Another fun adventure route on the Western Spaces Wall. Western Spaces is one of the shortest routes on the wall and set up for rapping although you could top out after another pitch or so and do the walk off. Like some of the other routes on this wall, the rock quality varies and the climbing always keeps you engaged. 

  Pitch 1. 10- (120') From the left end of the ledge, climb up a right facing corner, escaping the corner to the left before the corner turns right. Climb upwards and slightly left to an obvious bolted anchor. One old, but fairly good looking bolt, protects some fun climbing on brittle flakes on this pitch. 

  Pitch 2. 10 (130') Diagonal right across the face passing a bolt to reach a shallow corner crack. Fun climbing up this for 20 or so feet then leads to more diagonal climbing (left this time) to the visible anchors. This pitch wanders a bit. 

  Pitch 3. 9 (120') Climb straight up the face and cracks angling right some. You have options on how you reach the next anchor, which is to the right and at a shallow left facing corner. The anchor is made up of four nuts. 

  Pitch 4. 11- (120') Climb the obvious crack passing a bolt and gingerly pulling the sporty crux on less than confidence inspiring flakes. Eventually you reach the last bolted belay and rappel anchor. 

  Rappel the route with two 60 meter ropes. Pitch length were estimates and I don't think a 70 would get you all the way down. 

  The Brock and Swain guides have a decent topo for this route.

Western Spaces

The Breathing Stone

Tranquility Base

Circus Act

Black Sun

Mr. Natural of the Desert

Git From Here You Dogs

Desert Solitude

P1. Start under the right side of the arch, climb past two bolts to the left facing dihedral, follow to a bolted belay at the center of the arch, 150',5.10b   P2. Aid out the roof past a bolt then straight up to a bolted beley on a small ledge, 50', A0, 5.8   P3. Two lead bolts, unfinished, 50', 5.8

A couple of hundred meters up canyon from the Black Velvet wall is the wall with this route. It is marked by a 50-60 foot across arching roof which sticks out 6-10'.Pitch 1: Climb the right side of a small pillar to a bolt (5.9) and then up the face above passing a total of 5 bolts (5.10a) till just below the left end of the roof. Place cams and surmount the roof (5.11a)to a sling belay at two bolts.Pitch 2: Straight up to a fp then up and right (2 bolts)to a ramp. Back left and up (5.9+ one more bolt) to a ramp/dihedral and belay at the dihedral's top (top of a small pillar) at two bolts.Pitch 3: Climb face up past 6 bolts (5.10-), veer left (staying away from loose stuff up and right) and up passing three more bolts (5.11/12) to a stance with 3 bolts.Pitch 4: Climb a crack on the headwall above passing one bolt (5.10b natural pro) to a sling belay.Pitch 5: Continue up the crack (5.10b) and head out right passing a bolt and two discontinuous cracks to a left facing dihedral(5.10a). Take the dihedral to the top and belay.Pitch 6: Climb the crack straight above passing two roofs and a wide section (5.10b).Pitch 7:Climb a short pitch up a right facing dihedral and belay on a ledge at the base of a 4th class gully.Pitch 8: Up the gully, out a ramp to the right (5th class) and the top.Descend gullys to the right with raps and downclimbing.

Caveat: This is not an accurate description of the first ascent route. We (I) led us off route on the third pitch, and we had to add a traversing pitch in order to get back on route. If anyone makes the same mistake, this is an appropriate correction. If anyone climbs the route proper, feel free to augment our information. 

  Also, the Handren description is very inaccurate. Grades seem to be correct, but pitch lengths are way off. 

  This rock on this route prevents me giving more stars. You should only climb this route of you are comfortable at the grade, and are familiar with the more friable sandstone found in Red Rock. 

  Approach as for Western Spaces Wall. This involves climbing up fixed ropes, and quite a bit of chimneying. Arrive at the base of the climb after the last chimney. The first bolt of the first pitch should be apparent ca. 10 ft above. 

  Pitch 1, 140' (10cR) Climb past the first bolt, performing a sporty move that leads to a crack that runs up and slightly left. Climb to a second bolt, and up to a left-facing corner. climb the corner or arete a while to a a bolt below a roof. Traverse left, and maneuver above the roof, climbing up and slightly right to a two-bolt anchor. 

  Pitch 2, 120' (7+) Climb up and right past lichen-covered rock and gain a crack/corner system that leads slightly right and up. Climb to a fixed gear anchor that includes a couple of nuts and hexes. 

  Pitch 3, 140' (10b/cR) Climb up and right past a bolt, and face climb up to a ledge past runout flakes. Climb up to a ledge and clip a bolt up high. Climb past the bolt and follow a crack up and left to a ledge with a large pine tree and a couple of smaller trees. Belay off of the pine. NOTE: This is the pitch that we got off route. The correct belay is where the crack branches, but this was not apparent at the time. The next pitch describes how to get back on route. 

  Pitch 4, 120' (8R) Move onto the face of the buttress to the right. Climb up until you can get decent gear, and traverse right at the top of the formation. The rock here is very soft and unconsolidated, so caution must be taken. Belay in a right-facing corner at a small stance.  

  Pitch 5, 160' (10cR) Move up the right-facing corner. Pass 3 bolts and belay in a crack below a roof.  

  Pitch 6, 190' (10aR) Move up and over the left side of the roof, and continue straight past crack and face. Belay on a huge block at the base of a face. 

  Pitch 7, 190' (9) Climb up the face a short while until you reach a crack. Follow the crack up and slightly right to a low angle bowl/chimney, and belay at a stance below another obvious low-angle chimney. 

  Pitch 8, 100' (6) Climb up the low angle chimney to the top of the formation, crossing over a gap to the right to reach the final ledge.  

  Scramble down and skier's right to a tree with slings. Make 4 double rope raps to the top of the gulley, trending down and skier's right. Traverse right across the south-facing slab and follow a fixed rope path to reach the beginning of the route. Protection Full rack to BD#4 with a few doubles in the .5-2" range. Ballnuts were helpful, albeit not crucial, in a couple of places. The bolts on the route are in generally good shape.

Climb the first pitch of Breathing Stone to a small ledge near the top of the water streak, from the right edge make a 5.12ish move or pendulum from a bolt to the base of the shallow dihedral, follow to the belay of Git From Here You Dogs at the top of the arch.

Overall, this is a fun route with some good pitches. A few probably a really bad idea to fall right now moments in 9-10a territory keep this from being a route I wholeheartedly recommend. You want to be solid at adventure climbing and plan on topping out. Bailing after the first pitch will cost you some gear.  

  Pitch 1, 110' (10c) Climb a right facing corner (the left most) up to where the corner turns to the right. Youll diagonal left across the face and three bolts and gear and finally up to the base of a shallow and thin corner. Bolted anchor. 

  Pitch 2, 100' (10) All the guidebooks gave this pitch a 10a. Climb straight up the thin seem (wires) to a really fun finger crack with interesting and memorable climbing. Continue up to a bolt and look up at an impressive slightly overhanging headwall with a couple of thin cracks. Take a deep breath and traverse diagonally right underneath this headwall and across the face to a thin crack leading straight up to the base of the chimney of pitch 3. Gear anchor (bigger pieces BD #3/#4).    

  Pitch 3, 100' (9) Up the chimney eventually making a slight jog to the right before continuing up and taking the left of two cracks. Gear anchor. The guidebooks end the pitch here saying that it ends below a roof. We found that not to be the case and there was another pitch before the roof.  

  Pitch 4, 90' (9) Climb straight up a finger crack with plenty of face holds to belay below a roof. Gear anchor. You could combine 3 & 4, I believe. Combined, it would be a long pitch and not 90'.  

  Pitch 5, 180' (10) The rock quality below the roof sucks. The roof spans a horizontal distance of at least 30 and is of good rock. Pick the line of least resistance (or most fun) and go at it keeping in mind that your gear probably sucks. The difficulties subside quickly and you diagonal right to the big corner climbing fun huecos for as long as you can. Gear anchor at the base of a chimney.   

  Pitch 6, 70-80' (6) Up the chimney to an obvious exit and the top.  

  The first two pitches are really fun, good, with memorable movement. Rock quality on parts of 3 and 4 and the initial section of 5 make this a heady undertaking.  

We were lured back there by Handren's "finest finger crack" comment.. Unfortunately, (hindsight being a bitch) we only brought finger sized gear!  The first half is a 5 inch corner crack and the roof really calls for another big piece.  We bailed halfway up on a yellow metolius.

Beginning with an involved approach leading to some classic and some not so classic but interesting pitches, and a descent that could have you wading in water up to your head, this route is a full day of adventure.  

  Pitch 1, 150' (10b) From the bolt anchoring the fixed line on the approach ramp, head up the obvious face and flakes past two bolts trending left past the weakness in the roof to a ledge. Climb the face to the crack leading to the right facing corner. Up the corner to a ledge and a bolted anchor. 

  Pitch 2, 150' (10a) Directly off the belay ledge head around the corner to the left to a black face. Fun face climbing leads past two bolts straight up, trending first to the left then to the right then straight up to another bolted anchor. 

  Pitch 3, 80' (10c) Climb up and right past two bolts (wild and fun face climbing) to a broken corner then right to a thin fingers lie back. Climb this to pedestal and belay at the base of a beautiful corner. #1 & #2 BD for belay. 

  Pitch 4, 140' (10) Climb up the nice hand crack in the corner and don't be tempted to move right until after you see a crack that passes a small roof and a couple of mandatory bushes. This crack will curve to the right at the top and around a corner to a ledge and a belay (gear).  

  Pitch 5, 90' (10a) Upwards and onwards following the crack to a ledge to the right of a large alcove (gear). 

  Pitch 6, 80' (9) Head up this big feature the best way you can reaching for the 6"-10" crack on the right side of the roof. Good gear opportunities exist and there is no need for really big pieces here. Past this there is a great slanting ledge and another belay (gear). 

  Pitch 7, 160+' (9) There are two possibilities here. Handren guide says the right crack is 5.8 and eventually trends left and joins the left crack. We climbed this first but I down climbed after 30 feet or so. gear was crappy and the holds were less than inspiring. The crack on the left went well enough and could be surprisingly well protected. Stay in the crack trending left. 

  You're heading for a steep gully that eventually leads to the top in another pitch or so.  

  The first four pitches are fun and on mostly good rock. The pitches after that deteriorate and hence the 2 stars instead of more. The first four pitches alone would be 3 stars or more. Enjoy!!!! 

This magnificent varnished wall could be considered the western continuation of the Black Velvet Wall.  The approach is rather more involved, of course, and this seems to have limited its popularity.

Description

Location

Protection

Routes in Western Spaces Wall