Cathedral Ledge/first multipitch leads....
pocosteve
I'm looking for beta on good first multipitch leads on Cathedral or
Whitehorse Ledges. I'll be in NH next month, and I've done some moderate
leading. I'm interested in cutting my teeth on multipitch stuff that's
easy(5.3-5.5) and well protected, with good(straightforward) belays.
Anyone have some fond memories or recommended routes up that way? Many
thanks-
poco
Travis
pocosteve <poco...@pop.prodigy.net> wrote in article
<33C99A...@pop.prodigy.net>...
There aren't a ton of climbs that are at the grades you've requested.
Probably one of the best multi-pitch climbs you can do at 5.5 on Cathedral
is Upper Refuse (a far better climb than it's name would imply). It starts
from the tree covered ledge which you can hike down to from the tourist
area on top of the cliff. Better yet- if you're feeling up to it, climb
Funhouse (5.7, decent protection) to the tree covered ledge and then up
Upper Refuse to the top.
Another great climb at a similar rating is Thin Air (5.6). Classic climb,
very fun. It does have a (well bolt protected) traverse on it, so if your
partner is very very inexperienced, you might want to do something else.
It's very do-able, though- guides bring new climbers up it all the time.
Childs Play (5.6) is a fun and safe climb down on the far right hand side
of the cliff. It's usualy only done as one pitch, however. The crux is
getting off of the ground :-).
If you are a beginning leader, I might suggest that you avoid Whitehorse
until you get a little more experience. Many of the routes are long (up to
9 pitches or so) and can have some fairly long runoutes and route finding
issues. 5.5 friction climbing can be a bit harder for the uninitiated than
5.5 crack or 5.5 face climbing. If you do go to Whitehorse, The Standard
Route (5.5) is probably one of the most reasonable as far as protection is
concerned. It is a long route which can be hot this time of year, so bring
plenty of water if you're new to multi-pitch climbing.
Best bet is to pick up a guidebook. I prefer Ed Webster's book, but if you
don't think you'll be climbing in North Conway very much you might save a
few bucks and buy Jerry Handren's book (RockFax).
Good luck and climb safe.
Travis
Gregory A Kriss
The first time I climbed Whitehorse was the day before I went in for a
hernia operation, the climb up was great but the hike/walk down was a
killer for me.. took more than an hour. Anyways we did the Standard
Route with a lot of variations making the route into an 11+ pitch
climb including some traversing and creative route finding. I forget
the grade but it seemed like easy friction with some moderate runouts.
Definitely take water... we didn't and when we got to the top were
hunting for blueberries just to get some hydration. I'd also suggest
that you play around with friction climbing at the bottom of
Whitehorse before starting up. It took me a little time to get used of
friction climbing, back here in Connecticut we're not blessed with the
superb friction climbs you'll find on Whitehorse.
IMHO
Greg
Steve Branam
pocosteve wrote:
> I'm looking for beta on good first multipitch leads on Cathedral or
> Whitehorse Ledges.
I definitely second the recommendations for lots of water. When we went
at the end of June, all four of us carried two quarts each. In the 7
hours it took us to climb up and hike back down, with lunch in the
middle, we drank everything we had. Then, after a quick dunk in a nearby
river, we headed to a convenience store and each had another one to two
quarts of liquid. The sun beats down on the rock the whole day, and then
the rock radiates all that stored energy back at you. The air temp was
92F the day we climbed. I expect the temp right on the rock was 10 to 15
degrees higher. Thank goodness we had gentle breezes most of the time.
Don't forget sunscreen!
--
Steve Branam Hub Products Engineering 508-486-6043
bra...@dechub.lkg.dec.com Digital Equipment Corporation DTN 226-6043