Cassandra

This excellent route has a spectacular crux on pitch three that slices through a large roof via a splitter hand-crack. When I climbed it on January 2, 1973, it was probably the second, cutting-edge route in Colorado (after

Death and Transfiguration

) to hand-jam right over a roof. It actually pre-dated many other similar Boulder classics:

Psychosis Direct Finish

,

Art’s Spar

,

Vertigo Direct Finish

,

Wounded Knee

, Star Span, and

Neon Lights

. Although Half Dome and

The Naked Edge

have bigger numbers, this obscure first ascent was very easily my most significant rock climbing achievement. I did not tell a single human being about it for over 20 years.

Unfortunately, the Ralston Buttes, part of JeffCo Open Space, has been closed to climbing and hiking about 20 years. Asking permission to cross some homeowner’s private land after being dropped off by a driver and climbing quietly in the shade very early in the morning (perhaps in camo clothes, gear etc.), before a pre-arranged pickup, would be one method that an unscrupulous criminal might use, but I would never recommend breaking the law.

The majority of the 50 or 60 sport and trad routes up there so far are really excellent routes; however, there are less than 150 fine new route possibilities, and the 15 minute walk in from the northwest, gaining about 100 feet of elevation, is totally exhausting. I can’t imagine why anyone would choose to climb at a terrible crag like this.

Cassandra is located on the north end of the Main Cliff, starting just left of the short bolted line,

Spanky

(12b), and also about 70 feet left of the right-facing dihedral that starts the 3-pitch trad line, Rocky Mountain Springwater. The first two pitches are about 5.7, the first one angling right about 60 feet to the bolted anchors on

Spanky

. Pitch two goes up 100 feet to the long broken ledge at the base of the roof. I imagine there is decent protection on these today. Steve Wunsch climbed these 2 pitches and then escaped off left, also solo onsight, when we first visited the crag in October, 1972. The 3rd pitch is a solid, straight-in crack, so it would take gear (1-1/2 to 3 inches) quite well. If one desired a more difficult start, one could maybe do the sport climb

Spanky

and/or

The Neighborhood

(10d) and then move right to the final roof.  Richard Rossiter’s guide from 2000,

Rock Climbing Eldorado Canyo

n, catalogues all the routes here superbly.

A standard rack with hand-size gear (1 to 3 inches).