SuperTopo Yosemite Big Walls, 3rd Edition, Review

By Mike Schneiter

A text message flashed across my screen, “Will you climb the Scenic Cruise with me this year?”

“Of course,” I replied, “that climb rules. I would do it any day of the week. Actually every day of the week if I had the chance.”

Internally, I wondered about my friend’s request after our last ignominious trip to the Black together. The one that ended with my friend refusing to leave the picnic table and rack up because he insisted that there was no way he was going back “there”, into the depths of the canyon.

On the phone later, he described his sudden change of heart as part of his goal setting for the year, professionally and personally. That prompted an exchange of emails with beta and photos and route descriptions.

In the process, I also started exploring the routes I wanted to complete next, in the Black and elsewhere. I began rummaging through the many guidebooks on my shelves, and one book I always go back to again and again is the latest edition of Yosemite Big Walls, the 3^rd edition by SuperTopo, published in 2011.

Yosemite is widely considered the greatest climbing area in the world, and with good reason. Towering walls of perfect granite grace the famed Yosemite Valley, with access almost as easy as a sport climbing trip to Rifle. Thousands of well established routes, from the smallest boulder problem to the biggest walls in America, draw the attention of a wide array of climbers each year.

The latest edition of Yosemite Big Walls improves upon the popular formula developed by SuperTopo for which it has gained fame in the climbing guidebook genre. Chris Van Leuven spearheads the latest effort, and he’s certainly qualified to be at the helm of this project. Chris has spent much of his life living in the Valley, quickly moving there after high school in a classic “Yosemite University” experience. You could say he stayed for his doctorate work, living there for over 10 years, off and on with seasonal stints elsewhere.

Chris brings his own experience and style to the latest book with an increased focus on free routes and free climbing beta. Having climbed with Chris on the Big Stone (El Capitan), I can appreciate his desire to ditch the aiders and don the free shoes, traveling light and fast. Not surprisingly, the book’s cover photo features Nico Favresse free climbing on El Cap instead of someone grabbing a pin on aid, as was the case in the previous edition.

What I like about the latest edition:

• Same accuracy of detailed information that has come to be expected of SuperTopo books. Routes have been updated from firsthand experience and through beta posts on supertopo.com. The topos are detailed and filled with information such as pitch lengths, gear advice and notable terrain features.
• The book includes 14 new routes, with the same number of pages as the prior edition, including some of the storied free climbs you read about in the magazines. Even if free climbing El Cap is a pipe dream you will never attain, the book offers a great resource for information and inspiration. I love being able to grab this book while reading about El Cap stories such as Tommy trying to free the Dawn Wall.
• A number of new pictures grace the pages which will leave many salivating at the chance to get their hands on some Yosemite granite.
• A number of small improvements like articles on clean aid tricks and the geology of big wall climbing.

What I don’t like:

• They removed the ratings “beta box” that went along with each route. Perhaps it was deemed unnecessary but I liked having a quick reference to look at when considering a route and whether it was what I wanted to do. It gave you a sense of mandatory free moves and was a quick check on how many pitches were easy or hard.
• I love the stories and the brief biographies of key players in Yosemite but I was hoping for an expanded history to make this an even finer coffee table worthy book. I understand that printing full color pages are expensive and that space is a premium but I was really looking forward to some fresh history. In fairness they did update “about half” of the histories but I was hoping for something more. I feel like the players section at the back could be better utilized.
• They added GPS coordinates but having been lost or severely confused on more than one Yosemite approach or descent I could see the value of having pictures to help visually show the start of climber approach trails or other tricky spots.

Yosemite Big Walls is a great guidebook and one that is befitting any climbers’ bookshelf. It is a book that most any climber can find something to make a goal of, short term or long, and start plotting and scheming for a road trip to the Valley. On these cold winter nights I often find myself flipping through its pages, eager to turn the many possibilities found between the covers into a reality.

Mike Schneiter eagerly anticipates his next Yosemite roadtrip. He is the owner of Glenwood Climbing Guides.