"This adventure began with the intention of climbing the hanging left facing corner two thirds of the way up the SE face. The route came close. But we should have brought a bolt kit to reach the dihedral."
- Ironically, I didn't read this guidebook description until the next day. Sometimes the best adventures are those unanticipated and unplanned ones.
Ty lured me into a trip to Zion after his solo road trip to the Southwest in May. Towering sandstone walls greeted him at each bend in the narrow canyon of the Virgin River, yet he left his rack and rope at home in Seattle. Fortunately, Zion offers more than just climbing and one can spend weeks just hiking and canyoneering. He vowed to come back in the Fall and I took the bait.
On November 17, we sped out of Vegas as fast as we arrived with a trunk full of gear. After stocking up on over-priced groceries in St. George, we arrived in Zion with enough time to get a taste of Zion rock. We warmed up on a few Indian Creek style splitters:
Squeeze Play 10a
Ty on Fathedral 10+
On our first full day, we got an early start to make use of the shorter days. Yet, it was a tad too cold, shady, and windy at the Temple of Sinawava to jump on Monkeyfinger. I'd have to test myself on the "Astroman of Zion" another day. Instead, we found a sunny aspect on the Organ below Angel's Landing. To avoid a long hike, we forded the Virgin River. Ty led the first 2 pitches of 10 Percent on rambling terrain. I then broke right on a 5.7R traverse to a perfect hands splitter left facing dihedral - the obvious objective we spotted from the car. I thought it would require wider gear, but turned out it was actually 30 meters of 2.5-3" jamming and I only had 2 No. 2 and 2 No. 3 camalots....I opted to leapfrog and downclimb/backclean, which detracted from the joyous experience just a bit. There were no signs of previous travel on the last two pitches and we wrapped up the day with an unexpected, unplanned adventure that offered the perfect taste of what Zion had to offer: a blend of splitter cracks, sandy holds, loose rock, adventurous route-finding, and beautiful scenery. Turns out, after some further research and verification, our variation was a new route as described by Bryan Bird above. We dubbed it, Thrutch to Clutch, 5.10- (5.7R), sans bolts. Here's a short of the adventure:Back in camp, we still had high hopes for Monkeyfinger, but our daily morning ritual was to drive to the end of the canyon, check it out once again, and then find sunnier rock. Day 3 brought us to Iron Messiah, the supposed "Epinephrine" of Zion, albeit only 6-7 pitches:
Day 4...well, on day 4 we could hardly lift our arms anymore so we slept in and debated a rest day. Somehow, we opted for a 4 pitch 5.11 finger crack. It was worth it! We highly recommend Smash Mouth. Supertopo is right on in recommending 6 or more 0.5" cams - yozers! The ratings are a little off though. The breakdown was more like 10+, 10+, 11-, and 11.
Now that our arms and bodies were fully obliterated, we racked up that night for Monkeyfinger - no ifs, ands, or buts...however, the 30% chance of rain forecasted all week finally touched down in the night and all morning. Logically, we packed up and headed south to Red Rocks to squeeze in a handful of pitches in Calico Basin, including the Fox, 10d, an ever-expanding crack from thin fingers to 6" offwidth. I used 2 #4s and 2 #5s on the upper section and was sure glad to have 'em. 
We climbed the classic Caustic at Cannibal Crag and a couple others on the way out before checking into our room at Circus Circus for a wopping $35. With a flight out at 5pm the next day, we opted for a chill half day at the Gallery and Black Corridor. As our 6th day straight, our arms politely told us 5.10 would be the day's limit. Clipping bolts in the sun never felt better.
For those of you who have never ventured to Zion, put it at the top of your list, whether you are a climber, hiker, or canyoneering junkie. I can't wait to get back. Even when the road is visible from above, the climbing feels alpine in nature and there is something for everyone. Feed the rat!
Check out the full gallery here. 
We climbed the classic Caustic at Cannibal Crag and a couple others on the way out before checking into our room at Circus Circus for a wopping $35. With a flight out at 5pm the next day, we opted for a chill half day at the Gallery and Black Corridor. As our 6th day straight, our arms politely told us 5.10 would be the day's limit. Clipping bolts in the sun never felt better.For those of you who have never ventured to Zion, put it at the top of your list, whether you are a climber, hiker, or canyoneering junkie. I can't wait to get back. Even when the road is visible from above, the climbing feels alpine in nature and there is something for everyone. Feed the rat!
