My friends and I are just starting to Trad climb. We’ve taken a course, have our gear, and are ready to practice some *easy* routes on real rock.
Does anyone have any suggestions for where to start? Ideally, we’d like to get comfortable on 5.4 and 5.5 routes, and if there are several Trad routes concentrated in 1 area, that would be best. We regularly climb 5.9 & 5.10 sport.
Fortress Wall would be a good place to start. Options in the 5.4 to 5.5 range include American Crack, Route 48, and The Turret. If you are climbing 5.9 - 5.10 sport it shouldn't take you too long to move up to the 5.6 - 5.7 range. The advanced search feature on this site is a good way to find route options within a certain range.
"Be responsible for your actions and sensitive to the concerns of other visitors and land managers. ... Your reward is the opportunity to climb in one of the most beautiful areas in this part of the country." John H. Bronaugh
if you can climb 5.7 sport, try the 5.3 line next to C Sharp, B Flat at Roadside. It's not in the online guidebook, but it's in the printed one. If you can't finish the 5.3 or get sketched, run up C Sharp and get your gear on rappell. The two routes share the same anchors.
