What Are Your Favorite and/or Best Climbs?

[matt_warfield]

1} Favorite climbs I have done:

 

-Casual Route. Diamond CO

-Birds of Fire. RMNP CO

-Grand Wall, Squamish

-Petit Grepon, RMNP

-Outer Space. You know where it is.

-I cheated cuz its six. Classic Crack Der Leavenworth.

 

2)

-I have aspirations of Rainy Day Women Little Si and have done it but can't lead it. I'm a hang dog.

-Some 30' climb at Vantage that has an elusive move. On lead.

-Heinous Cling short at Smith.

 

3)

- Heinous Cling full at Smith is way over my head

- I'm pretty good at altitude but any 8000 m. peak is not going to happen. Too much snow and ice.

- Rainier. Just don't like it. I like rock or a safe slog.

- Any boulder problem on Grandpa Peabody Bishop CA.

- Dawn Wall Yosemite. The media coverage isn't worth it unless you are Warren Harding with a couple empty bottles of wine.

 

 

Edited February 4, 2015 by matt_warfield

[matt_warfield]

This thread inspired me to revamp an old profile on my website, thanks!

 

1) Have climbed.

 

Zodiac

Temple

S.Pickets traverse

Mongo

Springbok

 

 

 

 

2) Capable of but have not climbed.

Real Big Drip

Cryophobia

Rocketman

Stanley Headwall

big Patagonia tower

 

 

3) Admire but will never climb.

Himalaya giant Ogre, Nanga, etc

Helmekin

Infinite Bliss

 

Looks like you've got ice on your mind. Wish I could join you, just got a knee replacement so maybe next year.

 

Infinite Bliss? Why is that on "never climb"?

 

it is a little wayne sarcasm. He could do it blindfolded just doesn't want to.

 

[curtveld]

1) Have climbed.

Dreamer - all-time fave

Epinephrine

New Dimensions (Yos - would flail on it now)

Barad Dur - Wolf Rock

Wasteland - Cochise

 

2) Capable of, but have not climbed.

Cathedral (Pasayten)

Direct Exum - Tetons

Devil's Tower

Serenity/Sons

Needles (Sierra) any routes

Verdon Gorge (will belay/rope-gun for air-miles!)

 

3) Admire but will never climb.

Alaska Range and other big mountains

Robson - abandoned goal of my youth

Long 5.11s in Squamish - Freeway, Northern Lights

Midnight Lightning

[StreetBoss]

I whole heartedly agree with SOL, that with commitment we can do anytime.

 

Well here's my 2cent

 

 

1) Have climbed,

* McKinly (2), Aconcagua (1), Alpamayo

* Rebel Yell - North Cascades

* Torment-Forbidden Traverse solo

* Darkness at Noon - Smith Rock

* Nose - Yosemite

* Levitation 29 - Vegas

 

2) Capable of but have not climbed.

* Everest

* Trango Tower

* Girth Pillar - Mt Stewart

* Model Worker - Index (always fall off at the end)

* Clean Break - North Cascades

 

 

3) Admire but will never climb.

* It's all possible

[goatboy]

1) Have climbed.

Torment-Forbidden Traverse, from high camp in Boston Basin

North Ridge of Forbidden, with a bivy

North Ridge of Stuart, car-to-car

Triple Couloirs, Dragontail

Northeast Face "Ice Shield", Mt Fury -- carryover from Luna Lake

N Face, Buckner

 

2) Capable of but have not climbed.

North Ridge of Baker

North Face of Maude

North Face of Shuksan

NE Ridge, Bugaboo Spire

Kautz Glacier, Mt Rainier

SW Ridge, Mt Aspiring, Southern Alps

 

3) Admire but will never climb.

NW Face, Forbidden Peak

North Face, Bear Mountain

Johannesburg

West Ridge, Eldorado Peak

Nooksack Tower

[Drederek]

1) Have climbed.

Resolution Arete, Vegas

Angel's Crest, Squamish

The land down under, Tieton

West ridge of Stuart

Outer Space and Mary Jane Dihedral

West ridge of Mt Constance

 

 

2) Capable of, or could if skills were improved, but have not climbed.

Complete North Ridge Stuart

Backbone Ridge Dragontail

Elephants Perch

T-F-T

The Warrior, Cactus flower tower, Vegas

 

 

3) Admire but will never climb.

Perry's lieback without aid

Patagonia

The first pitch of Swim

NF of the Eiger

Mt Olympus

 

[Ed_Seedhouse]

I still have fond memories of Slab Alley...

[matt_warfield]

This is too much fun so will go again:

 

1) -Angels Crest Squamish with a camera with no film

-Sykes Sickle RMNP

-Some 10d slab route on the Apron at Squamish; puzzling and ruins your calves and your nerves. Being pumped is not an issue

-Diedre at Squamish, the crux is waiting in line.

-Kor's Flake RMNP Lumpy Ridge which I swear is the hardest 5.7 around.

-Yellow Spur Eldo CO

 

2) - Pervertical Sanctuary Diamond CO

- Yellow Wall Diamond CO

- An elusive V4 at Vertical World that disappeared.

- Some other goals in WA since I have spent a lot of time in BC and CO. No offense.

 

3) - To Bolt or Not to Be, Smith. Can't get a foot off the ground.

- Midnight Lightning, Yosemite. I looked closely and fled

- Anything on El Cap. Not suited for big big heights and multiple days.

- Father and Sons Wall Denali. Life or death is iffy.

- Willis Wall Rainier. Life or death is more iffy.

 

[Pete_H]

I'd also have to throw out the NE Butt of Higher Cathedral in the valley as one of the better rock routes ive done.

[Fairweather]

Favorites Done:

Mount Andromeda - Skyladder

Mount Adams - Adams Glacier

Mount Olympus (with my 15 year-old son)

K's Spire - S Face

Little Tahoma in Winter

Mount Rainier - the 6 easiest routes

 

To Do:

More Mt Rainier Routes - Ptarmigan Ridge, Tahoma Glacier, Nisqually Icefall

Mt Hood - Sunshine

Mt Anderson - Eel Glacier

Mt Fairweather - Grand Plateau

Mt Shuksan - Price Glacier

Olympus from Queets Basin

 

Want to, But Will Never Do:

Huascaran

Anything over 20k in the Himalayas

West Ridge of Hunter

Illimani/Sajama

Mt Cook NZ

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Jacob Smith]

I find it interesting how many people, myself included, are listing basically the same series of climbs. Some sort of new 50 classics list may be in order...

 

Climbs I loved

1. Coleman Headwall

2. Davis-Holland

3. Jubilant Song

4. Fearful Symmetry

5. Green Drag-on

 

Climbs I’d love to do

1. Beckey/Chouinard on Howser

2. Thin Red Line

3. Doorish route on Dolomite Tower

4. N Norwegian Buttress

5. Zodiac

 

Climbs that impress the hell out of me

1. N Face of N Twin

2. Torre Egger

3. A5s on the Falls Wall

4. Slovak Direct

5. Emperor Face

 

[AlpineK]

1) Have climbed.

Robson, Wishbone Arete

Denali, Cassin Ridge

Edith Cavell, N-Face

Oubliette Mtn, E-Ridge

Grand Teton, N-Ridge

Sir Donald, solo NW Arete (2-times)

Shucksan N-Face (ski descent)

 

2) Capable of but have not climbed.

Forbidden-Torment Traverse

Mt Temple, E Ridge

Gannett Peak, any route

Pigeon Spire, Standard

Nooksack Tower

 

3) Admire but will never climb.

Mt Alberta, N-Face

North Twin, N Pillar

Southern Alps, Mt Cook

+ a few more

[dave schultz]

1) Have climbed.

 

Nooksack Tower combined with Price Glacier and Shuksan Summit

Liberty Ridge

Huntington Ravine, NH Ski Descents

Mount Fuji, Japan

Corie Dubh Integral, Canmore, AB, Canada (linked for those who might not be familiar)

 

2) Capable of, but have not climbed, but want to.

 

Cassin Ridge

Chamonix

Canadian Rockies Ice and Alpine Rock (more)

Grade VI Big Wall in Yosemite

Desert Towers

 

3) Admire but will never climb.

 

Probably anything 5.11 or harder.

Probably anything WI6 or harder.

Not sure on this one, still a lot of time to get on stuff and get better.

[Jacob Smith]

So because I was bored, and interested, but mostly just bored, I compiled all the routes people listed on this thread and sorted them to see which were mentioned the most often. This is what I came up with.

 

The most common route for the first category (everyone seemed to define it a little differently) was a five-way tie between:

The Beckey-Chouinard on South Howser Tower

Exum Ridge on Grand Teton

The Northeast Buttress of Slesse

The North Ridge of Stuart

Outer Space on Snow Creek Wall

 

The most common route for the second category was Cassin Ridge on Denali, followed by a three-way tie between:

The North Ridge of Stuart

The Regular Northwest Face of Half Dome

Yosemite Valley (a lot of people just listed general areas, more on that later)

 

The most common route for the third category was the North Face of North Twin, with no other standouts. Which I think says a lot for how educated cascadeclimbers are in the history of alpinism. Interestingly, if “5.12” were a route it would have been a tie, and if grades were treated as a route collectively they would have won by a landslide.

If all the entries are combined, the routes most mentioned are, unsurprisingly, a three-way tie between,

The North Ridge of Stuart

The Beckey-Chouinard on South Howser Tower

Cassin Ridge on Denali

 

I also did a little research and figured out the mountain or crag and area or range associated with each route listed.

The most mentioned mountain or crag was a tie between El Capitan and The Chief, followed by Denali and Mount Rainier, and then Mount Stuart.

The most mentioned area or range was the Cascades by a massive margin, even though I was counting the Stuart Range, WA Pass, Index, and Leavenworth all separately. Also high on that list were Yosemite Valley, the Alaska Range, the Canadian Rockies, Squamish, the Bugaboos, and Red Rock.

 

Conclusions

Cascadeclimbers climb a lot in the cascades, shocking I know. I was interested though, by the other areas mentioned. The Bugaboos, the Canadian Rockies, the Alaska Range, and Yosemite were all mentioned heavily in all three categories, while the desert southwest, the US Rockies, and the Andes were largely skipped over. Finding specific mentions of routes in the Himalayas, Karakoram, or Alps was even more rare, and almost entirely limited to the third category. For the central Asian ranges I get it, but for the Alps I was surprised, why are people so eager to climb in Alaska but not in Europe? If it was really just travel costs then I would think the absence would be limited to the first two categories. Granted, I didn’t think to mention Beyond Good and Evil or the Central Pillar of Freney or that A5 route on the Dru either. Anyways, I may be thinking about this too much.

 

[glassgowkiss]

For the central Asian ranges I get it, but for the Alps I was surprised, why are people so eager to climb in Alaska but not in Europe? If it was really just travel costs then I would think the absence would be limited to the first two categories. Granted, I didn’t think to mention Beyond Good and Evil or the Central Pillar of Freney or that A5 route on the Dru either. Anyways, I may be thinking about this too much.

Very simple explanation. For one, you actually have to know how to climb technical terrain to get up on stuff in the Alps. N Ridge of Stuart (have not done entire ridge) has a pitch and a half of actual climbing, and the rest of it can be done with running belays (if you are a competent 5.9 climber). Slessee has 3-4 pitches, even if you do direct. Even Becky-Chuinard is technically very moderate.

Alaska and Alps are apples and oranges. Alaska is an adventure in a big range, Alps is very civilized by comparison. You sleep in bed, take showers and can hang out indoors if the weather is crap.

Third- not all people from this area post on cc.com. Colin and Marc are staying in Patagonia sending, while we are talking what are the best routes.

[Pete_H]

Not everyone wants to or can climb in Patagonia and it's the middle of winter here (a shitty winter but still winter). So might as well talk about climbing at least.

[AlpineK]

The complete N Ridge of Stuart involves a couple pitches at the base followed by running belays then pitch climbing on the Great Gendarme.

 

Unfortunately past a partial ascent of Monte Rosa I lack any Alps experience.

 

It seems like there's a bubble around the PNW. The further you travel the more it costs and the longer time you need to spend in a region once you get there. The Alps, New Zealand, and South America look cool, but travel costs plus taking a month+ of vacation is intimidating.

[shapp]

I forgot to add one of my favorite climbs:

 

Bender-Axen on Mt. Lemon, AZ. Those chicken head knobs are crazy!

[BootsandPants]

It seems like there's a bubble around the PNW. The further you travel the more it costs and the longer time you need to spend in a region once you get there. The Alps, New Zealand, and South America look cool, but travel costs plus taking a month+ of vacation is intimidating.

 

I think you're right for the majority of climbers with the regular 9-5 jobs where month+ long vacations aren't possible every year, making climbing in far flung destinations difficult. While I would like to climb in the Alps, Andes, and Himalaya, and probably will once in my life, there's also a lifetime of fun/challenging routes to be had right here in NA where the travel time and cost are significantly less. Especially being in the Cascades and on the West Coast, we're much closer to things relatively than the rest of the country/continent.

[DPS]

It seems like there's a bubble around the PNW. The further you travel the more it costs and the longer time you need to spend in a region once you get there. The Alps, New Zealand, and South America look cool, but travel costs plus taking a month+ of vacation is intimidating.

 

I think you're right for the majority of climbers with the regular 9-5 jobs where month+ long vacations aren't possible every year, making climbing in far flung destinations difficult. While I would like to climb in the Alps, Andes, and Himalaya, and probably will once in my life, there's also a lifetime of fun/challenging routes to be had right here in NA where the travel time and cost are significantly less. Especially being in the Cascades and on the West Coast, we're much closer to things relatively than the rest of the country/continent.

 

Some years ago I made a conscious decision to only climb where I could reasonably drive, and I have not regretted that decision. There are several life times worth of adventuring to be had without ever needing to drive more than 12 hours from Seattle.

[genepires]

I could climb decades at index and never get up a 5.11

 

I need to drive a long way to find new 5.9's that I can get up.

 

there is a simple reason why the same climbs show up on many lists on this thread. A person writing their list after reading the previous posts are affected by those previous posts. Those climbs get "remembered" while the slew of other great climbs are neglected. I can do the same thing with my kid by getting the answer I want by framing the question a certain way.

[Rad]

I can't pick 5 favorites because I've been stoked about many routes over the years. Here are a few worth putting on your wish list that are not over-represented above (and none are hard):

 

Past highlights:

First ascents on Sloan and 1-2 pitch lines at X38.

Multi-pitch rock: Grand Wall, NE Butt Higher Cathedral, Snake Dike on Half Dome, Inverted Staircase on Fairview, Moby Grape on Cannon, Colores and Punsola Reniu in Spain,

Alpine: Challenger, Slesse, Inspiration, Sahale, Forbidden, a 20k scramble peak near Kangchenjunga.

 

Future highlights:

Hopefully more first ascents.

Bugaboos, desert towers, Red Rocks.

Climbing adventures with my kids.

[Alex]

1) Name 3 to 5 climbs that you have climbed.

 

Slesse NE Buttress

The summer of 1995 at Smith Rock

Triple Cs on the DTail prior to the Internet

Hyperspace

E Ridge of Wolfshead

 

2) Name 3 to 5 climbs that you could potentially climb but have not yet done so.

 

Beckey-Chouinard

E Ridge of Temple

Polar Circus

Nemesis

 

3) Name 3 to 5 climbs that you admire but will probably never climb for whatever reason.

 

Lotus Flower Tower

Grand Central Couloir on Kitchner

N Face of Temple

N Face of Robson

 

 

[YakCLimber78]

My List of Favorites and Wants and Never wills

 

1)Have Climbed:

Complete N Ridge of Stuart

Zebra-Zion

Cooper Spur

Exasperator

 

2)Want to Climb when I get my azz in shape:

NE Butt of Slesse

Lib Ridge

Go back to AK and finish Denali

 

3)Never Will (but want to):

Anything in the Himalaya

Anything in Antarctica

North face of The Eiger

 

[Jacob Smith]

"there is a simple reason why the same climbs show up on many lists on this thread. A person writing their list after reading the previous posts are affected by those previous posts. Those climbs get "remembered" while the slew of other great climbs are neglected."

 

I think there might be a little of that going with the constant repetition of the Beckey-Chouinard but I know I would have listed it anyways...

Your theory makes the most sense for the second category, which had the most repetitions. For the first I think people are just listing the climbs they are the most proud of (and apparently that means long alpine granite routes), and while the third would also be susceptible to suggestion, it had the least repetitions.

I think there might have been a phrasing issue though, a lot of people were thinking of it as "what will I never be able to climb" and not something really cool that you'll probably never do, which is where all the people listing grades comes in. Anyone could climb 5.12 if they really thought it would be cool to do so, but no matter how awesome I think Torre Egger is, there is next to no chance I'll ever get up it.