The crux is just before the anchors when you have to come out of the crack for ha hard strenuous grunting high step.

Unknown 5.9

Peapod Crack

ker-THUD!

Bloody Elbows

BBQ Brush

Root Canal

Oxygen Debt

This route is a great moderate warm-up at the dihedrals! Start right behind the tower, directly below two bolts. Climb up and bust right after the second bolt to a small ledge. There is a small pod in the ledge that takes a grey alien nicely, a 0.75 Camalot or (even better) a 1.5 Friend fits in the flare above this. Follow the ledge to the shallow right facing dihedral. A #0 C3 or stopper fits nicely in the first pod. Get a good piece then stem and lieback your way through several more pods to a hand jam. From there run it out a couple of feet to the bolt anchors.

Aka: Bloody Knees - From the pullout for the River Road Dihedrals, this climb is easily located. It's the long acute corner with the wide crack. It starts off fairly steep but the angle rolls off toward the top. Slings can be spotted on the left face about 120' up.This climb is slightly harder than its neighbor Bloody Elbows. It's a pretty long and sustained pitch. There is some good hand jamming but if your wide crack technique is lacking (like mine), BRING BIG GEAR! Fun route.From the first set of anchors, you can continue about 20' to the ledge at about 5.9+/.10a, protectable by two bolts. Otherwise, rap with 2 ropes or 1x70m rope. Also, make sure to pull the ropes from far out from the wall and far to the left if you don't want to have to cut it after it gets stuck. If you look closely when climbing the route, there is a rope graveyard inside, of many ropes all caught in the same way at the same spot...

This route is a great lead for the beginner leader who is not yet ready for many of the 5.10 desert climbs.   When you look up at the River Road Dihedrals, the route is the most obvious splitter with rappel slings in the right side of a chimney about 85-90 ft up.

Begin with easy face moves on rock of poorer quality.  I felt like it was more scenic to belay from the anchors... after tying off long you can even peek over  the lip and watch the progress of the second.

Rappel: was able to make the soft sand off a single 60 meter rope, which indicates that the route description is incorrect in the Desert Rock II guide.

After doing this, try Bloody Knees for a longer more  sustained and wider climb.  If you do Bloody Knees,  remember that it requires a larger rack and two ropes  to rappel.  (Hint: bring wide gear!)

This is a fun, moderate climb that requires varied techniques. Start on a ramp that is surprisingly hard for its low angle. Once it gets steeper you hit the crux--reach high and slot a nut first! Stem, face climb, and grovel to a stance, then follow the narrowing crack from wide hands to small hands. At the headwall it turns to fingers in a hollow block. Get a finger sized piece to start and then a hand sized piece on top of the block. From the block bust out on Mill Creek style jugs to a mantle (look for a hidden hold) and then walk around right to the anchors.

Remember: New Routes, especially ones in the desert, have loose rock, wear helmets!

Obvious chimney on Molar Tower left of the main Dihedral Routes.  Great route with classic photo opportunities. Face opposite bolts and sub summit is still a little crumbly, but will clean up with future ascents. Can be done in one pitch, but recommend two pitches belaying from stance on sub summit. Crux move is a lunge from sub summit to the main summit. 5.8 crux can go as an A0 move or escape from sub summit anchor if needed. Please leave all fixed hardware.  This is a great route for anyone wanting to start learning chimney technique and is well protected.

This route starts a few feet to the left of Bloody Knees in the large, dark, and steep right-facing dihedral.  Start up the thin crack in the middle of the dihedral.  This quickly widens and eventually becomes an offwidth for a few moves to the smaller overhang.  Here you are faced with some fist jams if you have large hands.  The rest is low angle to the anchor, 70'.

This route was fun but short, and required more intricate footwork than would be expected on a desert fist crack.  I thought the climbing was easier than I expected, but I have big hands.  If you can't get a fist or forearm jam in the overhang 11+ is probably accurate.

Description

Location

Protection

Routes in River Road Dihedrals