Basic Aid Climb Suggestions

[joshr]

Would like to take someone out to practice Aid technique and I'm looking for route suggestions within a few hours of Seattle. Single pitch would probably be best for this purpose but a multi-pitch A0 could work. They have experience rock climbing but no Aid experience.

[counterfeitfake]

City park at Index. Two sets of nuts are all you really need.

[laurel]

There's the mountaineer's clubhouse bolt ladders if you really don't want to drive very far.

[ivan]

a bit of a drive, but if you want a true, true classic multi-pitch a0'ish climb, do the west face of the monkey at smith - extra points for hauling a pony-keg up n' over asterisk pass, and extra-extra points if the haul-bag ends up w/ a grill and some satay for the pimpfest in the west cave

 

might as well learn to big wall aid in comfort from the start - there's no honor in it, see, so ya just gotta milk it for all the disrepute you can hump out it?

[ivan]

chain link fences work well too - 'specially the ones round prisons - taller, more objective hazards

[fgw]

what are you going to learn on a bolt ladder that you cannot doing this?

[tvashtarkatena]

The first lesson to know about big wall climbing is this:

 

Your asshole isn't where you think it is.

 

Once you've fully grokked that you can poo anywhere with impunity.

Edited March 14, 2013 by tvashtarkatena

[matt_warfield]

I second City Park, but it may punish you. Clipping bolts or slapping in big cams is different than tiny cams or old school nuts. Monkey Face might blow your mind a bit much due to exposure. And the tyrolean or free rappel off the top.

 

The problem with learning aid is overcoming pride. You need to go to the trad place of your choice, put a big smile on your face in front of a free climb, have an excellent belayer, use clean gear, and go for it.

 

And derivative aid on vertical artificial walls doesn't teach you very much. There are many aiders in life; choose them carefully. Check out Chris McNamara's book and avoid many years of difficult learning.

Edited March 15, 2013 by matt_warfield

[mountainsloth]

i practiced some really short aid routes around the repo wall at x32. there are a few nice cracks and they are pretty short. this allowed me to get the basic mechanics down without feeling too exposed.