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Rock climbing in the Southeastern USA
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Trip Reports - 2/21/98 - T-Wall, TennesseeT-Wall Trip Report Feb 21-22, 1998by Andy Mitchell & Jason Hale Whoever came up with the "No Fear" slogan, obviously never actually *DID* anything. Saturday, 2/21Our pair of Weekend Warriors got a slightly late start Saturday morning ...and found 15 cars already there, filling the small lot, and lining both sides of the road. Yes, it was a busy day at one of the Southeast's finest wintertime crags. And why not? It was a balmy 50 degrees under a bright blue sky; who wouldn't be ready to get outside and hit the rocks? Without any specific plan as to what we wanted to climb, we began walking down the cliff looking for anything open in the 5.7-5.9 range. It would have been a good day to sell T-shirts, beer, and dog food, as virtually every interesting climb was taken by some group (and their dogs). Nearing the end of the routes covered in the Southeast Climbers Companion, we got advice from another climber (thanks, Jonathan) on a nice, "nothing serious" 5.7 around the corner, known as "Devil's -" -- something, maybe Advocate. We split this climb into two pitches, Jason leading the first and I the second. The first pitch went smoothly as Jason made it to a small belay ledge and built an anchor which he announced (after having me give a tug on the rope) "should hold." Filled with confidence, I took off. It was an impressive lead. Rated around 5.7, we both felt the climb was probably closer to 5.7+, shy of 5.8. I made it to Jason's belay without incident, but it was no walk in the park! And now for the second pitch. The first move was reminiscent of the Headwall mantle at Sunset. Perhaps because it was a mantle on a small sloping shelf with no holds. That was pretty much the story of the second pitch. Balancy moves above scarce gear. Above the mantle I was able to place two dubious cams behind a flaring flake. I didn't like it much, but there were no other features available. Elvis made an appearance at this point. Unwilling to commit to a move above the two cams in the flake I decided to traverse out to the left where the holds seemed better. They were and I was able to move up 10 feet, but only to be left with the troublesome prospect of traversing back over to the true line. I was able to set a piece before the traverse, but for some reason, it didn't give me much comfort. With no other options, I began edging right. This was easily the most frightening section of the climb for me as I was some distance directly right of my last piece and in pure balance mode, fingers gripping I-don't-know-what on a very vertical section of rock. As fate would have it, I was able to get back on route, set a piece and finish up. But what a way to start the year! Our next climb was Trungle (5.8). From the ground it appeared to be a short finger crack up a left facing corner. Easy, eh? This was Jason's lead (thank God) and it LOOKED like fun. The start was juggy boulder move as much like a gym climb as anything else, then up into the corner with a solid lieback, fingers fully in a comfy crack ... which thins out and disappears, unless you have the tips ... so things got hairy. No features on the left wall, the crack so small that there were only a couple places you could get your fingers in -- and not past the first digit. Hanging from a thin, finger biting flake edge outside from the crack, Jason was able to reach back in - barely - and place a piece at the bottom of what was definitely going to be the crux. Not liking that first piece but unable to wrench it free, he placed another. Note that this was a *very* uncomfortable stance on a small slope-y foothold with only one hand on a biting finger edge - not exactly a rest. In fact, Elvis made an encore performance. Looking at the hateful section of climb to come, Jason then found a decent place for a tiny flex friend and went for it. And made it! To put this in perspective (if you know Jason), his last comments were, "I'll be doing myself a dis-service if I don't go for it and risk the fall". Enough said. The rest of the pitch was a breeze compared to that thin crack section. Halfway up, at a decent ledge, Jason punched in a good belay anchor, and pulled the rope tight for the Second ... and now it was my turn. Well, it was no easy job cleaning those four pieces that I could barely reach from the biting finger edge. It must have taken me five minutes of cursing and shifting hands and wiggling pieces to get everything free. I was hurting so badly by the time the last two pieces came out I was clipping the freed pieces anywhere I could - my harness, other pieces of gear, on the rope. I was in agony - and I still had the hateful finger crack to go! I like a lieback as much as anyone, but this was perhaps one of the tougher finger jam/laybacks I have ever done. I made it, but I was on the edge of friction, endurance, and fatigue the whole way. AND I WAS ON TOP ROPE. How Jason pulled this off on lead, I may never know. I'll just keep hanging out with him and hope some of this stuff rubs off on me. Kudos to Jason for a FINE lead. Due to a late start, a little rust, and an early sunset, that was it for Saturday. We left for our favorite fleabag hotel the Cherokee Motel happy but exhausted. A quick clothing change (I have nothing to report about the Cherokee - it's cheap and the space heater they provided kept the room warm enough.), and we were off to our favorite old standby, Mr. T's pizza. A staggering $10 later we were back in the room for 30 minutes of "the Good, the Bad, and the Ugly" before passing out. Sunday 2/22Sunday morning arrived slightly overcast and chilly. Jason decided that since it was *my* turn to choose which climb would be next, Open Sesame (5.8+) would be perfect choice. This turned out to be quite a climb for me. There is a committing move 20 feet off the deck where you must pull out of a small cave, over a bulge, stick a hand jam, stick another hand jam and then stand up before you can rest or place gear. I must admit it took me four tries to get the guts to go for this. After the first try I had to back down and ask to hang on my piece. Just as Jason snugged the rope, my feet gave out so it was a good call on my part! Two more tries and back offs. Finally, on the fourth attempt I was so frustrated at my inability to commit, that I just went for it. And that was all it took. The moves were there, it was just a matter of commitment. No less than three more times during this pitch, I was ready to back off and be lowered down. I'm not sure what kept me going. When I used my last runner under the 8' roof at the top I was sure that was it. But something made me reach out and traverse the wall under the roof - the holds seemed soooo good. I thought I would just take a look and then come back in and lower down. But the next hold was bomber, too. And then before I knew it, I was out on the arete, 15 feet from my piece under the roof, no more slings, and just about out of my gourd from the strain of the climb. Now what?!? I didn't really have much choice. I jammed a shoulder into the outside face of the roof, opposed my feet, and shrugged my way up into the corner. It was now actually easy climbing to the top 10 feet away. Of course by the time I reached the top, I had a good 20+ feet of rope out to my last piece and I was pretty wigged. It was a great climb for me, but very taxing both physically and emotionally. Jason had no trouble with the climb, cleaned my gear, and arrived at the top some 10 minutes after he started. I would guess that it took me about 90 minutes to lead. It is amazing what you can accomplish if you refuse (or just don't know when) to give up! Having pretty much exhausted our short day on this one climb, we rapped down only a few minutes before a light drizzle began to fall -- perfect timing! We packed up and hiked out after a great weekend of climbing. For the first trip of 1998, this was a fantastic start. We had chances to practice a variety of moves, setting gear, and building anchors. Can't wait for the next weekend ...! Trip report scribbled by Andy Mitchell Edited and revised by Jason Hale ` |