Ascents in Sierra Nevada by Paul Frothy Thomson

2nd shot. Should've been a flash, but I managed to fall off the jug at the top of the boulder. Cruised it 2nd shot. Then did it clean 3 MORE times for training. An aesthetic line of pockets, crimps and monos up a steep, arcing boulder.

3rd shot. This entire route is defined by a desperate palm-down slab mantle on fingernail edges, followed by some easier (scary) slabbing. Entertaining.

An awesome route, but more V2 than V0. Hard steep pocket pulling to an easier topout.

Done with the sit start for an extra grade. Okay climbing. Not memorable

Lots of tries. Eventually I stuck the powerful shoulder-busting move and topped it out. Short and exciting.

Whatever. Climbing?

Very tall and very proud, with the V4 crux move being the last move to the lip. I climbed up twice to the crimps below the crux, but couldnt make myself commit. Scary. Awesome steep climbing to get to the crux though.

3rd shot. The 1st 2 shots were spent flailing around in the crux top section trying to find the holds. Steep and juggy lower section, and scary thin top section.

With the hardest moves at the very top of this highball, I was too scared to fall. Steep and juggy start leads to very thin face climbing topout with blind holds. Fun and scary.

Repeat. Raaaaaadical.

Finally. After quite a few shots today I managed to stick the last move of this complex crimp-sequence boulder... and yes, the foot-dyno is still crucial to my beta.

Repeat. Soooo much fun. 1 lap climbing normally. One lap only using my left hand (scary but not substantially harder), and one only using my right hand (much scarier and harder). I tried to do it using NO hands but only managed to make it 1/3rd of the way up.

What an amazing last climb in Owens River Gorge... On the precipice of darkness, with snow blowing around and proper arctic conditions, and I decide to get on the rarely climbed thin arete/face directly over the river (you belay off a small plank of wood bolted to the wall, after traversing on other planks above the waterline to get there) where a fall at the 1st 3 bolts will put you in the river... a desperately cold insecure techy battle up a proud unchalked line, out of sight of my belayer.

2nd shot. SO DAMN CLOSE on the Onsight... I fell off 2m from the anchors on the 5.10b headwall... utterly pumped into oblivion, my hands opened up as I tried to untangle my crossed-up stance. Went easily (but VERY) pumpily 2nd shot. Awesome 5.10b/c pumpy crack to the steep face crux. Very sustained pumpy climbing through the 5-bolt crux, involving lots of moves to make upward progress, and a final easy headwall that feels grade 1 million when tired. GREAT!

Linked into Tiananmen Square for a long megapitch. Very sustained climbing with a burly dihedral, followed by much insecure intriguing technicality. I totally rate this!

Pretty cool, but the ridiculous runout (with quite techy climbing) to the 1st bolt seems strange. One hard sequence, surrounded by easier fun climbing.

Awesome, awesome, awesome. Super technical, with heaps of hold-options (all of them a bit baffling) and a prolonged join-the-dots puzzle to solve for the Onsight. Thoroughly enjoyable.

Very insecure climbing above a very bad landing (featuring an inevitable bounce down the hill) makes for an intimidating problem... but DAMN it is beautiful. Worked this with 3 others (and 5 pads) and made some progress as the rain closed in again. Amazing double-arete slapping and heel hooking up a steep, narrow prow over a scary drop.

Felt 5.11b/c (V1ish?) to me. Bomber ringlocks on a slightly steep face and through a bulge on a highball boulder above a hideous landing (and I had no spotter!)... Like I was ever gonna fall! Did 2 x laps in the rain for a laugh.

Cool! Considering the huge gallery of climbers working this problem, it was pretty cool just to walk up and flash it... but it totally suited me. Slightly steep face climbing on thin, spaced crimps and shallow pockets. Fun.

3rd shot... I had a lot of trouble keeping my heel on during the opening moves. Short and briefly powerful. Fun.

2nd shot. Blew the last part of the mantle topout on the flash... Doh! Traverse on very slopey slopers to a final super-sloper mantle while pumped. Didnt feel too hard to me, but the rest of our posse of climbers disagreed with me about that.

A "dont fall" type of highball. More fun and committing than Cross Roads, with a few real moves on it.

An exciting, easy highball slab. Not hard enough to get you warm, but fun.

Sooo close. After a few goes trying to work out how to use the painful crimp sidepull, my 2 remaini g shots ended with my fingertips on the okay part of the topout slab... unable to make the last move. Pretty cool crimp problem, but it lives up to its name.

One move that I havent quite figured out. Steep jugging up flakes to a punchy middle section on small holds and an easy finale. Steep steep!

Repeat... what a funky-awesome problem.

A great buttermilks problem. I can link from the 2nd move to the end (through the crux) but I just cannot do the opening move off the ground (im too damn tall for the crazy low holds). Technical, crimpy and burly with an awesome topout sequence.

Done with the super-low sit start for an extra grade. Fun jugging.

Okay... but I think the original (direct) finish is better. A few balancy moves, but not as memorable as its neighbour to the left.

2nd shot. Random heel slip as I was turning the top of the slab on the flash. Doh! A fun techy slab, and not too hard for a buttermilks V3 slab.

Psyched! Good to send another test piece buttermilks V5 classic. Took about 10 shots today before I latched the post-crux crimp and battled to the top in light rain. What a rad, burly problem.

Repeat. Warmup. Still have to WANT it for the tick. Great with the right sequence.

Repeat. Done with the V1 sit start as a warmup racing the inbound rain. Not so bad with the right sequence.

A quick burn 15min after coming down from its much harder (and superior) neighbour. Short (for Owens River Gorge) but intense micro crimping and sidepulling on a slightly steep face. I battled hard but struggled with a crimp sequence at half height. Eventually put it together but had no energy for another lap. Fun, and sustained, but not on par with other routes here.

Brilliant but heart breaking. You've definately earned 5.12a climbing the steep thin face, nails traverse and tricky arete above... but then you pull on the slab and have ANOTHER 5.12a slab crux to negotiate. I fought tooth and nail for this, and spooged off a sloper hueco 50cm from the anchor jug, standing on the smallest footers of all time. A great, demanding and varied line, and inspiring climbing directly over the river

A toughie, as the climb keeps getting harder and harder, with crux being the last 5m until the jug above the anchors. Varied face, steep flake, and steep thin finale to keep you working. Perhaps a bit close to the two neighbouring lines. The ancient brackets are a bit disconcerting.

Linked into Genghis Khan for a giant 45m pitch. Awesome opening through the steep, awkward dihedral, and a pumpy finale through a huge bulge and up much steep blankness above. Combined as a giant pitch this earns Classic in my book.

A bloody intense start up the steep, slippery seam crack. Super thin and technical... even clipping is desperate. Once you get into the corner proper the difficulty eases considerably... but its still tonnes of fun.

Linked both pitches as a giant 40m single pitch... quite the warmup. The bottom pitch is okay climbing, but with lots of loose rock... But the upper steep stemming corner is tonnes of technical fun. Worth putting up with P1 for that.

Bloody oath... hard and committing for a V0+... but really cool.

Repeat. Clean first go today in full sun. Demonstrating my tricky beta for others.

Yeehaw! Sorted the crux sequence, and am now consistently doing this in 2 halves. Just need energy and skin for the send! Awesomely sustained.

Putting this painful crimpy number together. Not quite there yet, but making progress.

Took a few goes but I finally got this gnarly and intimidating test piece (in the full sweaty sun). The topout crux is particularly scary on the biggest openhand slopers of all time. The rest of it has more in common with World Party P3 at the grampians than conventional buttermilks bouldering.

Repeat. This lap was just to see if I COULD keep the whole thing together for a clean repeat. I kind of bungled it a bit -accidentally cut loose twice, and had to finger-creep my way onto the mid-crux crimp- and had to fight hard to keep it together, which made it feel more rewarding than when I first Sent it.

Repeat. Clean again first go today. Demonstrating the sequences to my friends. I kind of bungled it a bit and had to fight hard to keep it together, which made it feel more rewarding than when I first Sent it.

Repeat. Still took me a few goes to get it sorted. Great sustained friction slabbing. Trust the feet!

Repeat. One hard foot move off the ground, then just fun slabbing.

2nd shot. Didnt sort my feet past the bulge on my first go. Okay moves, but grainy, fragile and somewhat unclimbed.

Hard for 2 moves off the ground, then easy. Okay, but not on par with other slabs on this boulder

Climbed the contrived "right crack only" version this time. Kind of unpleasant with a bitey fingerlock. Combining the left and right crack is by far the most fun.

Repeat x 2 laps. Demonstrating the trick beta for my buddies. Sequency!