More Climbing at Red Rocks, NV
May 21-24, 1999
Participants:
Mike
Sullivan and Andy Grieder
I think this is about the
4th write-up of Red Rocks in the archive, so I’ll keep it pretty brief.
The main development is that the Oak Creek campground has been closed,
and replaced by a much larger facility just east of the park entrance.
It is off the highway, but lacks the ambiance of Mt. Wilson, joshua
trees, and musical burros that the old campground had. By the way,
camping is not officially allowed at Black Velvet Canyon, but bivying
is. The BLM rangers don’t seem to be very clear on how they define one
or the other. The upshot is that you can almost certainly get away with
low-key car camping at the BV trailhead if you want to.
Also, the Urioste guidebook
Climbing at The Red Rocks is now back in print, and contains lots of
great info on the long moderate trad climbs that are omitted in the
bolt-clippers-special Red Rocks Select.
During our brief stay (Andy has
a real job, see…) we were weathered out of a try at Crimson Chrysalis, but did
manage to climb the following routes. They were all chosen in part due to their
shady exposure to mitigate temperatures that reached the low 90’s.
Dark Shadows, (5.8-) 3
pitches, followed by parts of the Chasing Shadows (5.8+ PG) and Edge
Dressing (5.10) variations. There’s also a nice 5.10 toprope from the
first-pitch chain anchors of Dark Shadows.
Sensuous Mortician
(5.9). A climb that’s as great as the name! Also did Hop Route (5.7+) and
Fold-Out (5.8) at the same area in Icebox Canyon. All three climbs are 1
pitch.
Dream of Wild Turkeys
(5.10a) Bailed from top of 5th pitch because of my whimpering toes…
Refried Brains (5.9)
Varied techniques, enjoyable, and sustained. Our game was called after 2 pitches
on account of darkness.
On our final day, we did some
sport climbing at Mass Production Wall. It has a great view, and a nice
selection of moderate routes. We did a 5.8, two 5.9, one 10a, and two 10c
climbs. Beware that one of the 9’s is currently missing a bolt. The left-hand
10c works through a juggy roof at the top, and is highly recommended if you are
at least 5’11” tall.
