NOTE: the approach pitches are in the Medlicott raptor closure area so check ahead of time if this climb is closed!

Fun, varied, and a bit heads-up route that climbs the face left of Chartres. This is not R by old-school ratings, but it's probably too runout in some cruxy spots for a PG13. With wandering approach pitches and some route-finding, this route will take longer than many similar length routes. Deflector shares short crack sections of Chartres, and if you want to top out on Medlicott Dome you'll have to climb the final pitch of Chartres (5.8 R, fragile/delicate knobs & flakes). Knobs, finger crack, lieback, steep edging, slab, gold polish edge incuts, flakes - lots of variety.

Currently the finger crack is somewhat vegetated, so beware you may need to clean a bit for the best pro. In wet years, this route will stay wet for a while in early season.

Except for the easy runout approach pitches, the pitches are probably 5.9, 5.8 PG13, and 5.9 PG13/R in ratings plus runout ratings.

Deflector

The Lone Ranger

Piss Easy (aka West Face of Medlicott)

Like a Virgin

Come and Get It

D'oh!

The Going

Forsaken

Shagadelic

Kidney Stones

Donuts

Beer

Piss Easier

Excellent Smithers

Slacker/Carrion

Broken Bit

Techno Tango

The Coming

Goldmember

Bumps

This is a Steve Schneider, bold as hell, masterpiece. 3 Bolts in 80', 10c climbing right below the first bolt at 30', and it is truly sandbagged. Feels like 5.11 getting to the second bolt, which is dangerously close to a ground fall. Excellent climbing on good rock.

Piss Easy goes up the large crack in the right facing corner.  Use a variety of OW moves and some features on the face.  The low angle keeps the grade moderate.

p1--goes up the corner, surmounting a 2' bulge 3/4 of the way up, 5.8.  Belay on a good ledge.  100'.

p2--Continue up the corner.  The wide crack gets funkier, resulting in easier climbing, but harder to protect.  I wouldn't call it run out though.  150', 5.7.  Ends on large ledge.

The route continues up for a couple more pitches, but we didn't do them, opting to do the slab route Goldmember instead.  There is no easy way down from the ledge atop p2, so you either need to continue up, or leave gear to rap.  (you can rap if you do Goldmember.)  Please add to this description if you've done the entire route.

Climb to the first belay of The Coming by any of it's variations, then step left out over the arete, following four bolts to a 2-bolt anchor. 2 ropes needed to rappel to the ground from here.

First pitch of "Excellent Smithers", 5.10a. A good lead if you're looking for some 5.7 hands to break into. I didn't think the crack was painful at all (no annoyed grunts), but then again my Ocun crack gloves + TC Pros are practically cheating. Crux is where it's steep and a little wide, but knobs make for plenty of options. After the crack ends, there are some fun face moves and a couple little pieces to place before the top. Set up TR for "D'oh", "Donuts", and "Beernuts" (Or even "Beer" with a directional).

From the anchor of pitch 1 of Slacker/Carrion, climb 10 feet left and a few feet up to a hidden piton. Clip this with two shoulder-length slings and lower off. TR up the right-slanting crack (some munge) to excellent knobs. Continue up the left-leaning wide crack to it's end, then face climb right & to the small corner. Shorter crux but maybe harder moves than Slacker/Carrion.

Cool new steep face route between Breathing Hard and White Line Fever. First pitch is a great stand-alone pitch at 5.10a. Second pitch is an easy ramp with one hard bulge. Third pitch is a sport pitch which climbs the steep, intricate face past 10 bolts (zero gear opportunities). The last 2 easy pitches are not new, they join Breathing Hard (& White Line Fever for the last 1.5 pitches).

Trying to update the closures section - this route and wall are no longer on the Peregrine falcon climbing closures list.

https://www.nps.gov/yose/planyourvisit/climbingclosures.htm

Kidney Stones

is named for the abundance of feldspar megacrysts as well as the route's proximity to

Piss Easy

. Pitch 3 is the highlight, featuring characteristic Tuolumne knobbing in a memorable position. Pitch 4 goes all the way to the top of the dome.

Pitch 1

(5.8, 90 feet): Climb a knobby black streak past three bolts up to and through a small roof crack. Continue up a fun easy handcrack to a nice ledge. Belay takes gear to 1".

Pitch 2

(5.7, 160 feet): Take the seldom-climbed right-hand variation to the second pitch of

Piss Easy

. Follow a loooong wavy flake system up to the big diagonal ledge halfway up the face. Move straight up off the ledge to a semi-hanging belay below the striped headwall.

Consider leaving most of your gear (except a couple 1-2" cams) at this belay if planning to rappel from the top of P3.

Pitch 3

(5.8, 180 feet): Scale the striped headwall on excellent knobs. As the angle eases off, keep chugging past widely-spaced bolts (5.6 R) aiming for the far right edge of a right-arcing roof. Hop over the edge of the roof and go straight up the slab ending at a two-bolt anchor below a white right-facing corner.

Most parties will probably choose to

rappel

~180' down Pitch 3 and then rappel ~170' down and climbers' left to the last rappel station on

Shagadelic

. This can be done with

two ropes

.

Pitch 4

(5.4, 120 feet): Follow the low-angle corner as it arcs up and right to the top of the wall. Gear belay and walk off.

Descent

: Easy and incredibly gorgeous, but kinda long. Walk southward (toward Tenaya Peak / Cathedral Lake) along the top of the dome and descend 3rd class slabs and gullies to the Cathedral Lakes fishing trail which passes directly below the base of Medlicott Dome on its way back to the trailhead.

Climb the sparsely-knobbed arete to a small roof.  Proceed through some knobs and features to the anchors.

Climb the first pitch of "Excellent, Smithers," (aka, "D'oh!") and set up the TR.

A worthwhile toprope if waiting for some other pitches in the area.

Start in a decent corner crack with a short, fun bulge, then a little more crack to a hollow flake. Two bolts protect well on an extremely thin, crimpy slab for a couple moves that feel like 5.10-, but I'll give the FA/SuperTopo the benefit of the doubt and just call it 5.9+ :-)

This rambling route follows the path of least resistance up the broad west face of Medlicott Dome.

Pitch 1 (5.6, 130'):

Climb the first 60 feet of

Shagadelic

. Clip the fixed piton and dip right onto a 4th-class ramp. Belay at the top of the ramp.

Pitch 2 (5.4, 150'):

Move up the short easy crack into easy terrain. Belay from the major diagonal ledge halfway up the formation.

Pitch 3 (5.6 R, 100'):

As for

Piss Easy

. Layback a dirty left-facing flake before committing to a long runout slab.

Pitch 4 (5.4, 140'):

Chug up a series of easy left-facing flakes to the horizontal shelves at the top of the dome.

Descent:

Easy and incredibly gorgeous, but kinda long. Walk southward (toward Tenaya Peak / Cathedral Lake) along the top of the dome and descend 3rd class slabs and gullies to the Cathedral Lakes fishing trail which passes directly below the base of Medlicott Dome on its way back to the trailhead.

The crux for me was on the 3rd pitch in a sallow left facing corner rock's a little funky for pro there, but there's a pin not to far below. Excellent slab climbing. Thanks to Greg Barnes for all the hard work on this and all the other great routes he's put up!!!!!

Fun crack/lieback (right start of The Coming) to sustained crux thin face. First pitch is a great cragging route and very tightly bolted in crux area. Upper pitches have no fixed anchors, great knobs, low angle knobby slab, and an airy but easy roof. 5.11a, 5.9, 5.7, 5.9, 5.2

Fun climbing up strange mantles to a tiny roof, then well-protected face past 4 bolts - but then (after the drill bit broke...) you get big runouts on knobby face past a flake to the anchor for Gold Member. This route originally had a juvenile, racist name from the Austin Powers movies that I regret using, and for that I sincerely apologize.

There is a second pitch which continues left up the Goldmember dike to the third pitch anchor on Shagadelic, but it has no pro at all (not even a knob tie-off) and the dike is slippery.

Technical knobby/slabby face, a good warm-up for many of the harder routes in the area. Sustained.

This route climbs an obvious, somewhat vegetated right facing corner for two pitches before striking out for another two pitches on the poorly protected face above.

Pitch 1 - a very short pitch to get to the base of the corner.  There are several variations from easier to harder.

Pitch 2 - climb the right facing corner to a very small ledge and belay(5.9).

Pitch 3 - continue up the corner(5.9) then surmount the roof at the top and belay on a ledge just above.

Pitch 4 - wander up the face following the line of least resistance to a belay below a small roof(5.6).  Supposedly there is a bolt up and right, but it can be hard to find.

Pitch 5 - continue up the face to the top.

Goldmember is an excellent slab route halfway up Medlicott Dome.  We accessed it by climbing Piss Easy, but other approach options may exist.

Also, the supertopo guide notes that Jake Whittaker put it up freesolo (!) and that it was later bolted by a party unaware of the fact it had been climbed.  The FA expressly gave permission for the bolts to remain, I'd like to thank him for that generousity, so that mere mortals like myself could enjoy this excellent route.

From the large belay ledge atop p2 of Piss Easy, follow the 4" wide golden dike that trends up and left on very polished and slick granite, surmounting a few small overlaps.  Fun thin slab moves all the way to the top, with a couple mantels.  End at a hole in the rock with two bolts equipped with rap anchors.

Descent:  I think you are supposed to rap down and left 50' to the Shagadelic anchors, then do two double rope raps to the ground.  We didn't know this, and tried to go straight to the p1 shagadelic rap anchors directly below on the big ledge.  With 2 60m ropes, I came up 20' short, and had to down solo some 4th class, which was thankfully above a large ledge.  Be aware!  Then, double rope rap to the ground.

Start up a right leaning 4th class ramp and build a belay (optional) near it's top. Climb over a roof and up the bumpy (aptly named route) face passing several bolts to another roof with a bolted belay shortly after. Another sparsely protected pitch joins up with the route Bitter Creek to the top of the dome. 2 ropes needed to rappel from the first belay anchor (tat and rings). I'm going off a 10 year old memory and notes in my book... sorry if the description is vague.

Description

Location

Protection

Routes in West Face, Center