Second Buttress Tour

Herein is offered a nice little combination of pitches on the Second Buttress of Hallett for those seeking a longer, more continuous excursion up the vague, contorted stone of this famous wall. It combines the

Hesse-Ferguson

,

Culp-Bossier

, and

Jackson-Johnson

for a nice tour. Two characteristics define the common Hallett experience: route finding is very difficult, particularly the higher you go; and the corollary, that with enough mental fortitude one can climb anywhere on this wall. This combination takes advantage of these qualities and offers several excellent pitches up to 5.9. It is perhaps the longest route possible on this part of the wall.

Begin 20m right of the

Love Route

corner, on a ledge at the base of a right-facing corner (FP).

P1: Climb the corner (long pitch).

P2: Move up into a left-facing corner and belay below a rotten roof.

P3: Move right onto a nice, clean slab, and climb up and R (5.9) to the base of a right-facing corner.

P4: Climb the corner (5.9) to the big ledge.

P5-6: Follow

Culp-Bossier

.

P7: Angle up a long ramp (5.5) to the base of the crux pitch of

Jackson-Johnson

(a steep, right-facing corner with fixed pins).

P8: Climb the corner (5.9).

P9: Exit to the top. It is also possible to climb the wall (very runout 5.7) left of the 2

Culp-Bossier

pitches, then move right on the ramp.

This is one of my favorite combos in the Park.

Standard assemblage of pre-apocalyptic trinkets from wires (I always carry RPs on Hallett), including extra mid-size, to a 3.5" cam, with accompanying slings to ease the inevitable rope drag.