Standing at the base of

The Example

look up canyon toward Cripple Creek until the cliff turns out of sight.  The prominent, overhanging prow just to the right of the large corner that is above the large block on the hillside is your target.  The buttress holds three routes, Deeper Shade of Soul being the left most route; tackling the prow with Metolius hangers.

Trundle up 3 bolts to enter the crux, working through a big cross through, sloper and two monos (the left hand one is enhanced) ending on a large, flat edge.  From here it is 4 bolts and mid .12 to the anchor but remains sustained.  The crux has sent many people away with sore fingers and bruised egos and it is not unknown to fail while pulling to the anchors. Variously described as a pile (mainly from the bruised ego folks) to quite a good route, Deeper Shade of Soul, will test your pocket pulling abilities and endurance.

If you dig this then go for the Triple Crown -

My Generation

,

The Example

, and Deeper Shade of Soul all in one day and hanging all the draws.

Deeper Shade Of Soul

The Ejection Seat

The Raw and the Roasted

S&M Crack

She's Got a Full Set of Camalots!

Needle Haven aka Fallen Prophet

Pinhead

Scarface

VHS or Beta

Bone 'n' Vein

There Goes the Neighborhood

The Gym Arete

Oh... What Are You Looking At

The Green Bonus

Librium Quiver

Butt Flambé

Crimp and Punishment

Cask Strength

The Example

Up Valley Goes Downtown

Arrowhead Spire

In the Morning, You'll Be Mine

Spontaneous Combustion

Penitentiary Pump

I'll Be Back

Farewell Transmission

Orange Marmalade

Untapped

The New Vernacular

Bubba's Belly (aka The Example Simulator)

Jane Fonda Warm-up

The Great Escape

Hot Rod Lincoln

Prickly Pear

Crystal

Solar Flex

Fly Little Super Boy

Even Bad Dogs Get A Bone

Blast from the Past

Thunder & Lightning

Shorty Bob

Comin' In Smooth

Lockdown

Tomato, Tomotto

Ga-stoned Again

Cimmaron Lanes

Here Today Gone Tomorrow

Rio Station

Natty Dread

Three Stooges

Five Dollars

I Never Met a Carbo I Didn't Like

St. Patty's Slab

Mountaineer's Route

The Real Deal

Urban Fringe

The Smoking Pickle

Muscles From Brussels

The Armstrong Express

Ejection Generation

Black Mamba Arete

The Crack of Dawn

Dizzi Lizzi

Rally Monkey

Profits of Rage

Free Willie

Easy Cheese aka Trout Fishing in America

New Rule

Arnold! Arnold!

Senor Verde

Happy Hinzi

Gym Arete Direct

Pulley Mammoth

Our Bosch of Immaculate Conception

Head Cheese

Bottom Feeder

Stud with a Rug

I Am A Machine

Paradise Regained

Bolt the Planet

Morning Stretch

My Generation

Trailer Park Logic

Despite the intimidating name, Needle Haven is a great moderate line that would be an over-chalked, highly polished classic if it were in a more popular setting.  One of the better 5.10s at The Gym, this is a great warm up option if you don't mind hacking a bit further through the weeds.

Begin up the steep slab that is fortunately quite a bit easier than that of its neighbor.  After the initial low-angle warmup section, the angle steepens and the climbing becomes more intense.  A brief, near-blank section, just right of the "

Armstrong Express

" dihedral, leads to big holds over the final, steep bulge.

Anyone who slags Shelf for being too slabby (as I sometimes do when my terrible footwork is exposed) should definitely get on this climb.

Campus the initial overhang into a pod, then swing though pleasant moves on big holds for about 20 feet. At the fourth bolt, the jug-hauling ends abruptly. A big crank from thin holds to thinner ones is where your onsight attempt ends. Suss out the reachy crux move, cruise throught the 5.11 moves on ther upper face, and pull your cord for the redpoint.

This is a great climb (but watch out for a sharp, right hand pocket when setting up for the crux -- I sliced my finger wide open in it).

This is the first route to the right of "

Gastoned Again

". Superb!

Follow 4 bolts up a short, prickly arete to a large ledge (1st and 4th bolts are easily skippable).  Now for the fun.  Climb solid stone to a small roof.  Rest and prepare for the crux.  Pull around the overlap to the left and begin the business.

S&M Crack has fun climbing up an ugly crack/groove.

Start 10 feet right of "Fat Burger" in the Thompson guide. Climb up an obivous crack/corner past two bolts. Reach left clipping a bolt on the left side of the crack. Fire up a steep face (crux) and reach a ledge below a thin hands crack. Fire up the crack on good jams to the anchor. One of the best crack climbs at Shelf.

To locate this route, from the far south end of the Gym (where it meets the east end of Spiney Ridge), walk north approximately 200 to 300 yards.  Notice that in this area there are some very tall walls of beautiful rock.  Keep an eye out for a smaller, overhanging section of rock with a deep undercut beneath it.  If you see a ton of brown guano in this cave, you have located the Ejection Wall.  Hike upward and to the left onto a nice big belay boulder.  Pinhead is the 3rd line on the right, with kind of a pillar start sporting 3 bolts.

Crank hard and fast past the thuggish start.  Pedal those great feet with just about nothing for hands on steep bulgy rock up to a sweet jug.  Fun, casual climbing on excellent black rock, laced with pockets and edges will lead you up to a nice ledge with some more sweet pockets.  Enjoy the awkward and balnancy move up to the next bolt.  Above lies easier climbing past one more bolt, and an easy runout to the anchors.  The last section is very easy, but be careful as there is evidence of holds that have broken off in this area.

Great route on great rock.

The first thing to note: if someone is climbing the route to the right (

VHS or beta

), wait until they finish that route, as this route causes an uncomfortable squeeze at an inopportune moment for both parties.

Fight through some bushes and start up the left hand line on fun, easy, ironically well-protected climbing to a good stance under the bulge.  Clip a crooked, old SMC hanger, and pull through the bulge into a rock scar, where you will encounter the real crux - figuring out which way to go.  This is runout with kind of a nasty surprise at the end, no matter which way you go.  The rest is easy but still pretty runout.

With 2 additional bolts and some new hardware, this would be a pretty decent route.  Otherwise, some shenanigans will reduce the hair factor and increase the enjoyment.

Start out with easy climbing past 2 bolts and then into continues 5.11 moves to an overlap. Cop a quick shake, then decipher the crux to a hard clip. Don't celebrate quite yet, because there is sporty, sustained face climbing all the way to the anchors.  This route has some amazing black limestone that climbs similar to The Dark Side.

Per

Darryl Roth

: this was the first route put up at The Gym.

This route has been a favorite of mine and most people don't have any idea of where or what it is.  Are you tired of all those vertical routes at Shelf?  Here is the cure.

Located at the far right side of the Gym, past where "

Prophets of Rage

" fell down (just look down at the river) and tucked away behind a tree are two climbs that go through 2 roofs.  The one on the right is Bone 'n' Vein.

Heelhooking and some good 2 finger pockets lead to through the first roof/bulge and to a crux mantel.  Rest a few moments on the right and punch through the upper roof on big, but kind of sloping holds.  Heelhook and clip the chains!

This isn't the best quality rock, but the route is steep and fun.

Climb the solid, black panel past 7 bolt to the anchor. This climb is a bit sharp on the fingers. The crux is at the first bolt and is hard for the grade if you don't find the hidden jug.

The best route of its grade at The Gym? Probably.

Hike up the trail and stop. The stunning arete right before your eyes is The Gym Arete. The line has a direct start at 5.12c that I have toproped on several occasions. This seems really fingery and gets quite powerful in the entry moves that are very steep. Alternatively, step into the corner and pick out a short, diagonal variation for "only" 5.12b. This seems a lot more user-friendly and gains the arete on a very natural, curving line.

Overall, the route is very continuous. Climbing is unusual for the Shelf, being on edges and square cuts until quite high on the route when a rogue pocket or two will start to emerge. This is positively a great line, and I wish my notes referenced the FA team. I have some guesses but nothing concrete. Jump on it!

In the "New Gym" area start about fifteen feet right of Urban Fringe on a clean, steep panel of rock. Climb up past three bolts to a technical section with small, shallow pockets at a small roof. Power up to a good pocket and then a big edge. Make a series of pumpy moves up shallow corners to a good pocket. Follow the steep rock with good holds to the anchor. Good route with a hard crux move.

A fantastic and steep boulder problem route that is a must-do for any climber capable of the grade. "The Green Bonus" takes the thin left side of the overhang. The crux involves a difficult boulder problem sequence using pockets and thin edges through the lower bulge. The route then finishes out the roof to the anchor. I think this may be the steepest route at Shelf. I am unsure if this route has ever been repeated, as I cranked the FA in 1999 and have never heard of anyone trying it.

This esoteric gem lurks on the left side of a clean dihedral about 300 yards south of

Ejection Seat

, just south of a massive roof system. Climb past a short corner to a boulder problem crux (crimps and pockets). After getting on the slab, continue to a good ledge and tackle the last crux, a pesky, shallow, mono move. I personally feel this is much harder than any other Shelf 13a I've done and would like to know what other climbers think. Dan, if you read this, is the name right and what does it mean?

Free solo up a low angled/slab ramp (easy) to a set of anchors at a ledge about 35 feet up. Hang a long runner on the anchors. From here, angle up and left on the beautiful, striking face for 8 bolts of sustain crimping and pocket pulling. There is a crux at about half height involving some pulls off small holds and a shallow pocket. There are a few sharp holds here and there, but for the most part, I have nothing bad to say about this route and it is well worth a burn if you're in the area. No one is ever climbing on this thing.

A route defined by multiple cruxes, Crimp and Punishment will appeal to those climbers looking for a near-vertical, slab climb with thoughtful movement.

Begin 8 feet right of

Farewell Transmission

on a face riddled with sinker pockets. As you gain the right side of a detached (but solid) flake, bust right across what appears to be a blank face. Either trust the small holds or your ability to lock-off between distant, good holds. Crimp your way up the face past two more similar cruxes, punctuated with horizontal rails to alleviate the pump. Trend slightly right through the last crux, setting yourself up to clip a low bolt to the left. Finish on the last 2 bolts of

Farewell Transmission

.

Climb the initial arete to a good stance. Continue up a blunt arete to another good stance. Finish on a beautiful knife-edge and a puzzling crux.

Climb the distinctive buttress left of the Gym Arete. A stout beginning leads to good pockets, including the best mono at Shelf. A final crux off a poor undercling leaves most dangling 10 feet lower. This is a must do for the grade, even if there is still some debate regarding the grade and the "true" line.

To locate this climb, head to the very south end of The Gym (where it meets the east corner of Spiney Ridge).  Arrowhead Spire sits right here, and just to the north (right) of it is a tall, triangular wall with two bolted routes on tan, sandy-looking rock.  The right hand route starts with a curving handcrack.  This is UVGD.

The actual climbing on this route is pretty good and varied, which makes up for a bit of chossy rock and an "interesting" bolt placement or two.  It starts with a fun, steep, little, hand crack that turns into fingers.  Add some nice Shelf Road edges for footholds and crank on up.  Towards the top, you will run into a nice ledge that presents an interesting and balancy challenge to stand on.

To start, chimney your way up an easy but somewhat dirty slot to a big ledge and high first bolt. To avoid this initial obstacle, it's easy to walk around the left side of the slot and rejoin the route at the first bolt. Belayers beware that this ledge is full of choss; it's best to wear a helmet and stand clear of the fall line.

Past the ledge, climb steep, fairly good rock following the bolt line and doing an ascending traverse left toward the anchor. You may find clipping the 5th bolt strenuous.

This is an amazing route!!  It is just as good if a taste harder than

Raw and the Roasted

.

Just right of

R&R

is its big brother, In the Morning You'll Be Mine!! Climb the dark slab past 2 bolts, to the ledge shared with

R&R

.  Continue up great pockets and edges to a small overlap.  A tricky sequence (crux) puts you at an insecure stance above your last bolt.  It stays stout past a few more clips to the anchors.

This route is located on the beautiful slab of rock south of the Ejection Wall.  As of Mar '05, it was marked by a small plaque at the base, and it is listed in the Van Horn guide (though not on the topo).

An excellent route on superb rock, this is one of the few routes at shelf that starts on bomber rock, and thus has no choss on the entire route.  The hardest moves are at the very start with a difficult boulder problem.  It's best to clip the low first bolt from the ground, or get a spotter.  Once you reach the second bolt, it's all gravy, with some spectacular pockets on perfect stone.  The upper climbing gets a bit tedious, as it doesn't rise to the level of the lower section, but it is still good climbing.

This route rivals the

Gym Arete

for the best 12- at the Gym, and is a must do!

Climb past 2 bolts to a good rest at the 3rd bolt. Start into the lower crux of the route pulling on small crimps. Move left at the 4th bolt for a few moves and then back right to clip the 5th. Make one last hard move to gain the big rest under the large roof. Climb out the horizontal roof (well-protected) on large pockets to find the jugs just past lip. Crank past the final crimper crux to a good stance at the anchor.

Most of the routes at Shelf that climb black stone have few features, and the few they have are small and slopey.  This line is a bit of an exception, offering some great incut pockets and positive edges.  Big holds through the low bulge make this a great warm-up option, but be prepared for some old-school bolting.

Begin atop a pedestal and make a few easy moves to reach a slight bulge.  A few big cranks and a slight runout lead to a good stance at a horizontal break.  More good pockets clear the last vertical bit, then follow an intermittent seam up the final slab.

Farewell Transmission follows the entirety of the imposing, overhanging dihedral. Although this is a bolted limestone route, be prepared for mandatory trad techniques. The crack is exceptional and augmented by a plethora of feet and rests on the right-hand face that bring the difficulty down.

Begin up the yellow corner with handjams and bountiful pockets on the left face. As the rock shifts towards a dark, reddish-gray, a series of rails and ledges on the right face provide passage to the corner proper. 3-D climbing for the next 60 feet deposits you at the anchors.

This is a contrived route on good stone, It has zig-zag climbing with silly bolting. A bolt placement correction would make this a better route.

This route is pretty good.  Worth doing if you've already done some of the ultra classics. It's not very sustained.  Untapped starts off with 4 bolts of easier climbing through some hollow crack features(only matter of time before some of this breaks), to get to a ledge.  Stand or sit which ever you prefer, but get ready for the business, cause it will come at you quick.  Do a balancy move off of a mono to reach a jug.  Then fire through the first crux.  With the lack of feet, it will make you work for it.  Next, try to recover because, the next super techy & sequency boulder problem comes fast.  When you finally get to the top be ready to see the weirdest set of anchors you have ever seen.  I'll leave it to your imagination or gratification for those who climb it.

I felt as though the first crux may have broken at some time, due to the difficulty and lack of rubber on feet I used.

If anyone knows who put up the first ascent, please let me know so I can post it.

The guidebook raves about this route (the author was the first ascensionist), and while it has some excellent climbing and excellent rock, it is basically a discontinuous squeeze job from which it is possible at several points to step over to

Natty Dread

or

Gastoned Again

.

There is a hard move at the first bolt, then easy climbing.  There is a much harder than anything else crux passing a looks-like-the-crux bulge around the fifth bolt which can be avoided at 5.11 by making a move left to

ND

, a move up and then back R to TNV (TNV is 11+ done this way).  Some much easier climbing follows to a roof.  From the roof to the top is an excellent passage of thin off-vertical face climbing.

Technical bulging route with a dynamic move to start the crux sequence - sticking the dyno is only the start as horrid feet keep things in your face for a bit.  If you get  through the crux (midroute), hang on through the slabby 11+ moves into a roof and a bizaare finishing move.

This route is one route left of The Example.

Work up a detached block to a clean slab face. This involves some fancy footwork and funny pocket crosses.

The Great Escape is fingery and thin on very solid stone.  It is a bit spooky in a couple of places but is definitely worth doing.

This route is on a vertical face just to the left of

Morning Stretch

. There are two nice lines here, The Great Escape on the right, and

Crystal

on the left.

This quality outing is worth the effort, but the old school bolting and long reaches will keep you on your toes. Hot Rod Lincoln follows a line of spaced bolts through a bulge (crux) to a slab.  This is the third route from the left on this wall.

Pricky Pear is a nice moderate on good rock.  Its got an undeserved reputation for sharp rock, but in reality the stone is no more sharp than the typical Shelf 5.10.  Certainly worth doing if you're looking for a good 5.10.

Begin easily on large suspect blocks.  Thin climbing up dark stone leads to a nice panel of pockets and a brief reachy section to gain the anchor.

Faces NW, so receives shade earlier than most routes.

Just left of the

Great Escape

(two routes left of

Morning Stretch

) is Crystal.  I like Crystal better than

Great Escape

, just because it climbs out into the middle of the big blankish looking face, and it is more aesthetic.

Great Escape

hugs a little closer to the dihedral and doesn't look quite as nice.  However, both routes climb very similarly, with thin moves on bullet-hard compact limestone.

This route is located on the black bowling ball buttress just up canyon from the Example prow.  The buttress contains two routes, "Arnold, Arnold!", and to its right, "Solar Flex".

You may want to stick clip the first bolt, then scramble up a chossy flake to begin the route.  The hardness gets going right away, with steeper than normal (for Shelf) climbing up excellent stone.  Move quickly to a good rest at a flake just right of the 3rd bolt.  Past this, the crux involves spanning a long blank section, then the route eases up considerably, while a long runout takes you to the shared anchor.

This is a rare, high quality power route, so take advantage of it, if that's your style.  If you like this route, then you should also like "Arnold, Arnold".

The 1st bolt is high and guarded by delicate moves above a right-slanting flake. That being said, a stick clip is recommended. Work left and up on good pockets to the 2nd bolt, execute a big move on pockets, and then work your way right to clip the 3rd bolt. From here, veer up and left towards the tan arete on easy, less-than-vertical terrain. Once on the arete, climb up on increasingly difficult moves to a one move wonder of a crux. Decipher the reachy crux that forces you onto the left side of the arete where thin edges and sharp holds lead to a good rest. After the blank section of rock, the climb eases up all the way to the anchors.

This line offers some interesting climbing and an outstanding position, but unfortunately the rock is consistently poor throughout the first 6 bolts of climbing.

Stick clip the first bolt, and make awkward moves to gain the hanging dihedral.  Easy liebacking & stemming work up and left along the crumbling corner.  When the dihedral ends, pumpy moves lead to a stance at the corner of the big roof.  The crux ascends the awkward crack on great rock to bigger holds near the top of the wall.

This is a weird route, but I liked it.  Unusual for Shelf desperates, it actually has holds!  Easy climbing gets you to the lip of the roof where a convoluted sequence will get you over the lip...this was the crux for me.  Above that, the climbing eases to sustained 12a or so.  The rock looks suspect in places, but it's actually pretty good.

Oh yeah, I'm not sure how others feel, but I felt like it would be bad style to go into the crack to the right of the roof, or the corner to the left, after the crux.  I know this is contrived and lame, but it's Shelf, and if you want hard routes, you kinda have to contrive them.  The route felt right for the grade, doing it thusly.

This starts just right of

Spontaneous Combustio

n, and like the others on this wall, it starts out bouldery (the thunder) and eases up for a while until the technical crux up high (the lightning).

You'll either like it or hate it.  Like stemming and arete exposure?  You may like this line.  If not, move on by.  This route also has a bird sh** alert.  Your experience may by +/- a star on mine. Begin with easy climbing up a corner, and avoid the bird poop via pockets.  Stem to set up for the thoughtful crux, near the roof, which deposits you on the arete for some fun climbing including a crack on the arete!

Holy Stopper Crux, Batman!  This gem is given 5.11b in the latest Shelf Guide, but there are  5.13s with easier cruxes.  The route is anything but smooth, with 40 feet of trivial cruising to an in-your-face boulder problem clearing the obvious bulge.  There are two obstacles here, first, there are about ten 1, 2, & 3 finger "pockets" to choose from, they are all far away, and only two of them are any good.  Second, even if you haven't wasted all of your energy locating the correct pockets, the move is still quite burly.  Fortunately things ease quite a bit above the bulge, but you'll likely be too pumped to notice.

A proud on sight, whatever the grade.

Located two routes to the left of Spontaneous Combustion. This stellar route is identified by five new hangers that climbs the obvious swell bulge and links up to the unknown route from the left.  Climb a short vertical face and over the bulge using monodoigts and deadpoints to shallow pockets gaining access to larger pockets and easier terrain. Continue on perfect rock up the long panel on older hangers to a small bulge and a new set of anchors.  9 clips + 2 anchors, 90 feet.

Pull powerful pocket moves from the ground, move right to better holds, then punch it for the anchors on very cool sequences.  This short route packs too many bolts, but it's fun moves make it worthwhile.  Could be climbed perfectly safe with half the bolts it sports.

The route starts about 100 yards right of

Urban Fringe

, in an obtuse corner with a serrated crack running all the way up.  A black slab lies just to the right of the start.

Stem, face climb, and jam up the steep corner with beautiful exposed moves.  The crux layback is at the last bolt.

Great moves, excellent protection, exposure, beautiful rock: the best 5.9 I have done at Shelf.  Destined to become extremely popular.

One of my personal favorites at The Gym, Cimmaron Lanes starts up just right of the block/dihedral that will greet you 50 ft right of the end of the trail. Run technical edges and pockets for 80 ft to reach a belay. Most parties bail out after finishing this crux pitch, however, the second pitch although modest is a real kick. Surmount the intimidating bulge above the belay on big pockets, bomber gear (a bit committing), and fun moves.  The anchor is on the lip-like-ledge above.

Frankly, this line needs to be done in both pitches because the first pitch, alone, is not sufficiently distinguished from a slew of other 5.11 face climbs. This may give Cimmaron Lanes the amusing distinction of climbing a harder pitch just to get to the easy pitch.

Start as for

Butt Flambé

, and free solo up the low angled/slab ramp to a set of anchors at 35 feet. From here, hang a long sling and traverse right to clip the first bolt of the route. After clipping the first bolt, easily reach back and unclip the anchor sling. From the ledge, climb straight up the striking arête, using opposing sidepulls in the crack and the arête. At about 80 feet, surmount a chossy ledge (tons of loose rock) and look up. From here, a few more clips on a looming/ overhanging white and black streaked bulge protect the chains. Although the holds are very positive and juggy, a pump sets in due to the steepness. Feel the exposure as you crank the overhanging prow at the top with the river far down below.

Despite never seeing anyone on this thing in all the years I have been going to Shelf, I thought it was quite fun movement and spectacular position.

CAUTION - a 70 meter rope is required to lower to the ground.

This route has two cruxes: one low and one high. The bolt placements will clue one in on the exact crux locations. They get tight at the two crux locations and much more spread out on the easier climbing. This is a great climb with pocket mystery and weird layback work. Don't be afraid of the spaced out placements (10- in those areas).

Another excellent pitch on the Mammoth Wall.  It gradually builds in difficulty with the crux a of off-vertical crimping a bolt or two from the top.  At the roof, you can force it straight up, which to judge from the chalk is an option rarely taken, or follow the good holds up the corner to the right and then cut back left onto the face as soon as possible.

A beautiful face climb located in the "New Gym area". Start 10 feet right of "Fat Burger" in the Thompson Guide. Crank up a short crack/corner past three bolts. Reach a nice ledge and veer right up the steep face past several bolts to a technical move at the eighth bolt. Move a little left to good holds and crank up the steep face to the anchor. Almost three stars. Great route with fantastic moves.

To locate this route, use the directions to find "

Pinhead

" and "

Easy Cheese

" to get yourself to the base of the "

Head Cheese

" roof.  "Five Dollars" is three routes to the right of

Easy Cheese

.

This route is almost great.  If only the first half was as good as the last half....

Begin this route by weedwhacking up on poor rock.  You can honestly feel it sag if you step on a certain hold.  The rock doesn't look particularly bad, but drum on it a bit and it will make you laugh.  The good news is that there aren't any bolts drilled in this choss.  The bad news is that the first bolt is about 25 feet up, and you have to commit to a mini-roof block jug to clip it.  At first this is a bit intimidating due to the rubble you have gotten used to.  Take heart though, because the rock from the roof to the anhors is bomber.

After you have clipped this first bolt, pull the mini roof onto a nice little ledge.  The next clip is pretty awkward.  After you have clipped this, slab your way up prickly friction face with some small pockets.  Expect a couple dicey clips on the last 4 bolts.

If your footwork is as bad as mine was on this route, you can pretty much prepare to get your backside paddled.

This is an overlooked gem and may be, in my opinion, the hardest 5.11 at Shelf.

Begin below an obvious overhanging crack on the black rock of the Carb Wall (which is just right of Combustion Wall).  The crack is hard and you will mistakenly feel like you pulled the crux after cranking through it. The crux comes in pulling onto the slightly less than vertical section above the crack.  This section is pretty blank with just a meager couple of fingertip monos to pull on.

I thought the crux was as hard as the crux of

The Ejection Seat

, but YMMV.

Located about 50' to the right of 'Gastoned Again', is a dark slab in a small corner.

This route is sustained right off the ground, and the climbing is more thin an tenuous than the typical Shelf route. It gets interesting between the 5th and 6th bolts, and the quality drops off a bit for the last 30' or so.

Overall, this is a full-value route at the grade, and the first 50-60' are very high quality and worth your time if you're looking for a change of scenery.

Do you need to satisfy that pinnacle summit urge? This route is the answer.

Located on the north side of Arrowhead Spire, the first pinnacle when turning the bend from Spiney Ridge en-route to The Gym, the route climbs past two bolts to the top.

There are no summit bolt anchors, so expect to down-climb the route (recommended) or rappel off questionable tat.

On the the left side Combustion Wall, this starts immediately left of

Lockdown

.  From the 3rd bolt, it diagonals up and right, joining

Lockdown

for its upper half, while Fly Little Super Boy continues straight up.  I guess it's kind of a linkup, but it isn't clear from Fred's guide which of these routes came first (presumably it came before Bob's recent contribution,

Lockdown

).

The climbing is good, with a crux coming around the 2nd bolt.  The bolts on the upper half after it joins

Lockdown

are spaced pretty honestly compared to the routes to the right,

The Smoking Pickle

and

Spontaneous Combustion

.  Probably on the easier side of 12a... and definitely easier than the 11d's over to the right (

I Never Met a Carbo I Didn't Like

, VHS or Beta).

On the North end of The Gym (referred to as the "New Gym" in Thompson's guide to Cactus/Spiny), but to the right of Black Mamba Arete, is a steep red panel that is split by a crack. Follow a line of bolts past the seam which widens to a finger, then hand crack, over a small roof. Do an exciting lieback move and pull left to two more bolts and work the crack up to the anchors. The route finishes below a roof.

A very nice route and worth the walk from Cactus and Spiny ridge. Also in the shade in the afternoon.

This has a very thin and difficult sequence which starts as soon as you take your feet off the ground and does not stop until you reach the 4th bolt. Once you've gotten to the 4th bolt, rests placed just where you need them will get you through the moderate finish to the anchors. It is just as good as the other 12s on this wall if not one of the best.

Although very similar to its neighbor

Spontaneous Combustion

, the crux section felt harder and more sustained. There is some loose rock along the way, but further ascents will help clear some of this away. Having your belayer wear a helmet is not a bad idea.

This is a fun arete climb with some great rock and good moves.  The start is a bit flakey, but the upper section of rock is excellent.

Begin a bit right of the prow, and make thin, balancy moves between sharp crimps.  Move left onto the prow, then further left to some sinker pockets & a good rest.  Move back up & right on good incut crimps to a blank section that is overcome with opposition slapping.

This line offers some excellent marble stone and some fun sinker jug pockets.  Unfortunately these are guarded by a somewhat unpleasant, thin start.  Its pssible to makes this climb 11+ by avoiding all of the best holds, but most people will climb to the right of the bolt line for the 11- grade.

Technical, thin crimping leads up to a dark brown slab.  Cruise the juggy slab towards the obvious, right-facing dihedral.  Stem & lieback, clipping left, then step left onto the face to reach the anchor.

This well-conceived linkup traverses a set of astounding huecos to join the easier start of

The Ejection Seat

with the difficult headwall of

My Generation

.

Monkey your way up the steep start of

The Ejection Seat

to the horizontal break.  Clip the third bolt, then make a rightward traverse to the first hueco, eventually passing two 'new' bolts to join

MG

.   A great shake takes some of the sting out of the

MG

redpoint crux, but a higher slab crux will keep you on your toes right to the last bolt.

To find this climb, locate the far south end of The Gym (where it meets the east corner of Spiney Ridge).  Arrowhead Spire is the small detached pillar.  Just to the north of this is a tall triangle shaped wall.  On the right side of the wall is a slabby arete with dark grey rock with bolts.  This is Black Mamba Arete.

Cruise up the corner on edges and flakes.  The rock quality isn't that great, but it makes a good quick warmup (or something to run up while you are waiting for the rock to warm up).  There isn't any particular crux to speak of.  Be careful for loose rock.

To find this route, read the directions given in the route titled "

Pinhead

".  From

Pinhead

, hike approximately 100 yards to the north and locate a HUGE roof about 60 feet off the deck.  To the left of this lies the gorgeous lines of "

The Gym Arete

" (please see Richard Wright's entry for this route) and "The Crack of Dawn".  The Crack of Dawn is probably the most striking crack line I have seen at Shelf.  We are talking BEAUTIFUL!!

The Van Horn book gives this line 10b.  The old select 200 book gives a rating of 11b, which is a bit far fetched.  Purists might have a kiniption about seeing a crack like this bolted.  However, I am going to stick to the facts on this one (please join me in leaving this subject untouched as it could easily explode into terrabytes of discussion).

The facts are as follows:

Start up on funky, hollowed, pockety rock to a high first clip (red home made hanger).  Get ready to crank.  Jam from fingers to hands and maybe even a fist or two, and heck, even throw in a lieback or two just for kicks.  Follow this recipe for about 4 bolts.  Stir in a little finger crack/ face edging for about 3 bolts to the anchors.  A very tasty route.

This could probably be a good trad lead for a sport climber who is learning to place gear.  No brainer bomber gear and bolts for backup.

Left of

Up Valley Goes Downtown

is a bolted hand crack that skirts a small step roof to the left after about 40 feet.  Good jams and plenty of face relief keep this route moderate though it still feels a bit stout compared to the "Shelf Road Rock" guidebook rating of 5.10a.  Regardless, it is a worthwhile climb that catches shade earlier than some of the more classic lines at The Gym.

Follow the first 2-3 bolts of "

She's Got a Full Set of Camalots

" and break hard left.  Pass the turn off for "

Stud With a Rug

" and keep going left.  At the edge of the face, cop a full rest in a hands off bucket, then gun for the top on thin face moves.

Once a nice 5.12 route, Profits of Rage, has become a hybrid route of questionable status. Sometime in the mid-90s, after a big nighttime rainstorm, the top 2/3 rds of the route fell down the hill, smashed a hole in the cliff above the road, nuked part of the road and fell all the way to the canyon floor.

The route now starts at the base of the original route. Clip the first few bolts still in place and cast off on a circuitous path to the canyon bottom passing the large tofu block on the hill side.  The crux is finding all the bolts on the way to the chains which are on the other side of the river, that is where the waders come into play.  This route is atypical in that it is the destination that is enjoyable, not the journey itself. Once on the canyon floor, you gain an interpreting perspective on the Shelf Road Recreation area, which has a lot more to offer beyond just climbing.

Free Willie has decent movement on some delightfully smooth holds with good feet the whole way.

Sit-starting on a left-facing sidepull, transition to the curving sloper ledge, and bump up it while finding some supplementary holds out left.  The topout is pretty relaxed if you find the right spots to grab.

Start 30 feet right of

Crack of Dawn

and the next one to the right of

Head Cheese

. Go up a short slab past 4 bolts to a dark, steeper section with a corner on the left and 3 more bolts to anchors.

The slab is very nice and would be worth 2 stars if it went to the top.  Unfortunately I thought the second half was quite contrived.  The climbing steers you into the corner, and I ended up traversing right to make the second to last clip.  From here, it is actually 5.10 to the anchors, but the final hold looks like it is much worse than it is, so I ended up going left again.  Even if the upper face is 5.10, it is way too tempting to climb the corner.  This is worth doing if you need a warm-up in the area.

This route is about 10ft right of

Three Stooges

, on a southeast-facing slab.  The bottom looks chossy, and there is a little bit of vegetation to either side with homemade hangers on the first two bolts.  The climb is actually really great; the prickly limestone at the bottom is totally solid and interesting to climb on.  The black slab at the top is classic, "The Dark Side", thin slabbing between deep pockets.

Based on appearance, this might be a junior version of

Ejection Seat

.  Forty feet right (north) of the Gym Arete and twenty feet right of

Easy Cheese

, look for two lines ascending a steep black bulge.

Arnold! Arnold! takes the left of these two lines, and the name fits until the crimps are reached.  Steep jug pulling is friendly for the first two bolts, but just as the angle begins to ease the full-hand buckets disappear in favor of crimps and sharp bidoigt pockets.  The ever-decreasing angle of the bulge motivates one to hustle, and if you outrace the pump you will find your feet beneath you for a few easy slab moves to the chains.

For those of us who climb like Austrian bodybuilders, this is a nice jughaul detour from the punishment of all those vertical Shelf faces.

An engaging route on a brilliant & unique slab of white stone.  The rock is ultra-smooth, and relatively featureless, though enough rounded crimps exist to make the line go.  The line is definitely squeezed in, but the line climbs independently and seems justified considering the unusual rock.

Easy moves lead up and right to a stance on the arete.  Big cruxy moves work up along a shallow feature to another good stance on the left face.  Above the break a crack appears allowing easier passage to a ledge and the anchor.

This route follows two cracks to a right-facing flake, surmounts a bulge, then you get more climbing up to the anchors. There are plenty of stems and hand jams to work with as well. The bolts are boldly spaced (especially bolt 2, as well as the bolt on the bulge), but stances are solid so no PG-13 rating.

This thing is TALL. While cleaning, a 70 meter rope only had about 5 feet to spare. Plan accordingly.

There is also a LOT of loose rock on this thing. Wear a helmet while belaying.

With a little traffic, this could clean up and turn out to be a great climb. The movement is varied and interesting, so it is worth hopping on.

Start 20 feet left of the

Gym Arete

/

The Crack of Dawn

start.  This line straightens out the

Gym Arete's

arcing beginning through a powerful and direct line of pockets and a few edges.  Essentially, you replace the easiest climbing on the

Gym Arete

with an extended V5ish boulder problem.  Then, you climb all of the 5.12- moves of the

Gym Arete

.  All told, it weighs in around 5.12c.  Because this line is a substantially more difficult undertaking, I feel it merits its own description.  It is an outstanding route, as anyone can tell by merely standing under it!

Pulley Mammoth is a fun line, with hidden qualities from the ground eye view. The fun, slightly dirty start below the roof warms you up, the roof delivers a punch, but the real fight comes between the roof and the chains. It has interesting movement throughout.

A couple hundred feet right of the Mammoth Wall (home of

Natty Dread

,

Ga-stoned Again

, and many other fine routes) is an inviting clean slab.  This route ascends the center of this wall and was established in vintage style.  As such it is a little run-out, however as such is also very engaging and thoughtful.

Standing at the base of the wall, the route will be obvious.  Look for the spread out line of bolts, with the first being a ways up and the second similarly far above the first.  From the ground the climbing looks very difficult between the first and second bolt, but there are good holds and feet that aren't obvious from the ground and aren't covered with chalk.  Start in a finger crack and climb up to the first bolt, continue meandering past the line of bolts finding the path of least resistance.  There is currently a two bolt anchor at the top.

This route is great in it's current state.  Periodic good stances allow for the necessary thinking the route requires to ascend safely.  While run-out, the protection seems quite appropriate, in my opinion.  I sincerely hope that this route does NOT get retro-bolted.  If it does, it will become an average 5.10 clip-up.  The largest detraction from this route is the ridiculous squeeze job that has been put in to the right of it (Senor Verde).  The location of the first few bolts of this new route severly detracts from the beginning of Our Bosch of Immaculate Conception, a true shame.

Head Cheese lies to the right of the

Crack of Dawn

(the 10b bolted crack).  It's a steep route for Shelf Road on mostly good pockets and crimpers.  Facing mostly north, it doesn't get much sun.  Trundle up 20 feet to the first bolt.  The rock seems solid here but it's a little spooky soloing this far on Shelf Road rock.  Move through two steep roof systems with a fairly good rest in between.  There are 2 very closely spaced bolts midway up the route.  I heard that a clipping jug fell off so a new bolt was added (the bottom of the 2, I think, because it looked different from the other bolts).  I only clipped the bottom of the two to avoid a major mid-crux pump.  A cool, gymnastic route, this thing deserves more traffic (I've only seen one other party ever try this route).

Though slighted in some guidebooks, this is an outstanding, gymnastic line on beautiful rock, every bit as worthy as its famous neighbors to the left. With a burly crux at the third bolt, this is certainly a power route, but an engaging, slightly overhanging headwall with stellar pockets keeps things interesting until the very end.

Scamper onto the large flat boulder and squirm out to the lip. A big reach leads onto the hanging corner below the roof and a left-ward traverse. Big reaches to obvious jugs work right over the ceiling to a precarious stance on the lip. The airy crux comes in reaching the big jugs above the third bolt. A long stretch of big athletic moves between pumping pockets leads up the steep wall, ultimately offering some great rest opportunities. After passing a cool hueco, a brief slab crux guards the anchor.

Follow the first 2-3 bolts of "

She's Got a Full Set of Camalots

" and break hard left.  Take the first right and head up the thin face on long reaches and sharp holds.

This is a great, old Shelf route that features some cool climbing on improbable pockets at a reasonable grade.

Start up the left side of the orange dihedral on climbing that isn't hard, but the rock is a bit friable. Get established near the semi-hanging, spooky flake beneath the bulge, try to get a peek at the climbing above, and launch upwards through really fun pocket pulling.

The rock through the bulge and above is excellent, and the climbing is really fun.

Start on short slab. Climb tiny roof with pockets to jet-black rock with more pockets and edges. Sharp on hands.

An improbable line, surmounting two steep bulges at a relatively modest grade.  Some poor rock, combined with a height dependent crux detracts from this otherwise classic route.

Begin up an easy, prickly slab to reach a nice panel of good pockets & edges.  A low-angle section of less than perfect rock leads to a good stance below the first bulge.  Massive-though-spooky jug flakes provide a nice warmup clearing the first bulge.  A good rest allows ample opportunity to ponder the next, blank-looking bulge.  A huge reach from an undercling to a hidden jug is the key here.  Shorties can find other options a few feet off the bolt line.

This is a really great continuous line on awesome pockets. This route has some overhanging sections down low and the crux feels hard for 11b: powerful and reachy.  The climbing stays interesting all the way to the anchors.  It is a great warm-up for all the excellent 12s on this crag or an excellent objective all on its own.

This line is 4 routes left of

The Example

, tucked back into a dihedral.  The first few moves go up the dihedral until you break right out onto the face on juggy pockets.

Just right of

Ejection Seat

, My Generation tackles another steep overhang and slab. It begins with a tough, bouldery start to a horizontal break (rest), then continue with a very thin section to an obvious hueco. Shake out and complete a final crux reach. Enjoy the tricky 5.11 slab. This is the easiest of Dan Durland's Triple Crown routes, but if you do not have the cruxes dialed, I would recommend a very long draw for the second bolt above the break. This bolt is very difficult to clip otherwise, since it is in the middle of the crux. A fall onto the lower bolt is awkward and potentially dangerous. Otherwise, this has excellent climbing.

First a disclaimer - I only top roped this route, but it is good enough that I thought it was worth adding to the site (my partner who led it would certainly not get around to it).

The climb is called "Trailer Park Logic" and is rated 5.9+ in the new Knapp/Thompson/Aschert guide.  It is listed as "Unknown" in Van Horn's guide as number 15 in the Gym section at 11b/c.  It appeared to have a second pitch, which may warrant the 11b rating, but we only climbed the first pitch which felt about mid-10.

The climb is the first left of "I Never Met a Carbo I Didn't Like" on the Pinhead Wall.  It starts in a corner with 2 bolts and goes left of a crack system, through a black bulge and meets up with the crack which veers left to join the route above the bulge.  Very well bolted.  Straight through the bulge is entertaining and only 10c due to good hands and feet, however there is certainly a temptation to go right into the crack a bit, which may be slightly easier.

Fun climb; another good 10 in the area.

Description

Protection

Routes in The Gym