El Camino Royale July 2011

Normally I prefer to try new trails and new routes.  There is so much in Colorado to explore it would take several lifetimes to see it all.  But one climb I return to again and again is the El Camino Royale.  It is the perfect balance between accessibility, excitement, and fun!  You can string together El Camino Royale, Royal Arch, Yodeling Moves, Lost Flatiron, and Fern Alley for a wonderful day of scrambling.

Cactus

Here's a picture of the middle pitch on El Camino Royale.  While you are heads down climbing, don't forget to look for cactus!

 The upper pitch was a bit shaded making for a nice bit of scrambling.  There are many lines to take up ECR, but the middle shady was my choice today.

The final pitch is a must do on most days.  To give the folks at the Royal Arch a thrill seeing you at the apex is only right.  But the downclimb is a bit more work than I want on some days and can eat up twenty minutes of time.  If I'm in a hurry, I skip this pitch and head over to climb the Arch.  I have also done the downclimb off the face of this top when I don't mind the exposure.

Great day in the flatirons!

Flatiron Fun 2010

El Camino Royale

 Went climbing in the Flatirons for the first time this summer on July 18, 2010.  Here's my favorite combination: El Camino Royale, Royal Arch, Hammerhead, Last Flatironette, and Fern Alley.  I thought I had the approach to El Camino Royale memorized from NCAR to the Mesa Trail, but I missed the start. 

Royal Arch Scrambler

Looking down Yodeling Moves

I was a little rusty on Yodeling Moves and got more confident on the Last Flatironette.  I also missed Fern Alley on this go.  I forgot that it is below the top of the Last.  I decided to descend the Tangen Tunnel Route.  I tip-toed around the poison ivy, and found my way down through the tunnel, but didn't find the wedding ring I lost last year.

Tangen Towers Problem

The next weekend I couldn't break free of work long enough to make it to Aspen, so back again to the Flatirons.  This time I didn't miss El Camino Royale and I even remembered not to stray too far left where I got in a pickle last year.

Last Flatironette

The start of the scramble up the royal arch is a bit of a puzzle, but it gets easier.  Next came the Hammerhead.  Their are two crux moves on yodeling moves. The one just below the arch is a bit too smooth.

To start the Last Flatiron look to the left of the tree at the base and go up the ledge.  You can climb the tree, but the ledge is more fun.  Let the exposure on the top exhilarate you.

Scrambler

The start of Fern Alley is just below the Last Flatironette.  Fern alley's lemon squeezers are not for the portly climber, but are quite fun.

Fern Alley

El Camino Royale to Hammerhead

Sunday M wanted to go for a motorcycle ride in the afternoon, so I could not head for the mountains. I fell back on my contingency plan: Hammerhead Flatiron. With a whole Sunday morning I figured I would see if I could go from El Camino Royale to the Royal Arch, then Hammerhead, the Last Flatiron, and finally Fern Alley.

I started from the National Atmospheric trail, but left the Mesa Trail too early. I had to bushwhack through a small canyon to reach ECR. I started on the south part of the rock with some Class 4 climbing and less than ideal holds. This lead to the crux. I had to cross climb then usurp a ledge. The route from here looked familiar and I was directly across from the escape. I headed up to the top, so that all the people at the arch could have a look at me.

I climbed the arch, but escaped at bottom of the hole. I needed to let the adrenaline dissipate. There were a ton of people on the arch trail.

I started the Hammerhead and decided to not climb the arch this time. The natural line takes you over the arch, so it was a bit tricky getting over to the north half. The climbing is about the same once you get there and I made good time to the top. Still no yodeling moves but I think I spotted a better line farther to the left.

I circumvented the last flatiron since I was running out of time and wanted to find my ring. I went up the south side and down the north. No luck. I skipped fern alley all together. At the top of Hammerhead you can follow the trail along the ridge down to xx pass. A much easier hike than down to the base of it.

M and I went on a 70 mile ride down to Elizabeth and back. A scenic drive and I seen three bucks still in the velvet.

The Lost Ring of Hammerhead Part 2

After losing my wedding ring during a hike/ascent of Hammerhead's Yodeling Moves, I needed to get back up on the rock as soon as possible. I took off from work early on a Tuesday to make my way to Boulder. This time I started at NCAR and did a trail run approach sans backpack. My new Scarpa approach shoes are perfect for a run/scramble combo. The photo above is me at the bottom of Hammerhead. This photo shows the nice holds this rock has.

The second time up Yodeling Moves and the East Face of the Last Flatiron was just as enjoyable as the first. I hope to find my ring, but if not it will make a good excuses to keep returning to these nice climbs. This time I added on Fern Alley. This Class 3 scramble starts just as the Last Flatiron ends and is aptly named: A rock canyon with lots of ferns. Check out this photo of Hammerhead... this rock so much nicer to climb than the brittle sandstone around where I grew up in western Colorado.

I think one could combine the Casino Royale, Yodeling Moves, Last Flatiron, and Fern Alley for an awesome day of climbing. I didn't find my ring, so maybe that's what I will try next time. This photo shows the last pitch on the Last Flatiron. You can see the huge dead tree poking out at the top.

The Lost Ring of Hammerhead

Scouring my Flatiron Classics book for a new scrambling route I happened upon a climb called Yodeling Moves. This route is on a rock called Hammerhead which is in the area of the fourth flatiron on Green Mountain. I took the Royal Arch trail from Chattaqua Park.

The bottom of Hammerhead just down from Sentinel Pass to the west of the trail about 50 feet. I forgot my GPS... but I will get coordinates next time. Half the fun is finding it for yourself anyway.

The climbing on Hammerhead is very enjoyable as you travel over a long arch. The holds are plentiful and secure, but if you look down too long you may feel a bit nervous without a rope. This is Class 4 territory and climbing this free solo without a partner always makes me pay close attention (photo 1). This second photo shows the route to the summit of Hammerhead on the west side that gives Yodeling Moves its name.

I continued on up to the Last Flatiron's East Face. This is more Class 4 climbing (photo 3) and is very enjoyable as well. The angle of the rocks in the flatirons makes climbing easy on the muscles. As you reach the summit, the downclimb would look a bit dubious were it not for the dead tree that is positioned perfectly. I can't imagine anyone placing this large tree here, so it is was awfully lucky for it to land so fortuitously.

What was not so fortuitous was my lost ring. I had taken off my wedding ring and put it in my pocket. Somewhere along the way it came out. I'm making it my mission to keep climbing these rocks until I find the damned thing.

Flatirons - Angel's Way

With Michelle out of town and high winds in the mountains, I decided to take a shot at climbing Angel's Way a rock ridge in Boulder's Flatirons. Angel's Way is a mostly Class 4 climb with spots of 5.0. Dalton didn't want to go, so I decided to take a look at it as a free solo.

I trust my discretion and skills, but can't take responsibility for yours. Therefore, I am not recommending this climb without a rope. 5.0 is still 5.0, so act accordingly. Especially in December when you can encounter snow and ice. The route is only open from 7/31 to 2/1.

It has taken me a couple of trips to identify exactly which ridge in Skunk Canyon is Angel's Way. Roach says it is 100 feet west of Satan's Slab and it is. Reading about it and being there are two different things for me. Here's the coordinates: N 39 58.700 W 105 17.333, Elevation 6479.

The climb starts out at 5.0 on small holds. There is a headwall with some buckets you can see in photo 2. The ridge above is Class 4 and about 1,000 feet long. The intensity of this climb without a rope was at my limits.

I tried to continue my day with a climb of Green Mountain, but the snow covered rocks made it no fun. I fell once on my shoulder which gave me a month long bruise. So I turned around and descended the gully. On my return to NCAR there was a nice heard of deer grazing in the broad field which lifted my spirits a bit.

El Camino Royale and Royal Arch Climb

Dalton and I headed up to the FlatIrons above Boulder on a Wednesday evening after work to enjoy a classic climb of the El Camino Royale and the Royal Arch. This is indeed an enjoyable scramble.

We approached from the NCAR trialhead even though some books recommend the Chautauqua trailhead to get to the Royal Arch. I think that NCAR is a better way to get to the El Camino because you can leave the trail once the big rock comes into view and bushwhack up. Be sure to leave the trail before you hit the Woods Quarry.

The El Camino Royale is 800 yards of pure scrambling fun. Climbing the Royal Arch is more intense and it seems that going up is scarier than coming down. Even Dalton was deliberate in spots, but then again he was climbing in his sandals.

We arrived back at the car after dusk and headed down to Pearl Street in Boulder for some beers at BJ's.

Second FlatIron 2008

More fun times climbing Free Way on the Second FlatIron high above Boulder, Colorado. On this fine June day my climbing partner was my son Dalton. It was the first time Dalton had joined me; usually it is Matt. Both are better scramblers than I am, but I still have just as much fun.

Approaching the 2nd from Chautauqua Park there were many people on the trail. Too many. The bottom of the climb is the most technical, just because it is steeper and has fewer holds. The holds become more plentiful the farther up you go.

Eventually we climbed to the point where you must make a flying leap to the rock below. The jump isn't hard to make, but it makes one ponder it for a few minutes. The jump is much easier than trying the downclimb.

We climbed to the high point because the last few hundred feet is a whole lot of fun. When you do this you must downclimb in order to reach the exit point on the North side of the rock. The exit point is always a bit of a move if you don't do it all the time, but not hard.

I think Dalton had fun on his first FlatIron climb!

The Keel

In September I met up with a new climbing partner named Sean. He was searching online for FlatIrons and found this blog. None of his other buddies wanted to do any scrambling so we decided to hook up.

On our first outing we decided to try the Keel. The Keel is just to the south of the Shannahan crags. The scrambling here is easy, but the wayis n ot obvious and the rock is broken. It was fun but not the best scrambling in the FlatIrons.

We decided to proceed up to Bear Peak. From where we were it required a bit of bushwhacking. The peak was quite windy, but the view is great. Sean is a cool guy and knows his stuff when it comes to climbing, so here's to more adventures together.