The Flatiron is a 500 ft cliff in the Superstition Mountains near Phoenix. While a tourist trail ascends up the backside to its summit, there are a series of multipitch climbs on its western aspect. We checked out two of these which others have rated highly. Both routes were decently fun. I could best describe them as "four star movement on two star rock."
Routes climbed:
| Name | Grade (YDS) | # Pitches | Quality (1-5) | Type |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Field of Dreams | 5.10+ | 5 | 3 | trad |
| Rio Del Mundo | 5.10+ | 4 | 3 | trad |
Peaks/Towers climbed
| Peak | Elevation | Topographic Prominence | Summit Coordinates (lat/lon) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Flatiron | 4,700 ft | 20 ft | 33.43759, -111.45411 |
Gear
- 70m rope
- cams: doubles .3 to 2, single 3, 4
- a few small to medium stoppers
- 12 alpine draws
Total Stats
6 miles
3,400 ft gain/loss
We approached by taking the tourist trail through Siphon Draw for about 2 miles, then cutting south along the base of the Flatiron. There wasn't a defined trail for this, but rather several discontinuous use-trails which crisscrossed in every direction.
We located the start of our first route, Field of Dreams, at the second chimney north (left) of the Flatiron's main western prow. A cold shut could be seen about 30 ft up this chimney.
view of both routes from the northwest
Field of Dreams (5.10c, 5 pitches)
Pitch 1 (5.10c, 150 ft)
I headed up the chimney, mostly clipping bolts. A fun and short section of stemming at a roof led to some easy climbing to a belay with bad bolts. I should've linked this into pitch 2. The rope drag was not bad at this point and we had ample rope left.
looking up pitch 1
Pitch 2 (5.4, 50 ft)
David made quick work of this, heading up and left on easy cracks to a bolted belay below a white band and dihedral.
pitch 2 belay spot, with the dihedral of pitch 3 above
Pitch 3 (5.9, 80 ft)
I traversed right to a crack and then left into the main dihedral. Some cracks led to an easy roof and the base of a steeper dihedral. From here I made a short reachy traverse left to the bolted belay.
David following pitch 3
Pitch 4 (5.10c, 160 ft)
This was the money pitch, with copious amounts of bolts. We traversed back right, then up the thin dihedral, making a variety of cool stemming and face climbing moves. David clipped the bolted anchor and linked into the following pitch.
David starting on pitch 5
Pitch 5 (5.4, 50 ft)
This was a short easy pitch to the top of the formation, with a gear belay just below the top.
summit of Flatiron
It was a nice warm cloudy day with no wind as we crested the top. After answering some questions from tourists who saw us pop up from seemingly out of nowhere, we took the trail north, down west, and bushwhacked south to the base of the formation, taking around 20 minutes to get back to the packs at the base of Field of Dreams.
We moved our stuff a few hundred feet north to the base of our next route below a large prominent right facing corner. A small dead tree and blocky crack system marked the start.
Rio Del Mundo (5.10+, 4 pitches)
The following pitch descriptions (in blue) are taken directly from Mountain Project, with my remarks below each one.
Pitch 1: There are two options for pitch one, a direct 5.7+ R, or a wandering 5.8. Option a: climb wandering cracks that start slightly right of large roof/ledge above, trending left toward large ledge below obvious roof. You will pass a yucca. This option is roughly 5.8, wandering, loose, and dirty but sufficient pro. 85 feet
Option b: Climb crack system directly below large ledge and subsequent roof directly above. Some dirty sections but more direct and fun than option a. Though runout in spots - 5.7+ R. 85 feet.
Pitch 1 ends on large ledge directly below roof. One bolt and many options to back up with pro
Option b: Climb crack system directly below large ledge and subsequent roof directly above. Some dirty sections but more direct and fun than option a. Though runout in spots - 5.7+ R. 85 feet.
Pitch 1 ends on large ledge directly below roof. One bolt and many options to back up with pro
This functioned as a mungey loose approach pitch, the gateway to the better goods above. We took option b, which was only runout on pretty easy terrain. Since there was still a lot of rope left, David linked this into pitch 2.
start of pitch 1
Pitch 2: Follow crack on right side of roof, pull roof on amazing hand jams, then continue up great climbing. Pass an anvil shaped rock, climbing on its left side - then to easier climbing but softer rock. Once above anvil, you can continue straight up on 5.8ish face/stemming to finish pitch or do airy step left to crack and finish pitch that way. Overall beautiful crack with a lot of nice hands and finger with great pro on mostly good rock. Ends on large ledge below intimidating overhung crack through roof, 2 pitons. 5.10a, 90 feet.
This was significantly higher quality than pitch 1. The cracks were fun, but by no means splitter. There were plenty of great gear placements though.
Pitch 3: This is the coveted pitch. 150 feet of beautiful and varied crack climbing - fairly consistent in difficulty. Climb up crack through bulge/roof. Left of crack is a rounded arete that has some loose rock, it will force you to depend on good crack technique (crux 5.10+), large and rattling fists. Continue up easier ground for a bit until you reach a strenuous but short chimney/offwidth (5.10b) - good pro below and above, as well as deep within. Your heart will be pumping as you pull though it, and continue up beautiful hand, fingers, and layback. You will pass a single bolt, which you can use in addition to gear in crack to create a semi-hanging belay. This is an option if you want to split up this pitch due to fatigue, 2nd thoughts, or you don't think you have enough gear to finish the pitch. That singe bolt is approximately 60 feet from top of pitch. The crack continues to ledge with large rocks and single bolt - good opportunities to back it up are close by. 5.10+, 150 feet.
Pitch 3: This is the coveted pitch. 150 feet of beautiful and varied crack climbing - fairly consistent in difficulty. Climb up crack through bulge/roof. Left of crack is a rounded arete that has some loose rock, it will force you to depend on good crack technique (crux 5.10+), large and rattling fists. Continue up easier ground for a bit until you reach a strenuous but short chimney/offwidth (5.10b) - good pro below and above, as well as deep within. Your heart will be pumping as you pull though it, and continue up beautiful hand, fingers, and layback. You will pass a single bolt, which you can use in addition to gear in crack to create a semi-hanging belay. This is an option if you want to split up this pitch due to fatigue, 2nd thoughts, or you don't think you have enough gear to finish the pitch. That singe bolt is approximately 60 feet from top of pitch. The crack continues to ledge with large rocks and single bolt - good opportunities to back it up are close by. 5.10+, 150 feet.
This was indeed a good pitch, the quality of which completely embodied the notion of "four star climbing on two star rock." The initial bulge was the crux, with some offwidth moves around the actual bulge. I briefly got my left hip stuck there before kicking out with the opposite leg to free it. The short chimney was also pretty fun, and I made sure to move all my gear to my right side to prevent more things from getting stuck.
looking up the initial bulge
David ascending the corner
Pitch 4: Directly above single bolt is a 35ft finger crack, take that, decent gear though some looseness/lichen on rock it is stellar climbing. Continue up intermittent cracks, following best pro, trending slightly right toward the top with fun finish. Most of this pitch has good rock and is surprising fun. 5.9, 105 feet. 2 bolt anchor above ledge.
The initial crack was fun, with rock quality decreasing immediately after. There were many ways to go as we trended right to the top. Gear options were sparse, but the climbing was easy by this point.
looking up pitch 4
We topped out to a persistent wind, a big contrast to our previous topout only a few hours earlier when it was warm and calm. We repeated the descent to the packs and then headed back down to the trailhead. There were several groups hiking up the mountain, some with overnight packs in preparation to see fireworks from the summit since it was new years eve. With the wind and oncoming rain, I did not envy them up there.
No comments:
Post a Comment