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Tower of Babel via Triple Exposure (5.4 C2 R)
Castle Rock, Douglas County via NE Ledges
Not really a trip report, not really a route page. Hopefully this is close enough to the right spot.March 8, 2013
Partner: Noah McKelvin
After
having our plans to head to the Fishers thwarted by snow, Noah and I
met in the Springs to climb Triple Exposure before the storm hit. We had
the pleasure of meeting Stewart Green and had fun chatting with him for
a bit. After the climb I stopped and hiked up Castle Rock on the way
home. Here are my notes on Triple Exposure...
Triple Exposure
...
Approach:
Easy as pie. Park at the main lot in the Garden and make the very short
hike to the base, jumping the fence on route. The route is obvious.
Route:
P1
- 5.4 C1 R - Start by free climbing up the easy steps on the right.
Work back left on small ledges and ascend up into a small constriction.
One awkward move puts you back on another small ledge that works back
right to the first fixed pin. Begin aiding up the steepening face on old
pins, over a small roof. Pass the old belay (not obvious) and move up
into a small crack using pins and small nuts to reach a beefy chain
anchor. The start of this pitch is completely unprotected and although
easy, a slip would be catastrophic. 130'
P2
- 5.4 C2 - Place a #4 to reach the first fixed pin. Follow the pins
as they traverse left and then move up a steep muddy seam with eroded
pins and gear. Pass another old belay (again not obvious), and make a
free move to reach the next pin. A reachy rightward traverse on more old
pins then leads straight up into the obvious notch above. A few feet of
free climbing puts you at the anchor in the notch. The pins on this
pitch are much more questionable than the ones on P1. Be prepared to
deal if one is missing. 120'
Scramble the few feet to the top.
Descent: Make 2 airy double rope rappels down the route.
Thoughts:
This is an excellent aid route to practice for trips to the desert. The
rock is soft and the fixed pieces are generally questionable. This
combined with the steepness of the climbing makes for a "larger than
life" experience.
Gear:
This can be done with a single set of cams 0.5-4 and a set of nuts.
Offsets could be useful but likely avoidable. Many draws for the large
number of fixed pieces and a few screamers provide piece of mind on the
sketchier pieces. We took 21 draws (including screamers) and used them
all on each pitch.
Topo
Start of P2
First fixed piece on P2.
Good thing there was some fixed cord. :/
Almost at the top.
Castle Rock
More photos here.
http://www.brianinthewild.com/tower-of- ... osure.html