the steep hillside, you'll eventually strike a 30 ft. high band of cliffs. The ice is vertical and forms where a gully crosses this cliff band. You can see it from the main road if you know EXACTLY where to look, but otherwise it just blends into the snow on the mountainside. As far as I know, it's only been climbed a few times since I found it about 10 years ago.

Ice is fat at the Weeping Wall. A big group from Whitman college climbed there on Saturday and conditions were very good. All the top anchors are now exposed (they chopped away the ice that was burying them.)

I saw the Weeping Wall on Wednesday. It appeared to be climbable on left side, thin and marginal on the right side. Lots of snow there now (2+ feet).

I've been trading emails with Marlene this week. Sounds like it will be out next spring.