UKC

How hard/scary is the left hand (Redhead?) finish - does anyone do it anymore?
The more direct fininsh up the crack looks nails and would no doubt see me off!

In reply to robw007: Bomber kit in the crack all the way then just a bit wiggy with the gear by your feet on the small holds.. then a good hold awaits. Not to bad really, change to the other finishes tho, harder too.

have fun

ioan

In reply to robw007:

I can't remember placing any runners on either finish above the shared bomber runner so they are both as run out as each other although I think you get better holds sooner on the right-hand finish. Don't know about the super direct.

Alan

In reply to IOAN D:
Cheers Ioan. So good holds come after a tricky step left?

BTW - what route is that guy on down to the right of you on Suicide Wall 1 - is it Route 2? Dont think its Capital Punishment as it too far away?

In reply to Alan James - UKC:

Hi Al

I think you must have been well within your comfort zone on the righthand finish; I wasn't, and I'm pretty sure I remember very good small stuff available after the divergence point, and I've done the route twice!

In reply to Ian Parsons:

Then I suspect the opposite - too pumped to place!

Alan

In reply to Alan James - UKC:
I don't think that further gear is necessary and the one beneath you, at the divergence, is awfully good

In reply to robw007:

The right/direct finish has a move which is definitely harder than anything else on the route, but this may not be the case if you are a bit taller as I remember it being quite stretchy (I'm 5'8"). You could get more gear above the split but it would be quite pumpy to place it. Only about 5ft down to the last bomber gear anyway.
When I was last up there the left finish looked quite neglected and green but from distant memory the difficulties are very short-lived - just one short sequence left to a jug (easier than going direct) then you'd have to be really boxed to blow it.

In reply to robw007: just to clarify, there are 3 possible finishes:

left hand (original)
right hand (via crack continuation)
direct ('Redhead's Finish' taking the wall between left and right hand finishes)

of the 3 i think the direct is the hardest, described as 'solid 6b' in the previous CC Pass guide. i opted for the left version as i knew the others were supposed to be harder (the right hand is described as 6b for the short in CC guide) and, when i got there, going left looked easier. theres a bit of a reachy move to go left (heart in mouth moment for me as i deadpointed the necessary hold - im 5'8 btw) but then its straightforward and you can place a really good bit of gear in the groove if youre feeling a bit run out / nervous and have the arms to do so.

as mentioned by others, you could hang your house from the gear in the crack so you wont be going too far if you fluff it...

In reply to ksjs:

I was with John when he did the "Redhead Finish" and the truth is that he went that way because he didn't fancy doing either of the existing finishes! Ron Fawcett and Paul Williams were watching John from the ledge at the top of the Corner and the exchange with John went something like this:

"I'm pumped Youth!". He then looked left and said "I don't like the look that" and then looked right and said "I don't like the look of that either!". He then amazed Ron and Paul by climbing the wall between the two finishes to "get it over with more quickly"!

In reply to Chris Shorter: genius! great story. im guessing he would have strolled up the left hand finish or right for that matter...

In reply to robw007:
Excellent stuff - thanks to all - just got to get fit enough to get to the two options in relatively good shape!

I suppose the peg is still ok at the hard bit lower down?

In reply to Chris Shorter:
Must say I'm a bit freaked by John Redhead thinking either of the finishes looked hard ............!!!

In reply to robw007:

Just relax, it's a nice story but these days we don't sleep in caves and eat road kill and from other people's compost heaps

In reply to Chris Shorter:

Yes, great story! Even climbing gods can have the same nervous feelings as us mere mortals...

Mick

In reply to robw007: the peg *looks* good but i guess its pretty old. it can be backed up with good gear, you need to look around for this. id say the lower half is more run out than the upper half (its not actually run out but gear does feel a bit spaced, it is very good though), with steady climbing throughout. id say the move to leave the peg is as hard as anything on the route but youre maybe less physically taxed at this point so it probably feels easier.

In reply to ksjs:
Have done the bottom two thirds back in 1990 - but got rained off the top crack and went up LW.
Cant remember those moves lower down by the peg being that hard but did seem to rely on the peg for pro. Useful info that theres other stuff about if you look for it.
Cheers
R

In reply to robw007:

I think it's only fair to point out that this was pretty early in John's climbing career and before he was well known.

There's also another story from about the same time about Dave Hollows. He pissed up the route up to where the finishes split. He hadn't put in much gear and had used an old thread before leaving Left Wall. Dave went for the right-hand finish and fell off. The thread over in Left Wall broke (the rock that is) and it freed a huge amount of slack. Several other runners flicked out or pulled and he stopped just below the girdle! He didn't go up for another go!

In reply to robw007: i just remember feeling really stretched out leaving the peg (are there 2 pegs or only 1 - i cant remember, think its just one) and, on reflection, i thought this was more technical / required more working out than the higher stuff which was a bit more sustained but more positive ie suited me more.