Pics of Balloon Dome

[John]

You are right Dan. If I fly to the base or summit of Disappearing I can't see your area. If I fly straight up or jump really high a few hundred feet I can. Man you were really way the hell out there. Awesome.

[susan]

[NateD]

Stellar angle, susu.

[daniel banquo merrick]

Taken 6/21/2014 Big, full resolution file. Right click the image to save it or view it full size.

[susan]

Whooa Spectacular!

[NateD]

The flipped version of this on ST, posing as the view from Glacier Point, was very perceptive, Dan!

[daniel banquo merrick]

It was my son who saw that Nate, I suppose he's the perceptive one.

Sure looks like Glacier Point to me.

[John]

Washington Column looks smaller than I remember.

[NateD]

This is prior to significant glaciation, as Watkins also hasn't really taken shape and the valley is still narrower than present day. Oh, and Half Dome isn't fully"halved" yet.

[daniel banquo merrick]

I  like Nate's theory that this was taken preglaciation (I'm that old) but I need to point out that the river has changed direction.

[daniel banquo merrick]

Some guys my son knows from the climbing gym tried to do Buffoon Dome as a day trip this year. They got to the 5th class section and turned back. I think they know Clint. I've seen some photos on facebook.

[VM]

Sunlit face in Susan's photo a bit higher on this page is sweet. Are there many routes on that side, or all the routes are indicated in Clint's annotated photo in the beginning?
Sean Jones ticked off some incredible long FAs in CA. Awesome climbs. Even obvious stuff that was taken from under the noses is good. Flying in the Mountains on Parkline Slab and Gates of Delirium in Ribbon Falls Amphitheater were VERY good. Not many new routes turn out to be 'classic' lines, those are quality. Even though his route on HD got a lot of feelings hurt, it seems like another masterpiece. And the natural wide line next to it seems very worthy. I wonder if that wide thing was repeated...seems like a long ways to haul the wide gear for many. Anyway, CA is awesome. 

[VM]

"I'm curious Vitaly, what specific value does that route add to that particular face that qualifies it as a masterpiece?  I could have humped the ropes up there and placed the bolts top down."

As I understand majority of the route has gone ground up and he resorted to top down tactics when he realized he will drill into no where if he continued. He wanted to limit number of useless bolts (which limits the impact) and create a good free climb.
Look at Tommy Caldwell. He fixed up the whole Dawn Wall and looked for any possible variation to make it go free. Added bolts to it. I am sure a few will criticize him, but huge majority will only praise the effort because he is TC.
Route I did on Bubbs Creek Wall all went ground up. But I wanted to have a good free climb, not just a line. So on one of the pitches I used a few holes and a bolt to pendulum to pass a blank section. When I finished the pitch I swong around trying to connect different ways to free climb the pitch and bolted it, on rappell (I do not think it will add to my personal experience to re-bolt a pitch I top roped from the bottom. If I have to TR the pitch to find a free-climbable way, I am more concerned about doing a good job bolting). It took me about 5 different tries on 5 different days to figure out where is the logical way and where I should place the bolts to make reasonable clips. This was a very sequency section with a section that is likely 11d followed by a tough mantel and an 11c ish dead point move. I am bringing it up as a way to show that at times even when you try to go GU you can fuck up and make un-necessary holes. I think SJ wanted to limit the number of those higher on the route.
As far as I heard Sallamizer from ST (a VERY strong climber) tried the line and was very impressed by how sustained the line is and by quality of climbing. Katie Lambert tried it too, and had similar praise. Also bailed due to toughness of the line. So it seems that his line already proved itself as a big TESTPIECE free-climb for the next generation. Tried by some STRONG people and still unrepeated. It may not hold any value to you, some other people may find value in it. It is very subjective right? All I know is that SJ knows what he is doing and Doug Robinson was there to see it and was ok with what was going on. Those two have much more experience climbing new lines than me and I am not gonna be one of the people to judge them (personally).

PS: since I brought out my own example, I have to confess, I was a little sad, and was wondering if someone with more experience would do a much better job onsighting the line. When I did Ronin (put up by Brandon Thau and Nettle and later free climbed by a slightly different variation by Croft and Nettle) I was shocked by bolting on some pitches. Low 5.11 would literally have bolts less than 3 feet apart in places, and 5.9 one of the 5.9 pitches had 3 in like 90 feet of climbing. No big deal, but pretty ridiculous my partner and I thought. So than I stopped feeling bad and was fairly happy about job I have done.

[YETI]

V-

Sean has had quite a bit of controversy surround many of his lines, in particular the Growing up route.  The upper slab DID go ground up by another, more fit and experienced team...Southern Bell FA'sts.

Using the excuse "don't want a line of bolts to nowhere" does not hold water.  > .11 all the way to the summit on growing up, or rather all the way down.

Forget about him leaving all of his shit up there, abandoned and left to rot?  Classic would not be my first descriptor of a route with no repeats.  Further Chad (Salamanizer) thought the section leading into the slab was poorly constructed and that the lower section was good crack climbing.  Classic was not his opinion.  Burly? YES. 

That route is a blemish on Half domes canvas, and having mr clean climbing (DR) back the decision in a magazine is all the more proof that they knew they were giving up, err growing up.  They were in such a rush to get the story to the mags they forgot to clean up.

Unrepeated. Seems the apparent fanfair has not drawn the ranks of climbers that could actually repeat the route.

I don't believe it has ever been redpointed either, so the actual FFA is still up for grabs.

Lot of heavy history surrounding seans exploits around the sierra.  Much of which does not sit well with climbers who cherish adventure or general respect for the rock.


Either way, they found a cheap way to manufacture a (currently) unrepeatable line.

You want a classic line?  The definition of Classic must be reinvented, chopped up and spit out on the way down during "installation".  Nothing could be further from classic than growing up.

Well it is an opinion, and others can have their own.  Southern Bell is not "classic" mostly due to the fact that only a handful of people could even approach the route.  So having a rap-bolted route, in the same area, that is unrepeatable by heavy hitters in YOS makes it classic?

Hard sell, very hard indeed.


Good job on your route, sounds like it went the way you wanted it too, and you are going to redpoint the route before you release it to the public, which is the first step in creating a classic.

[daniel banquo merrick]

Not to be a spoil sport but would you guys take it back to Supertopo? Please? It has been discussed literally to the point of nausea there. This is a thread about Balloon Dome.