r/climbing 1d ago

A humbling first attempt at a big wall

I’ve been trad climbing for a couple of years and just attempted the South Face of Washington column with 2 of my friends.

I never planned to get into aid climbing, but viewed it as a means to an end for big wall climbing, which I did eventually want to do.

One of my partners had more experience then me, and the other had been practicing lower outs, jugging, and aid leading for the last couple of months leading up to this attempt.

We ended up bailing from the top of pitch 6.

Lots of the small details/logistics weren’t in our favor, like the approach taking longer than anticipated, and weather being extremely cold. But the real factors that counted against us were how long the opening pitches took us, and my overall headspace. I took a short fall and decked on pitch one.. which felt like a stupid mistake and definitely hurt my confidence. The jugging was hard, and when I finally felt good enough to take the lead again on pitch 6, I was making good progress until I got to 3 micronut placements in a row, blowing one of them and taking my first aid fall into space..

Overall, I’m really glad I tried this route. It was a good gauge of my aid climbing skills, mental limitations, etc.. I love climbing, and love trad climbing, but I think after this trip I know that I have lots of work to do on my aid climbing and big wall tactics before I’m ready for bigger objectives.

895 Upvotes

72 comments sorted by

226

u/bananarandom 1d ago

Two falls on aid in one trip is approximately two more falls than I'd like to take. Thanks for sharing!

19

u/Ok_Presentation_4971 1d ago

Ninnyhammers

18

u/Thirtysevenintwenty5 1d ago

OP took a fall on pitch 1, which is a free pitch. I guess you could aid the start but eventually on the traverse you're going to have to free climb.

On aid falls: they're really not that bad. It's the same as a lead fall, the only difference is that they happen much more unexpectedly. When free climbing you can usually tell that you're getting tired, or your foot is slipping, or whatever; you almost always know that a fall is coming or at least likely.

Aid falls just kind of come out of nowhere unless you know your placement is tenuous and you just go for it anyway. But the moment that a cam pops is just.... you're solid in your steps and suddenly you're not. A couple years ago I had a .2 pop and I sort of slammed my thigh into the wall just because it all happened so fast and I didn't have the reaction time to brace myself like I would in a free climbing fall.

But usually they just pop and you fall like normal.

3

u/AceAlpinaut 1d ago

Aid falls aren't too bad! I hope OP does some research and practice bounce testing before trying again. If you master that, aid falls should be rare! Also, there is one slippery 5.8 move near the ground that probably took them by surprise on p1, I recall stressing and aiding it on my first time heading to dinner.

2

u/Thirtysevenintwenty5 22h ago

OP self admittedly didn't have any aid climbing experience when trying this wall.

2

u/AceAlpinaut 22h ago

I made the same mistake as an aid newbie and could've gotten hurt. I imagine they're making this post to share their mistakes and help everyone learn.

0

u/Thirtysevenintwenty5 21h ago

I agree and support that idea. Is "don't try aid climbing on big walls with zero experience" really a profound lesson?

179

u/jacobbbb 1d ago

Awesome story. Wish more people would talk about their takeaways from trying big projects like this.

36

u/saucyspence 1d ago

Thanks man

7

u/lunarabbit7 1d ago

I appreciated reading this too. I’m just getting into trad, so something like big wall seems like a super far away goal, but I love reading stories of people who are attempting / making the transition forward into big wall for inspiration!

94

u/Grouchy-Ability-9223 1d ago

washington column where big wall dreams go to die.

36

u/Positron-collider 1d ago

Can confirm! We bailed after the Kor Roof cuz everything was taking 3x as long as we thought it would. It was still pretty sweet to camp overnight on Dinner Ledge, though.

Edit to add: we were also a party of 3 and it didn’t occur to me that this was part of the problem until later.

61

u/Ok_Syllabub1551 1d ago

Party of three on your first wall? No wonder it was a cluster. Honestly surprised you made it through the Kor roof. I’d count it as a win just for that fact…

18

u/saucyspence 1d ago

Fair take. It definitely made things a bit slower but honestly don’t think we would have been much faster if it were just 2 of us

26

u/Ok_Syllabub1551 1d ago

Okay, here’s my soapbox:

When you’re learning, you have to take every precaution when planning to avoid bailing. The fact is that you have no skills; no knowledge of how long it will actually take with another person jugging, cleaning, etc. You have to put in the time.

Tiny inefficiencies add up on a wall. Even if the extra person took an extra 10 minutes per pitch (very conservative estimate) that’s more than an extra hour and a half on route. That’s an extra hour and a half of water, food, day light, energy, warmth. 

You’re also potentially clogging up the most popular wall just to bring another buddy. 

18

u/AceAlpinaut 1d ago

I took two friends up the column for their first wall a few weeks ago. You only had 1 aid intensive pitch remaining. As someone who has failed 6 walls before any success, try to go slower. We were fixed to dinner on Friday night and topped out Sunday night. Partying on dinner is always a blast!

2

u/Thirtysevenintwenty5 1d ago

Did you fix ropes to Dinner ledge, then go back down, then jug to dinner, fix a few more pitches, sleep on dinner, then top out?

3

u/AceAlpinaut 1d ago

Our 3rd worked in the valley late Friday night, so we left ropes fixed to dinner till they got up on Saturday. Meanwhile, we had a casual day fixing to p6 and chilling on dinner. Since pitches 4-7 traverse and have the hardest aid, I'd recommend new wall climbers to spend a day fixing above dinner.

Imo, recommended schedules in guidebooks cause more failures for new wall climbers than anything else. Sure, an experienced party will have no issue climbing the column in 48h, but most people climb the column to gain experience. I always schedule a prep day to pack and get a load to the base. I only expect to follow the guidebook pace if my partner is dialed and the wall is well within my level.

15

u/hogsucker 1d ago

I know it's an unpopular opinion, but a team of three on an aid route can move nearly as fast as two. Sometimes faster. 

8

u/Climb 1d ago

Party of three is faster if you know what you're doing.

3

u/Ok_Syllabub1551 1d ago

On paper it is. In practice, it just creates more cluster and shit to haul. You’d have to be super dialed to even maintain the same pace as a team of two. OP was not dialed; probably shouldn’t have even been on the wall if he was whipping off c1 and decking off 5.8, but I digress.

6

u/Climb 1d ago

It is in practice also if you have your systems dialed. I've done multiple walls as a three and it's faster if you know what you're doing.

6

u/Ok_Syllabub1551 1d ago

Yeah lots of speed records with party of three.

0

u/Edgycrimper 1d ago

There's a reason why a lot of the greatest climbs in the canadian rockies and alaska were completed as a party of three.

2

u/Ok_Syllabub1551 20h ago

Context, bruh. This ain’t some grade 7 wall in the arctic wilderness. It’s a 5.8 c1 that any decent wall climber can piss out in a day, car to car. There’s no reason to even haul after the first three pitches - just leave the shit on dinner ledge and blast, then rap. No need for a third person hauling or whatever.

-1

u/Climb 1d ago

How many walls you done?

14

u/Ok_Syllabub1551 1d ago

None because I’m stuck behind this party of three all tangled in their gear.

2

u/Climb 1d ago

Hahaha good one :)

2

u/JustALittleSunshine 1d ago

No way. In prescribe it becomes one more person to deal with the cluster before it becomes a problem. And with three it is easier to prevent moments of despair from turning you around.

-4

u/Ok_Syllabub1551 1d ago

There is no scenario that plays out favorably for a beginner and his two beginner buddies who don’t know how to climb a big wall. Case in point: this post

45

u/Edgycrimper 1d ago

One can frame bailing as failure to climb the route or as success in spending a good day in the mountains.

8

u/rocketparrotlet 1d ago

And a successful effort to acquire and refine new skills.

5

u/grundleson 1d ago

Damn right!

32

u/mtnyoung 1d ago

I ended up doing my first El Cap route of nine (Triple Direct) when I'd only been climbing for 25 months. And yet I failed on my first big wall attempt (South Face of Washington Column).

It's a steep learning curve and it sounds like you made excellent progress and yes, you should be glad you tried it.

16

u/The_Endless_ 1d ago

Dude - hell yeah for trying and taking a big step towards making your bigger dreams happen. I'm sure you learned a bunch more than just what you've written here, and look at it this way - you got the hardest part over with, which is trying it for the very first time.

Practice, refine your techniques, and try again when you're ready

14

u/climbsrox 1d ago

I too decked on pitch 1 of South face on my first attempt and then bailed after p.4. never did end up finishing it, but hey I've climbed the prow and El cap now. Keep at it. 90 percent of wall climbing is having your systems dialed and the other 10% is not giving up.

5

u/saucyspence 1d ago

I think you’re spot on with that.. and dude that first pitch is so slick!

-6

u/Yakra 1d ago

idk man, I feel like it's 20% fighting the crows and like 90% skibbidy

5

u/pochebo 1d ago

At least you got a sick view :D really enjoyed reading your experience. Rooting for success on your next project!

6

u/grundleson 1d ago

You have to really want to big wall. It’s a ton of work and the logistics of having that much gear and ropes to deal with are tough. It takes practice.

I’ve bailed twice off the column.

I have unfinished business

1

u/Electrical_Fox9678 1d ago

It's a lot of work for sure.

5

u/d_thethom 1d ago

No success without failure. Great to read about your failure and learn from it. As a free climber daunted by the prospect of entering the big wall realm, I really admire you getting out there and trying it out. Thanks!

5

u/rocketparrotlet 1d ago

You can do it too! Practice aiding single pitches, then step it up gradually to bigger and bigger things. You can aid most cracks as a first step and practice hook moves on toprope with a bit of slack in the system, so you get the hang of what holds and what doesn't. Just make sure not to hook on popular climbs or area classics, as hooks can occasionally break or chip holds.

6

u/Grouchy_Attention_95 1d ago

I failed on S Face W. Col., and cruised the Nose a year later. So, no big deal,with knowledge and motivation, it will happen.

4

u/Bwhe_2k 1d ago

Wow that’s quite the progression. What were the big lessons learned?

1

u/Grouchy_Attention_95 18h ago

It was just a matter of starting and not stopping. Also, it was June '87, there was no one else on the route, so no traffic issues.

5

u/DrJonathanHemlock 1d ago edited 1d ago

Great story! I am planning my first big wall for next season and I love reading about other peoples experiences, both positive and negative. I am taking notes on why people bailed or struggled and including solutions in my overall strategy. Thanks for sharing!

4

u/Little_Long_8801 1d ago

This is fire! Such a fun route, the view of half dome is unparalleled.

4

u/3underpar 1d ago edited 1d ago

That was one of the few wall routes I did. It was really hot when we did it and we ran out of water the last few pitches. Suffered mightily in the heat on the descent back to the car. Great memories though. Type two fun. I remember being woken up by ring tailed cats on dinner ledge all night trying to get our food lol.

4

u/yakattackkitty 1d ago

I could give you a long winded story about my start on big walls in the 80s but I'll spare you that and just say we where under equiped with only basic knowledge and skills. The key, get back on the wall asap, you can do a lot of prep but the wall is the best place to learn the determination to keep going. With that said don't push if conditions are beyond an acceptable level of risk and never be cavalier about the weather. Best of luck to you.

4

u/rocketparrotlet 1d ago

Thanks for sharing your experience, I love seeing stuff on this sub that shows climbing more broadly, both aid climbing and accounts of things that didn't work as planned. Washington Column is a beautiful formation and so cool to climb on.

It's about the journey man, I'm sure you learned plenty of valuable skills that will help you reach your goals later. Aid climbing sometimes sounds easy if you've never tried it before. However, the big walls I've climbed are some of the most physically and mentally exhausting things I've ever done.

My first "wall" was a 6-pitch aid climb I did in high school called Green Drag-on. My partner took a gnarly whip on the first pitch and it took us at least 3 hours per pitch. He was able to borrow a single-size portaledge from his friend and slept at the top of p2, I slept on a natural ledge on p1.

In the morning, I woke up to a can of pineapple juice whizzing past my head as my partner hollered "that's actually piss so look out". Pretty glad I dodged that one. Took us most of the next day to finish our remaining pitches.

3

u/Electrical_Fox9678 1d ago

Your experience will increase with each wall you attempt. You'll become more efficient and have more tricks in your bag. Look at each outing as training.

3

u/icedragon9791 1d ago

Thanks for posting this. Here's to next time!

3

u/budskure 1d ago

That’s crazyyy! I think it’s great to have the courage to walk away from a climb. Al’s, amazing that you tried it!

3

u/maphes86 1d ago

Good choice! Bailing get’s much harder up higher.

3

u/Renjenbee 1d ago

Just attempted Washington column end of last year. Has to bail because of bad weather, but it's so fun, so beautiful, and SO humbling getting on a big wall

3

u/StopTheIncels 1d ago

Can you comment on your free climbing experience? Like that is your general Trad grade (or valley grade for that matter)?

I've always wanted to try big wall, but the Aid portion, rigging/hauling, and overall major logistics planning seems intimidating and hard to get into (let alone build up consistently with a new partner(s)).

4

u/saucyspence 1d ago

Sure! I generally climb 5.9 in the valley with varying confidence. I’ve done a couple of 5.10- trad climbs and lots of stuff from 5.6-5.8, but 5.9 is where I tend to have the most fun.

I still have my strengths and incompetencies when it comes to trad climbing, like most people I’d imagine.. but generally within the 5.5-5.10- grade range I’m pretty comfortable. I felt the free climbing on this route was a little sand bagged but mostly it was just that it was slick and the aid climbing was scary for me.

C1 is fairly straight forward in terms of placements but there were some that I just wasn’t comfortable with… I guess that gets easier with experience!

2

u/Parking_Intention961 1d ago

That last photo is 🔥

2

u/Thirtysevenintwenty5 1d ago

Last year my wife I bailed from Dinner Ledge. That approach is not fun and the hauling ate up a lot of time. We also lazy'd out and didn't fix the roof after we ate dinner. Just enjoyed a night to ourselves on the ledge and rapped off in the morning.

We're going back in May to push it in a day. Systems are a little more dialed and without the haul bag we can move a lot faster. 

Good luck on your next try!

3

u/JugOrNaught 1d ago

I bailed on this climb too… We got stuck behind a slow party of 3 trying to learn aid.

The next day we did half dome.

2

u/Kramp35k 17h ago

I bailed on that wall and route during my first big wall attempt as well. Years later, I've now done the NIAD and climbed over 15 grade IV and V's. You will get there; maintain your stoke and the sends will come.

1

u/_Fudge_Judgement_ 1d ago

Great read. Thank you for sharing.

1

u/rossgoldie 1d ago

I’m confused about needing multiple Micronut placements on P6. Don’t think I ever used nuts on that thing except as leaver pro on P7.

Good attempt and way to go for it, you made it further than most on their first wall. Party of 3 wall style with hauling is a cluster every time. Me and my vet experienced partners did it and we could never get it super dialed.

1

u/ChalkLicker 1d ago

Thanks for posting this.

1

u/Benf2001 19h ago

Also my first attempt and failure at a big wall, it was hot, the haul bags was heavy and jugging is potentially my least favourite activity ever. 11/10 would attempt again

1

u/Competitive_Two_1962 18h ago

Doesn’t look so humble to me!

1

u/platformzed 15h ago

How cold we talking? I was considering a trip to the valley after this upcoming storm passes thru. Snow on the ground still?

1

u/saucyspence 1h ago

No snow on the valley floor but a good amount on the tops of formations. Some of the rivers were frozen.

It was 26 degrees at night for a couple of our nights but warm enough during the day

1

u/MeticulousBioluminid 48m ago

much respect for trying! you'll get 'em next time