Leavenworth Cragging 6.4.17

We slept in a little, packed up camp, and headed for Clamshell Cave. I’m in need of getting my lead head back and there are a couple routes there that I like to do. Unfortunately the Mountaineers had taken over the area with their class again (it happened to us a few weeks prior). At least this time they were only on the lower wall, so we went to the upper portion. Unfortunately the routes I wanted to do are at the lower wall. Aaron started by leading Clamshell Crack (5.7). After remembering where the holds were for the first few moves, he made quick progress. Gloria went next and cleaned it. Niki climbed it after her, and then Gloria went up one more time because she wanted to climb the exit again. I went last so I could move the rope over to another anchor. The beginning was challenging, as always, but there are some good holds on the right side to pull through that. The middle part of the climb is a low angled ramp which is always fun to figuratively run up. Then the top part gets a bit more challenging again. I hadn’t done the route in a few years and I was no more graceful with the exit either, maybe someday I’ll figure it out. I pulled the rope up and walked climber’s right to get to the anchor above Fourty-Four Fifty (5.9).

Clamshell Crack (5.7)

I set up an anchor and rappelled down. I wanted a break before climbing it so Gloria went first. She made it up the slab without any issue and tackled the next two challenging sections - pulling over the roof and stepping from the ledge into the crack. I went next and had fun climbing, more than I remembered. The challenging parts were challenging but in a fun way. I was able to lean from the ledge and get my hands in the crack which made stepping off the ledge a lot more comfortable. Aaron climbed it last and cleaned the anchor. We went down to the lower section but all of the routes were still busy so we left.

Forty-Four Fifty (5.9)

We decided to head to Mountaineers Wall since there are a couple easy routes there I could lead. I started on the Right Crack (5.4). It has a few more ledges to place gear from. I stopped about two-thirds of the way up, trying to figure out if I should take the crack up to my left or right. After consulting with Aaron on the ground he advised me to head up left. I think I could have gone right but it was a couple committing steps without gear that didn’t seem like a 5.4 to me. I headed up left, placed a few more pieces of gear, and then topped out. I was happy - the climb still challenged me a couple times but I stayed calm throughout it.

Right Crack (5.4)

I debated if I should do the Left Crack (5.6) as it faces more left so it’s harder to see to place gear. Aaron convinced me, and I’ve done it in the past so I figured I should give it a go. After figuring out how I wanted to start and where to place my first piece of gear, I started up. Gloria was my belayer and route cleaner for both climbs while Aaron acted as advisor/paparazzi. There aren’t many ledges, after the start, just the really nice horizontal crack about half way up. I placed a couple nuts and the rest cams. Both cracks were good for nut placements. I found a seam out wide for my left foot for one placement which was nice. I was able to stay calm again and got some crack climbing in. I think I’m getting a bit more comfortable with crack climbing now after my break. After I finished those two climbs we called it a short day and headed for milkshakes.

Left Crack (5.6)