February Tennessee Wall with Jacob

 February 15, 2024

Gorgeous weather, highs in the sixties.

True Colors (5.8) - Fun, stemmy climb, but no bolts at the top! Used a tree as a top-rope anchor.

Contents Under Pressure (5.9) - Tough getting out of the chimney at the bottom. Then a bit chossy in the second half, although the climbing there was easier. Finished at the same tree as the first climb.

Finger Lockin' Good (5.10b/c) - Wanted to send this again after failing on last year's attempt. This time I finally made it to the top cleanly, although I fell twice near the bottom and was forced to lower back down to the start each time. Then Jacob did it twice, and I repeated it once on toprope. My beta for next time:

In general, remember to try different fingers, and try to get them in as deep as you can. High step whenever possible.

First crux is right off the deck. You can place a nut right off the deck to do the first moves without worry about broken ankles. Down low there are some key footholds on the face on the right. This includes a right facing edge that seems improbable about 10 feet up. Use this combined with a layback foot in the crack to get up to the face ledge for the first rest. 

Next moves: smear and use the crack for footholds to get to the juggier finger locks higher up. After jogging right, continue up, remembering high feet along the way. This is enters the second crux. Near the ledge at the top of this finger crack the finger locks are not as good as they seem from below, and the feet are nothing but smears and prayers. You just need to power through.

Continue to the cave. Place gear in the cave such as a 0.5 in the pocket on the left interior, or place a piece in the handhold that you use to exit the cave. Traverse left out onto the face and face climb gingerly to the top. The very last five feet is slopey, so be sure to place gear in the horizontal crack.

Super slide

I bailed 6 feet above the Roof. Couldn't figure out the moves and protection seemed far away. Although, there is a GREAT 10 nut right above the roof and a 0.75 totem in the slot 4 feet above and to the left of the roof.

Super Slide (5.10b) - I bailed six feet above the Roof. I couldn't figure out the moves, and protection seemed far away. However, there is a GREAT #10 nut right above the roof as well as a 0.75 Totem in the slot four feet above and to the left of the roof. Both of these are solid protection for the move getting up over the roof and onto the face. If I do this again I need to figure out exactly where the route goes after getting over the roof.

Passages (5.8) - A lap up this route gave us both a final burn as well as an opportunity to clean the gear I had left on Super Slide. This climb always feels harder than I expect, and I was feeling especially tired by this point in the day.