The third pitch of El Camino Real is “one of the great layback cracks of Idyllwild”
On Sunday September 14th, Bobbi Clemmer and I climbed another Tahquitz super classic, El Camino Real. The main attraction is pitch three, referred to as “one of the great layback cracks of Idyllwild” in the latest area guidebook. Many parties bypass the first two pitches via adjacent routes, however, we found them to be generally pleasant on good stone, and definitely worth climbing.
Leaving the ground, a slightly contrived 5.10a R seam with extremely scant protection and ground fall potential is the ultimate gatekeeper. I say contrived because the entire seam can be skipped with a short scramble up a vegetated gully to the west, and an easy, albeit dirty, slab traverse back left above the seam. The seam is capped by an overlap from which two variations diverge, and the guidebook is unclear about which was the path of first ascent. Continuing illogically straight over the roof, past a lone bolt, is 5.10a/b, probably sandbagged, and feels especially contrived. The path of logic, and almost surely Royal Robbins’ choice considering the absence of sticky boots in 1961, follows an easy crack system exiting leftward from the overlap.
Love Ten Thousand Too Far? Support independent mountain journalism with $5.10 per month through Patreon (and receive extra bonus content), or with a one-time donation. Any and all support is greatly appreciated.
I attempted the seam start onsight, wedged a decent orange Metoius cam in a shallow pod, but got spooked on the thin friction moves above. The only openings in the seam were two minuscule fingertip pockets, which appeared to my untrained eye as pin scars. If they are pin scars from the first ascent, which I suspect given the difficulty of the slab by 1961 standards, then a bolt should be added, because none of my tiny cams, offset wires or RP’s fit. Even if my orange Metolius held, it would only keep me off the deck for half the 20 foot seam. Uncertain of the holds above, I begrudgingly backed down and compromised style by using the grungy corner to set two cams above the seam, lowered back to the ground, and climbed through the crux on top-rope. The older I get, the less willing I am to wager broken ankles for clout. As it turns out, better holds are only a few smears above the cam, so next time I will certainly lead this pitch. We chose the easier and logical 5.6-ish variation left of the roof, and arced back right to a gear belay beneath pitch two.
Pitch two was a beautiful and clean three-bolt 5.9 slab on an aesthetic arete, with better protection than I’ve come to expect at Tahquitz. We belayed directly below the prominent third pitch corner, on a pedestal with many large trees known as “Jungle Ledge”. The corner was wicked, textbook 5.10a laybacking on soft pearly granite. While no one move was particularly difficult, the pump definitely builds, and the crux is at the top. After dicking around trying to shove blind gear into a flaring crack at the crux, I opted to punch it. The fall would’ve been squeaky clean but substantial, somewhere in the realm of 30 feet. Fortunately I didn’t peel. Bobbi followed free in commendable style, reporting flamed forearms but showing no visible signs of fatigue. She climbed fast and gracefully. It was a true pleasure to watch.
We finished via the original route with a diagonal 5.8 crack up and left to Jensen’s Jaunt, and one long pitch of cruiser knobby slab to the summit. We topped out three or four hours from tie in, and were eating ice cream in Idyllwild by late afternoon. El Camino was an excellent route, and contrary to popular opinion, we thought the first two pitches were fun. Heady slabcraft is synonymous with Idyllwild, and if you skipped the first two pitches, can you even say you climbed the route? If onsighting the first pitch feels dicey, just pre-place some cams above the seam from the gully. And if your boots stuck to the thin pitch one smears, pitch two will feel comparatively gentle, even with its meager three bolts. The money pitch is six-out-of-five stars, and the finish on Jensen’s Jaunt is exposed, juggy and heroic. Go now, get it!
Additional Notes
- El Camino Real is located south (right) of Lunch Rock, roughly 100 feet beyond Fingertrip, in the vicinity of Coffin Nail and Traitor Horn. For general Tahquitz approach beta, see this article. The first pitch seam begins directly behind a large decapitated pine tree, defended by a short 20 foot fourth class slab.
- Descend via the Friction Route (5th class) or rappels of unknown length. Consult a guidebook or Mountain Project for more information.
- The first two pitches went into the sun around 11:00AM on September 14th.
Want to support? Consider a donation, subscribe, check out my Patreon page, or simply support our sponsors listed below.
Ten Thousand Too Far is generously supported by Icelantic Skis from Golden Colorado, Range Meal Bars, The High Route, Black Diamond Equipment and Barrels & Bins Natural Market.
enter your email to subscribe to new article updates
DISCLAIMER
Ski mountaineering, rock climbing, ice climbing and all other forms of mountain recreation are inherently dangerous. Should you decide to attempt anything you read about in this article, you are doing so at your own risk! This article is written to the best possible level of accuracy and detail, but I am only human – information could be presented wrong. Furthermore, conditions in the mountains are subject to change at any time. Ten Thousand Too Far and Brandon Wanthal are not liable for any actions or repercussions acted upon or suffered from the result of this article’s reading.
Ten Thousand Too Far 
Leave a comment