Valley:  Arete Butler, Gardening at Night, Perfect Vision  10/7-9/89
Subject:      Prime Time in the Valley (October)

Spent the 3 day weekend doing 1 pitch routes with Nancy and Joel and working
on new routes:

1. Nancy led Peruvian Flake 5.10a thin and Arete Butler 5.10b, no chalk, no
falls.  In the afternoon I finally did the FA of the route I gardened a few
years back at the Church Bowl, when I made my appearance in Accidents
in North American Mountaineering (my rappel line got stuck).  The approach
was soloing Aunt Fannie's Pantry 5.4 and more soloing to a tree, then 5.8
stemming up a moss-choked corner and cracks.  Second pitch was a flaring RF
corner with a 5.10c tips crack and stemming, but it was only 15' and I had
to garden it for an hour on the lead.  The remainder of the pitch was 5.7
crack and face to the rap bush (no hangup this time).  "Gardening at Night",
not recommended.

2. Base of El Cap, but it was too hot.  Led Thread of Life 5.10d (FA with
Dan a year ago).  Wanted to check the rating and runouts; they seemed fine.
Set up a long toprope because it was too hot to stay at the belay ledge.
Nancy followed with several falls, saying it was the hardest face climb she's
ever done.  Renata happily kicked me and pulled my leg hairs with her toes as
I belayed.  Then Joel and I TR'd up the 5.7 corner to add more pitches.  The
first was 5.9/5.10a changing to the right crack in the corner (70', 3 pin belay
).  We had our eye on the left crack above through the overhang, but Joel led
up the right crack which was perfect hands -- first 5.9 overhang then 5.6 in a
corner (2 pin belay).  I gardened the seam above for awhile, but the holds
faded into 5.11 glass, so we rapped.  We went over the overhang so we could
garden the left crack, which looked nice, but there is a 10' loose flake in
the steepest part!  (It grinded when I pulled on it).  We'll have to go back
sometime and pull it off when the base is clear.

3. Joel and I went back to Perfect Vision (right of Braille Book).  Led the 5th
pitch this time, but after some initial 5.11 and a new bolt, it was all on aid
(thin stoppers and TCUs up a discontinuous seam near the arete).  3 hours for
the lead because I forgot my aiders and was too optimistic about freeing it.
Then another hour to put in the belay -- bolt 1 was good 5/16" Metolius hanger,
but the 3/8" bit broke on hole 2 with 1/2" to go.  No spare 3/8" bit, so bolt
2 was 5/16" (good also -- am using only studs which pass easily through the
Metolius hangers so that their inital max diameter is smaller -- no cratering
with 3 such bolts so far!).  Finally, a 5th hour was spent lowering down the
arete with the wire brush.  Joel slept on the belay ledge for at least part of
this tedium, and then he scampered up the arete, freeing all the moves and
raving about the position.  The moves were 5.11a/b, although I was afraid it
would be 5.12 while I was leading on aid.  We'll have to add bolts before
leading it; we'll probably work from the top from now on because it takes so
long to do those lower pitches.  Pitch 6 looks quite feasible, although it's
steep and the arete fades out, necessitating a traverse left to another arete.