The Eyeball
Eyeball | N46° 30.628' W83° 08.080'
SAFETY DISCLAIMER: All bolted climbs are adventurous in nature and may or may not require use of trad gear or anchors and should not be viewed as sport climbs but as trad climbs with bolted protection in some or all places.
This area is currently under development, and not all closed routes may be red-tagged. If you see a climb that is not in this guide, it may be a closed project, unfinished, or unsafe to climb. Please plan and prepare for your trip to the Eyeball accordingly, and climb at your own risk.
The Eyeball is a stupendous cliff system 2.5 km long and 115 m tall at its highest point. It has many different faces of different heights, sizes, angle and rock quality. There is a lifetime’s worth of climbing here.
A huge thank you to Danylo Darewych for contributing the guide to Eyeball amongst other guides.
Approach Directions
If you’re coming from the east, in Iron Bridge turn north from Hwy 17 (Trans-Canada) onto Hwy 546. Head north for 10.9 km. At this point, Hwy 546 veers sharply right. Continue straight ahead on Hwy 554 for 12.1 km to Kynoch (a small settlement of farms and houses with no road sign declaring its existence). In Kynoch, Hwy 554 makes a sharp left-hand (westward) turn. At the far end of the turn, look for Brock’s Road on your right (north). Turn right onto Brock’s Road.
If you’re coming from the west, from Thessalon head north on Hwy 129. At about 31 km north of Thessalon turn right onto Hwy 554 and head east for 4 km to Kynoch. In Kynoch, Hwy 554 makes a sharp right-hand (southward) turn. At the start of the turn look for Brock’s Road on your left (north) and turn left onto Brock’s Road.
Approach
NOTE: There is a fee of $20 to pass through the gate or a $250 yearly fee for a key to the gate.You still can't get through from Friday sunset to Saturday sunset - the gate is locked with a second padlock at that time. We are told to up to the farm house out side of those times and knock on the door to ask to be let through. Easiest to catch the Brocks at home early in the morning or after supper, otherwise you might end up waiting around for a while. I believe they get up around 5:00 am and go to bed early as well, so best not to knock on their door after 8:00 pm.
Note: Generally the access road is closed to vehicles other than quads in the spring until May each year due to the soft road conditions.
At first, Brock Road looks like a driveway for several farms and it will seem that you are simply driving onto someone’s farm (which, in fact, you are doing). At 1.3 km along Brock’s Road, just past the main house on the hill on your left and some barns to your right, you will arrive at a closed gate. See note above for passing through the gate. The road heads slightly uphill into a forest and becomes a logging road. Here are some of the landmarks along this logging road:
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4.1/4.2 km - you will cross a hydro line.
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4.5 km - there will be a small road coming in from the right that leads to a hunt camp (this is also the end of the ATV bypass road).
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4.6 km - the road will start to run along the Little White River. You will see a “smaller” vertical cliff ahead of you. This is the Fortress. No rock routes on it yet.
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4.7 km - there is a small pull-out to the right. You can camp here on a rock outcrop next to the river.
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4.9 km - on your left you will pass the Shower Stall Wall, a small ice climbing cliff on the left side of the Fortress cliff (the ice is just visible through the trees in winter).
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5.0 km - you will be just below the main face of the Fortress, a smaller, steep cliff of red rock.
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5.1 km - the road will turn sharply right.
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6 km - you will start to see a large cliff towering over the road and trees ahead of you. This is the Shotgun Cliff.
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7.0/7.1 km - the nose of the Shotgun Cliff rises almost directly above the road.
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7.6 km - there is a bridge over a small creek (this is past the Shotgun Cliff).
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8.6 km - there will be a fork in the road; head down the right fork.
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10.9 km - there will be another small bridge over a creek.
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12.7 km - you will pass a hunt camp on the left side of the road (Brown Camp), situated on a small lake.
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14.8 km - there will be a small track to the right that leads to another hunt camp, hidden ~350 m away in the forest. This track is only passable by ATV. An overgrown trail continues past this hunt camp down to the Little White River (another 1.3 km). About halfway along, it passes fairly close to the south end of the Eyeball Cliff – you would need to bushwhack ~200 m.
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15.1 km - a small sand pit on the right, followed immediately by a small, grassy field.
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15.8 km - on the left side of the road, ~100 m downhill from the road, (almost) invisible behind the trees, lies a short 10-15 m cliff band with multiple ice lines in winter. This ice-climbing crag is called The Beach.
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16 km - at a flat spot at the top of the hill (with another hill visible in the distance) will be another, smaller logging road heading right. This is the road that leads down to the Eyeball.
Alternate Access Routes
1) Bypass Route
About 800 m south of Brock’s Road on Highway 554 there is a community centre on the east side of the highway. There is a dirt road here that heads east and then north, bypassing the Adventist farmer’s property and joining the main logging road some 4.6 km further along. You can make it down this by-pass road in a 4-wheel drive truck, but be careful - one section is quite eroded. This route is in bad shape and it has been suggested to be avoided, proceed with caution if you do decide to chance it.
2) Hydro Line
It is also possible to reach the main logging road by coming in from the west along the hydroelectric power transmission line. To reach this hydro line, drive to the intersection of Hwy 554 and Hwy 129 and then head north along Hwy 129 for 1.5 km. The hydro corridor crosses Hwy 129 here. You can access it directly from this point or head another 400 m north, past the Tunnel Lake Trading Post, to another dirt road that heads east to the hydro line (but it first crosses a smaller hydro corridor heading north - don’t follow that one). The distance along this hydro line to its junction with the Kynoch/Brock logging road is about 9 km. The line drops steeply downhill in the last 200 m, so it is likely best to take one of the cut-off tracks heading south from it before reaching the last downhill. A 4-wheel drive truck is needed for this approach. This route is in bad shape and it has been suggested to be avoided, proceed with caution if you do decide to chance it.
3) River Crossing Route/Winter Approach
You can also get to the Eyeball by crossing the Little White River from the east (if you have a canoe, or even an inflatable raft). From Iron Bridge head north on Hwy 546, but at the 10.9 km mark, instead of heading straight ahead on the 554, continue on Hwy 546 as it turns right and heads north. At about 24.4 km, Hwy 546 starts to run along the Little White River. After about 30 km, start looking at the numbers on the hydro poles on the west side of the road. Look for number H3203 (N46° 29.630' W83° 07.527') and park at the side of the road. Bushwhack a short way (100 m) to the Little White River. Cross the river. It’s about 25-30 m wide at this point and fairly shallow (you can likely wade across from mid-summer to early fall, but definitely not in the spring). Bushwhack another 500-600 m through the forest in a NNW direction to the base of the cliff. The bush is fairly thick at first, but thins out as you get out of the planted trees and closer to the cliff. You should come out on the cliff at its shorter southern end. Or you can try to intersect the end of the Eyeball logging road. This approach can be used in winter for ice climbing when the Little White River is frozen.
If you want a more civilized place to launch a canoe, you can drive another 3.8 km along Hwy 546 to where a short 30 m access road drops down to the river, which is just below the highway at this point. However, you will have to paddle back downstream much farther than 4 km because the river is incredibly winding at this point. It’s also very difficult to spot the cliff from the river. Better to backtrack (drive south) some 800 m from hydro pole H3203 to where the river is also roadside and launch your canoe from there.
Approach Directions - Roads, Trails and Gullies
Logging Road to Base
As stated in the directions given in the introduction, a smaller side logging road branches off the main logging road at the 16 km mark. This is the road that takes you down to the base of the Eyeball. It’s much narrower and rougher than the main logging road. A truck with 4-wheel drive can make it down the whole way without difficulty. All-wheel drive Subarus are usually OK as well. A regular car can make it all the way down with some bottom-scraping, but it definitely won’t make it back out.
The Eyeball side logging road heads slightly uphill for the first 280 m to a larg-ish clearing. If you’re driving a regular car, it is best to park it here. From this point the Eyeball side logging road starts dropping steadily and gradually downhill. At about the 900 m mark there is a turn-off to the left (if you’re feeling lucky, you can get a regular car to this point with much weaving around rocks).
At about the 1.1 km mark the road starts to drop more steeply and becomes more eroded. You will pass a second turn-off on the left at the 1.3 km mark, fol-lowed 70 m later by another cut-off to the left (which used to be “grassy”, but is now much less so), as the road veers to the right. The road to the right is severely eroded (and now getting overgrown), so head instead down the cut-off on the left - it by-passes the eroded section and rejoins the side logging road just below the eroded section. The road is in good shape beyond this point. At about the 2.1 km mark the road makes a big turn back to the south-west. Another 400-500 m further on you will hit a large clearing/widening of the road, where a branch of the logging road heads to the left (to campsites). From this large clearing you will start seeing the First Wall of the Eyeball cliff on your right, some 100 metres away from the road. The road runs roughly parallel to the cliff base for another 750 m, before veering away from the cliff base slightly and eventually dead-ending in the middle of the forest another kilometre further on. The end of the road is some 200 m away from the Little White River and 400 m away from the cliff base. The side logging road is about 4.4 km long in total. If you’re driving a small car and park at the first clearing, the walk down along the logging road to a point opposite the Big Wall is about 3 km in length, plus an-other 75 m through the trees to the edge of the talus and another 50 m up the talus slope to the base of the cliff. It takes about 35 minutes to walk to the point opposite the Big Wall and another 5-10 minutes to reach its base. The terrain below the cliff is pleasantly flat and sandy with a large planted forest. Lots of opportunities for free camping here. Climbers usually camp 350 m along the side branch of the Eyeball logging road. There is even a blue plastic barrel “thunderbox” here (off the road to the right).
Clifftop Approach Trail
Clifftop Approach Trail: A trail has also been cleared to the top of the cliff. Park at the first clearing you reach on the Eyeball logging road, some 280 m along on the right. A side track heads off to the right here. Walk down this track for 320 m (4 min) (lots of shrubs in places) and some 30 m past a larger widening of the track, start looking for the start of the access trail on the left side of the track (GPS coor-dinates for the start of the trail are N46° 30.488' W83° 07.832'). It is marked with flagging tape. The trail should be readily apparent when you step into the forest - it is quite wide. It is flagged regularly with orange, pink and yellow flagging tape throughout. Follow the trail to the top of the cliff - it’s 850 m long (20 minute walk). The trail is flat for the first half of its length, but starts to head steadily up-hill in its second half. At about 600 m, the trail splits at a junction marked by the orange letters TOH (Top of Hill - which somewhat confusingly means the parking area) spray-painted on a tree and an arrow pointing back where you came from. A first branch of the trail splits to the right here at a slight rib of rock and proceeds to head more directly to the top of the cliff, coming out on top of the Big Wall section of cliff near the top of the climb Northern Etiquette, about 75 m short of the high point of the cliff. Follow a rib of rock to your right (skier’s right) for 75 m to reach the high point of the cliff (c. 420 m high). The second branch continues on 15 m past the first branch junction and turns right at a second slight rib of rock, and con-tinues on to the cliff top, coming out some 125 m north (skier’s left) of the first branch. It doesn’t really matter which trail you take to the top - they come out fairly close to each other and a trail running across the top of the Big Wall connects them. To get to the Second Wall, First Wall and Bec’s Triple T Trail you turn skier’s left; to get to the 3.5 Gully and Community Wall, you turn skier’s right.
Autobahn. The Autobahn is a trail runs along the base of the Eyeball in the for-est near the edge of the talus field. It stretches from Bec’s Triple-T along the First Wall to the Fifth Wall. It’s still rough (not completely cleared) in a few places.
River Trail. This trail leads from the campsite road to the Little White River. It starts from the far end of the first large campsite along the “Camp” side-logging road. It is marked with orange spay paint. It is about 550 m long.
Bec’s Triple T Trail - Trail To Top. This trail runs from the top of the Big Wall across the tops of the Second Wall and First Wall before wrapping around the north end of the First Wall and descending to the logging road at the base of the Eyeball. If you are at the base of the Eyeball this is the fastest and safest way to get to the top.
The 3.5 Gully. This is a rather steep 45 m descent gully that leads down to a large talus slope between the left side of the Big Wall and the Community Wall. The top of the 3.5 Gully is found some 200 m skier’s right of the high point of the Big Wall. The 3.5 Gully is covered in pine needles and there is lots of loose rock underfoot - be careful. The steepest section is towards the bottom. I don’t really recommend the 3.5 Gully. In fact, each time that I’ve gone down it, I’ve rappelled it rather than scrambling down (2 single-rope rappels). There is now a fixed rope leading down this gully. Also, the talus below the gully is incredibly loose with big blocks moving underfoot all the time. GPS coordinates for the top of the gully are N46° 30.291' W83° 07.510'.
Eyeball Cliff Overview
The cliff runs from northeast to southwest and faces generally southeast. The first cliff is about 60 m tall. The cliff reaches its highest point of over 100 m at the third major face, the Big Wall, which is about 250 m long. Afterward, the cliff line drops down to between 50-75 m for a long while (~800 m). Towards the southern end, the cliff becomes much shorter, some 15-20 m tall for close to 500 m, before rearing up again to 60 m at the far southern end. A large talus slope runs along most the cliff base. In places where there is less talus, there is a bit of a gully running along the base of the cliff followed by a low bluff further out.
The rock is generally sound and solid. It tends to be quite compact with few continuous crack lines. There are, of course, general lines of weakness up corners, grooves and next to buttresses, but be prepared for many loose blocks when you first venture up one of these. The rock tends to cleave very cleanly, often leaving behind good, positive edges. However, be aware that the rock you’re climbing on is millions of years old and has been exposed to weathering and erosion for 12,000 years. The surface layer of rock can sometimes have a slightly crumbly nature to it.
First Wall
This is the far northern cliff at the Eyeball and the first cliff you see as you come down the side logging road that runs near the base of Eyeball. It is highest in the middle (60+ m) and peters down at both ends. The right side has a steep wall of good-looking, unbroken, reddish rock. There is a large talus slope at its left end that you can scramble up to reach the top of the cliff.
A good trail has been cut into the middle of the first wall – it starts at a smaller clearing 50 m past the first big clearing along the base logging road. Look for a tripod of sticks around a central pole stuck into the ground (if it's still standing). The trail starts behind it. It's 70 m to the edge of the talus.
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The First Wall
Closed Project
Located right of Northern Roots. Being cleaned and bolted by Colin and Mike Shepitka. Please don’t climb.
Myopic | 5.10c | 61m
FFA Colin Shepitka/Andrew Junkin August 2019
Located at the right end of the First wall, about 25 m right of where the trail hits the talus, just past the detached pillar of rock. Look for the belay pad to stand on made of rock.
Pitch 1, 5.10c, 28m, 7 bolts: Start to the right of the detached pillar, scramble up blocks with no protection until the first bolt. Follow the ramp into a vertical crux to the belay ledge. 2 bolt belay without rings.
Pitch 2, 5.9, 15m, 5 bolts: Traverse directly left on the ledge from the belay to a bolt, slightly run out on easy ground, then continue straight up a left facing corner into a roof, traverse left under the roof to a two-bolt belay. Again, no rings as this isn’t a rap station.
Pitch 3, 5.8, 18m, 5 bolts: Climb the left facing corner crack above the belay to a ledge and bolt, right of the corner. Make proper use of extensions to minimize rope drag at this point. Climb up and left to a slab and a two-bolt belay will be found at the top.
Descent: Do not rap the route but you will find a large Pine tree with webbing to the climbers left to rappel from. It’s a 45m rappel so two ropes required.
Northern Roots | 12a | 35m
FFA Dave Zieleniewski/Erin Zieleniewski August 2020
This climb is an ultra classic mixed route. Start as for Myopic, clip the first bolt and head straight up on gear into the slot then straight up until four bolts at the top. Ample good gear on solid clean rock. Bring 1 #3 and a set of double cams from #1 to 0.The route is one pitch and is about 33 meters long. Rappel down off the anchors with a 70meter rope.
Naughty and Nice | 5.7 R | 50 m
FA Rebecca Lewis/Danylo Darewych September 26 2015
Located in the middle of the First Wall. Look for a big break/groove/left-facing corner capped by overhangs. The route follows the left-trending groove and ducks left around the overhangs.
Pitch 1, 5.6, 20 m: Start on the right side of a big, blocky feature. Climb an initial 5-6 m crack/corner system to a vegetated ledge, then continue up the rock at the left edge of the deeper, larger, vegetated corner to your right to a big ledge at the top of the block. Two-bolt anchor.
Pitch 2, 5.7 R, 30 m: Climb straight up from the belay to a slight corner right of a large flake, step left onto the top of the flake, and then up left around the corner below the big roofs (sparse, suspect pro in this first section). Follow a crack system above to an angled stance at a tree on your left (and from there on easier ground to the top, if you wish) or continue up to the right through a squeeze crack onto a large ledge with a big pine for a belay. Rappel to the ground from the pine over the overhang below (webbing with maillon; 45 m).
Nicer | Variation | 5.8/5.9 | 17 m
FA Rebecca Lewis/Danylo Darewych/Stefan Kloppenborg June 12 2016
Climb the crack/tight corner on the left side of the big block, pull up right onto the top of the block and step up to the anchors on the ledge. It’s also possible to head left out of the corner near the top, then back right to the top of the block, but there is less pro that way.
Rampage
Closed project, please don’t climb yet.
Heads up the ramp to the left of Nicer.
Pitch 1, 5.7, 22 m: Climb up the left leaning ramp that starts 1 m to the left of Nicer. 5 bolts plus very small cams/nuts. Three bolt anchor with cordelette.
Pitch 2, 5.6, 15m: Follow the line of bolts up to the left over a bulge, then back right up a ramp to a 2-bolt belay (with rap rings) on a ledge next to a tree.
Pitch 3, 5.8 A0 (probably 5.9 free), 28 m: Climb up the short, right-facing arete and step left under a roof (tread carefully - there are loose-ish flakes that you step and pull on under the roof). Pull the roof and continue up easier-angled slabs to a two-bolt anchor with chains/rappel rings.
Descent: Make three single-rope rappel back down the route (the first one will be an angling one; or there is a sling with a maillon on a tree 10 m to the right for the first rappel) or down the line Family Values
Family Values | 5.10b | 55 m
FFA Mike Shepitka/Colin Shepitka June 2019
Family values is the next climb to the left of Marv's Route at an obvious belay pad made out of rocks. Roughly 20m left
Pitch 1, 5.10b, 25m, 8 bolts: Start at an obvious belay pad. Climb up the crack to the first bolt (crux) traverse right, curse Colin's name and stretch your arms till they come out of their sockets passed the crux to technical climbing, before the wall transitions to slab, traverse right and up a slab on small edges and smaller feet then straight up to a bolted belay (rap rings)
Pitch 2, 5.9+, 30m, 9 bolts: Start left of the belay up some interesting moves and trend right on an insecure ramp under a roof, clip your last bolt under the roof and move left over an exposed bulge and up the gully to a fun slab section. Finish right on a 2 bolt anchor (rap rings)
Rappelling from this anchor will line up perfectly with the anchors of pitch 1 for your descent.
Alpha | 5.6 | 50 m
FA Danylo Darewych/Mike Grainger July 11 2014
Located at the far left end of the First Wall, 5 m right of the left buttress of the First Wall. Look for a right-trending ramp/line of weakness. Climb the line of weakness up to the right (stepping around some loose-ish blocks) and when the climbing gets steeper above step left to the buttress edge (25 m) and then up easier-angled and more broken rock on the other side of the buttress to a tree belay at the top. Double ropes useful. Rappel from another tree 7 m higher up to the right (cordelette with maillon). One double rope rappel to the base. Or walk down the big talus slope to climber’s left.
Approximately 20m right of Alpha is a groove which in the spring of 2019 several huge blocks of rock fell from the top left side of the groove onto the trail at the base. It’s probably best to avoid this groove for a while.
Second Wall
To the left of the First Wall is a talus slope. It is flanked on both sides by easier-angled faces. Left of the talus slope starts a slightly shorter, generally easier-angled, more treed wall - this is the Second Wall. There is almost no talus below this section of cliff. The Second Wall cannot be seen from the logging road. There is no trail leading into this wall, but the forest between the logging road and the cliff is quite sparse here and easy to walk through.
Raging Stokage | 5.9 | 35 m
FA Randy Kielbasiewicz/Graeme Taylor October 17 2015
Located at the right end of the Second Wall. Start up on the talus blocks below large right-facing corner with a corner crack. Climb the crack to a ledge 8 m up, then follow bolts (4) interspersed with gear placements over undulating, slabby rock to a top-out on a rounded ledge with anchors.
Double D | 5.6 | 57 m
FA Danylo Darewych/Dan Bandrowski October 17 2015
Located at the right end of the Second Wall, just left of the talus slope edge. Start right of a cedar-tree-filled groove at short, cracked slab. Climb up the crack and over a small lip above. Head left and up a small right-facing corner, then back right and follow a groove/corner to the top over another small overhang at the end. Gear belay on poor gear.
To get to more solid rock for the top belay, it might be preferable to split this route into 2 pitches at a big pine tree off to the left midway up the cliff.
Rappel off the tree anchor of Serendipity to the left.
Serendipity | 5.6/5.7 | 75 m
FA Mike Grainger/Danylo Darewych May 20 2016
Located 12 m left of Double D, and about 3 m left of a lone pine near the base of the cliff. Look for a crack in black rock that goes up right of a small pine 4 m up.
Pitch 1, 28 m: Climb the crack for 4 m, then step right into a corner and up over a block/lip. Continue up and slightly right to a belay at a clump of very small trees.
Pitch 2, 45 m: Head straight up for 5-6 m, then angle rightwards over a triangular slab and some loose-looking blocks above it (they’re mostly solid). Mantle/pull onto the left end of a ledge (parallel with a big pine 20 m right) and then head more or less straight up to a big pine at the top of the cliff edge above.
Descent: Rappel a full 60 m from the big pine (maillon on red webbing on branches).
Lazy Day | 5.4 | 68 m
FA Mike Grainger/Rafael Kolodziejczyk/Graeme Taylor, Sept. 26, 2015
Continue a short distance past Double D until you see a vegetated ramp system leading from left to right to the top of the cliff. Several meters right of the start of the ramp, you will see a wide crack starting at the ground.
Pitch 1, 50 m: Climb the crack, then follow grooves and cracks on the face below the ramp, generally trending right and avoiding the most fractured rock. Aim for a small open book with roof, making a couple of moves through a small juniper occupying a flake. Dodge left of the unprotectable open book, climbing a large corner to gain a spacious belay ledge. Sling an unimpressive birch clump perched on a mini-ledge at head height for the belay anchor.
Pitch 2, 18 m: Move further right on the ledge and take a gently rising flake/rock ramp to its top. Make an easy but poorly protected step up left onto a small sloping ledge. Follow this, then continue up easily several more meters to belay at a large pine.
Descent: A double 60 m rap might reach the ground, but the lower angle, highly featured top makes pulling the rope risky. Instead, make an angling single rope rap to the top of pitch 1, then do a clean rappel on double ropes to the base. Better yet, rappel from the big pine at the top of Serendipity 15 m to the right. This route will be a good choice for anyone wanting a low commitment introduction to the crag, or parties who are pressed for time. The climbing is relaxed, yet enjoyable.
Lazy Day
Big Wall
Myopic
Naughty and Nice
Northern Roots
The First Wall
Family Values
Nicer
Myopic
Myopic
Alpha
Second Wall and
Raging Stokage
Double D
Serendipity
2.75 Wall
Left of the Second Wall lies a talus slope with scruffier, scrappier looking sections of cliff on either side of it. A treed gully (potentially the 2.5 Gully) heads up to the top of the cliff from the middle of this talus slope. Climbers have never ascended/descended this gully. The 2.75 Wall lies to the left of the treed gully. It is, in effect, a shorter rightward extension of the Big Wall. Climbers never expected to do any climbing on this wall, but now they have.
Elephant Seal | 5.8 | 56m
FFA Mike Grainger/Danylo Darewych 2020
At the left end of the talus field, the forest comes close to the base of the cliff. Look for a small stand of birches that grow up to the cliff. The route lies above, along a line of right-facing flakes/chimneys. The route starts 5-7 m uphill, right of the lowest toe of rock, where the lowest flake and the highest birch meet.
Pitch 1, 5.8, 16 m: Clamber into the slot behind the lowest flake and stem out onto it (back towards the cliff to start) and climb to the top of it. From there step left and make a long reach to a good crack, then make a couple of tricky steps up. Follow easier ground up, to the right of a big block and then step left again onto its front face up to a stance on a small ledge next to clump of small birches. Gear belay in the corner to the left, plus a bolt to the right if needed).
Pitch 2, 5.7, 40 m: Head up above the bolt for 4 m to a prominent protrusion with what appears to be a chockstone under it (it isn’t; it’s part of the protrusion), and pull up somewhat awkwardly past a bolt onto the protrusion. Continue up along the line of weakness into a short chimney-like feature, step left out of it and continue up until faced with a slight bulge. Step left around a corner (bolt) and pull over the bulge (also possible to pull the bulge further right, but harder). Traverse back right 2-3 m and gain the base of an inviting left-trending groove. Follow the groove to its end, then move back right below a small step, pulling out onto it from the right side to a belay at big pine tree (webbing with maillon). The second pitch wanders quite a bit – bring lots of long slings.
Rappel: Make a 57 m rappel to the ground (two ropes needed) from the big pine at the top of the second pitch, following a good line of solid rock climber’s left of the actual climb. Rappelling and pulling ropes down the actual line will lead to a potentially stuck rope. Alternatively scramble another 40 m up ledges covered with juniper and loose rock to the top of the cliff and pick up Bec’s Triple T trail to the base.
Elephant Seal, pitch 1
Elephant Seal, pitch 2
Big Wall
The Big Wall is the tallest, most impressive face at the Eyeball. It is about 115 m tall at its highest point and close to 400 m long. There are several large, prominent arches on the face with lines of weakness/cracks/corners running beneath them and more climbing above. There is an eye-catching prow and pillar at the left end of the cliff and a less dramatic pillar on the right end.To get to the Big Wall, continue walking down the logging road for approximately another 500 m from the first big clearing from where you saw the First Wall. The cliff will mostly disappear from view as the trees crowd the road, but after 500 m you will come to another clearing/open spot in the road from where you will see the unmistakable Big Wall. There is room to park a couple of cars here.
Three trails lead from the logging road through a planted pine forest for 100-150 m to the talus field at the base of the Big Wall:
a) Nate’s Trail. This is the first trail that leads to the Big Wall. It starts from the aforementioned small clearing/parking area. The start is marked by blues spray-paint on trees. The trail heads for the right side of the Big Wall and comes out below the routes Disruptor, Conspiracy Theory, Lord of the Flies. It is well travelled.
b) Beer Can Trail. This trail starts some 130 m past the Big Wall viewpoint (N46° 30.309' W83° 07.208'). It is marked with a beer can on a tree branch at the start and orange flagging tape. It comes out more or less in the middle of the Big Wall, opposite the route Weak, Fat and Gimpy.
c) Buddies Trail. This trail (hacked out primarily by a crowbar) cuts through the trees to the Big Wall about 60 m past the Beer Can Trail (N46° 30.269' W83° 07.216'). It is marked blue spray paint on trees and with orange flagging tape. It comes out below the Buddies Wall. It is well travelled.
The base logging road is currently (Aug. 2020) blocked by a massive amount of deadfall past the Buddies Trail. The best way to get to the Nose, Community Wall and Fifth Wall is to use the Autobahn, the trail that runs parallel to the base of the Eyeball cliff system in the forest near the edge of the talus field.
Routes are described from the right side of the wall to the left.
Stop While You're Ahead | 5.7 | 75 m
FA Danylo Darewych/Christian Theoret/Anna Grant September 30 2015
Located at the far-right end of the Big Wall. There is a big pyramidal pinnacle there with a very wide, deep chimney/crack heading up the left side and a treed ramp heading up the right side. The route climbs the front face of the pinnacle.
Pitch 1, 5.7, 30 m: Start towards the right side of the front face at the base of a left-facing corner system below a scrawny birch sapling which is on a ledge 5 m up. Climb to the ledge and up the corner (first good pro is rather high), step right and head up some small, stacked blocks to a short right-angling crack, then traverse back left to a steep, wide crack, climb this (#4 Camalot useful) to the ramp and scramble up the final meters of the ramp to a big cedar. Belay/rappel here.
Pitch 2, 5.4, 45 m: Scramble left up scarily loose, boulder-strewn ledges to the top of the pyramid (20 m), make an airy step across to the front face, head for the top of the cliff along bigger, slightly more solid blocks. Belay at a big pine. (Recommended to avoid this pitch. Rappel: You can rappel off another tree 10 m to the right, which puts you back at the cedar at the top of pitch 1 (30 m rappel) and then make a second rappel down the ramp (32 m).
Safe Space | 5.10- | 55 m
FA Randy Kielbasiewicz and Daunte Rezaie, Aug. 2019
Located just left of Stop While You’re Ahead on the right side of the big pyramidical feature.
Pitch 1, 5.8, 26 m: Climb a right facing flake to ledge. Follow a leftward diagonal crack until 1.5 m below a large hanging block. Traverse right, mantle and climb up passing 2 bolts. At the 2nd bolt move left and mount the block. Traverse left to a hand crack. Climb it to a belay ledge with rings placed several meters to the right.
Pitch 2, 5.10-, 29 m: Move left from the belay to a vertical seam/crack line. Climb up passing a bolt to a small roof system. Move right into a rounded depression and follow another clack line to a larger roof. Move left around this to a discontinuous crack system depositing you on a large ledge. Rings.
Rappel the route.
Stop and Go | 5.6 | 20 m
Closed project, please don’t climb yet.
Danylo Darewych, Mike Grainger, August 1, 2017).
Starts on the left side of the big pyramidal pinnacle, right of a big pine tree. Head up easy, broken rock, ledges and blocks to a chimney, then climb the chimney to a stance at the top of a small pinnacle. Two bolt belay (rap rings).
Too Cheap for Principles/Shattered Illusions | 5.7, A0 | 67 m
FFA Danylo Darewych/Mike Grainger July 2019
FA Danylo Darewych/Anna Grant/Laura Duncan October 9 2016
Start about 15 m left of a small buttress of rock towards the right end of the cliff, just right of a couple of trees.
Pitch 1, 5.7, 24 m: Climb a vague left-facing corner, mantle onto a small ledge, continue up to a stance below a big leftward arcing flake, climb the flake (solid) and step right along its top to a two-bolt anchor (rings).
Pitch 2, 5.8, 25 m: First move the belay over 10 m right to pre-vent rope drag: traverse right along the ledge, stepping down to get around a big block, to another set of anchors. Climb up the crack on the other side of the block for 8-10 m, then continue up more slabby rock past two bolts to the base of a left-facing corner. Pull up out of the corner on a questionable-looking, but apparently well bonded rock and head up left to an adjacent groove. Step right around the corner (bolt) on good holds back to the original corner (bolt) and then up past a small sapling. Continue up to the left, before finally stepping right to a small stance next to a big block (two bolt anchor with rings).
Pitch 3, 5.7, 18 m: From the belay step down 2 m and climb around to the right of the big block (bolt). Make an exposed traverse right (bolt - look up) for 7 m to a left-facing corner (bolt), climb to the top of the corner and step across it to the right to a ledge. Traverse right along the ledge to a pine tree to belay. Or continue to the top through junipers (+15 m).
It’s a 62 m rappel to the ground from the pine tree on the ledge (you’ll get down on rope stretch, just make sure you grab the end of the rope when removing it from your rappel device).
Stop While You're Ahead | Pitch 1
Too Cheap for Principles
Conspiracy Theory
The Disruptor
Lord of the Flies
Photo credit: Rebecca Lewis
Safe Space
If climbing any of the next three routes with a single rope it should be a 70m to ensure that there is enough rope for the rappels. See Rappel note after route description.
Lord of the Flies | 5.11 | 60m 32m/25m 15/12 bolts
FA Nate Kutcher, Rebecca Lewis, September 2018
Pitch 1, 32m,15 bolts: Starts off a platform. Bouldery 1st moves then climbs easier arete and transitions into diheadral under the roof. The crux is the dihedral and pulling the roof. Don't stray from the arete as there is a lot of loose rock. Belay at a ledge with rings.
Pitch 2, 25m, 12 bolts: This pitch is a little easier. There are rings at the second belay. If going to the top, it's better to traverse across the main ledge to the far two bolt (no rings) anchor on the far right of the main ledge system. Stick clipping the first bolt is not a bad idea if you don't know where the holds are to the first bolt. Once you know where the holds are, the first moves aren't very difficult.
Conspiracy Theory | 5.11+ | 100m
FA Nate Kutcher, Rebecca Lewis, September 2018
Pitch 1, 30m, 15 bolts: Power climbing and hard to see holds leads to a shallow techy dihedral. Some longer draws are useful to reduce rope drag. Belay at a stance with two rings.
Pitch 2, 30m, 14 bolts: The second pitch is easier and climbs slightly over hanging rock on mostly good holds onto an arete and slab above crossing The Disruptor just before the anchors. The 2nd pitch crux is on the slab above the roof and and arete. Belay at the two bolt anchor on the far right of the ledge system.
Pitch 3, 10+, 35m, 14 bolts: Climbs up and right off the belay. After pulling the bulge the angle eases off. Belay at the tree anchor (rope with quick link).
The Disruptor | 5.11- | 100m 15 bolts + gear to 4"
FA Nate Kutcher, Rebecca Lewis, September 2018
Pitch 1, 60m: 1st bolt has Brown Hanger. This is the original line on this section of cliff. It has a lot of bolts but requires a rack. Climb onto a ledge and clip the first bolt. This move is a choke point and if stick clipping the first bolt is required you are probably about to get in over your head. Clip several bolts before the intermittent gear plugging starts. The route follows a vague crack/dihedral system that goes vertical to the big roof then trends left to the ledge system. The crux is changing dihedrals below the big roof. There is also a difficult section pulling the roof. Belay at the low set of bolts (no rings) in the center of the ledge system. Do not belay from the rappel rings above and right. Pitch 2, 40m: It starts off the two bolt belay and climbs past several bolts to a roof where the gear plugging starts again. Do not belay off the rings as there is a flake that sticks out from the corner that will likely cut your rope and also the belayer can't see the leader from the rings. The end of pitch two is a bit of a runout dirtfest and ends at a two bolt (no rings) anchor to the left of the dihedral at the top. Traverse right to the tree anchor to rappel. The FAist wants to reroute the last bit of this pitch to skip the dirtfest but hasn't done so yet. An obvious alternative is to finish on the third pitch of CT.
Rappelling
It is possible to rappel from the tree anchor with one 70m rope. Do not rap with a single 60m rope. Do not try rappelling from anchors that do not have rings. Your rope will get stuck, there is lots of loose rock, you will not be rapping to another anchor and you will probably be left hanging out in space away from the cliff.
From the tree (rope w/ Q.L.) rap down and left to the high set of ring anchors in the center of the main ledge. Be aware of loose rock on the smaller ledges. From the main ledge rap straight down to the 1st belay of Conspiracy Theory. Arriving at the anchor you will probably be hanging in space and need to reach in to clip the anchor. From there rap to the ground. With two 60m ropes it is possible to rap straight to the ground from the main ledge system.
Welcome to the Gunshow | 5.10 | 97.5 m
FA Randy Kielbasiewicz/Rafael Kolodziejczik/Graeme Taylor June 11 2016
Start about 20 m right of Northern Etiquette at an oak tree.
Pitch 1, 5.10, 20 m: Grovel up to a roof. Continue up the steep left-facing corner. Houdini-type moves past another clean corner lead left around a roof to a belay ledge and anchors (rings).
Pitch 2, 5.8+, 22.5 m: Climb up and squirm through a chimney (bolt). Kiss both biceps and state "Welcome to the gun show" in your most Polish accent. Fire the layback and move right to another ledge. Climb right a few metres and follow a short left-facing corner to anchors at a big ledge.
Pitch 3, 5.10, 15 m: Battle raccoons for ledge space by throwing raccoon poo back at them. Move right and climb across a slab (bolts) pulling on draws when your partner isn't looking. Belay at a wide narrow ledge covered in marijuana plants. Bring a BD C4 #2 or equivalent. 50 m rappel to the ground.
Pitch 4, 5.9 , 28 m: Start with a couple of hard moves up the face, then wander past the occasional bolt to a roof, scary moves over the roof past a flake. Leads to easier climbing to anchors on a ledge.
Pitch 5, 5.2, 12 m: Wander up easy slabs avoiding islands of shrubbery to ledge with tree and slings on it.
Northern Etiquette | 5.9+ | 150 m
FA, first 3 pitches, Randy Kielbasiewicz/Chrys Lovett-Doust October 19 2014
FA, complete route, Randy Kielbasiewicz/Graeme Taylor May 17 2015
Located in the middle of the Big Wall, right of a big pine.
Pitch 1, 5.8, 22 m: Start under an arch (20 m up) right of the big pine. Follow the crack system straight up to a bolt belay in a niche under the left side of the arch. Be careful of loose rock in the last 5 m.
Pitch 2, 5.5, 8 m: Step left around prow, then down 1 m and traverse left across a line of holds. Then back up to a ledge (Lunch Ledge). Two bolt belay.
Pitch 3, 5.8, 35 m: Step to the left end of the ledge and climb up right facing corner, then right-trending flake system to a large roof. Climb straight right 5 m to anchors on a ledge (the Party Ledge). Watch for loose rock on this pitch. From the Party Ledge it is 55 m to the ground.
Pitch 4, 5.9+, 20 m: From the belay step left 3 m and follow bolts up and right, turn the visor at the flake, and climb up and left to large pine. Belay off tree.
Pitch 5, 3rd class, 15 m: Walk up grassy ridge and belay at its end at a tree.
Pitch 6, 5.0-5.3, 50 m: Wander up easy angled slab to the top.
Northern Etiquette | Alternate ending
FA Randy Kielbasiewicz/Graeme Taylor/Dan Bandrowski/Danylo Darewych October 16 2015
Pitch 5, 5.6, 27 m: Preferable to the original finish. Step up from the belay tree at the top of pitch 4, make a tricky, balance-y move protected by a bolt to a crack on the left, climb the short crack, and then head up over slabby ground to the top. Bolt/rappel anchors.
Unnamed
Closed project, please don’t climb yet.
Randy Kielbasiewicz/Graeme Taylor/Daunte Rezaie May 13, 2017
Unnamed starts about 15 m left of the start of Northern Etiquette (left of the big pine tree) and crosses over NE at the Lunch Ledge.
Pitch 1, 5.11 (or 5.8 A1), 34 m: Start at a shallow left facing corner with a clean crack. Climb the crack for 3 m, move up and right across on a ledge system to a bolt, then make hard moves up past two more bolts. A few more moves lead to a ledge system. Move to its far right side and follow a finger crack right of the gully to the anchors on Lunch Ledge.
Pitch 2, 5.10-, 33 m: Climb the acute corner just right of the anchors, swing right around the arête and follow a crack system past a 3 m rightwards traverse. Thrash, squirm and bleed up the offwidth. From its end, climb a short left-facing corner to a small roof, step right onto the face, climb up to the anchors on the Party Ledge. It would be best to traverse to the anchors on the far right side of the Party Ledge (on the other side of the big block).
Note: Don’t get sucked into the horrible final groove of death blocks (before you swing right onto the face). They suck.
Pitch 3, 5.9, 32 m: From the ledge, climb past three bolts, traverse right under the roof until you can pull around it. Climb through the groove and swim your way up the slab to anchors.
There are another 35 m of easy slab to the top, if you wish. RK
No Country for Old Men | 5.12 | 120 m
Closed project, please don’t climb yet.
Gus Alexandropoulos
Pitch 1, 45+ m, 21 bolts plus anchors.
Pitch 2, 45+ m, 21 bolts plus anchors
Pitch 3, 20 m, 8 bolts plus anchors.. The third pitch is significantly easier, but the distance between bolts is much greater (easy sections).
Pitch 4, 10 m, 3 bolts plus anchors. The fourth pitch has very easy, low-angle climbing.
Weak, Fat and Gimpy | 5.10+ | 120 m
FA, pitches 1-3, Randy Kielbasiewicz/Danylo Darewych June 28 2015
FA pitche 4-5, Randy Kielbasiewicz/Graeme Taylor September 2016
Climbs a prominent left-turning arch in the centre of the cliff. It is located ~30 m left of Northern Etiquette, under the next major arch. Look for a large block with a wideish crack behind it at the base of the cliff and a leftward arching corner/roof system above.
Pitch 1, 5.10+, 30 m: Climb up the crack on the left side of the block onto a ledge, then follow thin crack features up and slightly right (beware a long hollow-sounding flake on your right 13 m up; it's been pulled on, but don’t put pro behind it) to a stance below some small birches. Mostly 5.7/5.8 climbing except for one cruxy 2-move sequence (where you can pull on gear). Two bolt belay.
Pitch 2, 5.9, 22 m: Step left from the belay and up (left of block above), then layback along a leftward-arching flake system to a belay at its end. Big cams needed (up to three #4s and a #5). Two bolt anchor.
Pitch 3, 5.5, 14 m: Traverse left across small ledges (awkward, balance-y move) and bulges, angling up slightly towards the end. Three bolts and gear for protection along the way. Two bolt belay and rappel anchor. From here it is a 58 m rappel to the ground.
Pitch 4, 5.10+, 24 m: Two possible starts from belay: go right from the belay (one bolt, 5.10+) or left (5.8, bolts). Both starts converge on grassy ledge, below a series of small lips/roofs. There is one bolt above the ledge and fixed nut in the first lip. Continue up crack line above, until blocked by last roof. Climb up and right to anchors, stopping under a series of roofs.
Pitch 5, 5.5, 30 m: From the belay climb up the short slab (poor gear) to a grassy ledge and follow groove to the top of the cliff.
Impure Thoughts | 5.8 A1
FA Stefan Kloppenborg/Danylo Darewych June 12 2016
Start about 25 m left of WFG at a right-facing corner behind some trees.
Pitch 1, 5.7, 20 m: Climb the left-angling crack that starts behind the trees into the corner and up to a small ledge. Gear anchor supplemented by 1 bolt.
Pitch 2, 5.8/5.9, 25 m: Climb the awkward squeeze chimney in the corner, step right under a lip and continue up the face (3 bolts) just to the right of a wide crack formed by big suspended flakes to a ledge with a birch tree. Two bolt anchor (with rap rings).
Pitch 3, 5.8 A1, 20 m: Gain a short ledge 3 m above the belay stance on its right side, traverse left 4 m across the ledge and step/pull up left to a small stance below a smooth 6 m vertical face split by a very thin crack with one bolt up high. Climb the crack to a ledge. Continue up over another block/lip to a higher ledge with trees on its far right side. Two bolt rappel anchors.
There is a more direct line above the second belay that goes up a narrow squeeze chimney with a roof and pod above. May be wet and protection may be hard to find. There is a small seam on the inner right face of the chimney that might take gear (bring knife-blade pitons for the lower part, if you attempt it). There is a stuck #4 Camalot in the upper chimney above the roof, as a result of a mistake made on rappel.
Pitch 4, 5.6, 35-40 m: Step right from the anchors and then traverse up and left along several blocks/ ledges for 15 m (be careful of loose rock along ledges). At the last big ledge step around a corner onto the front face. Traverse left, staying low at first (watch out for loose blocks above), then head up and slightly left for another 20 m past a couple of small birches to a gear belay at a big ledge at the top. You need to step up onto some suspect-looking flakes along the way and solid gear is a bit sparse. Rope drag was quite fierce. It might be preferable to split this pitch in two at the large ledge before stepping around onto the front face or to forego it altogether.
Rappel: Walk right along the top ledge to a big pine 14 m to the right and rappel from it (red webbing and maillon) down to the anchors at the top of pitch 3 (around 35 m). It might be possible to rappel straight to the ground from here (untested theory) and rappel down to the anchors at the top of pitch 2 instead, and then make one final 45 m rappel to the ground.
Gear: A set of nuts and a double set of cams, including at least one #4 and preferably one #5. Two ropes (you’ll need a second rope for the rappels).
Say You’re Sorry/Jenga | 5.12 | 70 m?
Nathan Kutcher/Rebecca Lewis Sept. 29, 2019
Pitch 1, Say You’re Sorry, 5.12ish, 35 m: Up to big ledge.
Pitch 2, Jenga, 5.11+/5.12-, 35 m?
Co-ed Slumber Party | 5.11ish | ? m
Nathan Kutcher, Rebecca Lewis, Sept. 29, 2019
Located just left of Say You’re Sorry.
Going All the Way | 5.13- | ?? m
Closed project, please don't climb yet.
The second pitch of Co-ed Slumber Party.
Gus’s Project
Closed project, please don't climb yet.
Located just left of Co-ed Slumber Party.
Tidbit | 5.8 | 15 m
Mike Grainger, August, 2018
Locate a large recess with a prominent arch/roof (that sits half-way up the face), left of centre of the Big Wall. Start about 15 m left of the main left-facing corner of the recess below a vaguer series of blocks/corners. Watch for poison ivy at the base. The blocks are big, loose and scary, so climb a thin seem to their right until it peters out and mantle awkwardly onto a small ledge with a two-bolt anchor. Ball-nuts recommended.
The Hummingbird and the Worms | 5.8 | 135 m.
FA, pitch 1, Danylo Darewych/Stefan Kloppenborg October 11 2014
FA whole route, Danylo Darewych/Mike Grainger August 26 2015
Located towards the left end of the Big Wall at the Eyeball Cliff. Look for the lone big pine tree growing on a ledge, 4 m above the base of the cliff.
Pitch 1, 5.5, 50 m: Start just to the right of the big pine and head up and right along a line of weakness towards another lone large pine growing out of the cliff. Belay at the tree. (You can make one 30 m rappel to the ground from this pine; there is webbing with a maillon on it.)
Pitch 2, 5.6, 20 m: Start up a crack to the right of the pine and head up and right towards a clump of small birches. Belay at the sturdier, highest birch (back up the belay with gear; you may not want to trust this tree to rappel from).
Pitch 3, 5.7?, 15 m: Step up onto the ledge above the birch, make an awkward move up to a corner, overgrown by a large juniper bush, sling a hanging branch of the juniper, step under it to its right side, then grovel up on/through/in the juniper to regular rock climbing above and a belay at a large pine on a large ledge. Empty the juniper needles from your shirt and underwear. (You can make an angling rappel down to the initial belay pine from this ledge; there is webbing with a maillon on the pine).
Pitch 4, 5.8, 37 m: Walk up left along the ledge 5 m to a corner below a large chimney with a couple of large blocks stuck in it. Climb the initial, wider part of the chimney (8m; awkward, but decent pro; little pyramids of icky bird guano at the base, mostly avoidable) pulling up over the blocks until you can step out of the chimney onto a large platform on the left. Climb the sloping rock ramp on the left side of the chimney, then up a final dirty, vegetated poorly protected 10 m groove to a belay tree at its top.
The chimney is the technical crux of the climb, the vegetated groove is the psychological crux (Mike excavated a placement under the dirt near the base of the groove for an old-size #5 Camalot – the new #5 was too small – then slung a spindly, unsturdy birch halfway up, and finally found a decent nut near the top).
Pitch 5, 5.1, 15 m: Scramble easily up to the top and belay off a big oak tree.
Rappel/descent: Initially set up a rappel from a tree down and left of the oak tree and started to make an angling rappel down towards the base of the chimney, but after surveying the potentially rope-snagging group of boulders and bushes on a ledge 10 m down, decided this might not be a wise option. Instead walked 30-40 m right along a big, wide, downward-sloping treed ledge until located a fixed, static 40 m rope that Randy K. had left in place earlier in the summer at the top of a crumbly ridge line at the left end of the Big Wall. Rapped down this static rope to a big pine tree in a notch just to (climber’s) right of the top of the pinnacle/tower at the left end of the Big Wall. The static line is no longer there – you have to use your own ropes, but beware of all the loose blocks and foliage on this rappel when pulling the rope. Unclear whether one 30 m rappel will reach the big pine. From here it’s a 55 m rappel to the base of the cliff. You end up 20 m left of the big pine at the base of The Hummingbird and the Worms.
Note: It looks like you can make an airy, scary, exposed traverse left under a large roof from the end of the belay ledge at the top of pitch 3. There is a thin crack for fingers and gear under the roof. Not sure what’s around the corner though. You can also make a big long 30-40 m traverse right along the ledge. This would place you above the big arch/roof feature on your right, but it looks like there is still a smaller roof above. It might be possible to continue traversing even further right around the next corner to reach slightly easier-angled, more broken ground above.
Caterpillars and Sarcophagae | 5.9 | 135 m
FFA Mike Grainger/Danylo Darewych July 3 2018
This route climbs a system of chimneys and corners on the left side of the Big Wall, left of Hummingbird and the Worms.
Pitch 1, 5.5, 50 m: Climb the first pitch of Hummingbird and the Worms to the big pine tree.
Pitch 2, C1, 10 m: Climb straight up from the big pine (the tree is always in), then aid climb up the slightly overhanging awkward thin flake/crack (stronger climbers can free climb this - 5.11?). Exit awkwardly through a small birch to gain a tiny alcove and belay on gear.
Pitch 3, 5.8, 20 m: Traverse left for 5 m along a narrow ledge, squeezing past a birch (there is a crack for pro within reach on the far side of the tree) to the chimney system proper. Climb up two chimney sections, one after the other (back on one side, feet on the other), pulling over an overhang on positive holds in each one to a gear belay on a ledge above.
Pitch 4, 5.6/5.7, 22 m: Step right from the belay and climb a short, slabby step to a ledge. Climb onto two stacked boulders at the base of the corner on the left and pull around the corner. Continue along the corner for 4-5 m, then traverse right carefully for 5 m across a slabby face (no pro) and then head up on small edges to a small belay stance just down and right of a clump of small birches in front of a corner crack (sling the birches and place a cam in the crack behind the foot of the birches for a belay).
Pitch 5, 5.6, 15 m: Squeeze past the clump of birches and climb up the corner crack behind them, then up over easier ground and some grassy ledges to belay ledge on the left underneath a small lip (gear belay).
Pitch 6, 5.9 R, 18 m: Climb up the corner on your left (swinging onto the arete in one spot), then proceed to grovel your way up the dirty, vegetated groove that widens to a squeeze chimney at the top. Exit the chimney with difficulty through juniper and scramble up to a small but sturdy pine to belay. (It would be possible to make this pitch safer by rappelling down and excavating gear placements in the dirty groove - it was very run out as climbed). - Perhaps a cleaner, alternate exit would be to head down and right from the belay and up the rock on the right to join what we think is the top of the fourth pitch of Hummingbird and the Worms.
Randy’s Bolted Line
Closed project, please don’t climb yet.
Being put in on the steep face between Hummingbird and Dirtfest.
Dirtfest | 5.6 | 70 m
FA Danylo Darewych/Randy Kielbasiewicz September 6 2015
Located towards the left end of the Big Wall. Start left of the big pine at the base of The Hummingbird and the Worms.
Pitch 1, 5.6, 50 m: Climb up and left onto a dirty ledge with a clump of saplings on it, step up a crack with birches, then trend left and up a grassy ramp to the base of a right-facing corner. Climb up the easy-angled corner, stepping onto a 2-3 grassy ledges and by- passing a large bush on the right. Pull on a big block at the top of a final short corner crack and step onto the top of a large pyramidal formation. Gear belay (look for a crack just below the far side of the pedestal). Long slings essential. Double ropes useful.
Pitch 2, 5.6, 20 m: Step down to your left from the belay onto a wide, grassy/bushy ledge and traverse left to the pinnacle at the left edge of the cliff. Climb up the notch behind the pinnacle to an airy stance at its top. Two bolt belay/rappel anchor. 55 m rappel to the ground.
Lord of the Flies
Photo credit: Rebecca Lewis
Lord of the Flies
Photo credit: Rebecca Lewis
Conspiracy Theory
Photo credit: Rebecca Lewis
Conspiracy Theory
Photo credit: Rebecca Lewis
Welcome to the Gunshow
Northern Etiquette
Northern Etiquette
Northern Etiquette
No Country For Old Men
No Country For Old Men
Weak, Fat and Gimpy
Impure Thoughts
Say You're Sorry
The Hummingbird and the Worms
The Hummingbird and the Worms
The Hummingbird and the Worms
Catepillars and Sarcophagae
Dirtfest (left) and The Hummingbird and the Worms (right)
Pinnacle Crack
Pinnacle Crack | 5.9+ | 65 m
3 pitches cleaned and bolted by Randy Kielbasiewicz/Graeme Taylor May 2015
FA Randy Kielbasiewicz/Jon Gullet/Danielle Johnson/Stefan Kloppenborg/Danylo Darewych May 22 2016
There is a pinnacle on the left end buttress of the Big Wall. This route climbs a crack system that runs almost the full length of the pinnacle.
Pitch 1, 5.7, 22 m: Start in the pit at the base of the pinnacle at the main crack system. Climb the easy rock to the right of the crack (painted bolt) bypassing the loose blocks in the lower part of the crack. Gain the crack above the blocks and continue up the crack over a slight overhang to easier angled rock above. Belay at a two bolt anchor left of the crack.
Pitch 2, 5.9+, 18 m: Continue up the crack system through a tricky chimney/roof section to a 2 bolt belay/rappel anchor on the right face of the pinnacle.
Pitch 3, 5.8, 25 m: Continue up the crack system as it angles up and to the right but before it ends traverse left and up past a bolt to the arête. Step around the arête onto the front face of the pinnacle. Climb to the top of the pinnacle to a two bolt belay/rappel anchor. 55 metre rap to the ground
Pick Your Nose Sector
The following lines on both sides of the Nose/Prow of the Pinnacle at the left end of the Big Wall intersect with each other and all share a common belay station, so pick your nose!
Predatory Moose | 5.10 | 30 m
FA Stefan Kloppenborg/Danielle Johnson September 6 2015
Start in the pit in front of the base of the pinnacle at a thin, steep crack 5 m right of the nose/prow and 5 m left of the main crack system of Pinnacle Crack.
Climb up the crack until it peters out, continue on clipping one bolt above, then step left around the arête, follow 3 more bolts left of the arête, and step back across the arête again to the right face on good edges, just below some final, big blocks. Climb over these to the anchor/rappel station on the ledge above, left of the prow (or just head left directly to the anchors on scruffier rock).
Nose Job | 5.10+ | 35m | 13 bolts
FA Stefan Kloppenborg/Danielle Johnson/Danylo Darewych October 10 2015
Climbs the lower half of the prow/nose of the pinnacle at the left end of the Big Wall. Start just right of the base of the nose/prow. Follow the line of bolts just right of the arête (8 bolts), until it intersects the line of Predatory Moose (at a small ledge on the prow with a large flake and a small birch; 9-10th bolt), step left around the arête and follow the line of Predatory Moose to the top (i.e. follow 3 more bolts left of the arête, and step right across the arête again just below big blocks, climb over these – small cams needed - to the anchor/rappel station on the ledge above, left of the prow).
Rhinoplasty | 5.9 | 28 m
FA Stefan Kloppenborg/Danielle Johnson/Danylo Darewych October 11 2015
Climbs the upper half of the prow/nose of the pinnacle at the left end of the Big Wall. From the anchor/rappel station of Predatory Moose head up and right, following the line of bolts along the very edge of the arête/prow of the pinnacle (7 bolts, plus small cams at top, because the line shares a common finish with the trad line of Pinnacle Crack).
Booger | 5.6 | 35 m
FA Danylo Darewych/Stefan Kloppenborg/Danielle Johnson October 9 2015
Start left of the nose/prow of the pinnacle at two short parallel cracks. Head up the initial rock step, then up a dirty vegetated groove (6 metres), step right on cleaner rock closer to the arête, head up the right side of a big flake and join the line of Predatory Moose to the top (ie. follow 3 more bolts left of the arête, and step right across the arête again just below big blocks, climb over these to the anchor/rappel station on the ledge above, left of the prow).
Proboscis | 5.7/5.8 | 30 m
FA Stefan Kloppenborg/Danielle Johnson/Danylo Darewych October 11 2015
From the anchor/rappel station of Predatory Moose/Nose Job head up to a hand crack on the left, follow it to its end, then step right to another crack/line of weakness and head up past birches on the left to the anchors of Pinnacle Crack at the top of the pinnacle.
Northern Harvest | 5.9R | 27 m
FA, pitch 1, Wade Meade/Daunte Rezaie
FA whole route, Wade Meade/Randy Kielbasiewicz 2016
Hike out past the Nose and stop at the wall of loose looking, crumbling rock, referred to as the Wall of Horrors. With your back facing the more attractive Community Wall, go to the far left end of the cliff where you will find a lone conifer tree 15m up, on a narrow band of not horrible looking rock.
Pitch 1, 5.9 R, 15 m: 1 bolt plus anchors. Start with an awkward mantle onto a dirty ledge, climb up the left angling crack, beware the flake (it won’t hold gear, but if you’re delicate, it will hold you). After you reach a large ledge continue up the crack until you reach the lone bolt. From the bolt head up and right, into the crux, on small holds and smaller feet to reach the next crack system. Follow the crack to the bolted anchors. Enjoy the thin gear and runouts.
Pitch 2, 5.8, 12 m: 2 bolts plus anchors. Continue up the crack with a few more gear placements than the previous pitch. Move up and right to the first bolt, followed by more thin gear until you reach the second bolt. Move up on easier climbing till you reach the bolted anchors.
Gear: Mastercams, C3s, C4s, and nuts.
Community Wall
Pinnacle Crack
Nose Job
Rhinoplasty
Booger
Proboscis
Northern Harvest
Community Wall
Left of the Pinnacle Prow/Nose there is an easier-angled wall of broken, looser-looking rock (dubbed the Wall of Horrors by Wade Meade) above a large scree/talus slope that rises to a treed notch/corner in the cliff – the 3.5 Gully. The face left of the scree/talus slope is a good-looking wall of steep rock, hopefully a good can-didate for sport routes - The Community Wall.
Post-Breeding Migration Path of Sandhill Cranes | 5.10b | 73 m
FA Andriy Kolos/Danylo Darewych September 29, 2019
The route heads up the middle of the Community Wall. The path starts amidst the thick shrubbery of the north, passes through classic Eyeball/Algoma rock and finishes alongside waves just like those that lap the shores of the Florida Gulf coast (just like the birds' migration path). The climbing in the upper pitches is mostly in the 5.8/5.9 range with short harder cruxes.
The start is found in a short left-facing corner about 15 m left of a big birch tree.
Pitch 1, 5.6/5.7, 29 m: Climb up a discontinuous left-facing corner system, stepping right of the corner proper, if necessary, and up to a ledge from its ride side. Two-bolt anchor with rappel rings.
Pitch 2, 5.10b, 13 m: Climb up from the left end of the belay ledge past three bolts and right around an overhanging bulge to a small ledge. Follow steps up left (bolt) to a bigger ledge. Two-bolt anchor with rappel rings.
Pitch 3, 5.10b, 31 m: Climb up to the right (bolt) on small edges to a larger crack,
climb the crack and then head up right over a small roof on good holds to a large ledge (marked by a substantial tree on its far-left end). From the large ledge head up past a bolt and right across a thin seam (or scootch left over wetter terrain) to a stance below a finish over wavy rock (final bolt) on tiny edges and slopers. Two-bolt anchor with rappel rings below juniper-covered top.
Rappel: Three single-rope rappels with a 60 m rope (watch the top rappel – you get down on rope stretch).
Out of the Frying Pan | 5.10a | 70m
FA First pitch Mike Grainger/Danylo Darewych
Second Pitch Chris Talbot/Danylo Darewych/Mike Grainger July 13, 2020
On the right side of the Community Wall look for a groove with several trees, heading up to about half-height of the wall. The groove is the common first-pitch start of the routes Out of the Frying Pan and Into the Fire.
Pitch 1, 35m, 5.8, Climb up the groove (dirty, vegetated at first) past a birch 6 m up, then over an overhang (bolt) 13 m up, past a second tree and a blade of rock; bolts below it and above it on the left, then squirm into a squeeze groove with small birches obstructing the entrance and pull out onto a ledge with a pine tree (webbing with maillon).
Pitch 2, 35m, 5.10a, 11 bolts: plus several (optional) cams. From the belay climb 3-4 metres up the crack above and just past a small birch (#4 Camalot, if you don’t trust the spindly birch) angle left up to a bolt, tiptoe left of it up to a second bolt, then head up and left again past another bolt to a crack through a roof (bolts directly below the roof and above the roof on the left; the roof crack also takes cams), pull the roof and climb up to a lone, small pine 4 m higher. From there follow the line of bolts to the top, weaving left and right of the bolts, following the line of least resistance on mostly very positive edges and ledges (except at one difficult spot), but using the cracked rock on the left ¾ of the way up. Top out onto a ledge with two-bolt rappel anchors in the slab above.
Into the Fire | 5.10d | 70m
FA Colin Shepitka/Andrew Junkin July 2, 2020
FFA Colin Shepitka/Mike Shepitka August 2020
Pitch 1, 35 m, 5.9: The first pitch is the same as for Out of the Frying Pan.
Pitch 2, 35 m, 5.10d: From the belay tree climb straight up the crack above for about 9 m to just under the roof, traverse right to a bolt, then up and right to second bolt under
the roof, pull the roof at a crack (there is a third bolt above the roof, left of the crack) and follow the crack up to a ledge and then climb just left of a major crack formed by a system of huge stacked blocks (fourth bolt) to a big pine at the top of the route.
Another route is being put up on the left corner of the Community Wall.
Line of Least Resistance | 5.13 | 40 m
Closed project, please don’t climb yet.
Gus Alexandropoulos
A very steep line - overhangs by about 12 m.
The Holes
Left of the Community Wall is a steep hill of talus. On the other side of the talus hill are two small treed depressions/holes separated by a small ridge of talus. One route has been partially climbed out of the left hole.
Sometimes You Lose | 5.7 A1 | 40 m
FA Mike Grainger/Danylo Darewych, August 21, 2017
Pitch 1, 5.7, 25 m: There are two interesting crack systems leading out of the left hole: a wide, left-leaning one on the right and another big one on the left. Both were sopping wet, so we started by pulling on gear up a shorter, thin crack (also partially wet) immediately left of the big left crack. Continue up along a broken right-facing corner system, pull up over one grassy lip, then traverse right 5 metres when confronted by a bigger one. Climb up 3-4 m, pulling on a big block, then make a sketchy traverse back left 5 m with no pro (enjoy the rope drag) to a big vegetated ledge and belay off two small trees and gear.
Pitch 2, 5.4, 15 m: Ignore the interesting-looking corner and roof above the belay, traverse further along the ledge and climb up the verge of rock and juniper bush for 7 m, topping out amidst loose blocks on the next big wide ledge. Head right to the big pine for a belay.
Rappel: Rappel from the big pine (webbing and maillon). It’s 31 m to the ground over a rib of solid rock (you’ll get down on rope stretch).
Note: There were two interesting crack systems running up from the second big ledge. We ran out of time to attempt them and we’re not sure we want to reclimb the first pitch again (maybe if it’s dry). We lost a small off-set cam somewhere - let us know if you find it, please.
Line of Least Resistance
Fifth Wall
The Fifth Wall is about 100 m left of the Community Wall, past the Holes. It is a fairly tall wall (60-80 m) and about 180 m long. It is characterized by some easier-angled corners at the right end; a large, short, treed detached block in the centre at the base; and a big triangular pyramid with steep vegetated grooves on either side on the left.
Dummies in the Dark | 5.8 | 75 m
FA Mike Grainger/Danylo Darewych July 17 2014
5 pitches. Located at the right end of the Fifth Wall, where a series of less-than-vertical small corners are located. Look for a clean corner system that ends at a lone pine tree about 35 m up. The logical start would be straight up this corner system, but there is no pro at the bottom, so start at the corner system 3 m to its left.
Pitch 1, 5.7, 20 m: Start at the right side of the corner, step around to its left side almost immediately, climb up a leftward diagonaling crack over flake to a ledge at top (14 m), traverse right for 5 m to belay at stand of 4-5 small cedar trees.
Pitch 2, 5.5, 15 m: Head straight up the corner above to a belay at a lone pine tree (blue sling with rap ring).
Pitch 3, 5.6, 20 m: Traverse left 4 m, climb up broken corner past big cedar tree (also has purple webbing with rap ring) to ledge above, traverse left another 7 m to another corner system and climb up 10 m to a small ledge (there is a big roof above to the left). Gear belay in good vertical crack.
Pitch 4, 5.8, 15 m: Climb up the crack above the belay ledge for 2-3 m, step carefully right (grabbing a very small tree), step up into a V-shaped notch under a small roof. Pull over the roof, which is actually a big completely detached block seemingly held in place in the corner by friction alone (Very scary! But it never budged). Head past one tree to a belay at a second tree higher up the corner.
Pitch 5, 5.6-5.7, 15 m: Tiptoe gingerly around a vertical carpet of pine needles (climbing shoes on pine needles are like skis on snow), past another big pine tree and then climb the corner crack above over two small lips/roofs, stepping left to a belay at a another big pine tree (blue webbing with maillon).
Descent: Rappel from the big pine on top to the big cedar tree you passed at the start of pitch 3 (purple webbing and rap ring). From here rappelling to the ground.
Double ropes necessary for rappelling in this fashion. It would be possible to rap with one rope using intermediary trees.
Gear: Nuts and a wide assortment of cams - everything from a #1 TCU to a #4 Camalot. The gear is generally good, but the rock is suspect in a few places.
Grandma’s Law | 5.8 | 50 m
FA Danylo Darewych/Mike Grainger
The start is located about 12 m left of Dummies in the Dark in a big corner behind a big oak tree.
Pitch 1, 5.6/5.7, 20 m: Climb the easier-angled left side of the corner, pulling up over a small lip (with a birch tree) near the top of the pitch and continue on to a ledge (birch tree and gear belay).
Pitch 2, 5.8, 25 m: Climb up the chimney above for 10-12 m with some stemming and some jamming, exiting the chimney to the right, then continue above up a groove and finally step right to a short right-facing corner and climb it to a belay at a small ledge (2 bolts with rappel rings; 50 m rappel to the ground). This is the same spot where pitch 3 of Dummies in the Dark ends.
Ray’s Route | 5.9 | 14 m
Closed project, please don’t climb yet.
Ray Rutitis/Danylo Darewych August 23, 2017
Located about 25 m left of Dummies in the Dark. Look for a continuous crack line with a big roof 2/3 of the way up.
Pitch 1, 5.9, 14 m: Climb up the corner past 3 bolts to an overhang with two small trees at its base.
Another Randy Route 2017
Closed project, please don’t climb yet.
This is a project located in a crack/corner system somewhere left of Ray’s Route. It diag-onals left up a line of weakness above the big rock promontory/peninsula. There is a fixed rope hanging there.
Upon Further Reflection | 5.6/5.7 | 22 m
FA Mike Grainger/Danylo Darewych July 1, 2019
In the middle of the 5th Wall there is a big, low rock promontory/peninsula/pedestal jutting out from the base of the cliff with a huge left-facing chimney above the left end. The route starts near the left end of the rock promontory, in a left-leading weakness, 5 m left of a big cedar tree on a block 7 m up.
Сlimb the weakness to the top of the pedestal, making a strenuous mantle from a tree near the top. At the top, traverse left past some trees to a crack below a big, overhanging crack system.
We climbed 6-7 m up the crack to the base of the overhanging crack system before backing off because of difficulties.
Chemical Imbalance | 5.11a | 55 m
FFA Colin Shepitka/Rachel Greco July 2019
Note: 3 Pitches, first 2 pitches are climbable but you can’t top out.
Pitch 1, 5.10a, 25m: Climb a fractured crack system traversing from left to right over the small roof to a splitter hand crack, then trend left to a ledge, 2 bolt anchor with rap rings.
Pitch 2, 5.11a, 30m: Right from the belay, climb the left facing off-width overhanging crack to some easier moves up a small corner finger crack, 2 bolts on your left through the crux. Jump for deceptive hands with invisible feet and climb straight up then trend right to the belay ledge, 2 bolts with rap rings. Rappel straight down to meet up with first pitch anchors.
Pitch 3: ,Closed project, please don’t climb yet.
Please do not climb due to loose rock and sparse/dangerous protection.
Chemical Imbalance
Dummies in the Dark
Grandma's Law
Cranes
Line of Least Resistance
Line of Least Resistance
Ray's Route
Upon Further Reflection
Chemical Imbalance
Into The Fire
