NWS

You're looking at the NWS route in Upper Ute Canyon. It's a tribute route of sorts, an offering to something higher, a distant smile committed to memory. This is one of the better Monument routes I have done in 20 years of climbing here - varied, strenuous, & spicy. For The Monument; it is absolutely on par with

Medicine Man

,

Get a Life

,

Sundial

, and the

Tom Stubbs Memorial

. It's just not a tower.

P1. This pitch is wide - taking as many as five #4 Camalots to a spooky, sport-like finish. Bring some hands and tight hands gear for the finish. The fixed anchor belay is at a decent stance, 5.10, 80'+/-.

P2. Traverse right to the beautiful dihedral that marks the middle of the route. Fire up some 5.10 that is kinda sporty and mostly fingers and thin hands size. Reach a great rest, then up into the thin, sequential tips and finger crack. Finish up with some overhanging 5.10 to a huge ledge and two more fixed anchors, 5.11+, 110' +/-.

P3. This pitch is amazing - almost entirely in the 0.5 size up a sweeping overhanging wave. The first 8 feet is most likely 13 or harder but is easily aided, the rest is an endurofest that we felt was solid 12 on TR (also easily aided). It's an amazing pitch with a great ledge to start from while someone works things out above you, 5.12 or C1,100' +/-.

This route is adventurous but never dangerous and it is easily aided. It is clean, well put together, and on stellar rock! Fat fingers will help you on pitch three but will hurt you on two. The ledge atop pitch 2 is so big that two people could sleep very comfortably on it. It is a great spot to look out over a seldom visited canyon and reflect. If you knew Scott; leave a memory for the register, that's how they stay fresh.

It's easier to come off this rig with two ropes but much funner to head down with one.

This route climbs the large dihedral that ends in the huge left sweeping roof directly across from The Upper Ute Canyon Trailhead. Park at the trailhead, hike the trail down to the canyon floor, head upstream, and turn right at the cairn. Hump up the wash looking for a faint trail. The route starts directly atop two huge boulders. If you're quick, the approach is about 15 minutes, and the return is about 30.

Triples from a #4 Camalot to a 0 TCU and five purples, five blues, & six orange Metolius, and five #4 Camalots.  Nuts, long runners.