What's Up Bubb?

What's Up Bubb now goes free with a few variations to the original aid line. We have been thinking of calling the free route "The Sensei". Huge thanks to Aaron Cassebeer and Ben Steel who were part of our first push to the top after fixing ropes. Casey and I completed a one day redpoint of the route a month later.

This route has outstanding rock, tricky sequences and a lot of variety. All of the cruxes are face climbing or laybacking with a good amount of thin slab trickery on the low pitches.

P1 - 5.10d - 30m - 3 bolts

A few balance moves gain a large flake that you can walk across to the right. Climb up to the first bolt of the Becky bolt ladder and then down climb the seam/crack. Make a hard step across move to an undercling, crux. From here you can easily reach the golden dike. Climb up until you can reach back and clip the last bolt of the bolt ladder. At a large knob step right and climb a right facing corner past a bolt and small roof. Keep following the crack feature to a nice ledge with 3 bolts. This pitch is shared with the Becky Route

P2 - 5.10c - 25m - 5 bolts

Move left and gain the dike and a high first bolt. A thin and heady section gives way to easier climbing past two more bolts. Clip the 4th bolt and magic your way up the dike, tricky! The climbing eases on the final 30 feet to the anchor. Belay at two bolts at a good stance.

P3 - 5.11b - 35m - 11 bolts

Keep following the dike with thinner cruxes than the previous pitch. Depending on your size the crux at the 3rd or 4th or 5th bolt could be the toughest. Enjoy a reprieve in the middle of the pitch before launching off on a final crux past 3 closely spaced bolts. Clip the final bolt, still climbing right, before making a large traverse left on a good ledge. Belay at two bolts.

P4 - 5.10d - 50m - 1 bolt

Step down and traverse to the dike on your right. The original aid route climbed the left crack and then made a pendulum. Climb up to a high first bolt and move left to a corner. Lay back up the corner, cruxy, making sure to seize opportunities for gear. Eventually the lay back turns into a thin hand crack which goes to a roof. Exit the roof on the left and climb up flakes. At the next roof you can go left through a tree or layback out right with less opportunities for gear. Belay at a ok stance at three bolts.

P5 - 5.10c - 35m - 5 bolts

Chimney up passing a bolt to gain flakes on the right. Lay back with difficulty until you can get re-wedged in the chimney. Savor the mandatory wide climbing until you reach a series of stacked blocks. Use care of the hollow rock and climb flared cracks past four bolts to the Belay. Belay at three bolts at a poor stance below a roof or link with the next pitch with a full 60m rope.

P6 - 5.10b - 25m

Undercling across the roof to the right and make a tricky reach to large jugs. Move back left and follow the crack to another roof. Jam you way over, cruxy, and you will be rewarded with an easy 30 feet to a three bolt belay on a nice ledge.

P7 - 5.12b - 45m - 11 bolts

Climb up the obvious dike on the left side of the ledge. Pass 4 bolts of amazing 5.9 before  moving right to a crack feature which requires gear for the next 40 feet. The difficulty increases gradually with a hard section to gain a large knob. The challenge keeps building as the wall gets steeper. The aid line crosses the wall on the right on bat hooks and rivets.

The free route utilizes bolts with black hangers on the left. At the third of these bolts exit the corner and use a wild sequence to gain a distant jug/foothold on the arete. Once standing on the jug regain your composure and execute a power move to gain a good crimp out right. Clip high and pull off some granite voodoo. Move right following sustained climbing with barely enough holds. A final long reach gives way to a bushy jug and easier climbing. Step right around a large detached block and then move back left, tricky, to a small ledge and a two bolt belay.. It helps to extend the last two bolts to ease rope drag for the final moves to the anchor.

P8 - 5.12b - 30m - 5 bolts

Climb back around the corner and face climb up the well featured wall with options for pro in the crack on the right. As soon as you hit the first bolt the difficulty bumps up. Execute multiple thin technical cruxes past closely spaced bolts. Above the final bolt look for key nut placements. The pump will stay with you even as the climbing gets easier. Savor the killer fingerlocks and face holds until you can traverse left to a big ledge. Belay off two bolts on an awesome ledge. A brilliant pitch!

P9 - 5.10c - 25m

Finger locks in a corner leads to a crux right above the belay. Sinker locks past some interesting flakes lead to a hard move out left. Once out of the corner climb easy but bushy cracks to a two bolt. Belay at a ok stance. A short and often dirty pitch.

P10 - 5.10c - 35m - 4 bolts

The original aid line follows the crack above the belay before hooking over the bulge, but the free line face climbs up to the left. Climb large knobs making sure to place gear when possible. From a large knob clip a high bolt and make a hard move onto the golden dike. Follow the dike past another bolt to a good ledge. Climb to a second ledge and another bolt and locate a detached block leaning against the wall. Gain this block, place some gear, and make a hard move to the right to gain a sloping ledge and a two bolt belay. A quick and fun pitch.

P11 - 5.10b - 70m

Downclimb to the right from the belay to a crack/flake system. Climb this and place a high piece, before making a friction move to the right around the arete.

Continue up blocky terrain shooting for an offwidth up and slightly left. Conquer the “Awful width” and look way to step back right. Make a reachy move and mantel over to another ledge. Continue up more broken terrain until there is no clear path straight up and you must start traversing right. Locate a large leaning block and climb the splitter crack formed by its left size. At the top step right to an obvious but dirty dihedral. Fingerlock up the dihedral and overcome another offwidth and section of annoying manzanita. You are rewarded for your suffering with a large sandy ledge that could comfortably sleep two. Belay with.75” - 1.5” gear. This is a long pitch that can be split in two with a gear belay before the traverse right.

P12 - 5.10 - 60 or 70m

Head up the obvious wide crack from the belay passing a few bushes. Once you gain a large ledge venture left up into the chimney. There are two options for this pitch. You can continue up the chimney at an easier grade but with worse rock quality (70m). Otherwise work up the gully until you can traverse right on a black dirty undercling, 5.10, to gain a wide flake system. Continue up this to a belay at a wedged block (60m). Both options have negative qualities.

P13 - 5.7

From the top of the chimney continue up the groove past a large chockstone and gain a series of bushy ledges. You can build a belay or simul to the top.

From the top of the wide flakes make a long 5.7 traverse to gain the bushy ledges mentioned above.

P14 & P15 - 5.5

In both cases, work up bushy blocks until you can climb easy slab up and right underneath a slanting chimney feature, 5.5, to an optional belay at its top.

The final “pitch” follows broken rock up and left with a belay at a tree on the summit.

Its about 500’ from the bushy ledges to the summit tree.

Approach as per Samurai Warrior and solo up 40 feet of 5th class cracks just right of the start of SW.

Once you top out on a sandy ledge, keep traversing and go up and over a short section of manzanita. Down climb about 10 feet and keep walking across the ledge system. When you see an easy corner, climb another 40 feet of easy 5th class to another ledge with manzanita. Use a short fixed rope to assist you in overcoming the final section of steep exposed manzanita (‘The Manzanita Gate’). Even though this sounds involved, all of this should take you another 10 minutes beyond the start of SW.

You can Rappel the route from the top of the 10th pitch with a 70m rope. You need to use the Aid belay for the 7th pitch and a midway anchor on the 4th pitch. The 5th pitch is a real rope streacher so be careful and in the worst case you will have to rap to the single bolt a body length above the belay.

At least 13 draws/slings. Single green c3. Doubles red c3 to #1 camalot. Single #2, #3 camalot. Extra finger sizes are nice. Single set of nuts. 70m rope preferable.