The Pencil Area

Welcome to the first of many new regular monthly features here on SplitterChoss.com. My recent bout with the flu gave me some time to line up an editorial calendar of sorts for the year, and one of things I have in store is a featured crag each month. Enjoy!

When it comes to ice climbing in Redstone, there is a general lack of good cragging options. Most of the fifty-something climbs in the Crystal River Valley stand alone, meaning you hike from 2 minutes to 2 hours to climb a pitch or two (or three if you’re lucky) of ice. That alone means the area generally isn’t crowded, as most folks are looking for more bang for their buck, and for that God gave us the road choss of Vail.

There are, however, a few places that with the recent addition of some new school mixed routes, provide an opportunity to get some decent cragging in without having to visit several areas over the course of the day. One such place is the zone around the Pencil, above the town of Redstone. As noted in a recent issue of Rock and Ice, the Pencil itself has only come in as a full fledged pillar twice in the last twenty years. Most years, however, there is at least some ice, and there are now a half dozen or so mixed lines that start on rock and finish up on various ice daggers. There is also a few easier ice floes on the cliff band below the Pencil. On the right an easy 4/hard 3, and on the left a very cool 3+ that is usually thin and may require some easy mixed climbing.

To get there, take Highway 133 south towards Redstone. Turn left at the first signed entrance to town, and follow the road along the river until you are almost to the town of Redstone proper. Park in a lot on the left here, the climbs should be obvious up the hill above up. If you are breaking trail in deep snow, expect an hour and a half on the approach.

Here are some of the routes you can find up there:

Survivor, WI5+ M6
Start up the obvious column of ice, and then traverse left along a ledge. Clip the bolt and move up onto the thin dagger of ice. From the top follow the chossy corner to a crack, get some gear in and make the delicate traverse below the small tree to the main ice of the Pencil.

Fear Factor, WI5+ M7
This climbs the obvious right leaning crack below the hanging dagger to where the crack reaches a ledge. From the ledge, traverse left, clipping a bolt, to a big reach for the ice. A bolt was later placed at the traverse to make this a semi-sane climb with the blessing of the first ascent party.

The Pencil, WI5+
You’ve got a better chance of getting a tan in Siberia than finding this route in good condition, but if you do, you’ll be rewarded with one of the most aesthetic pillars in Redstone. Bring screws and your A-game.