First Multipitch

[shaggy125]

Just thought I would throw up a quick TR from today Although this won't be a big deal to anyone but me. My buddy and I climbed our first multi-pitch climb ever and wow, it was super cool. It was a fully bolted route up Maple Canyon but was a great intro into more advanced climbing... now I just need to learn how to place trad gear. I didn't take my camera up since it was just the two of us and it's too much of a pain to take pics when you are worrying about belaying and sorting gear so sorry. I can add a link to someone else's pics along with beta for the route:

http://greatbasinseeds.com/shop/media/pdf/exitwound.pdf

Basically the first pitch was 90 feet to a wide ledge with a 4 foot wide gap dropping 15-20 feet between the ledge and the next wall. You have your buddy put you on belay then do a wide airy stem out to the next clip, clip your draw and then clip the rope and breath a sigh of relief, it's a pretty fun move, then it's a short climb to a third ledge and the final crux pitch to the top. We pretty much read a book on how to belay on each pitch, practiced it a bit beforehand and then decided if we ever didn't feel safe we'd turn around and go back, but things went really smooth, I always felt both of us would be good to go even if one of us took a big fall, and we both climb pretty comfortably on 5.9's (the routes grade, although I'd probably call the third pitch 5.9+). Super fun route mainly because of the wide stem move at the beginning of the second pitch. Very cool stuff.

[Cirrus2000]

Cool - congrats on the multi-pitch! Looks like a very cool climb! It's a whole different concept, knowing that you can link pitches, and make it to the top of something. Combine that with some trad experience, and it's great to head for some peak somewhere, and know you can get to the top, just you, your partner, harness, rope and rack.

I think I did one or two 2-pitch climbs before launching on a 6-7 pitch 5.7 trad climb with a friend - Diedre, a real Squamish moderate classic. (Fortunately, there were bolted belay stations most of the way up.) Two beautiful pitches of laybacking up a really sweet corner system... Ah, good memories.

[jumar]

Awesome!

[csc0321]

Very cool Shaggy. I hope to get a multi-pitch under my belt before winter. That sounds like a really fun one. Thanks for the TR

[trackrunner]

Very cool Shaggy. I hope to get a multi-pitch under my belt before winter. That sounds like a really fun one. Thanks for the TR

I know it does sound like fun, hope to do the same. Sadly I haven't done much climbing this year. Hope to get out soon

[denaliguide]

awesome! multi-pitch routes are so fun. i would rather spend more time climbing and less time coiling my ropes after every single pitch climb.

if you want to try your hand at multi trad routes you need to go to redrocks near vegas. heaps of easy long routes. cat in the hat is like 6 pitches and only 5.6, frogland is 6 or 7 pitches of 5.8, rainbow wall 11 pitches 5.8 and thats only like 2 moves, black dagger 5.7 for 5 or 6 pitches. and lots more. not to mention the classic crimson chrisalysis (sp) 5.9 for 5 or 6 pitches. great place to learn how to place pro and good rock. i love this place. of course theres also yosemite. way too much to mention there. bit longer drive too.

have fun and be careful.

[millsclimber]

Very cool shaggy. Multi-pitch climbs are great. Just keep an eye on your belayer. Kicked mine in the face once on a fall in a free hanging belay...not pretty

That's a cool looking route though. congrats.

Austin