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stick233
Aug 5, 2003, 7:49 PM
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Anyone have an idea how the Granite Mountain ratings are? How do they compare to Yose ratings? I'm especially interested in Coatamundi Whiteout, a classic 5.9 on GM. Would you compare it to a Yose 5.8? Any beta on the route would be nice.
Thanks,
Rob
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crankenstein
Aug 5, 2003, 8:26 PM
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I stopped at Granite Mt. on a road trip about 15 years ago and all I remember is thinking that "This place is sandbagged". Sorry, I know that's not much help but that's my biggest memory of the place. I do remember thinking that it was a great crag though.
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fredbob
Aug 5, 2003, 8:50 PM
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In reply to: Anyone have an idea how the Granite Mountain ratings are? How do they compare to Yose ratings? I'm especially interested in Coatamundi Whiteout, a classic 5.9 on GM. Would you compare it to a Yose 5.8? Any beta on the route would be nice.
Coatamundi Whiteout would compare to most 9+/10a in Yosemite, but the climbing is different (no glacier polish) but steep and somewhat waterpolished. Quality granite, semi-remote locale, few other climbers if any, and ratings are real stiff for some routes. A really excellent climbing area. Bring a good assortment of gear.
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epic_ed
Aug 5, 2003, 9:04 PM
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I haven't climbed Coatmundi Whiteout -- so there's the first caveat -- but I have climbed several routes over on Swamp Slab. Most routes at Granite Mt. were put up by the old school guys; Jim Waugh, John Ficker, and some of the other Phoenix locals established some of the classics. My experience is that the routes are accurate for the era and ratings are comparable to what you would find in the McDowell's and Pinnacle Peak. In other words, they may feel sandbagged. I have heard others mention (John Ficker in particular) that they feel ratings in AZ granite crags are generally more stiff than routes of the same grade in Yosemite.
I lead a few pitches of a 5.6 climb at Granite Mt. and it was about the hardest 5.6 I've ever climbed. Compared to the 5.7 stuff on Royal Arches, Yosemite climbing was softer. Just my $.02. Hopefully someone who has climbed Coatmundi can chime in.
Ed
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stick233
Aug 5, 2003, 9:05 PM
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thanks fredbob,
i'll take a stronger climber just in case!! :lol:
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epic_ed
Aug 5, 2003, 9:10 PM
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Actually, PM this guy for more info:
http://www.rockclimbing.com/users/list.php?UserID=steelmonkey
Dude is a fountain of AZ climbing knowledge (author of Phoenix Rock II).
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stick233
Aug 5, 2003, 9:10 PM
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thanks to you to ed!
maybe curt will see this and have some input?!?! :?: :!: :?: :!:
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climbingpride
Aug 5, 2003, 9:25 PM
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Wow that really explains why i got my but whoped up on a 5.6 at Pinnalce Peac. And why i would never even try to lead the 5.9's at the mcdowells.
I met Jim Whaugh at PBC this year, and have seen him climbing at PRG and boy can he climb for someone not exactly in their "prime" age. I can't imagine what he was like when he was devleloping every other route in the state.
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epic_ed
Aug 5, 2003, 9:54 PM
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Bad assed. He still pulls .12s and put up some proud, bold stuff in the day. Including some rather stout aid lines on Baboquivari.
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crackaddict
Aug 20, 2003, 12:40 AM
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It would help to know what you climb in Yos.
I have heard people say that Granite Mtn runs about one rating harder than it is. So I guess that would be a sandbag. The ratings of the routes at GM did'nt bother me much at all. It will probably fell a little tougher than Yos. Though.
From what I remember Coat W-out was a good route.
The 5.8+ OW is one of the cruxes of the route. A big cam is nice there.
Someone said water polished in an earlier post. That would be a good description for this climb.
If you guys are fast or bail off. Routes on the Flying Butress are fun too. There are a ton of climbs to be had on the Swamp Slabs as well.
I have'nt done it yet but everyone tells me that Magnolia Thunder pu**y is one of the best routes there. I will be headed up to do it this fall. Let you know then.
Later.
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stick233
Aug 20, 2003, 4:33 PM
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Thanks addict,
been to yos once and lead after six with the after seven start and mini-roof finish (both 5.8 i think). it was reasonably bold for me as i am no trad power-house (yet)
finally got my 5 and 6 friend, so plenty of gear now...
t
thanks for the input
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crackaddict
Aug 21, 2003, 2:16 AM
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Hey Rob,
If you are not sure about how the ratings are for you. Do a couple of other routes that are easier first. This will help you get a feel for the ratings first. Try Dislocation Direct II 5.6, 4p. Or Classic II 5.7, 4p. Or anything on swap slabs. Theres a whole lot of fun multi pitch there.
Let me know if you need a partner. I would love climbing there again.
Chris.
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steelmonkey
Aug 22, 2003, 4:01 PM
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Howdy,
Rob, I PM'd you with some info. I don't log in here very often, so it took a while to see it.
Lets clear the discussion up a little. Coatimundi Whiteout is a 5.11 route and that move out the left side of the Great Roof is HAAAARD. My guess is what most of you are talking about is the Coatimundi-Candyland route that is four pitches (first two of Coati, second two of Candyland) and rated 5.9. This route has some challenging climbing on it. Couple of burly sections on that second pitch, pretty good head games making the traverse out left on the second pitch, the Great Roof pitch (rated 5.7) will get your attention in a few places despite it's 5.7 rating.
Granite Mountain retains it's traditional/conservative rating system. Some would say sandbagged, but a lot of those people are used to 5.10 being referred to as "moderate." Anything rated 5.10 is gonna feel just plain hard at GM. In general, most routes for a given grade are going to feel a bit harder than they would at most other areas (although the Steck-Salathe would fit right in there). I haven't done After Six or Seven, but I've climbed CS Concerto and Nutcracker on Manure Pile and they were both no big deal compared to some comparably rated routes I've done at Granite Mountain.
Routes to watch out for... Easy Chair...originally rated 5.8, last Waugh book rates it 5.9-. This route will feel like 5.10. Bleak Streak rated 5.8 in the last Waugh guide is a great route, but the first pitch crux is more like 5.10- or so and the protection is pretty much non-existent and you'll be looking at a 35 foot ground fall. I got a micro-nut in before going out on the traverse, but it was pretty much just mental pro.
Classic is a great route to start on. For a bit more challenge, start with the first pitch (5.7) of Reunion. This ends up at a good ledge with tree below the start of the second Crack Lover's variation pitch (finger crack straight up is 5.9-). Then finish to the top of the Flying Buttress via the regular Classic route. Take the High Exposure Exit (5.6+) to the top or for a lot more adventure, try the Beaver Cleaver (5.8+) exit (head games and surprisingly challenging). As the name implies...this is a Classic!
Magnolia (where did the "sissy" designation come from?) Thunder Pu**y is a great route as well. Varied and challenging climbing. First pitch is awesome, third pitch is wild and cool.
Let me know if you'd like more beta...I've done a lotta routes up there.
Hope this helps.
G.
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crackaddict
Aug 22, 2003, 10:27 PM
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In reply to: Magnolia (where did the "sissy" designation come from?) Thunder Pu**y is a great route as well. Varied and challenging climbing. First pitch is awesome, third pitch is wild and cool.
Whoa! That is a bunch of B.S.!
I never typed that!
I typed Thunder Pu**y in originally. And even when I go in to edit it, it is still typed that way. Who is the mod on here?
Hillary what gives? At least PM me and let me edit it.
*Censorship at RC at its finest*
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climblouisiana
Aug 22, 2003, 11:04 PM
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I've always wondered where the phrase Magnolia Thunder Pu$$y came from. I found this link on google.
http://www.magnoliapub.com/pub/history.html
I climbed the first pitch of that route several years ago and found it to be stiff 5.8. A 5.8 pitch that I climbed on the East Buttress of El Cap seemed about as stiff.
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epic_ed
Aug 22, 2003, 11:13 PM
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The word pu$$y automatically gets edited to "sissy" by the profanity nazi filter. It isn't intended to affect the names of real places, names, or routes. Just kinda happened that way. The auto filter is in place to make the censoring of profanity even-handed. This is one of the unintended consequences.
Told ya Greg would have a wealth of knowledge! Now if I can just sack up and lead some of that stuff.
Ed
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steelmonkey
Aug 23, 2003, 1:23 AM
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I love it. They edit route names... I guess this should be "pc.com" instead of "rc.com" huh? :D
Here's what I know about Magnolia Thunder PUS*SY...The route was named for a pub in Boulder (don't know if that pub was a relative of the one in the Haight or not...) and for the "unique flake formations of the third pitch." I've been up there a few times, and I think I'd have to drop a little acid to imagine anything on that third pitch to resemble labia or anything close. So there...hope nobody gets offended by that. :lol:
For what it's worth, I love some of the names Scott Baxter gave to his routes in the olde days.
G.
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crackaddict
Aug 23, 2003, 5:52 AM
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Thanks for clearing that up Ed.
Did'nt even know such a thing existed on here. Learn something new each day I guess.
Sorry Hillary!
Thought you were trying to screw with me or something.
"Are you threatening me?"
Dale and Steelmonkey-Thanks for the history. I knew of the 3rd pitch but I always wondered where that name came from.
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climbsomething
Aug 23, 2003, 7:56 AM
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In reply to: Sorry Hillary! Thought you were trying to screw with me or something. "Are you threatening me?"
I am the Great Climbholio! hehe! Don't make me pummel you with another pillow, man. My mod'ing gots nuthin' on my keen pillow-fight skillz :P
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steelmonkey
Aug 25, 2003, 3:13 PM
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Climbholio...that was a good one. :lol:
Huh...huh...huh...I need RP for my bunghole! :shock:
Ed wrote:
In reply to: Most routes at Granite Mt. were put up by the old school guys; Jim Waugh, John Ficker, and some of the other Phoenix locals established some of the classics.
Actually, a lot of routes at Granite Mountain were put up by even older hard dudes than Waugh and Ficker. Incredibly historic guys like Rusty Baillie, Scott Baxter, Karl Karlstrom, Tom Taber, Larry Treiber, Bill Sewery and the like. Kind of the Cro-magnons of Arizona climbing. These guys were harder than calculus back in the day and put up routes outside of Arizona that still get a lot of respect. Good example is the Dragon Route in the Black Canyon, climbed by Baillie, Lovejoy, Baxter and Karlstrom. If you want to sample what 5.10 felt like to these guys, you should get on Jump Back Jack Crack (Feb. '72) or Mindbender (April '72). Jump Back has only seen a bare handul of leads in the 31 years since it was put up. Bring yer big cams.
Waugh and Ficker were kind of in the second wave of hard climbers to climb on the Mountain. Surprisingly, Ficker, who was a prolific first ascentionist back then, is only listed on a single full route at Granite Mountain (the first free ascent of The Sorcerer with Waugh in 1981) and one variation. Waugh first appears in the record in 1978 when he and Stan Mish freed the Help Me Mr. Wizard flake on the Flying Buttress at 11+. He freed a few lines and did a few hard variations for the next couple years, but the thing that really got Waugh fired up was a visit to Granite Mountain by John Long and Lynn Hill in 1980. The practice of yo-yoing first ascents was going on in Yosemite at the time, but I'm pretty sure it went against the strict local ethics being followed at Granite Mountain. Hill set off across the Gunsmoke flake, placing gear. A few pieces out, she comes off and lowers back to the belay. Long ties in and fires the Traverse (slightly easier now because the gear is in place) for the first ascent. The same trip, they managed to free the third (crux) pitch of the Coatimundi Whiteout at 5.11-. This flicked a competitive switch in Waugh, and he set off on a quest to free as many routes as he could. This effort culminated with a free ascent of The Good, The Bad and The Ugly (5.12-) in June of '86 and his piece of resistance (pun completely intended), the free climb of the Nose route, which he renamed A Bridge Across Forever (5.13a) in August of '87.
So there...a little bit of the history as I know it. It is a magical place for me and I really hope that people who bother to hike all the way up there decide to spend more time enjoying the rock, the views, and the wonderful atmosphere of the place, rather than focusing so much on the ratings and whether or not they're "sandbagged".
G.
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crackaddict
Aug 25, 2003, 9:25 PM
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In reply to: Climbholio...that was a good one. :lol: Huh...huh...huh...I need RP for my bunghole! :shock: So there...a little bit of the history as I know it. It is a magical place for me and I really hope that people who bother to hike all the way up there decide to spend more time enjoying the rock, the views, and the wonderful atmosphere of the place, rather than focusing so much on the ratings and whether or not they're "sandbagged". G.
Bunghole! Bunghole! Bnghole!
That was a good read man.
I agree with what you say SM. The rock, the views, and the atmosphere are the key elements that make GM great. I did my first multipitch there and can still remember the exhilaration I had and high I was on. The routes ratings were nothing big, but the feelings that I had of that being one of the best days climbing with my friend will always stand out in my mind.
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steelmonkey
Aug 26, 2003, 2:08 PM
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Howdy again,
Just for the helluvit, I put a topo at the following address for the Coatimundi-Candyland Route. Couple of pictures of the first two pitches as well. I don't know how long I'll leave it out there, but a while... n'joy...
:arrow: http://www.steelmonkeyaz.com/Arizona/granitemtn.htm
G.
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epic_ed
Aug 27, 2003, 5:28 PM
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Greg, thanks for the history. I'm always fascinated by this kind of stuff, and the boldness and cajones of those pioneers always blows me away.
Ed
BTW -- nice topo.
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bigwalljunkie
Sep 11, 2003, 4:20 PM
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yeah i learned how to climb up on GM and have been to Yosemite tons..well i have to say that the ratings there are old school..so i would say that 5.9 there is more like 5.10...solid skills are needed there so be careful and have fun..
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agavero
Sep 15, 2003, 4:54 AM
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Been climbing the mountain for years and have never tried the whiteout exit. Indeed it is 5.11-5.12, though I think aid is always an option. You most definitely are referring to the candyland exit which is probably 10a layback over the deck. No pitches should be taken for granite...they are all stout. If you need a partner I would love to go. I live in Prescott so I can put you up as well. Be in touch. My favorite routes are Hasayampa and the Classic.
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