10/11/2003

Morning is easy in Fisher Towers. A bit too easy. The towering cliffs to our east kept the sun off our sleeping bags until around 10am. Once we finally woke and muddled through breakfast, it was time to climb again.

Our target for this day is the Stolen Chimney route up Ancient Art (5.9 A0 or 5.11 free). Ancient Art is without a doubt the most unique formation I have ever climbed. Quite possibly the most unique formation I have ever seen. The 320’ tower of sandstone and mud is capped with a 30’ sandstone corkscrew. And we plan to actually stand on the very top of this corkscrew, which looks like it can’t possibly support its own weight, much less the weight of even svelte climbers like Lauren and myself.

We hike the gentle trail for 45 minutes. The hike is easy and we enjoy our views of Ancient Art and all the nearby towers including The Titan (at 1000’ it is the tallest freestanding tower in the United States) and Castleton (recently purchased by the Access Fund to allow unrestricted climbing). But mostly we just eye that corkscrew and say, “I can’t believe we are going to stand on that. I just can’t believe it.”

Our late start means that the crowds have already beaten us to Ancient Art. Turns out that today is a Saturday (who knew? we weren’t keeping track), and the weather is perfect and Ancient Art is very popular. There were two parties of three and at least two parties of two ahead of us on this climb. In fact, the first party of three was coming down just as we arrived. This will be the only day of the entire trip that we are on a climb at the same time as any other climbers. Everyone is pleasant and friendly. Climbers are generally cool people. So for one day we can deal with the crowds.

We climb the first pitch. I take a look at the first bolt ladder and decide not to try to free it. The holds are crumbly, but otherwise the moves look to be not incredibly hard. By then rope drag is significant. Leaders freeing the first bolt ladder usually break the first pitch into two pitches just to reduce rope drag for the crux. I’m actually looking forward to a bit of easy aid, so I clip some slings and step up. If ever I return to Ancient Art, I’ll be sure to try to free the entire climb.

The second pitch is a mud chimney. Tough climbing in places, but surprisingly easy to protect. The pitch is long and filthy. I’m relieved to arrive at the huge ledge above this pitch. Here we reach the real traffic jam. Because of the narrowness of the third belay, and the fact that the descent follows the climb back to this ledge, there is no going forward until everyone above you has finished the entire climb and come back down. So this has been a bottleneck all day and the climbers are queued. Lauren waits below while a party of two descends. No reason to risk having mud dropped on her head. When they finish, Lauren comes up and we wait for the party of three ahead of us to reach the summit and return.

Finally the last two pitches are all ours. The third pitch is short and has a second bolt ladder. These three bolts go free at 5.10 and I do manage to mostly free this section, but grab the top bolt for psychological aid after completing the hard moves. I reach the narrow ridge and belay Lauren up.

Now we both have a fantastic view of the corkscrew. We are at the same elevation as the base and about 20’ away horizontally. The fourth pitch starts across this 20’ horizontal ridge. Certainly easy enough to stroll along a flat surface after all that climbing. In fact, this ridge is called “The Sidewalk.” I guess calling it “The Sidewalk With A Three Hundred Foot Drop On Either Side” was a bit too wordy. Needless to say, this is not a stroll for those with a fear of heights. Reaching the corkscrew at the end of the sidewalk, the first move is supposed to be an awkward belly flop on to a giant outcropping of sandstone called The Diving Board. I take one look at that and decide the move is ludicrous. No way am I going to belly flop with Lauren and a camera just 20’ away. I scrunch left of the diving board and climb the corkscrew proper.

Climbing this feature, you really do corkscrew around and up to the summit (counterclockwise if you were curious). Protection is mostly ancient angle irons and star drives. If that worries you, just don’t fall. So I reach the top and there are some slings wrapped around the entire corkscrew. The beta for this section is that the leader goes down before the second comes up. I clip into the slings, untie, thread the rope through the anchor, and tie back in. Now I can be lowered to the third belay, Lauren can clean the pitch, and then she can be lowered to the third belay. Cool!

So I’ve got the rope running through the anchor and tied back to me. One thing left before lowering to the third belay... Gotta climb up three more feet and stand on the summit. Ok, I’m there. Standing on one foot just to be a dork. Take the picture! Quickly! Got it? Whew! Climb back down to the anchor and lower to the third belay. Now it is Lauren’s turn. She gets to enjoy the sidewalk and diving board and corkscrew. She reaches the top. Lauren shocks herself and me by standing on the summit. On one foot. Take the picture! Quickly!

Time to head down. The sun is getting lower in the sky and it makes the sandstone glow. Beautiful. A short rappel gets us to the second belay ledge. From there double 60m ropes just barely get to the ground by rappelling straight down the west side of the cliff.

We hike out surrounded by the glowing sandstone. We take in all the sights, but mostly we just eye that corkscrew fading in the distance and say, “I can’t believe we stood on that. I just can’t believe it.”

Next Day