Moro Rock
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Some of the routes on Moro are not as huge as the rock itself. 5.5 Stair Trek is one such climb. It's a single-pitch, partially-bolted climb on a smooth 70+ degree face. At the end, you are visible to the throngs climbing the stairs up to the summit. Best of all, because they cannot see the bottom, the tourists think that you've just climbed a big wall! To reach the base of the climb, start up the stairs of Moro Rock. Very close to the parking lot (200 feet), the stairway comes quite close to the ground below. Climb over the railing here and follow a nasty climbers' trail until the ground flattens a bit, with a sheer wall in front of you. A large tree blocks your path. Stair Trek starts before the tree.
The best belay station is on top of a 10-foot-high flake. From here, climb around 5 feet and place protection in the medium (1-2") crack. From here, make a very exposed, very balancey 10' traverse to the first bolt. The run-out between the first and second bolts is pretty big, say 20'. Between the two, you have basically no hands, other than the odd small chickenhead, and only the most subtle of feet. On vertical rock, this is 5.10 climbing. Here, a smear easily keeps you pasted to the rock. Trust those feet! Robert thinks this would be better rated a 5.7, and I agree.
After the second bolt, you reach a broad slab which leads up to the stairs. You can set up an
anchor on a big crack from a crossing band of rocks, or up higher on a flat spot. Best alternative
may just be to climb to the stairs and belay your follower from the trail. This route is not the
best for a top-rope. Go to my
topo
if none of this makes sense.
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Department of Geophysics Stanford University |
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