Wire Tap

[damien]

great belay technique.....watch me!!!

Oh yeah, I always forget to do that.

[damien]

Some photos of the routes/pitches someone posted on Supertopo.
http://www.supertopo.com/climbing/threa ... 537&tn=140

Rumble is the one where the fellow has been swallowed whole.

[t-bone]

climbed Wiretap today and despite the rain yesterday it was mostly dry. Great job to those who cleaned this area!

We linked pitches 1/2 and 3/4 with minimal difficulty. Linking pitches 1 and 2 is certainly recommended.

some random observations:
-I thought the first pitch of Wiretap was a soft 10a, especially compared to Hearsay and Thriller on the Pillar.
-good call adding bolts on p3 of wiretap
-thought p5 was a soft 5.9....not sure what warranted the 5.9 (the overlap maybe)?
-Thriller is an excellent climb....probably one of the top five 10b's in Squamish (if you exclude the lower malamute)
-the finger crack on Float like a butterfly looked awesome (on rappel)....the gear seemed a little spaced though...is it? Seems like it would be a proud onsight...

[damien]

Awesome. Stoked to hear it was dry as wetness was one of my major concerns as to whether not to even begin the project!

climbed Wiretap today and despite the rain yesterday it was mostly dry. Great job to those who cleaned this area!

Thanks!

We linked pitches 1/2 and 3/4 with minimal difficulty. Linking pitches 1 and 2 is certainly recommended.

That really is the way to climb it.
We broke it up into smaller pitches so that is could be climbed with swapping leads and the second leader would have easier pitches.
What length of rope did you use?

good call adding bolts on p3 of wiretap

I felt like we had to go out on a limb on that one (bolts next to crack). But after much deliberation we decided that was best. I am sure someone will disagree.

thought p5 was a soft 5.9....not sure what warranted the 5.9 (the overlap maybe)?

The overlap move for sure, but perhaps it is easier...

I thought the first pitch of Wiretap was a soft 10a, especially compared to Hearsay and Thriller on the Pillar

A bit of a pain in the butt really, a 35m 5.8 pitch (45m if linkin p1-p2) with 1-2 move of 5.10. Did you think it was easier than 5.10?

Thriller is an excellent climb....probably one of the top five 10b's in Squamish (if you exclude the lower malamute)

It is certainly my fave. Though I haven't climbed FLAB SLAB yet.

[Fre]

Climbed Wiretap today, just two wet spots since it rained yesterday morning I guess (roof to the right of pitch 1 and just above 3rd belay stance).
Linked pitch 1 and 2, 3 and 4
Pitch 5 is indeed kinda soft for 5.9
Bottom of pitch 1 was a bit damp and maybe that's why it felt still a bit dirty, nothing too serious at all though, great cleaning overall
The people before us gave it 3 out of 5 stars (hurrah for subjective ratings right?) and I think our party would go for 4 out of 5
Great belay seat!!! and nice face climbing at the top of pitch 4

[Optimally-Primed]

Thanks Fre and T-bone for the great feedback! I agree with your comments and with Damien's thoughts. A few to add...

I share the fondness of Thriller on the Pillar. What a great climb!

Grades. While cleaning the route, we were hoping it would be no harder than 5.9. The crux finish to pitch 1 disappointed us as it looked like it might be harder. But if the climb does end up having a crux of 5.9, all the better! Our hope was for the climb to accessible to more people, rather than less.

In terms of offering grades, I always find it difficult, and rely on this kind of feedback to correct any inaccuracies. Our bigger concern is sandbagging... so if you feel it's soft, that's not as bad as the other way around.

Thanks again. If others can help us sort out the grades, your feedback will be much appreciated.

[t-bone]

I'd suggest 5.9 for the 1st pitch for a few reasons:
-it certainly doesn't seem harder then, say, Penny Lane
-i thought p3 (the hand crack) was tougher
-i don't think you'll be sandbagging anyone since there is a bolt they can clip if they are feeling over their head.

I'd also recommend 5.8 for p5.

My $0.02

cheers

[raingod]

I have to disagree with T-Bone, I felt that P3 was easier than P1.
I do agree that P5 felt like 5.8

[damien]

Climber leading P3. The climber linked P3&4, which seems to be pretty standard. Also, feedback is that most climbers (unless swing leading to split the tougher pitches and the easier grades) link P1&2, P3&4, and finally climb P5. Has anyone tried this with a 60m rope (I only have a 70m)?


I hope to set up the crack which branches off right of the top of P3 later this summer. You can sort of see it behind the top of the right tree.

[methuselah]

Nice photo of pitches 3&4.

I linked 1&2, then 3&4 on a 60-m rope with no issues at all. Makes for 2 really fine pitches as long as you extend runners in the right places to avoid rope drag and have enough gear. As mentioned in the topo, a 60-m rope with stretch is just barely long enough for the final rap down (pitch 1), but works fine.

The route does seem to dry quickly. We started up the route about 10:30 on Sunday 13 June after some rain overnight and the leaves were still wet. The first pitch was a bit slippery but manageable, and the rest was completely dry thanks to the updraft.

One concern is that the first pitch area will likely get congested with folks rapping down the last pitch while other parties are climbing up. I wonder if there might be an option to rap somewhere further off to the side.

Thanks for all your good work on this climb.
I thought the grades on the topo felt about right.

Chris

[methuselah]

...except for grades on the last pitch which felt more like 5.8, especially the slab moves.
Chris

[damien]

I was thinking of putting an alternate descent that would involve walking climbers left of the pitch four belay, then two raps to the ground precisely for the congestion factor. You can walk off, but the descent is conveluted and 5.0ish so it is not a stellar option.

When time and money permit, I am going to sort out an alt.

[Squamishmonkey]

Climbed wire tap today!
I was a little surprised to see the cracks bolted? The odd bolt is needed but a lot of bolting is next to good placements.
I fully respect the amount of time, effort and money that was put into the area but
It will be a sad day in Squamish when bolting cracks becomes normal...!
I enjoyed the location and climbing but swinging from hand jams and clipping bolts is poor form!

[damien]

It will be a sad day in Squamish when bolting cracks becomes normal...!

Yeah, I hear you loud and clear on bolting cracks. A lot of consideration and friendly debate over the bolts on the route (and the whole crag) occured. Infact, I waited until the last possible moment to do the final bolting. I can hopefully pass on some of the thought that went into the final decision.

I had a lot of reservation about bolting on p3. In the end, we wanted a match the grade and protection with a leader of that grade. In reality, I think Wiretap is basically a 5.8 climb, and since there are two parts that are 5.9 or 5.9+... combine that with a 5.8 leader, flarey fists, a weird fall, and fiddly placements [max camming on two lobes & min camming on two lobes]... in the end we went with some bolts.

Also, lower down, there is a 'rogue' bolt at the top of Rumble in the Jungle which was a leftover from the anchor that we moved. The leftover bolt could have been removed but then it was already there and we figured would work as a directional for topropers to keep the rope off a sharpish edge. The bolt could be removed and a piece of directional pro (cam) could be used instead. I had chosen a fixed anchor here (rather than gear) to keep out of the way of Wiretap climbers and facilitate decent&topropers). We moved it into some better rock on the right. Anyone wishing to remove the other un-hangered stud at the top of Rumble in the Jungle is welcomed to do so; it is rather unsightly. Or I will do it next time I can.

I am interested to see what people think over time, and of course ( not to sound non-chalant about drilling) bolts can always be rearranged, removed, and drilled holes refilled.

I like forums like this because these sort of things discussed.
Glad you and many others have liked the climbing.

[harihari]

Hi Damien--

I did this last w/e. I think the final bolt on p4 of wiretap is superfluous-- you have a good horizontal right there. Dunno why you guys did P5-- my partner led it and said "this is totally f*cking gay; they should have quit while they were ahead" but I am sure you had your reasons. If I did it again I would skip P5. Loved your epic belay seat and your crack-bolting is OK-- you can't really get placements there anyway. If you aimed this at people getting into their first 10s, it's fine

On the 10b (?) to the left of wiretap, one of those two bolts is IMHO superfluous. The Pillar climb is lovely and next time I am up there I will do the 11c-- looks awesome. Good work, boys, and I will have something to bring to the table (I hope) in about 2 weeks.