One of the best routes at West Elden, if you can climb it! 

  Located just right of the Baxter Crack, John's Jugs climbs the steep fingers and tips crack that splits an overhanging headwall. 

  Start over boulders and broken rock to access the crack.  Launch up the fingers/tips crack which widens to thin hands just before the cliff top.

John's Jugs

Spread Flake

TT's Terror

Now Smell This

5.10 TR

Five Easy Pieces

Left Deception

The Prow

Retirement Crack

Megadeath

Bold is Love

Baxter Crack

Right Elephant Crack

Verse in Ragtime

Chicken Fixin's

Right Deception Crack

Spread Eagle

Middle Deception Crack

Gone Fishin'

Zit Slab

Inferno

The Baxter Crack is located about 50 yards north of the Deception Cracks.  Pass through the tunnel boulder and look up.  The Spread Flake is the right facing corner.  The Baxter crack is the left facing corner.   

  Scramble up and over boulders and then up a lower angle slab with a crack.  When the wall steepens head take one of two options.  1. Climb up and right through a wide crack to the cliff top.  2.  Climb straight up a sweet #2 Camalot crack to the cliff top.  Option #1 is probably in the 5.6 range.  Option #2 could be as hard as 5.8+, but is very high quality climbing.

Sharing the same start with Verse in Ragtime, PMC climbs an off-width crack to a split.  The right hand finish climbs an easy wide crack to the top.  The left hand variation checks in at about 5.6 consisting of a nice hand crack. 

  Belay from gear (1-2") or from a tree. 

  Descent - Scramble down 4th class terrain to the right or rap from anchors atop the right hand deception crack.

The Spread Flake is the right facing corner next to the Baxter Crack.   

  Climb the corner using jams, stems, and face holds to a large tree at the clif top.  Keep your eyes open for stem options on the way up.

TT's Terror starts in a finger crack with a tree growing out of it just left of Zit Slab's start. Climb the finger crack, trying not to step on the tree, to a nice crack in the upper headwall. Climb past awkward and difficult moves (possibly 5.9) through a pod to a nice hand crack.

 Descent - Rap from anchors atop the Right Deception Crack or scramble down 4th class terrain right of PMC.

Place a directional in the crack, then reach high for the first clip. Climb up crack to a stance, then stretch right for some pockets to establish yourself on the overhanging, colorful face - the crux. Continue up, then right to the arete, then up again. Round the arete and finish up slabby terrain. For a more difficult start, stick clip the second bolt and climb straight up small edges and dyno for the rounded ledge - 12+.        "Instead of hiding our heads in a prayer cloth and building walls against temptation, why not get better at fulfilling desire? Salvation is for the feeble, that's what I think." - Tom Robbins(Jitterbug Perfume). 

A few years ago Dean and I TRed the arete between Zit Slab and the Left Deception.  It checks in at about 5.10a or so.  Starts on the arete then quickly moves right up plates, flexable flakes, and jugs to the top.

From the base of the Right Deception Crack climb up and right to a large corner.  Climb face and cracks just right of the corner to the cliff top. 

  This route is a great way to access the cliff top.

Located just left of the Middle Deception.  Climb an easy slab to access the hands, fist and ow crack.  Fun moderate climbing leads to the cliff top. A #3 Camalot and and decent sized tree provide a belay on top. Rap Right Deception.

The Prow starts by climbing out the left hand wall of a shallow cave to a nice stance below the steep headwall.  Climb the fingers to hands crack to the rim.  Make a gear anchor (Red and Gold Camalot size) or run the rope way back to the trees. 

  This is my favorite 5.9 at West Elden.

The obvious overhanging hand crack just right of John's Jugs.  Finishes off with an awkward wide crack move or two.  Similar to Twilight Zone in that the jams are locker but it's steeper and the exit is harder than the Zone.

Megadeath shares the same start with Five Easy Pieces (FEP).  When FEP cuts up and right Megadeath climbs a nice hands crack to a small ledge.  From here layback around the overhang to a nice stance.  Then launch up hands to ow crack making a great left reach to the clifftop just as the climbing gets really hard. 

  Descent - Scramble down 4th class terrain right of PMC or rap from bolts atop the Right Deception Crack.

Start ten feet right of the initially dirty, mossy crack system, on a flake jug on the face. Climb good, slabby features left and up to the crack system previously mentioned. Climb a few moves up the low angle wide crack(beware of your rope falling into a slot just above), then angle slightly left up the slabby dihedral with a seam that offers some protection just before a ledge is encountered on your left. Use the ledge, or not, and continue up the crack line that leads to the steep, striking prow/arete with the handrail that curves along it's edge - the business. To the first bolt the route is about 5.7 with sparse gear. Climb up the steep, juggy handrail past two more bolts to a sinker pocket and well hidden chain anchor at the lip. Don't cheat yourself by climbing to the steep lip of the cliff, clipping and lowering. Top it out for old school satisfaction, then reverse the topout moves and lower.         *This climb was established entirely on lead.

This route is located about 20 yards left (north) of the Baxter Crack and the Spread Flake. 

  The Right Elephant Crack climbs a short but steep head wall.  Scramble up an easy but slick slab to the crack's start.  Big moves off jams and face holds take you through the crack to the cliff top.

Verse in Ragtime climbs the arete 20' right of Five Easy Pieces.  Face climb past two bolts up the arete using huecos and crimps to a large ledge.  Belay off gear (1-2") or a tree at the top. 

  Descent - Scramble down 4th class terrain to the right or rap from two bolts at the top of the right deception crack.

I'm adding this route because some people have asked me about it in the past.  It is a short little thing and was quite scary to lead on the FA. My guess is that it is 5.11.  It is a pretty little face but too tall for a highball so I lead it.

The Right Deception Crack is possibly the most climbed route at West Elden.  This route lies in a left facing corner to the left of Five Easy Pieces and Megadeath.  Climb an easy slab to access the corner.  Liebacks and jams lead to the clifftop.   

  Descent - Rappel from a two bolt anchor.

Start on Spread Flake up to the ledge and move onto the left face asap and climb the face and arete.  Not much pro besides the fixed pin if it is still there.

This route is the first crack system left of the Right Deception.  Climb an easy slab to the crux.  Face climbing, body English, and levitation get you to a small pod.  From this point it is mostly hands and fingers to the top.   

  The crux is awkward and difficult to protect.  Most folks TR this route. 

  Descent - Rappel from two bolts atop the Right Deception Crack or scramble down to the right of PMC.

Stem between loafs, then smear up a slab to a left facing dihedral with gear. Top out the dihedral onto a perch below the pretty, steep juggy face. Climb the featured face, crux, to an anchor near the top.

Zit Slab is the first crack system left of the three Deception Cracks.  Start in a corner with jams and face moves to a small ledge.  Launch up the upper crack with great jams and huge buckets to the cliff top. 

  Possibly the best route of it's grade at West Elden. 

  Descent - Rap from anchors atop the Right Deception Crack or scramble down 4th class terrain to the right of PMC.

Inferno is about 50' north (climbers left) of TT's Terror.  Start up a short slot which leads to an unprotected right traverse into a low angle left facing corner.  Run up the corner to a ledge below the left facing dihedral that makes up the business of Inferno.  Jam and stem up this corner to the cliff top.  The gear through the crux is difficult to place.  

  Descent - Rap from the anchors atop the Right Deception Crack or scramble down 4th class terrain right of PMC.

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Routes in Uptown