This route climbs the West Face of Out Tower.

Out Tower, West Face

Tombstone, Regular Route

Q-Tutt Tower, OFY Route

Out Tower, Surfing the Biscuit

OFY Tower, West Face

P1: 5.9 A1 Free and aid up the prominent left-facing offwidth corner in the center of the wall to the top of a pillar and belay at a one-bolt anchor (back up with Lost Arrows). (110') 1 bolt, standard rack, (2) #4 Camalots, (3) #5-#6 Camalots, lost arrows to supplement the anchor   P2: A2 Nail the thin crack directly above the belay until it widens enough to accept cams. (70') Lost Arrows, rack black Alien to #3 Camalot, (3-4) 0.4 - 0.5 Camalots   Make one rappel down the west face with two ropes from about 30 feet of rope wrapped around the summit (bring extra rope to leave/replace anchor).

This is a slender tower just north of Cove.   The route was first done in four pitches, but could likely be done in three.   Remember to leave a rope fixed on the top pitch as you have to haul yourself into the anchors (the pitch overhangs).

Really more like R/X but that's not an option.   P1: 5.7 R/X Face climb up low-angled jagged jugs on the west face. Build a gear anchor on a ledge. (90') Standard rack   P2: 5.7 (5.5 R) Punch up the fist crack directly above the belay in a right-facing corner then head up low-angled rock to the summit. (70') Rack to #4 Camalot   Rappel 110 feet from webbing around a boulder on the NE corner.   This was the first known ascent of the route as well as the formation, which Quentin had been eyeing up from his parent's house a few miles away since he was a boy. You can see this volcanic plug from the front porch.

Hike around the left side to start on the east face of Out Tower. This route was done ground up, onsight. It was named for the summit boulder, which shifts. DO NOT rappel all the way off of it down the front side back to your car!!!! This is the biscuit Lukas and I almost surfed to the ground as it started to wobble forward when Andrew rapped off of it, intensifying the load the lower he rapped. Lukas and I ran back to the other side of the boulder to try and counter balance the block (and also downclimb off it)   P1: 5.10c Climb up loose blocks to a prominent dihedral. Layback and jam to the notch between Down and Out Towers. Belay on finger-sized cams (140') Rack (4) 0.5-.75, (2-3) #2, plus a standard rack   P2: 5.11b Crux chimney off belay to flared slot on left wall (Out Tower). We placed two pins here while stemming between the two towers (they were subsequently removed by the second). Head up a flared slot to a ledge, finger crack to overhang, then traverse right and up to offwidth. Follow the 5.10- offwidth to the big ledge. Belay below summit boulder (bolt is to your right). (70') 2 lost arrows, (2) finger-sized cams, (2-3) #5-#6 Camalots.   P3: 5.10a Step left around the corner and do a short, face boulder problem and mantle onto true summit with a two-bolt anchor (15') Again do not rappel off this! Reverse pitch and rap down the way you climbed up. There's two 1/2" bolts atop P2 to rap down the east face (roughly 170-180'). Use two ropes.

This area (Technically in New Mexico) is up past Shiprock, past the settlement of Red Valley, and near the Reservation town of Cove.  Cam Burns has done some cool looking towers here , and we did a route on a very large Arch called Greig Arch.

Description

Location

Protection

Routes in Cove Area