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euroford
Feb 9, 2003, 6:41 AM
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on a spur of the moment, gear got packed and my buddy and i head off for a 'scouting' trip up to the refuge during that weekend of EXCELLENT weather a couple weeks ago.
well, needless to say, that place is ETS after so much time in the dallas low lands. i've found my second home, and it will now be a battle between working on the race car, flying to chicago to hang with my fiancee, or hanging out in the witchita's!!
so dang... whens the next nice weather weekend gunna roll around!!!!
what are the crowds going to be like up thier when we start having consistant weather? it was pretty dead up thier this trip. we could here nobody asside from the coyotee's from our dorris campsite near the lake.
so please fellow tx's and ok's. lets here the good beta
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rodeomountain
Feb 10, 2003, 8:12 PM
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I'm not a 100% sure but I don't see how it can get too crowded there. There is enough rock out there that if you have too many people around you, you can just move somewhere else.
That place is nice though. I've been wanting to go camping out there and climb all weekend, instead of these day trips, but I think I'm going to wait until it warms up a bit, cause my sleeping bag SUCKS!
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calamity_chk
Feb 11, 2003, 4:18 AM
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my experience has been that the narrows and mt scott fill up quickly in nice weather. lost dome has been busy at times, but also incredibly peaceful.
i'm not the expert by any means, though ..
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euroford
Feb 11, 2003, 4:28 AM
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hmmm... i'm thining about making it back up thier again next weekend.
the temps look okay (50's) but they are calling for showers. will just have to see what develops.
you sir, need to invest in a better bag! i couldn't imagine heading up thier and not staying the night. camping out on a saturday night just seams like part of the joy if you ask me!!
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camhead
Feb 11, 2003, 4:39 AM
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I got out thhere a couple weeks ago as well. a great place, and probably the closest thing to a true wilderness experience that we will find within a day's drive of dallas. clymbr_chk and I get out there pretty frequently; we'll have to meet up there sometime, euroford.
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rodeomountain
Feb 11, 2003, 1:25 PM
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Quote:you sir, need to invest in a better bag!
Agreed, but 1 thing at a time. A trad rack comes first!
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pushfurther
Feb 11, 2003, 1:30 PM
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be warned, camhead will curse and swear at the rock and his pro..
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chuckd278
Feb 11, 2003, 2:03 PM
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It gets crowded in the Narrows, Mt. Scott, and the closer climbs in the gardens on the weekends. On the weekdays the place is yours. If you don't mind a 45 minute to an hour hike back in the gardens you can get to some areas that only get visited 3 or 4 times a year and are excellent if you like slabs. Drive an hour more and you can be at Quartz. Great rock and not so many people.
Chuck
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euroford
Feb 12, 2003, 4:39 AM
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i certainly can't blame him for cursing the rock and pro!! seams like a perfectly logical thing to do if you ask me.
well, i have to understand about your hardware vs. sleepware situation. i just got back from rei with my new guidbook, and dang do i ever need a rack as well!
well, we are heading up again this weekend. not really planning on climbing (note mention of lacking rack above!), but the guidbook is in hand. we'll be hikeing and performing reconesince. time to start making some notes and figuring what has to get climbed this summer.
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rodeomountain
Feb 12, 2003, 3:46 PM
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Boulder my friend, cause there's plenty of that out there and it will fulfill your need until you get a rack.
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rodeomountain
Feb 12, 2003, 4:21 PM
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euroford, have you been to Austin yet? I'm going to be heading down there March 7th, climbing SaturDAY & SunDAY and drinking cold beer Friday night and Saturday night. You want to go? I need a steady partner to climb with. I climb with my brother in Austin but he only climbs when I get down there, so we progress void.
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euroford
Feb 12, 2003, 6:54 PM
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well yes i'll obviously do some boldering! bouldering isn't the kind of thing that i get too excited about, but yeah, you put a boulder in front of me, then i'm going to climb it!!! haha
i definitly make it down to austin from time to time. march 7th sounds like a pretty good possability. you have a decent place to crash/camp??
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euroford
Feb 12, 2003, 8:21 PM
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as i'm thinking about my friday night REI gear trip (man do i ever need a coffee pot for my little primus stove!!) prior to heading up on saturday. What do yall suggest to have in my quiver if we decide to set up a top-rope? i keep the standard webbing, cordolettes and lockers around, but if you know something i may not anticpate i would love the beta!
thanks!
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hugepedro
Feb 12, 2003, 8:45 PM
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If you can sneak out of work early on a Friday you can usually get in a few good hours on Mt. Scott. I often find it nearly deserted on Friday afternoons. In the busy season you need to arrive up there by 3pm anyways just to get a decent camp site at Doris.
On Saturday, when everyone is in the Narrows, a hike into Charron Gardens is in order. Or, the Meadows are usually not too busy (not very many routes there though).
I think Sunday is the best weekend day to get into the narrows.
I haven't been to the Refuge in a while though, been spending most of my time at Quartz. Next time at the Refuge I want to check out Echo Dome (it's not in the book FYI).
I'll probably head to Quartz again weekend after this. Maybe I'll post something here and see if anyone wants to get a little group together.
Peter
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hugepedro
Feb 12, 2003, 8:56 PM
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Quote:
What do yall suggest to have in my quiver if we decide to set up a top-rope? i keep the standard webbing, cordolettes and lockers around, but if you know something i may not anticpate i would love the beta!
It depends on where you want to climb. If you can be more specific, so can I.
Generally, a few medium cams and hexes will work for a lot of stuff. Like, Camalot #2-#3.5 and BD hexes #7-#9. But some anchors can require a bit smaller pro. (Again, I can get more specific if you tell me what area you're looking at climbing, or tell me what ratings you want to climb and I could suggest something). Take some extra long slings (like a couple pair of 10 footers). Some boulders can be slung for anchors, and you'll need to extend your powerpoint over a ledge in some cases.
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euroford
Feb 12, 2003, 9:48 PM
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welp, i guess that rack is becoming more important each time i post
oh well, i'm always up for excuses to purchase more toys! as i've said, the most important aspect of this weekends trip is scopeing things out and decideding what i want to climb. probobly in the 5.7-5.9 range for this season.
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calamity_chk
Feb 12, 2003, 10:03 PM
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Quote:
be warned, camhead will curse and swear at the rock and his pro..
yeah, nothing worse than a potty-mouthed climber
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hugepedro
Feb 12, 2003, 10:50 PM
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Tim,
Gotta run now, but I'll try to make time to post some info tomorrow on 5.7-5.9 stuff and the gear you'll need for anchors.
Peter
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hugepedro
Feb 12, 2003, 10:58 PM
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Quote:
be warned, camhead will curse and swear at the rock and his pro.
Quote:
yeah, nothing worse than a potty-mouthed climber
Yeah, one of my new partners is like that, always yelling at the rock. It can be entertaining some times. Maybe I should hook her up with Camhead, then we can just sit back and enjoy the histrionics.
(I ain't sayin' I'm not potty-mouthed, just don't yell it, well, not too often anyway.)
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rodeomountain
Feb 13, 2003, 1:32 PM
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Quote:march 7th sounds like a pretty good possability. you have a decent place to crash/camp??
My brother lives in Austin. It's either the floor or the couch. Just let me know if your going, before that Friday, cause I usually leave Dallas around 2:30 on that Friday, so I can beat all the BS traffic.
Quote:be warned, camhead will curse and swear at the rock and his pro..
Me to, but only when climbing cracks........ Weird huh?
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hugepedro
Feb 13, 2003, 4:48 PM
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Tim,
Here’s that beta I promised.
I’ve also included some 5.6s that I think are enjoyable, and since they’re usually right next to the other climbs you might as well do them too.
Upper Mt. Scott – Left Side
You have to find your way down (scramble) to the big ledge at the top of these routes. The wall at the back of the big ledge has some nice cracks that take medium cams and hexes. The crack above Foolish has a perfect #8 BD hex placement near the bottom where the crack constricts, fire in a couple more cams above that (#2 & #3 Camalot, or #7 & #8 Metolius will work) and your good to go. You can climb Foolish and Arm Bar from this anchor. There’s another crack just to the left that will take the same size cams as an anchor for The Sleeper. There’s a big boulder at the top of Foolish Behavior that you can sling with a couple long ones (like 10 footers) then extend over the edge with a couple more long ones. This anchor will also work for Top Rope Route just in case you want to spend some time thrashing on something harder.
5.7 The Sleeper
5.6 Arm Bar
5.7 Foolish
5.9 Foolish behavior
5.11c Top Rope Route
Lower Mt. Scott
As you walk down the short trail you’ll be approaching the top of the cliff from above. The trail to the bottom goes down to your left around that end of the cliff line, but don’t take that trail yet. Just keep walking straight until to get to the top of the cliff. Look around, if your in the right place you’ll see the bolts at the top of High Anxiety. They are set back away from the edge and easy to get to from the top.
5.7 High Anxiety (2 bolt anchor, extend with long slings)
5.6 Birthday boy (sling blocks at the top for an anchor)
The Meadows – Thunderdome Wall
There aren’t many routes, but it’s a short hike, easy to get to, and easy to get to the 2 bolt anchor on top of Taco Time. When you find the wall walk around to the right to find the trail to the top that goes up the back side. Be careful when your setting your anchor, the bolts are right on the edge, there’s a little loose gravel there, and a fall is possible. You can climb Interceptor off the same anchor. You’ll have a bit of a pendulum but there’s nothing that you’ll slam into if you do fall. Taco Time also makes a good first-time sport lead. It’s one of the tougher 5.6s in the Wichitas, the crux being the last move to the anchor.
5.6 Taco Time
5.7 Interceptor
The Narrows - Left Leaning Tower
When the Zoo wall is crowded you can often find free routes on Leaning Tower. The easier routes on the left side can be top roped. You’ll want to take the “high road” (the trail that runs along the top of the West side of the canyon) to get to the top of the climbs. As your hiking into the Narrows you’ll cross Cache Creek then crest a hill. Between that hill and the next one (the last hill before the trail drops down into the canyon) you will cross a small, boulder-strewn drainage. Turn right and start heading up here and you should pick up the faint “high road” trail. It’s easier to find the top of the climbs you want if you’ve already been down in the canyon and located them from below, so you might want to take that scouting trip first. There are big boulders at the top of these climbs that will take medium cams and hexes around their bases. You might also be able to sling them but they are pretty big and I couldn’t tell you exactly how much sling you’d need. To tope rope these, lower down, belaying from the top (some of the climbs are too long to top rope with a single rope while belaying from the bottom). Of course, make sure no one is below you leading before you lower down. On the Y and Aerosmith you can really only tope rope the upper 2/3s of the climbs because of the line of the climbs and some overhangs that make it impractical.
5.6 Tight Rope
5.6 No Name
5.7 Second Hand
5.7 The Y
5.7 Aerosmith
The Narrows – Left Zoo Wall
The top of Left Zoo Wall can be approached from above via the “high road”, and you can also scramble to the top from the base (scramble is to the left of the wall as you’re facing it). To get to the base to go to the base of Middle Zoo Wall then scramble up through the hole you’ll find there. I think creating anchors here can be a little tricky if your not real solid in your anchor craft, so take care and use judgment regarding your anchor skills. There’s a block at the top of Sundown Dihedral you can sling and use for both that route and Fantasy Roof. The block looks a bit detached and smallish for my comfort, so I back it up with a couple small TCUs in the vertical crack of the very large boulder. You can see the boulder and crack I’m talking about in the picture in Chuck Lohn’s book – it’s the big boulder that the people are standing next to. You might also find some other stuff to sling, so take a look around. No Stone Unturned is a little more complicated. Smaller cams (like Metolius #2-#4) can be used in a very shallow horizontal crack 10-15 feet back from the cliff. You can also get some stuff like pink and/or red tricams in some small cracks closer to the edge of the cliff, but I didn’t think that rock was solid enough to use on it’s own.
5.9 No Stone Unturned
5.8 Fantasy Roof
5.8 Sundown Dihedral
The Narrows – Middle Zoo Wall
There are several routes that can be top roped from the Crazy Alice rap station (2 bolt anchor). However, there is a high concentration of popular routes here and that anchor can be a bottleneck if there are more than a few people there, so use your judgment and be considerate. You don’t want to tie up that anchor if other climbers need it to rap off their climbs. You can build an anchor in cracks to the left of the rap station on top of The Dihedral using medium cams.
5.6 The Dihedral
5.9 Squeeze Play
5.8 Crazy Alice
A word of caution about the Wichitas - respect them. You can get yourself in trouble if you’re not careful. I tried to steer you toward climbs that have pretty good (and straight forward) pro available for anchors, but you still need to have fairly solid anchor building skills and be knowledgeable enough to safely apply a little creativity in your anchor construction. Sometimes just finding your way to the climbs and the scrambling involved can be dangerous enough on its own. You’ll be able to get in a greater quantity of climbs and you’ll be safer if you go with someone who knows their way around that place. You’re welcome to tag along with me sometime. I’ll be going a lot over the next few months and I’ll probably post something here when I go. I won’t be heading up this weekend, but I most likely will the next weekend.
Cheers,
Peter
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euroford
Feb 16, 2003, 9:03 PM
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welp. just got back from the 'tas again. another GREAT trip. as was specified earlier, i did not do any climbing, but i had a GREAT time hiking around to the diffrent spots with pete's beta in hand.
pete, i must publicly thank you for the EXCELLENT post. it was everything i wanted to know and more, i'm now armed with the knowedge i need to have an excellent climbing trip.
on a side note, man it was freaking COLD up der!! i give a serious thumbs up to my new mountain hardware jacket. it turned a possable shiver fest into a chilly but highly enjoyable weekend.
i must now sighn off, and make a b-line for the shower. ode de campfire is getting to be a bit much.
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