Head out left on the corner, clipping an old quarter incher at a cruxy section down low.  Continue up the shallow dihedral above.  The dihedral is not too hard, but the gear is poor and there is definitely a mandatory run-out in there.  The dihedral ends at a good ledge.  A good placement is available on top of the ledge (I placed a bomber tri-cam: pink or red).  After the ledge, pull the overlap, then climb 15 feet of steep face climbing to the tree belay.

Say Goodbye To Hollywood

Chestnut

Rumble in the Jungle

Yellow Latex Blues

Fun Park

Yorkey's Crumpet

Goldrush

Slot Right Step Left

Block Party

Moondance

Pine Box

Neve's Cling On

The Slot

Adam's Rib

Beyond The Abyss

Adagio

Sugar Mama

Tap Dancing

This is a classic case of a pretty line and a not very good climb. Uphill from

The Slot

and just below

Chestnut

, look for a cool looking, dark corner.

Climb this corner to a ledge just below where the corner looks blank. Here you make a decision. Traverse left to easier ground and use the

Chestnut

tree anchor to descend OR continue up the blank corner at about 5.9 R.

Think you can climb any 5.9 out there? Give this one a try (but it would probably be better to let your partner have it).

Look for a relatively short, right-facing corner uphill from

The Slot

a ways (not the black corner which is

Sugar Mama

but just uphill from there). Climb face up and past a piton to gain the corner. Gather your strength and courage, and try to pretend you are Royal Robbins. Continue up the corner using thin holds and smears with very little gear. If done today, I doubt people would have a problem with calling it 5.10b R, but in 1978 with not very good footwear, this was apparently 5.9.

The route has a hard crux at the beginning (V7) to 5.12-. Stick clip the first bolt. The left start is 5.12c, start in front of the anchor, go up and 1' above the first bolt traverse right, and connect with the original line.

Climb up the face on the right side of the wide arete.  Follow bolts up to the big ledge and belay from a 2 bolt anchor.  The starting moves are very bouldery and feel harder than 10- if you miss the sequence.   It is a great climb!

This was first put up and freed in 1995. Climb the first pitch of

Neve's Cling On

, 6b+ or 5.11a/b.

The second pitch is 7c+ or 5.13a. First move your belay left 5 meters. Climb gently overhanging ground on big holds. The crux is high up but short and sweet.

This is an excellent route! The climb shares a start with another good climb called The Bush.

Pitch 1: go up the wide crack first pitch of The Bush and belay. I can't remember if there are bolts there, but it is a rap station.

Pitch 2: continue up The Bush about halfway, then traverse 20 feet right with a good crack for pro/holds. Belay at an exposed ledge, turning a corner, using hand gear and something smaller. This has a great position with a semi-hanging belay.

Pitch 3: this beautiful pitch traverses an exposed ledge right to a perfect, left-facing corner. I remember the corner to be wide hands mostly.

This is as good as sport climbing gets in the Telluride area. Starting already one pitch off the deck, cast off from a ledge halfway up a beautiful, unyielding wall. Goldrush can be characterized as pure endurance climbing. From overhanging jug hauling low on the route, the grips get smaller, and the climb lessens in angle. A long crux of sidepulling and gastoning at the top is tiring, and the final moves to the anchor are quite testing to those who lack impeccable technique.

Note: sometimes you'll find a fixed rope in the way, wieghted by a rock. Move it aside (easy to do) and leave it alone. These ropes serve as protection to those who rope solo in this area for a workout. When you're done, make sure you leave the ropes as they were.

Begin as for

The Slot

, but instead of getting in the chimney, do as the title suggests, and step out onto the face. Steep face climbing with small and sometimes questionable pro leads up to a tree with slings and a vertically oriented chain anchor just to the right of the tree.

This is another great sport route!  Block Party starts on big jugs, which vanish completely beneath a smooth, vertical headwall.  The crux couldn't be more obvious.  Pull down on small crimps and try to find purchase for your feet, then trend up and right on broken ground.  This is a good route for those who boulder a lot.

Apparently, this route was boldly put up on gear by legends Henry Barber and Charlie Fowler; bolts were added later by Antoine Savelli.  The route is quite popular in its present condition.  For those craving a scarefest, the nearby route Pine Box (next climb to the left) should deliver, at 5.10+ R.

This was first put up and freed in 1995. For the first pitch, use

Goldrush

with a 6a or 5.10a move.

The second pitch is immediately right of

Goldrush

: 7a+ or 5.12b, it has classic fun and well-protected moves. It is a must do. It is as good as

Goldrush

.

This is a historic testpiece route that was put up by Henry Barber and was not repeated for about 10 years until Henry and Michael Kennedy did it again.

I heard that Henry was not a fan of cams and Michael did not use chalk. Henry said "we're not going to use cams, ok", and Michael said "ok, if you don't use chalk." Then they cruised the route.

While this route has not seen a ton of ascents, it is a great climb.

Start in the obvious corner to the left of

Block Party

, and climb the corner with small to no gear until the corner opens up to a finger crack. Then step right to a ledge where an old pin and stopper anchor are located. Pass it, and climb the obvious hand / fingers splitter off the ledge.

From the top of the splitter, people usually continue up blocky, loose terrain to the big anchor tree on the mirror wall approach ledge. Descend by going down the ramp to the left.

This route can be climbed to the tree in 1 pitch with a 70m rope. Otherwise, break it up however you like.

Climb the shallow, right-facing corner for 20 feet.  Undercling and sidepull your way up (10+) to gain a mantle above and left of the arete.   Power up the face with a hidden side pull and some crimps.  This has sustained climbing on quality rock.

This is the very obvious slot/chimney located in the middle of the east buttress.

Climb a short section of awkward face climbing to gain the chimney. Get in and fight your way to the top. The climbing is easier out near the mouth, but the gear is mostly in the back. Once on top, traverse left 20 feet to a tree with slings [to a vertically oriented chain anchor] to rap. You will be rapping over

Slot Right Step Left

.

Begin as for the slot, but just before entering the chimney, step right and make a couple tricky moves to gain the rib. Once on the rib, follow cracks and edges to the top.

Walk left to the anchor above

Slot Right Step Left

to descend.

The climb would be much better if the cracks weren't filled with dirt, weeds, and bushes.

This is the first hard route on the Ophir Wall, it has never been seconded. It was put up and freed in 1996.

First pitch: this has a 5a or 5.9 move.  It is an average pitch, bring pro or use first pitch of

Goldrush

, which is much better.

Second pitch: 8c/8c+ or 5.14d/15a. It has a very tricky sequence up high and is sustained for 6 meters. Otherwise, it is quite reasonable.

To find this climb, look for a large dead tree trunk at the base of the East Buttress on a ledge above the talus. Belay on this ledge.

The climb follows a right-facing corner up towards a small roof. Climb this corner, with difficult beginning moves, up to the small roof, skirt this on its right side and continue up cracks to easier ground above. A tree, up and left with slings on it, is the shortest option for ending the climb. Another option is to continue up to the top of cliff by following a crack up another short steep step. If taken to the top, 2 ropes or 2 rappels are needed to get down. Another option is to walk downhill (climber's right) to the 4th class descent.

The climb protects well with mostly small gear, but the cracks are discontinuous, so it isn't always available.

Tap Dancing has face climbing with a bouldery section and a big roof. Start directly below the big roofs, just to the right of the bushes/vegetation at the base. Climb some crumbly rock trending straight up and left to the crack/ledge system that leads up to the roofs. Climb the ledge system leading up to the left side of the obvious roof while clipping 4 bolts. At the roof, undercling traverse right to the biggest part of the roof, pull the roof, and trend back left on crimps/edges to the gully leading up to the anchor.

Description

Location

Protection

Routes in East Buttress