Friendly Fire

A result of some confusion over where a route should have been resulted in us taking a harder and more runout line up the same wall.

The climb has some merit, but as there is some insecure climbing on some questionable rock and much of the gear is not ideal, it is hard to recommend this line as anything but a toprope. The lead took about one hour in 40 mph gusting winds. It reminded me of the potential to get injured by something unintended. 'Friendly Fire' so to speak.

Start off in the corner as for Cross Fire, but quickly step right, and head up and stay right at every bulge or roof. At one point, a bolt from '

Cracking The Code

' will be posible to clip as you head up and right onto a slab, but you will just have placed a few micro-cams to the left and not need that bolt anyway.

Cracking the Code's P2

heads up and right from there, whereas Friendly Fire continues up on a few more seams.

There are several cruxes along the way, mostly insecure and not too terribly hard. There are some crux bulges that need to be climbed quickly to avoid a bad pump well above gear that might not hold anyway. As for the grade, it is as hard as P2 of

Cracking the Code

.

This climb ascends the wall just right of 'Crossfire' up a series of flakes and flares, always staying just right of that route and just left of

Cracking The Code

. A good belay can be had atop P2 of '

Cracking The Code

' by traversing 5' right on jugs from the top of a bulge and was used on the FA to stop and be rid of some rope drag.

Placed a few nutes from brass to #8 BD and cams from the smallest possible to 4". A few doubles in #0.5-#2 Camalot were useful. Much of the gear is in somewhat flaring placements, horizontals (and horizontal flares), under flakes, etc....

This is an R rated climb if it would all hold. Perhaps if some popped, it would be X-rated.