Indian Creek CLIMBING

Category: Utah Elev: ~5,800 ftRock Type: Wingate Sandstone
Dates: Sept 2018(x3 days), Nov 2019(x2 days), March 2020(x6 days), Nov 2024(x7 days)Partners: Alex Haeger & Penny (2018), Mike Cichon (2019), Mark Thomas (2020), Alex Haeger & Autumn Priestly (2020), Nate Beckwith (2024), Steve Su (2024)
Trip Report #s: 321, 384, 400, 772a, 772b

List of Climbs I've Done and 4 Trip Reports

Photo Trip Reports for

September 2018
November 2019
March 2020
November-December 2024

Indian Creek arguably has the largest concentration of splitter crack climbing in the world. Cracks of all sizes split the towering red sandstone walls everywhere you look. A crack-climber's paradise.

The first time I climbed in Indian Creek was in September 2018, on an impulsive detour on a drive from Montana back to Washington (where I lived at the time), when I got a text from a friend looking for a partner for a weekend in the Creek. 17 extra hours of driving for 2 days of climbing? Plus climb at a time when there is no crowds? It was a no brainer. It was late summer, so the Creek was pretty quiet. But a tad hot too.

The second time I climbed at Indian Creek was over Thanksgiving Break 2019. It was my first fall after moving to Boulder from Washington, and I snatched the first opportunity to make it to the Creek (now much closer than 17 hours drive) for a few days. Unfortunately, an unforecasted snowstorm cut our trip in half, but we still got in two great days of climbing and had the rare opportunity to see the Creek blanketed in snow. It was another Creek teaser trip... 

The third time I climbed at Indian Creek was over Spring Break 2020. The trip had a surreal undercurrent to it, due to the coronavirus COVID-19 outbreak that was sweeping over the globe. When I left Boulder, there were a few thousand confirmed cases of COVID-19 in the US, school had just transitioned into online mode, and "social distancing" was quickly becoming the catch phrase. But over the course of the week while I was blissfully climbing splitters in the Creek, the number of confirmed cases in the US bloomed to over 120,000, places all over the country (including back home in Boulder) were issued a "stay-at-home" mandate to try to flatten the epidemic curve, and by the final day of my trip San Juan county (where Indian Creek is located) itself had closed its doors to "leisure activity". Everyday life had changed a lot over the course of the week, but it had been nice to escape for a bit.

The fourth time I climbed at Indian Creek was over Thanksgiving 2024. This was the most "standard" of my trips to the Creek thus far. We arrived a few days ahead of the Thanksgiving crowds, camped in our cars at Creek Pasture, and climbed for the entire week. On rest days I went on a couple of Canyonlands hikes. We capped off our time in the Creek by climbing Lightning Bolt Cracks (5.11-, 3-4p) on North Six Shooter.

On this page, I keep a list of the climbs I've done at Indian Creek. Below the list, I've included trip reports for my four trips to the Creek.

Table of Contents for this page

List of Climbs I've Done at Indian Creek

Indian Creek

4 trip reports

Trip reports for 1st and 2nd and 3rd and 4th visits to Indian Creek.

Color coded by area:
Battle of the Bulge Buttress     Cat Wall       Critics Choice      Donnelly Canyon       North Six Shooter       Reservoir Wall       Scarface Wall        Second Meat Wall         South Six Shooter      Supercrack Buttress       The Wall       Way Rambo Wall

Trip Report #1 for Indian Creek: 1st trip to the Creek: A weekend and 12 routes (12 routes)

Dates: September 14-16, 2018 (Fri-Sun)      Partner: Alex Haeger, Penny     Climbed at: Supercrack Buttress, Reservoir Wall, Donnelly Canyon

Intro

I was headed back to Washington from a 2-week climbing trip in Montana. Google maps said 12 hours drive from Bozeman to Bellingham. I was just about to start the drive when I got a text from my friend Alex from Boulder: "Headed to the Creek for the weekend, looking for a partner, any chance you are in the area?" I checked Google maps: 29 hours drive from Bozeman to Bellingham via Indian Creek. Hmm....17 additional hours of driving for 2 days of climbing in Indian Creek? It was a no brainer.

Alex and I climbed 12 routes over the course of 2.3 days (we climbed full days Friday and Saturday, and squeezed in a few hours on Sunday morning before Alex left to drive back to Boulder). All but one of the routes we climbed are listed in the "The Best Of" list at the end of the guidebook. Daily high temperatures reached the high 80's, but we woke up early and targeted shady routes, and it was actually quite pleasant. The following gives photos from the routes we climbed.

Climbs/Photos

Area photos

Supercrack Buttress (Sept 14)
Random photos from the day....
The empty parking lot below Supercrack Buttress. We had the entire Supercrack Buttress to ourselves this day! This place will be swarming in a few weeks.
Penny (Alex's dog) enjoying the view.
Looking north up 211.
Penny taking a nap on a sandstone pillow.

The Incredible Hand Crack (5.10, 100')

Supercrack ButtressSept 14
Lead: Steph+ toprope lap
Our first climb of the trip—looks pretty incredible!
Starting up the corner.
Looking down the corner.
Cam lobe scars etched into the soft sandstone. These scars occurred right before the crux roof section, so they are probably from falls jamming the cam lobes into the rock. There a couple of deep ones from some pretty big whippers (or very heavy climbers)!

The Wave (5.10+, 100')

Supercrack ButtressSept 14
Lead: Alex
Sign at the base of the route. Not uncommon in the Creek.
Alex starting up the pitch.
You can see how the route got its name.

Coyne Crack (5.11+, 70')

Supercrack ButtressSept 14
Lead: Steph+ toprope lap
Looking up Coyne Crack. Funny story: We thought this was Supercrack (5.10) (it looked like a pretty super crack after all). So I racked up with the recommended rack (for Supercrack)—heavy on wide hands pieces. A couple of moves into the route, it seemed kind of hard off-fingers, so I stepped back down to get an #0.5 cam ("must be a typo in the rack description"). I started back up. A couple of moves higher than I had gotten the first time, I clued in that there was a 20-foot section of super thin hands above me; I lowered back down to collect a handful of #0.75 cams ("hmmm, these Creek climbers must be hard core to climb that entire stretch with only one #0.75"). Once through the #0.75 terrain I was now looking at a long stretch of #1-sized terrain and no wide-hands in sight ("okay, now this is getting silly"); I stopped and lowered a bite of rope to get a handful of #1 cams. "Are we sure this is Supercrack?" I yelled down to Alex. "Seems kinda hard too." At that very moment, Alex spotted a rock lying at the based of the crack, etched into it the words  "oyne Crack" (the "C" had broken off). Coyne Crack is a 5.11+. Ha! (I bet we were not the first to make this mistake.) At this point I was committed and the climbing was excellent anyway, so I barreled on up, with more than a few shameless C1 moves along the way. Oh well, in the end It made for a funny story and we also seized the opportunity to do a couple of toprope laps on this 5.11+ classic, which we probably wouldn't hav attempted if we had known what route it was.
Looking down from the anchor. The crack becomes more featured (and easier and quite fun) near the top.
Sign at base of route. The "C" has broken off but this is clearly not Supercrack!

Supercrack (5.10, 100')

Supercrack ButtressSept 14
Lead: Alex
This is Supercrack.
The first half is an awesome hand-sized splitter.
The second half up the varnished face is a wide-hands spitter.
Shadow fun while lowering down the wide-hands splitter.

Bad-Rad Duality (5.10+, 110')

Supercrack ButtressSept 14
Lead: Steph+ toprope lap
The Bad-Rad Duality corner. 
Looking down the corner. Reminded me of Sierra-style corner climbing with lots of stemming moves.
Another view down the corner. The sun hit the route as we were toproping it.
The anchor at the top.

Area photos

Reservoir WallSept 15
Random photos from the day....
Sunrise light on North and South Six Shooters. There are a couple of good 5.11 routes on North Six Shooter I'd love to climb someday.
Approaching Reservoir Wall. Photo by Alex.
Silhouette on the hike up to the base of Reservoir Wall.
Hiking around the base on the way to Warm-up Handcrack at the far end of the wall.
Some cool rocks along the way. (My go-to geologist consult Doug McKeever says: "This is a fine-grained sandstone with the little ridges being mudcracks from desiccation of surface standing water in the original environment of deposition. As the next layer of sediment was deposited it fills the cracks. But wait, these "filled cracks"are little ridges (positive features). Mudcracks are negative features! The " inversion" is because we are looking at the bottom of  the layer. The view in the picture is "upside down."  Oh yeah...the white stuff is most likely a thin layer of salt, probably halite, deposited by evaporation of surface water. Also, there are raindrop impressions! They are the small round spots particularly noticeable on the left-side area of the surface. They are frequently found with mudcracks. Those two along with salt imply an original hot arid environment with drought interrupted by periods of rain. You could have an hour's class on this one rock sample!")
Some cool rocks along the way. (Doug says: "This sure appears to be volcanic breccia, which seems odd in Indian Creek, but there are extinct volcanoes in the region. It undoubtedly originated in the igneous Abajo Mountains just to the south( and upstream).")
Morning light on the Indian Creek area below.
Afternoon light and shadow. The desert is the definition of "vast".
Just another version of the afternoon light and shadow sequence.
This offwidth splitter system looks unique and fun to climb (we didn't climb it, but I will have to climb it someday).
Penny entertained herself by building a cairn while we were climbing.
Hiking out after a good day of climin'!
A view back of Reservoir Wall.

Warm-Up Handcrack (5.10, 105')

Reservoir WallSept 15
Lead: Alex+ toprope lap
This climb is compared to The Incredible Hand Crack. Indeed, it is pretty good and worth the long hike.
Hand jams the whole way up.
Anchor at the top.

Overlook (5.10/5.11, 110'/80', 2p)

Reservoir WallSept 15
Lead P1: StephLead P2: Alex
Looking up from the base. Pitch 1 squirrels through some offwidth to the base of the obvious vertical splitter you can see on the upper wall in the photo. Pitch 2 climbs this splitter.
Pitch 1 reminds me of some of the tower climbing I've done in the Moab area: giant features that require a mix of offwidth, chimney, and stemming, and are unprotected or protected by big cams. (For big cams, we had 2 #3's, 1 #4, 2 #5's, and 1 #6; I used all of them on Pitch 1 and felt pretty comfortable. Save the #6 and a #3 for the final offwidth.)
The offwidth at the top of the pitch. It actually widens to a #6 size just above where I have placed the #5, so bring a #6.
Alex following the offwidth. The cam with the green carabiner midway up the offwidth is a #6.
The Pitch 2 splitter. "The guidebook said to bring 6 #1's, so we brought 1 #6."
Alex starting up Pitch 2. Yes, it is that steep!
Alex starting up Pitch 2.
Looking down the Pitch 2 splitter. As we were climbing, several chips of rock came off the edges of the crack. The route is obviously not climbed as much as the rounded trade-route splitters. But that doesn't mean it's not great climbing! (But it will tear apart your shoes.)
The somewhat manky anchor ("mankor") at the top of Pitch 2.

Pente (5.11-, 160')

Reservoir WallSept 15
Lead: Steph+ toprope lap
Sign at the base of the route. Not uncommon in the Creek.
Looking up at Pente. When we arrived, there was a party just starting up Pente, but we decided it was worth the wait. And it was!
#1-sized splitter. My favorite size.
I think I brought 8 #1's and used them all.
The upper corner is #0.75-sized. Harder if you have bigger hands....
Alex, 150 feet up, 10 feet to go! It's an enduro pitch.
Rope scars etched into the soft sandstone.

Area photos

Donnelly CanyonSept 16
Random photos from the day....
The sun is coming...
...it's about to get pretty warm...

Generic Crack (5.10-, 120')

Donnelly CanyonSept 16
Lead: Alex+ toprope lap
Generic Crack climbs the obvious worn crack splitting the face.
The rack: 10 #2's.
A #2-sized handcrack the whole way up.
Belay shadow in the morning sun (the sun hit as Alex got halfway up leading the route).

Binou's Crack (5.9, 50')

Donnelly CanyonSept 16
Lead: Steph
A short but fun route up the corner.
Climb the wide crack on the left or the fingercrack on the right, or a mix of both.

Chocolate Corner (5.9, 60')

Donnelly CanyonSept 16
Lead: Steph
A short but fun corner with thin hand jams the whole way up.

Elephant Man Pitch 1 (5.10, 70')

Donnelly CanyonSept 16
Lead: Steph
Funky but fun crack climbing.

Camping photos

We stayed at Bridger Jack Campground, off Utah State Route 211 in middle of Indian Creek climbing area. Free climber camping.
Driving along 211, passing giant buttresses of splitter cracks....
Most climbers camp at the Bridger Jack Campground, which is free camping off 211. The road to the campground is a bit rough, but 2wd.
Our campsite. We were the only ones there on Thursday and Friday nights, and there were a few other climbers there on Saturday night. This place fills up every night in the fall and spring, so it was a rare treat to be able to have the camping area to ourselves.
My "office". 
Evening view from the campground.
Some toy cars I found at our campsite.
I think my rack would be considered "small" by Creek standards! But combined with Alex's rack, we had a full "Indian Creek rack" (~6-10 of the thin hands, hands, and wide hand sizes....).

Newspaper Rock

Newspaper Rock, on Utah State Route 211 on way to Indian Creek climbing area.
Newspaper Rock State Historic Monument is a Utah state monument featuring a rock panel carved with one of the largest known collections of petroglyphs. From the sign at the monument: "Newspaper Rock is a petroglyph panel etched in sandstone that records approximately 2,000 years of early human activity. Prehistoric peoples, probably from the Archaic, Basketmaker, Fremont, and Pueblo cultures, etched on the rock from B.C. time to A.D. 1300. In historic times, Ute and Navajo people, as well as European Americans, made their contributions. In interpreting the figures on the rock, scholars are undecided as to their meaning or have yet to decipher them. In Navajo, the rock is called "Tse' Hane'" (Rock that tells a story). Unfortunately, we do not know if the figures represent storytelling, doodling, hunting magic, clan symbols, ancient graffiti, or something else. Without a true understanding of the petroglyphs, much is left for individual interpretation. Newspaper Rock is listed in the National Register of Historic Places. Please continue to preserve it."

Trip Report #2 for Indian Creek: Thanksgiving at the Creek: 2 days of climbing + snowstorm! (14 routes)

Dates: November 25&28, 2019 (Mon&Thu)       Partner: Mike Cichon      Climbed at: The Wall, Battle of the Bulge Buttress

Intro

My goal was to spend my first Thanksgiving in Colorado at Indian Creek. And I did. Well, sort of. An unforecasted snowstorm sort of cut our trip in half, but we still got in two great days of climbing and had the unique experience of seeing the Creek blanketed in snow.

I climbed in the Creek with Mike Cichon. I had met Mike at a belay traffic jam on Mickey Mouse Wall at Eldo, where we exchanged contact info after discovering we had several of the same objectives, and few weeks later received an email from him: "I'm looking for a partner—are you interested in climbing in the Creek Thanksgiving week?". Of course I was interested!

Mike and I spent our first day of climbing at The Wall, one of the more popular "new" crags and one of the few areas Mike had not been to yet. The Wall faces south, so it can be a pleasant place to climb in cooler weather, when the sun is out. Also, the Wall has a somewhat longer approach and rougher drive than other areas in the Creek, which Mike and I hoped would mean less crowded. But as luck would have it, a large group of about 20 climbers had also decided to climb up at The Wall that day, so we didn't escape the experience of Thanksgiving crowds at the Creek after all. But despite the rowdy crew monopolizing most of the area's best routes, Mike and I still climbed 7 great pitches.

That night it snowed 5 inches, a pretty abrupt change to the original weather forecasts for the week. So we drove to Moab, where we could hang out for the day. After cragging for a day in Moab and seeing how quickly the snow was sublimating in the dry air, we decided to risk the iffy forecast and return to the Creek to see if we could squeeze in one more day of climbing. And what a day of climbing it was! We climbed at Battle of the Bulge Buttress, which has one of the best concentrations of stellar 5.11 routes in the Creek, along with a very short approach and sunny aspect. Given the wall's popularity along with the climbable weather and the usual crowding during Thanksgiving week, we were (very pleasantly) surprised to be the only ones on the entire wall for the entire day. I guess everyone had vacated during the snowstorm and decided to do the turkey thing after all. It was a unique and magical experience to have some of the Creek's best splitters to ourselves, enjoying the area as it was in the 1970's. It was an ironic juxtaposition with our experience at the much more obscure The Wall just a few days previous, jockeying for position and sanity amongst lycra-clad climbers and barking dogs. Mike and I climbed seven routes, with five of them in the 5.11 range, which made for an awesome day of climbing at the Creek.

The following gives photos from our Creek adventure. Another Creek teaser trip....I'll have to come back for more.

Climbs/Photos

Area photos

The WallNov 25
Random photos from the day....
Looking back at the parking area for The Wall. Shortly after this photo was taken, half a dozen more cars showed up, foiling our plans to escape the Thanksgiving crowds.
I'll call this sort of photo a "Creek cragging lifestyle" photo. North Six Shooter in distance.
Another Creek cragging lifestyle shot.
And another.
I couldn't resist stopping to take some photos of this crag dog monopolizing the belay puffy.
I couldn't resist stopping to take some photos of this crag dog monopolizing the belay puffy.
The Wall. This photo was taken near the end of the day, when we were waiting for the climbers to leave the base of Run Like Hell (a popular 5.10 that had had parties on it all day) so we could get in one more climb before hiking out.
North and South Six Shooters below some mammatus clouds. Snow is on the way....

The Trial (5.10, 110')

The WallNov 25
Lead: Steph
Looking up from the base of the corner.
Looking down from the top of the route.

Which One's Pink (5.11-, 100')

The WallNov 25
Lead: Mike
Sign at the base of the route. These signs are super convenient because it can be difficult at times to locate which splitter system is the one you are trying to climb!
The route follows the obvious wide splitter.
Racking up at the base. Between the two of us, I think we have enough gear to climb about anything at the Creek....
Mike starting up the route. The starting offwidth section was one of the route's cruxes.
Looking up the offwidth.
Upper section of route.

Circling Sky (5.10-, 60')

The WallNov 25
Lead: Steph+ toprope lap
Looking up the route.
Looking down from the top of the route. The top of the route widens to #5-sized offwidth.

Dancing Queen (5.11+, 70')

The WallNov 25
Lead: Mike
From tips to offwidth. We couldn't help but stop and climb it.
Another view, a bit further back.
Mike at the lower crux section.
Mike now at the cruiser hands section.
The offwidth crux section ahead. 
Sign at the base of the route.

Dirty Girl (5.9, 35') and Dirty Woman (5.9, 35')

The WallNov 25
Lead: Steph
The men in black go climbing.
There are two fun 5.9 routes here that share the same anchor: Dirty Girl climbs the crack, while Dirty Woman climbs the corner on the right. Fun leads and a quick way to get in two more pitches.

Run Like Hell (5.10, 85')

The WallNov 25
Lead: Mike
Sign at the base.
Looking up the route.
Final section before the anchor. I thought this was the route's crux.

Forced Rest Day

Nov 26. We awoke to 5 iniches of snow. No climbing today....

Cragging in Moab

Nov 27. We climbed at Wall Street in Moab.
We woke up to a winter wonderland at the Creek Pasture Camping area.
Using the picnic table as a gauge, there was about 5 inches of snow.
Mike making coffee. Awesome pj's!
The drive out.
North and South Six Shooters under a winter sky.
Yeah, don't think we will be climbing today.....
....yeah, definitely not.....
Supercrack area. Look, no crowds!
Supercrack. (I climbed this uber-classic splitter on my first trip to the Creek)
We drove to Moab and I hung out in the library all day working on my trip reports and doing some schoolwork. We had hopes that the sun would come and melt the snow off the rock enough that we could climb something the next day. Plus, I-70 had been closed due to an even heavier snowfall in Colorado and some weather-induced rockslides, so we couldn't easily get back to Boulder anyway. Fortunately, the Moab library is a nice place to spend a day if you cannot be climbing.

Area photos

Battle of the Bulge ButtressNov 28
Random photos from the day....
It's not often the Supercrack parking area is completely empty at 8am in the morning!
We were the only cars parked in the lot.
Message board at the Supercrack parking area.
Beginning the 10 minute approach to Battle of the Bulge Buttress. There was still some snow on the valley floor, but none up on the rock. Snow melts/sublimates quickly in the desert!
The typical rack for the day - mostly 1's, 2's, and 3's.
Mike's selection of big gear. If there are crowds hogging all the classic routes, there is usually no one climbing the offwidths, so best to come prepared!
This striking offwidth splitter is Big Baby, 5.11. We entertained the idea of climbing it but there were simply too many routes to climb and we didn't have time. 
What a spot to spend the day.
The entire day, and we are still the only ones parked in the lot. I guess everyone had vacated during the snowstorm and decided to do the turkey thing after all. It was a unique and magical experience to have the Creek to ourselves, experiencing the area as it was in the 70's, climbing some of the Creek's best splitters without having to jockey for position and sanity amongst lycra-clad climbers and barking dogs.
List of climbs for the day. Seven routes, with five of them 5.11's is a darn great day at Indian Creek!
Some tiny paw prints in the snow.

The Warm-Up (5.9, 40')

Battle of the Bulge ButtressNov 28
Lead: Steph
This crack is a great warm up.
Looking down the route.

Our Piece of the Real Estate (5.11-, 110')

Battle of the Bulge ButtressNov 28
Lead: Mike
Mike on lead.
Splitter!

Crack Attack (5.11-, 90')

Battle of the Bulge ButtressNov 28
Lead: Steph+ toprope lap
This route has lots of variety and fun movement.
More splitter crack!

Ruins Crack (5.11, 70')

Battle of the Bulge ButtressNov 28
Lead: Mike
Mike styling the opening fingers layback sequence.
Rope scars under the anchor. Mostly from lowering. To avoid unnecessary wear on the rock and our rope, Mike and I had gotten into the habit of what we started calling a "Utah Counterweight Rappel" where the leader pulls up rope and raps down on a single strand with the belayer acting as a counterweight.
The route is named after the ruins of a Fremont Culture dwelling that lie just right of the start of the route.

The Jane Fonda Total Body Workout (5.11-, 130')

Battle of the Bulge ButtressNov 28
Lead: Mike
Looks like fun.
Mike beginning a full body workout in the opening bombay. After this, it's pretty cruiser hands in the corner.
Cruiser corner climbing.

Railroad Tracks (5.10-, 50')

Battle of the Bulge ButtressNov 28
Lead: Steph
Railroad Tracks climbs the twin cracks in to the top of the pillar in the center of the photo.
Looking up the route.
Mike climbing in the afternoon sun.

Quarter of a Man (5.11+, 120')

Battle of the Bulge ButtressNov 28
Lead: Mike
Looking up the corner.
Another photo looking up the corner. It's an enduro thin hands pitch.
Looking down the corner while following.
The fun finish.
The anchor.
Rope scars under the anchor.

Trip Report #3 for Indian Creek: Spring Break at the Creek: 6 days of climbing (31 routes)

Dates: March 22-27, 2020 (Sun-Fri)      Partner: Mark Thomas      Climbed at: Battle of the Bulge Buttress, South Six Shooter, Way Rambo Wall, Supercrack Buttress, North Six Shooter, Critics Choice         

Intro

The third time I climbed at Indian Creek was over Spring Break 2020. For the first five days I climbed with my friend and offwidth aficionado Mark Thomas. For the last day, I met up with my friend Alex and his friend Autumn for what was to be two more days of cragging but turned into one pitch due to a freak snowstorm and a notice that San Juan County had been closed to leisure travel. 

The trip had a surreal undercurrent to it, due to the coronavirus COVID-19 outbreak that was sweeping over the globe. When I left Boulder, there were a few thousand confirmed cases of COVID-19 in the US, school had just transitioned into online mode, and "social distancing" was quickly becoming the catch phrase. But over the course of the week while I was blissfully climbing splitters in the Creek, the number of confirmed cases in the US bloomed to over 120,000, places all over the country (including back home in Boulder) were issued a "stay-at-home" mandate to try to flatten the epidemic curve, and by the final day of my trip San Juan county (where Indian Creek is located) itself had closed its doors to "leisure activity". Everyday life had changed a lot over the course of the week, but it had been nice to escape for a bit. 

Below is a list of routes and photos from my 6 days in the Creek.

Graph from www.cdc.gov.

Climbs/Photos

Area photos

Battle of the Bulge ButtressMar 22
Random photos from the day....
Supercrack parking area. Kind of uncrowded for a weekend abutting Spring Break. 
Supercrack parking area. Kind of uncrowded for a weekend abutting Spring Break. 

Railroad Tracks (5.10-, 50')

Battle of the Bulge ButtressMar 22
Lead: Steph
First lead of the day. (Photo by Mark.)
Climbing is fun!

Mystery Machine (5.10, 150') (starts above Railroad Tracks)

Battle of the Bulge ButtressMar 22
Lead: Mark
Mark starting off Mystery Machine, which starts back in the chimney/slot feature.
Looking down the route. (Photo by Mark.)
Looking out through the giant slot.

The Moon Also Rises (5.11-, 110') + again w/ Finger Lickin' Good finish (5.11, 50')

Battle of the Bulge ButtressMar 22
Lead: Mark
Mark starting up  the route. Wide fun ahead.
We had 5 #5's and used them all.
Looking up Finger Lickin' Good finish.
Looking down Finger Lickin' Good.

Three Strikes You're Out (5.11, 90')

Battle of the Bulge ButtressMar 22
Lead: Steph+ toprope lap
The route climbs the obvious splitter in the corner.
Razor-cut thin hands splitter.
Looking down the route.

Swedin-Ringle (5.12-, 50')

Battle of the Bulge ButtressMar 22
Lead: Friendly Norwegian guy
A friendly Norwegian party leading the route. I happily accepted their offer to toprope the pitch.
Looking down the splitter.
Another view down.

The Jagged Wedge (5.10, 70')

Battle of the Bulge ButtressMar 22
Lead: Mark
Mark in the hagged wedge.
More fun wideness.
A Valley giant was nice to have here. The crack widens as it goes back, making the gear a bit untrustworthy...
Looking down while following.
The anchor at the top.

The Cave Route (5.10+, 80')

Battle of the Bulge ButtressMar 22
Lead: Steph+ toprope lap
The Cave Route climbs the splitter inside the cave. (Photo by Mark.)
Steph leading up the splitter. (Photo by Mark.)
Steph leading the crack. Photo by Mark. Wait, wasn't Mark belaying me?

Area photos

South Six ShooterMar 23
Random photos from the day....
South and North Six Shooters from the road.
The 3 miles drive on Davis Road to the trailhead. We had expected this road to be pretty rough and that we would have to do some walking, but we made it easily to the parking area where the approach trail starts.
Gate on the road.
The large dirt parking area. The well-cairned trail up to South SIx Shooter starts just behind the car.
On the approach. Well-cairned trail. About 1 hour from car to base of South Face.
Getting closer. 
Another view of South Six Shooter.
At the base of the South Face. The Trade Route starts just around left, and directly past Mark are the Diagonal Crack and Offwidth, both of which we toproped after climbing the Trade Route.
View of North Six Shooter.
View of North Six Shooter. I really want to climb Lightning Bolt Cracks....
A squall moved in that late afternoon/early evening. Safely back in the car drinking hot chocolate and planning the next day's destination.
Overlay of routes on South Face of South Six Shooter.
Approach beta by Mark Thomas. Mark and I share an obsession over route overlays.
Approach beta by Mark Thomas. 
Approach beta by Mark Thomas. 
Approach beta by Mark Thomas. 

South Face, Trade Route (5.5-5.7, 2-3p)

South Six ShooterMar 23
Lead: Steph
Pitch 1.
Petroglyphs on the wall just left of Pitch 1.
Petroglyphs on the wall just left of Pitch 1.
Petroglyphs on the wall just left of Pitch 1.
Looking down Pitch 1.
A short splitter, either on Pitch 1 or 2 depending on how you pitch it out.
Mark on the easy traverse to below the two summit blocks.
Mark topping out on the Right Summit.
View from the Right Summit, looking north towards North Six Shooter.
Anchor on the Right Summit.
The Left Summit. A committing mantle is required here. Notice the bolt above the mantle. Too bad you cannot clip it before executing the mantle move....
Rope scars in the soft rock.

South Face, Angling Crack (5.10, 90')

South Six ShooterMar 23
Toprope: Steph
The route follows the obvious diagonal crack system.

South Face, Offwidth (5.10, 90')

South Six ShooterMar 23
Toprope: Steph
The start of the pitch.
#4-sized...my nemesis!

Area photos

Way Rambo WallMar 24
Random photos from the day....
The creek crossing on Beef Basin Road. There are stories of cars getting stuck here in high water.
We went for it. Not too bad....but....
....we stopped after the creek crossing to eat breakfast and gear up in the sun. Mark's car wouldn't start (I suspect due to the creek crossing getting some water in the engine area...). Fortunately my car was just 1.5 miles away so I just got a nice morning jog out of it. 
On our way again, driving Beef Basin Road towards Way Rambo Wall (on the left in the shade still).
Way Rambo Wall.
Another view photo.
And another.
We didn't climb this 5.12 splitter (Slice and Dice) but it looks awesome. I'll be back!
Some petroglyphs Mark spotted. (Photo by Mark.)
Beginning the hike down in the evening light after another great day of cragging in the Creek.
Way Rambo Wall in evening light.
Parking area for Way Rambo Wall.

Rochambeau (5.9, 75')

Way Rambo WallMar 24
Lead: Steph+ toprope lap
The route climbs the corner. Fun stuff. Great warmup.

Fuzz (5.10, 115')

Way Rambo WallMar 24
Lead: Steph+ toprope lap
Steph leading Fuzz. (Photo by Mark. Obviously.)
Looking up Fuzz while leading. Fuzz is the corner on the right.

Chest Full of Kind (5.10, 45')

Way Rambo WallMar 24
Lead: Steph+ toprope lap
Chest Full of Kind climbs the crack/corner on the right side of the arch (photo taken in the late afternoon when the route is in full sun. It was in the shade when we climbed it in the late morning.)
Below Chest Full of Kind. (Photo by Mark.)
Looking up at the route.
Steph leading Chest Full of Kind. (Photo by Mark. Obviously.)
A nice plaque at the base identifying the route. These lay at the base of many of the routes at Way Rambo Wall.

Way Rambo (5.12-, 100')

Way Rambo WallMar 24
Lead: Steph+ toprope lap
Way Rambo is the obvious splitter. We must climb it.
Starting up the crack.
Higher up. #1-sized awesomeness.

Blue Sun aka Fun in the Sun (5.10-, 65')

Way Rambo WallMar 24
Lead: Steph
Steph having fun in the sun. (Photo by Mark. Obviously.)
Photo of the crack taken on lead.
I toproped the corner to the left. I think this route is called Fix Your Tips. It was difficult, and I did not get the crux section so I did not count it as a route I climbed....

Way Nutter (5.9, 50')

Way Rambo WallMar 24
Lead: Mark
Mark the offwidth king starting up Way Nutter.
#5 and #6 work well here.
Mark and his big cams.
Hero shot.

Renegades of Funk aka Bernoulli Effect (5.10, 65')

Way Rambo WallMar 24
Lead: Steph
The route starts in the back of the chimney/slot feature.
Looking up the route, which climbs the right side of the flake.
Looking down the route while leading.
Looking up the route while leading.
Me using both flake and opposing wall. (Photo by Mark. Obviously.)

Area photos

Supercrack ButtressMar 25
Random photos from the day....
Gassing up in Montcello. Blue gloves have become the norm these days....
Crag dogs.
A snack with a view.

Twin Cracks (5.9, 60')

Supercrack ButtressMar 25
Lead: Steph
Twin Cracks is a great warm-up route.
Fun stuff.
Rope grooves near the anchor.
The wide 5.10 extension above Twin Cracks. We did not climb this but it looked interesting.

No Name Crack (5.10, 110')

Supercrack ButtressMar 25
Lead: Mark
No Name Crack climbs the corner.
Wide hand jams for days!
Looking down the corner. (Photo by Mark.)

Wild Works of Fire (5.10, 75')

Supercrack ButtressMar 25
Lead: Steph
Wild Works of Fire climbs the straight in splitter. Fun route. 3am crack is the corner on the left, which we climbed after this.
Steph on lead. (Photo by Mark.)
Looking down the splitter.

3am Crack (5.10, 105')

Supercrack ButtressMar 25
Lead: Mark
Mark embarking on his lead of 3am Crack.
Looking down the corner. (Photo by Mark.)

Keyhole Flakes (5.10, 80')

Supercrack ButtressMar 25
Lead: Steph
Looking up the route. The route climbs a crack through a varnished panel of rock.
Steph at what we thought was the technical crux section. Have to gun for it without placing gear. (Photo by Mark.)
The last bit before the anchor.
Looking down the splitter fists section.

Amaretto Pitch 1 (5.9+, 60')

Supercrack ButtressMar 25
Lead: Mark
Pitch 1 climbs the corner to the offwidth exit. Pitch 2 (5.11) (which we did not climb) continues up the corner above. 
Shadow fun.
Mark's shadow placing a cam.
Some graffiti on the rock just right of Amaretto. At what point does defacing the rock become instead a historical landmark?
More graffiti.

Unnamed handcrack to left of Supercrack (5.9+, 30')

Supercrack ButtressMar 25
Lead: Steph
A shameless end-of-the-day pitch count bump. Rope bag for scale.

Unnamed offwidth to left of Supercrack (5.6, 30')

Supercrack ButtressMar 25
Lead: Mark
Another shameless end-of-the-day pitch count bump. And enough gear to protect every foot.
A one cam lead!

Area photos

North Six ShooterMar 26
Random photos from the day....
Driving towards North Six Shooter. The road is fine for a Subaru.
A rough section that is built up with rocks to make it passable. On the drive out we discovered this section could be avoided by taking a dirt road not far to the right (left on way in).
Park here. It's about 3.5 miles from the main road (rather than 2.5 as our guidebook said.) Find the first cairn and follow about 100 cairns all the way to the base of the route.
This photo was taken on the hike out. The trail meanders up through boulders and through a weakness in the limestone band behind me in the photo. Follow the cairns. (Photo by Mark.)
Weakness in the limestone band.
North Six Shooter. (We had planned to climb Lightning Bolt Cracks, but when we got to the base we bailed before we started up due to the high winds; the route was hard enough as it was, and we decided we didn't want the added difficulty of communication and insecurity the 40mph gusts would cause. Kudos to the party who climbed the route in these conditions! Instead, we went and climbed a single pitch route to the far left and then hiked out and squeezed in a few pitches at Battle of the Bulge Buttress).
North Six Shooter. Notice the cryptobiotic soil in the foreground.
Climbers starting up Pitch 1 of Lightning Bolt Cracks. 
Looking up the Lightning Bolt Cracks route. Climbers on Pitch 1.
Another view further back. Climbers now on Pitch 3. 
Another view further back. Climbers now on Pitch 3. 
Cool rock features on the approach.
Cryptobiotic soil. These crusts are composed primarily of very small organisms that cannot be seen with the naked eye. There is a lot of this on the North Six Shooter approach. Be careful not to step on this special stuff.
Erosion.
Cairn and South Six Shooter.
Approach beta by Mark Thomas. Mark and I share an obsession over route overlays.
Approach beta by Mark Thomas.
Approach beta by Mark Thomas.
Approach beta by Mark Thomas.
Approach beta by Mark Thomas.

Talk Dusty to Me aka South Face, Far Left (5.9+, 1p)

North Six ShooterMar 26
Lead: Steph
The route climbs the obvious splitter that heads straight up and then diagonals to the notch.
Steph starting up the pitch. (Photo by Mark.)
Steph leading the pitch. (Photo by Mark.)
Looking down from the top of the pitch.
The anchor at the top is two pounded pitons.
The anchor can be reinforced with a small nut and small cam.
Looking towards the summit towers of North Six Shooter from the top of the pitch.

Area photos

Battle of the Bulge ButtressMar 26
Random photos from the day....
A beautiful late afternoon to squeeze in a few pitches.
Looking up Stella, a 5.12 offwidth just left of the routes we did.
Mark making a gear list for his future lead of Etointimidate, another hard offwidth just left of Stella.
Hiking out in the evening sun after another great day of climbing the Creek.
You know it's the apocalypse when all you see is a single Sprinter van in the Supercrack parking lot on a splitter spring day.

Elbow Vices (5.10, 90')

Battle of the Bulge ButtressMar 26
Lead: Mark
Mark-the-offwidth-king cruising up the body-width section.
Photo of the wide section. (Photo taken by Mark on lead.)
Mark hanging out in the body-width section.
The splitter hands corner above the wide section.  (Photo taken by Mark on lead.)
A view of the wide section, taken while toproping.
Steph in the wide section. Not looking quite as comfortable as Mark did. (Photo by Mark.)
The wide section looks ready to swallow another climber alive.

Pigs in Space (5.10+, 115')

Battle of the Bulge ButtressMar 26
Lead: Steph
Looking up the route.
Fun poddy crack.
Steph leading the route. (Photo by Mark.)

Sporty Spice aka New World Order (5.11a/b/c, 90')

Battle of the Bulge ButtressMar 26
Toprope: Steph
Etched route name at the base of the route.
Steph taking advantage of a quick toprope on Sporty Spice from the anchors of Pigs in Space. This route has some great 5.11 laybacking. (Photo by Mark.)

Area photos

Critic's ChoiceMar 27
Random photos from the day....
Morning drive along HWY 191 through the Creek.
Driving towards Critic's Choice wall. Just a short section of 2wd dirt road.
Penny leading the way on the hike up to Critic's Choice.
Some fresh rockfall on the right side of the wall.
Hiking underneath the base of the wall towards Bunny Slope, the only route we climbed before we called it due to the inclement weather.

Bunny Slope (5.9+, 130')

Critic's ChoiceMar 27
Lead: Alex
Looking up the stellar corner of Bunny Slope. 5.9's are rare in Indian Creek, and this is one of the best of the few there.
Alex starting up Bunny Slope.
The endless handcrack in corner.
Looking down the route.
Note: You should bring 2 ropes or an 80m rope to climb this  route. Or you end up in rope shenanigans like this! (Which were actually sort of fun, but non-ideal nevertheless.)
More shenanigans.
Penny thinks Autumn's cliff bar looks pretty yummy.

Canyonlands

March 27-28. Weather moved in and we decided climbing was over for the day. I drove up to Canyonlands to check it out. The best part of the afternoon was the stormy skies driving back to Indian Creek. That night a freak snowstorm hit, and a friendly sheriff stopped by with a notice that San Juan county was closed to leisure activity and out-of-state travellers due to the COVID-19 outbreak. Time to head home to Boulder and see what this lock-down is all about....
The visitor center was closed due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Canyonlands. The area is cooler than shown in my photo. 
Stormy skies on the drive back to Indian Creek.
Stormy skies on the drive back to Indian Creek.
Stormy skies on the drive back to Indian Creek.
Notice that San Juan County was closed to leisure activity and out-of-state travellers due to the COVID-19 outbreak. Along with the overnight snowfall, all signs point to heading home to Boulder....

Trip Report #4 for Indian Creek: Thanksgiving at the Creek: 7 days of climbing and Lightning Bolt Cracks (5.11-, 2-4p) (22 routes, 2 hikes, 1 tower)

Dates: November 23 - December 2, 2024 (Sat-Mon)      Partner: Nate Beckwith     Climbed at: Cat Wall, Scarface Wall, Second Meat Wall, North Six Shooter

 Best Intro

This was my fourth climbing trip to the Creek. Best trip yet!

Climbs/Photos

Area photos

Cat WallNov 23&25
Towering sandstone at Cat Wall.
Late afternoon light.
Evening in the Creek.
View out from Cat Wall.

Johnny Cat (5.11+, 60')

Cat WallNov 23
Lead: Steph & Nate+ toprope lap
Taping up. This was a tough warm up. When my rack was 8x0.5, I should have known it would give me trouble....
Ready. Or not. 
Nate leading.

Fat Cat (5.11-, 85')

Cat WallNov 23
Lead: Steph & Nate
Looking up Fat Cat. Fun.

Cat Man Do (5.10, 90')

Cat WallNov 23
Lead: Steph
Rack.
Looking up Cat Man Do. More fun.

Scarface (5.11-, 70')

Scarface WallNov 24
Lead: Steph & Nate+ toprope lap
Scarface. A good warm-up. And a classic.
Base of Scarface.
Nate leading Scarface. With one #2 cam. (I had led it, and left my gear.)
Nate leading Scarface.
Nate leading Scarface.

Toprope Right of Scarface (~5.11, 70')

Scarface WallNov 24
Toprope: Steph
For a bonus pitch, I toproped the route just right of Scarface.
Somehow got a nice flapper.
With the shredding on both side of the finger, I'm going with trigger wire. (Photo taken four days later.)

The Sicilian (5.11+, 45')

Scarface WallNov 24
Lead: Nate+ toprope lap
Looking up The Sicilian.
Plaque at the base.
Nate starting up The Sicilian. This route is short but packs a punch.
A bit higher.
I taped up my finger. The climbing must continue.

Desert Vuarnet (5.11+, 130')

Scarface WallNov 24
Lead: Steph + toprope lap
Looking up Desert Vuarnet. A sustained enduro route. This is the kind of routes I come to the Creek for.
I managed to get the rope up Desert Vuarnet. 
My rack. Heavy on the 0.5 and 0.75.
Nate had a good-looking sandwich.

Tom Cat (5.10, 90')

Cat WallNov 25
Lead: Steph & Nate+ toprope lap
Looking up Tom Cat.
Steph starting up Tom Cat. Photo by Nate.
Fun crack.
The description for Fat Cat on the left is David Bloom's original book with cam sizes given for Friends. The guidebook on the right is his Camelot edition with cam sizes for Camelots. As with several routes, the conversion from Friends to Camelots was not great. We found that Fat Cat was mostly #3, a couple of #2, and just one #1. This matches the Friend sizes better.

Puma (5.11+, 70')

Cat WallNov 25
Lead: Steph & Nate+ toprope lap
Puma climbs a fingercrack.
Puma was originally rated 5.12-, but feels soft for even 5.11+. Having smaller fingers helps.
Nate leading Puma.
Clif Block time!

Kool Cat (5.11, 80')

Cat WallNov 25
Lead: Steph+ toprope lap
Looking up the corner of Kool Cat.
Sandwich time!

Canyonlands

Nov 27
We woke up to snow. I decided to check out the nearby Needles district of Canyonlands. I ended up doing the Chesler Park Loop, an 11 mile hike through some pretty cool terrain. According to the park brochure: "During the hike you will descend and ascend in and out of canyons, scramble up and down rock, weave through narrow passages, and walk among rock spires." It was the most entertaining hike I've ever done. The hike description said 5-7 hours, but it took me just under 4 hours.
Some highlights: Snow melting throughout the day, weaving in and out of slickrock canyons, the slot canyon on the Joint Trail section, jogging the short section of 4wd road, filling up my water a Visitor Center, adding one more to my flock.

Area photos

Second Meat WallNov 28
We decided it would be fun to ride Nate's motorbike to the crag.
Who's that crazy guy riding a motorcycle at 60mph with no helmet? 
Now THIS is the way to get to a crag.
The rough section just before we parked the bike.
Second Meat Wall above.
Approaching Second Meat Wall.
View from Second Meat Wall.
View from Second Meat Wall.
View from Second Meat Wall.
Nate enjoying a sandwich with a view.
Look at all those pretty cams....
New shoes. Gotta have moccasins for the Creek.

Cube Steaks (5.10, 110')

Second Meat WallNov 28
Lead: Nate
Nate starting up Cube Steaks.

Meat Machine (5.11-, 50')

Second Meat WallNov 28
Lead: Steph & Nate+ toprope lap
Nate starting up Meat Machine.
Nate at the lieback crux of Meat Machine.

At Your Cervix (5.11-, 110')

Second Meat WallNov 28
Lead: Steph & Nate+ toprope lap
At Your Cervix.
Mostly 0.5.
Nate cruising up At Your Cervix.
Chasing the sun/shade line.

Top Sirloin (5.11, 100')

Second Meat WallNov 28
Lead: Steph
Looking up Top Sirloin. The sun had just set. We decided we had just enough light left to do a lap. I got to the anchor just as I was wishing I had a headlight.
The rack: 12 #1 cams.
Night comes early in late November.

Area photos

Battle of the Bulge ButtressNov 29
The Supercrack parking lot. The people dispered nicely and it was surprisingly uncrowded for a sunny Black Friday.
Cute cairn.
Battle of the Bulge Buttress.
The shade is coming.
Evening has arrived.
Message board at Supercrack parking lot.
Avoid climbing on wet sandstone.

Our Piece of the Real Estate (5.11-, 110')

Battle of the Bulge ButtressNov 29
Lead: Steph
Steve toproping Our Piece of the Real Estate.

Quarter of a Man (5.11+, 120')

Battle of the Bulge ButtressNov 29
Lead: Steve+ toprope lap
Looking up Quarter of a Man. I had climbed this route before, in 2019, but it is worth climbing again. And again.
Getting ready at the base. Nate eating a sandwich. Steve racking up.
Steve starting the lead.
Steve leading Quarter of a Man.
Nate toproping Quarter of a Man.
We left a rope on Quarter of a Man, and all of us did a toprope solo lap at one point.
The rope we left on the route was a 60, so I used my Escaper to get down and pull the rope.

The Black Corner (5.11, 80')

Battle of the Bulge ButtressNov 29
Lead: Steph
Looking up The Black Corner. The crux was pulling around the roof.

Battle of the Bulge (5.11, 70')

Battle of the Bulge ButtressNov 29
Lead: Steph
Let's go battle that bulge. Last route of the day.

Area Photos

Cat WallNov 30
Thanksgiving crowds. But for the most part the Creek seemed pretty quiet for a holiday weekend.
Another beautiful evening after another great day of climbing in the Creek.
Twilight.

Alley Cat (5.11+, 120')

Cat WallNov 30
Lead: Steph
Looking up Alley Cat.
The route is rated 5.12- by some sources and 5.11+ by other sources. My vote goes to 5.11+.
A 70m just works. We had to extend with a few slings in order for the follower to tie in.
Nate starting up the route.

Dead Crow (5.11+, 150')

Cat WallNov 30
Lead: Steve
Dead Crow climbs the splitter on the right into the horizontal roof crack. This is a popular zone it seems.
Steph on the wild traverse at the top of the route. 

Super Cat of the Desert (5.12, 140')

Cat WallNov 30
Lead: Steve
Steve starting up Super Cat of the Desert.
Steve on the traverse.
Steve on the upper crack. Nice lead Steve!
The route can be done with a single 70 if the leader ties into both ends of the rope and clips just one end until after the traverse, then starts clipping the other end, unties from the previous end, and drops that end of the rope. This also eliminates rope drag from the initial portion of the route.
Sign at the base of the route. 
Liebacking this flake is a bit spooky. 
The top of the flake.
The splitter leading to the roof.
The splitter above the roof.

Canyonlands

Dec 1
Rest day. I decided to do another hike in the nearby Needles district of Canyonlands. I did the Lost Canyon loop, a 9 mile hike through some pretty cool terrain. According to the park brochure: "A great introduction to the landscape of The Needles, connecting two canyons for a loop across varied terrain. The route between the canyons climbs steep grades that are dangerous when wet and may make people with a fear of heights uncomfortable. One ladder must be climbed." It was quite a wonderful hike. The hike description said 4-6 hours, but it took me 3.5 hours.
After the hike I came back to camp and got a lesson on riding Nate's motorbike. I only wiped out once.
Fun rest day.

Lightning Bolt Cracks (5.11-, 2-4p)

North Six ShooterDec 2

Approach

We chose to come in from the south. To the right are some overlays of this approach from my March 2019 Indian Creek trip report.
We made it more fun by taking Nate's motorcycle up the wash to the start of the trail below North Six Shooter. There was a 4th class step early on in the approach but otherwise it was 2nd/3rd and well-cairned. 
Approach beta by Mark Thomas. Mark and I share an obsession over route overlays.
Approach beta by Mark Thomas.
Approach beta by Mark Thomas.
We decided to take the motorbike to get to North Six Shooter.
This is the way to do it!
It was a bit trickier with two of us. Nate drove and I just tried not to fall off.
Further up the road.
At the end of the "road".
The "4th" class step.
At the base of the route.
The rack. We had doubles from 0.3-3, and one 4. 

Pitch 1 (5.11-)

Lead: Nate
We linked Pitches 1 & 2.
Nate starting up Pitch 1.
Just above the initial crux move.
Cruising up.
Looking up at the "5.10 offwidth."  Nate had decided to not bring a #6. He was fine with this, but I would have wanted it if I had been leading.

Pitch 2 (5.11)

Lead: Nate
We linked Pitches 1 & 2.
The start of this pitch has what feels to be a 5.11+/12- off-fingers. Not sure then why the route is 5.11-....
The overhanging fist crack at the top of the pitch.

Pitch 3 (5.10)

Lead: Nate
We linked Pitches 3 & 4.
Nate starting up Pitch 3.
At the roof exit. This was a fun move.
The lieback crack at the start of Pitch 3.

Pitch 4 (5.9)

Lead: Nate
We linked Pitches 3 & 4.
The wide slot of Pitch 4.
Looking up the wide slot.
Rope grooves in the soft sandstone.

Top!

Enjoy the view!
The shadow of North Six Shooter below, looking down the north side. Looks like winter on that side.
On the summit.
Snow-filled ravines below.
Zoomed in a bit,

Descent

3 rappels with single 70
The first rappel.
Looking up the rappels from the base.
I unknowingly had a Hershey's bar that went up the climb with me. It seems to have been a casualty of the offwidth and slot.
Hiking out.
The motorbike makes the "hike out" fun.
The motorbike makes the "hike out" fun.
We only tipped once. Nate's pant leg got melted off by the exhaust pipe and his skin got a bit singed. Ouch!
We stopped at Moab Diner on the drive between Indian Creek and our next objective (Moses).
I had been dealing with a horrible toothache since Thanksgiving. Initially the temporary solution of Quickseal filling had worked well, but the pain continued to escalate by the day. I called my dentist on Monday morning and they were able to send in a precscription to the pharmacy in Moab for some antibiotics and steroids. I ended up getting a root canal a week later.
I also picked up some toothache numbing agents. These numbed the gums, but did little for the tooth. When your tooth is dying, not much can truely kick the pain.
My evening class started on the drive between Moab and where we planned to park in Island of the Sky. No service out here, but I was able to tap into Nate's Starlink in his van which was driving about 100-200 feet in front of me. I feel pretty sold on the Starlink at this point.

Camping photos

We stayed at Creek Pasture Campground, off Utah State Route 211 in middle of Indian Creek climbing area. $7.50 a night with Interagency Pass ($15 without pass).
My cat Newt joined me on the drive to Boulder. I left him in good hands wiith Nate's wife Jackie and Jimmy, Tucker, and Peach (three new furry feline friends).
Our campsite at Creek Pasture Campground. 
Another morning at camp.
Creek Pasture Campground. You can see North Six Shooter poking up over the hillside.
A healthy supply of TP in the Creek Pasture Campground outhouse.
Getting ready for a day of climbing in the Creek.
Brr....cold nifgts and warm(ish) days. Freeze and fy. The tire pressure sensor went off in my car. I did a quick PV=nRT calculation to see what the tire pressure had dropped to.
My -30°F sleeping bag was nice to have. I got this bag for $350 on eBay, used only once on Denali. What a deal!
After three days of climbing, we had two well-timed forced rest days. Then it was back to splitter weather.
Rainy rest day working on my github.io page and watching cat videos.
Cow drinking water out of the center line rumble strip. On the road into Indian Creek.
Our second forced rest day.
Outhouse at Creek Pasture Campground.
It's pretty at least.
Scraping snow off the Starlink. Gotta have our internet.
Steve Su (who both Nate and I had climbed with on a recent Yosemite trip) was passing through the Creek. He brought pumpkin pie for Thanksgiving.
Out in the middle of nowhere, in Nate's van connected to Starlink, buying shoes on Black Friday sale.
I had a rather large filling fall out, and the nerve must have been exposed because the pain was getting pretty all-consuming. Nate had some Quicksteel epoxy.....
....making a temporary filling. It did seem to help for a few days. I ended up getting a root canal after I got home.

previous and next adventures

(September 2018 trip)
(Thanksgiving 2019 trip)
(Spring Break 2020 trip)
(Thanksgiving 2024 trip)