Crag Guide for Mescalito

The big chimney to the right of the first pitch of Cat in the Hat.

As you come around the south-east buttress, and start climbing up the rubble, this is the first big chimney encountered.

Cat in the Hat

One of the most popular multi-pitch routes at Red Rocks due, at least in part, to large comfortable belay ledges the whole way. Can be rappelled on one 70m rope with a bit of 4th class down-climbing, or with two ropes.

Starts below an obvious left-slanting crack.

1. 150' 5.5 - Climb the left slanting crack, skip the optional belay at 90', up a wider crack to a ledge, then continue up the crack to another ledge. Bolted anchors are a few yards out to the right.

2. 50' 5.5. Hike right along the ledge, boulder up to the next ledge, and up gentle slabs to a steeper wall. Re-belay from here, then up steepish black wall to a small overhang, the up a left-facing corner to a ledge with trees. End on a belay off a small group of trees.

3. 120' 5.6. Start up 4th class terrain about 15' to a small ledge, climb a thin crack in the varnished face left of a small corner to a small roof, traverse left under the roof to another crack that continues upwards, and up this to a ledge with a large block on it. Belay off slings around the large block.

4. 50' 5.3. Traverse right and a bit down to a ledge with a crack above it and anchors.

5. 110' 5.6. Climb the crack, past a bolt to run-out 5.5 terrain to the anchors. Most people end here at the anchor and rappel.

FA: Harrison, Broussard, Van Betten,

Most people climb Cat in the Hat to the top of the 5th pitch, and then rappel. But the route can be continued past this point with about 500ft of 4th class, and then a final 5.7 chimney to an anchor, then a bit of scrambling to the summit.

1. 150' 5.5 - skip the optional belay at 90', those anchors allow for rappelling on a single 70m rope. End on a big ledge with bolted anchors.

2. 50' 5.5. End on a belay off a small group of trees.

3. 120' 5.6. End on a belay off a big boulder slung around the top.

4. 50' 5.3. Traverse right and a bit down to a ledge.

5. 110' 5.6. Most people end here at the anchor.

6. 500' 4th class. Climb up the buttress, scramble across the notch to the main peak and up to a tree at the base of a big chimney splitting the final band of red rock.

7. 120' 5.7. Climb the chimney to an anchor. Then scramble the last bit to the summit.

This is, also, one of the possible descent routes from any other climb that summits Mescalito -- rappel the

Climb the bolted arete that goes up from the block belay at the top of pitch 3 of "Cat in the Hat".

Climbs face and cracks left of Cat in the Hat, finishing at the end of the 5th pitch of Cat in the Hat.

Crack Rock

Up corners to a thin crack on a steep headwall several hundred feet up.

Climbs a deep corner/crack that splits the lower portion of the south-east buttress, almost on the cusp of the south/east sides of the formation.

Climbs the first deep corner along the east face of Mescalito.

Climb the face up and left of The Cookie Monster to anchors. Two 70m-rope rappels.

On the east face of Mescalito, looking at the south side, there are two obvious big corners. This one climbs the 2nd big corner in from the south (left) side.

This finishes about 30-40 ft above the tree belay of "Cat in the Hat", an easy 5.0 not-exposed down-climb allows one to rap from there (3 raps with a single 70m rope).

When a Stranger Calls

FA: Randal Grandstaff, Steven Anderson,

Follows an obvious corner system up the east face of Mescalito. Finishes at the 5th anchor for Cat in the Hat, rappel that to descend.

Starts at two parallel cracks about 75' left of a huge left-facing corner.

(Mescaline.)

First pitch of 5.11a, then lots of easier climbing to the top of Mescalito.

8 pitches plus about 250 ft of 4th class.

Alternate first pitch to Excellent Adventure.

5th pitch at 5.11c, rest at 5.9 or less.

Dark Shadows

The usual 4-pitch length of Dark Shadows.

Dark Shadows - all the way

Continue on another 6 pitches to the top of Mescalito after the usual rappel point and the end of pitch 4. Not a trivial undertaking.

Dark Shadows variant.

Chasing Shadows variant.