Cobra Crack

Last updated

Cobra Crack
Cobra Crack 1.jpg
Cobra Crack as seen from the ground
Canada British Columbia location map 2.svg
Red pog.svg
Location Squamish, British Columbia, Canada
Coordinates 49°41′06″N123°08′13″W / 49.685°N 123.137°W / 49.685; -123.137 [1]
Climbing areaCirque of the Uncrackables, backside of Stawamus Chief.
Route type Traditional climbing
Vertical gain45 metres (148 feet) [1]
Pitches 1
Grade 5.14b  (8c)
First ascent Peter Croft, Tami Knight, 1981.
First free ascent Sonnie Trotter, June 2006.

Cobra Crack is a 45-metre (148-foot) long traditional climbing route on a thin crack up an overhanging granite rock face on Stawamus Chief, in Squamish, British Columbia. The route was first ascended by Peter Croft and Tami Knight in 1981 as an aid climb. After rebuffing many leading climbers, most notably Swiss climber Didier Berthod in 2005, the Canadian climber Sonnie Trotter made the first free ascent in 2006. With subsequent ascents, the consensus grade has settled at 5.14b  (8c), which ranked Cobra Crack as one of the hardest crack climbs in the world, and almost two decades later, it is still considered one of the world's hardest traditional climbing routes.

Contents

History

Canadian climbers and Squamish regulars, Peter Croft and Tami Knight, made the first ascent of Cobra Crack in 1981, [2] a route that is located at the 'Cirque of the Uncrackables' behind Stawamus Chief, in Squamish. [3] They used aid and graded it at A2. [3] The route was named after the distinctive Cobra silhouette of the groove that leads into the main crack. [4] By the 2000s, the route had become an open project with the leading traditional climbers vying for the first free ascent. [5]

Swiss traditional climbing and crack specialist, Didier Berthod, attempted to free climb the route in 2005, but failed due to a serious knee injury. [6] Berthod's efforts were recorded as part of an award-winning climbing documentary film, First Ascent, at the end of which he says to the camera (in crutches), "I came here to feed my ego and my vanity – to be the first". [7] Berthod immediately quit climbing and became a Franciscan monk, and his struggles on the "world's hardest crack-climb", [4] and his subsequent religious vocation, attracted international attention. [7] [8]

Canadian climber Sonnie Trotter made the first free ascent in June 2006, after 40 attempts spread over 3 years, [9] [10] placing all of his climbing protection as he was lead climbing on the route. [11] Trotter felt it was a "solid 5.14" route, [10] [12] and with subsequent repeats, the consensus grade has settled on 5.14b  (8c). [13] [14] [15] [16] A tradition was started of successful climbers signing a wooden fingerboard (called the "Earlmarker") that hangs near the base of the route. [17] [18]

Berthod, who had returned to climbing after more than a decade's absence, visited Squamish in 2023 for the first time since 2005, and made the first free ascent of the long-standing open project, The Crack of Destiny, which he graded as being harder than 5.14a  (8b+). [19] [20] [21] In May 2024, Berthold returned to the route to make the 20th ascent of Cobra Crack. [22] [8]

Route

Cobra Crack is a crack climb with a narrow crack that barely accommodates any fingers. [4] [17] The route has an abrasive surface, causing many to limit their attempts to once or twice per day to avoid excessive skin wear. [4] [23] It, therefore, requires a higher pain threshold, with Trotter saying in 2006: "pain is ever-present, and the mental crux is overlooking the pain move after move". [5]

While the entire route is over 45 metres (148 feet) long, the main crack is c. 30 metres (98 feet). Halfway up the main crack, it begins to sharply overhang at c. 45 degrees, and entering this section requires an extremely difficult and painful move where the climber inserts their middle finger vertically upwards into an "undercut mono pocket" in the 45-degree wall above them. [24]

The technical crux is getting over the lip at the top of the overhang and then immediately making a critical move upwards. [17] In 2006, Trotter said: "The redpoint crux comes over the lip on a slippery side pull; the feet are next to nothing, and it takes momentum and a huge throw to latch the final edge, at which point you're about 15 to 20 feet about your last piece of gear—it's really exciting". [5] Contemporary climbers use route beta that employs a dramatic inverted heel hook (i.e. the climber's legs are above their body) to get through this lip. [14]

Legacy

After its first free ascent in 2006, Cobra Crack was considered the hardest traditional crack climbing route in the world. [9] [10] [25] Reporting on Didier Berthod's failed 2005 attempt, El Pais called Cobra Crack "the most difficult fissure on the planet", [7] while Desnivel said that Favresse's 2008 repeat had: "sealed Cobra Crack's candidacy for the hardest crack on the planet". [10] Two decades after the first free ascent, Cobra Crack still ranks amongst the hardest traditional climbing routes in the world, and only one to two notches below the hardest, which are at 8c+  (5.14c) to potentially 9a  (5.14d). [15] [16]

Cobra Crack remains an important route in traditional climbing history and repeats are covered in the climbing media. [2] [14] In 2017, after Mason Earle made the 11th ascent, PlanetMountain wrote: "Cobra Crack immediately struck a cord, in part due the heinous finger-locks required to power through the crux, in part due to its innate beauty. Over the years some of the best crack specialists in the world have been drawn to the line and while it may have lost some of its original fearsome reputation, the climb is just as beautiful as ever." [25] In 2021, Gripped Magazine said: "Over the past decade and a half, it’s become one of the world’s most sought-after single-pitch gear [traditional] climbs". [5] In 2023, Climbing called the route "famous" and "iconic". [14]

Ascents

Climber standing at the distinctive 'Cobra' silhouette groove at the start of the route Laurel pokes Cobra Crack 2.jpg
Climber standing at the distinctive 'Cobra' silhouette groove at the start of the route

Cobra Crack has been climbed by: [2] [5]

Filmography

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Traditional climbing</span> Type of rock climbing

Traditional climbing is a type of free climbing in rock climbing where the lead climber places the protection equipment while ascending the route; when the lead climber has completed the route, the second climber then removes the protection equipment as they climb the route. Traditional climbing differs from sport climbing where the protection equipment is pre-drilled into the rock in the form of bolts.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Climbing route</span> Path to scale a mountain, rock, or ice wall

A climbing route is a path by which a climber reaches the top of a mountain, or rock/ice-covered obstacle. The details of a climbing route are recorded in a climbing guidebook and/or in an online climbing route database, and will include elements such as the type of climbing route, the difficulty grade of the route–and beta on its crux(es)–and any risk or commitment grade, the length and number of pitches of the route, and the climbing equipment needed to complete the route.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">First ascent</span> Mountaineering and climbing term

In mountaineering and climbing, a first ascent, is the first successful documented climb to the top of a mountain or the top of a particular climbing route. Early 20th-century mountaineers and climbers focused on reaching the tops of iconic mountains and climbing routes by whatever means possible, often using considerable amounts of aid climbing, and/or with large expedition style support teams that laid "siege" to the climb.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dry-tooling</span> Form of mixed climbing on bare rock

Dry-tooling is a form of mixed climbing that is performed on bare, ice-free, and snow-free, routes. As with mixed climbing, the climber uses ice axes and crampons to ascend the route, but uses only rock climbing equipment for protection; many modern dry-tooling routes are now fully bolted like sport climbing routes. Indoor ice climbing competitions are held on non-ice surfaces and are effectively dry-tooling events.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Chris Sharma</span> American rock climber

Chris Omprakash Sharma is an American rock climber who is considered one of the greatest and most influential climbers in the history of the sport. He dominated sport climbing for the decade after his 2001 ascent of Realization/Biographie, the world's first-ever redpoint of a consensus 9a+ (5.15a) graded route, and ushered in what was called a "technical evolution" in the sport. Sharma carried the mantle of "world's strongest sport climber" from Wolfgang Güllich, and passed it to Adam Ondra.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Redpoint (climbing)</span> Type of free climbing

In rock climbing, redpointing means to free-climb a climbing route from the ground to the top while lead climbing, after having practiced the route or after having failed the first attempt. Climbers will try to redpoint a route after having failed to onsight it, or flash it. The first successful redpoint of a route, in the absence of any prior onsight or flash, is recorded as the first free ascent (FFA) of that route.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Johnny Dawes</span> British rock climber

Johnny Dawes is a British rock climber and author, known for his dynamic climbing style and bold traditional climbing routes. This included the first ascent of Indian Face, the first-ever route at the E9-grade. His influence on British climbing was at its peak in the mid to late-1980s.

Beth Rodden is an American rock climber known for her ascents of hard single-pitch traditional climbing routes. She was the youngest woman to climb 5.14a (8b+) and is one of the only women in the world to have redpointed a 5.14c (8c+) traditional climbing graded climb. Rodden and fellow climber Tommy Caldwell were partners from 2000 to 2010, during which time they completed the second free ascent of The Nose. In 2008, Rodden made the first ascent of Meltdown, one of the hardest traditional climbs in the world and the first time in history that a female climber matched the peak of the highest climbing grades.

Didier Berthod, is a Swiss rock climber and priest. He specializes in traditional climbing, and crack climbing in particular.

Sonnie Trotter, is a Canadian professional climber, known for his strength in many rock climbing disciplines – particularly traditional climbing – and contributing to hundreds of first free ascents around the world.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mixed climbing</span> Ice climbing on ice and rock surfaces

Mixed climbing is a climbing discipline used on routes that do have not enough ice to be pure ice climbs, but are also not dry enough to be pure rock climbs. To ascend the route, the mixed climber uses ice climbing tools, but to protect the route, they use traditional or sport rock climbing tools. Mixed climbing can vary from routes with sections of thick layers of ice and sections of bare rock to routes that are mainly bare rock but which is “iced-up”.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Prinzip Hoffnung</span> Traditional climbing route in Austria

Prinzip Hoffnung, is a 40-metre (130 ft) long traditional climbing route on a thin crack up a conglomerate rock slab on the "Bürs plate cliff" overlooking the village of Bürs in Vorarlberg, Austria. The route was greenpointied by Austrian climber Beat Kammerlander in 2009, and was one of the earliest traditional climbing routes to be graded at 5.14 R (American), 8b/+ (French), X/X+ (UIAA), or E9-E10 (British); it is still considered one of the hardest traditional climbing routes in the world.

Matt Segal is an American professional climber. He participates in a variety of climbing activities including single-pitch traditional climbing and bouldering.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ethan Pringle</span> American rock climber (born 1986)

Ethan Pringle is an American rock climber with notable ascents in sport climbing, in traditional climbing, and in bouldering. He has also been active in competition climbing, winning the American national competition lead climbing championships in both youth and adult formats, and silver at the World Youth Championships.

Hazel Findlay is a British traditional climber, sport climber and big wall climber. She was the first female British climber to climb a route graded E9, and a route graded 8c (5.14b). She did the third ascent of the Yosemite traditional route Magic Line 5.14c (8c+). She has free climbed El Capitán four times on four different routes and made many first female ascents on other routes. Climbing magazine gave her their Golden Piton Award (Alpine) for traditional climbing in 2013.

Tim Emmett, is a British-born adventure climber and climbing author. He is known for his participation in a diverse range of climbing disciplines, including ice-climbing, rock climbing, deep-water soloing and alpine climbing. Emmett has established the hardest waterfall ice-climbs in the world, and was the first to climb grades of W10 and above.

Pete Whittaker is a British professional rock climber. He is one half of the duo known as the Wide Boyz, along with his climbing partner Tom Randall. Whittaker came to notability from crack climbing, including the first ascent of the world's hardest off-width climb, the Century Crack.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jonathan Siegrist</span> American rock climber

Jonathan Siegrist is an American rock climber who is regarded as one of the world's most prolific extreme sport climbers, and who has redpointed, and made numerous first free ascents, of a large number of sport climbing routes at and above the grade of 9a (5.14d). Siegrist's breadth of experience at the world's most extreme sport climbing grades, means that he is often looked to for guidance regarding the grading of extreme sport routes in America. While principally known as a sport climber, he has repeated some of the world's hardest traditional climbing routes.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Barbara Zangerl</span> Austrian rock climber

Barbara "Babsi" Zangerl is an Austrian rock climber who is widely considered as one of the best all-round female climbers in the world. At various stages in her career, she has climbed at, or just below, the highest climbing grades achieved by a female in every major rock climbing discipline, including bouldering, traditional climbing, sport climbing, multi-pitch climbing and big wall climbing.

<i>Rhapsody</i> (climb) Traditional climbing route in Dumbarton, Scotland

Rhapsody is a 35-metre (115 ft) long traditional climbing route up a thin crack on a slightly overhanging vertical basalt rock face on Dumbarton Rock, in Scotland. When Scottish climber Dave MacLeod made the first free ascent in 2006, it became Britain's first-ever E11-graded route, and at the grade of 5.14c (8c+), Rhapsody was the world's hardest traditional route, and set a grade milestone in traditional climbing that stood for over a decade until the ascent of Tribe at grade E11-12 5.14d (9a) in 2019 and of Bon Voyage at grade E12 5.14d (9a) in 2024.

References

  1. 1 2 "Cobra Crack 5.14b". theCrag. Retrieved 18 September 2023.
  2. 1 2 3 4 "Cobra Crack 5.14 Trad Repeated in 2023". Gripped Magazine. 29 May 2023. Retrieved 18 September 2023.
  3. 1 2 3 "Sonnie Trotter frees Cobra Crack 5.14 b/c". PlanetMountain. June 2006. Retrieved 18 September 2023.
  4. 1 2 3 4 Berg, Emmet (4 October 2005). "DIDIER BERTHOD: True grit and grip on the Cobra". Los Angeles Times . Retrieved 4 January 2023.
  5. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 "Cobra Crack is Canada's Famous Hard Gear Route, Here's Who's Climbed it". Gripped Magazine. 20 October 2021. Retrieved 18 September 2023.
  6. 1 2 Moix, Fred (17 May 2021). "Listen to Crack-Climbing Legend Didier Berthod Give One of His First Interviews in 13 Years". Climbing . Retrieved 4 January 2023.
  7. 1 2 3 Gogorza, Oscar (15 November 2022). "Didier Berthod, from rock-climbing star to monk and back again". El Pais . Retrieved 4 January 2023.
  8. 1 2 3 "Didier Berthod finally climbs Cobra Crack at Squamish, Canada". PlanetMountain. 15 May 2024. Retrieved 23 June 2024.
  9. 1 2 3 "Sonnie Trotter climbing Cobra Crack at Squamish in Canada". PlanetMountain. June 2020. Retrieved 19 September 2023.
  10. 1 2 3 4 "Favresse repite Cobra crack" [Favresse repeats Cobra crack]. Desnivel (in Spanish). 30 July 2008. Retrieved 18 September 2023. Sealing Cobra Crack's candidacy for the hardest crack on the planet
  11. 1 2 McDonald, Dougald (29 June 2006). "Trotter Climbs 5.14 Cobra Crack". Climbing . Retrieved 19 September 2023.
  12. 1 2 Ryan, Mick (17 August 2008). "Pringle Succeeds on Cobra Crack: 3rd ascent". UKClimbing. Retrieved 18 September 2023.
  13. 1 2 3 "Tom Randall y Pete Whittaker repiten 'Cobra crack' en Squamish" [Tom Randall and Pete Whittaker repeat 'Cobra Crack' in Squamish]. Desnivel (in Spanish). 26 September 2013. Retrieved 18 September 2023.
  14. 1 2 3 4 5 Bailey, Nat (17 August 2023). "Connor Herson Just Hiked 'Cobra Crack' and 5 Other Squamish Testpieces". Climbing . Retrieved 18 September 2023.
  15. 1 2 "The World's Hardest Trad Routes by Winter 2021". Gripped Magazine. 1 February 2021. Retrieved 21 March 2023.
  16. 1 2 Kuelthau, Willis (24 September 2019). "The Hardest Trad Climbs in the World". 99 boulders. Retrieved 15 September 2023.
  17. 1 2 3 4 "Logan Barber Makes 12th Ascent of Cobra Crack". Gripped Magazine. 26 August 2017. Retrieved 18 September 2023.
  18. 1 2 Schaufele, Tim (3 July 2019). "Tristan Bails makes ascent of Cobra Crack (5.14a)". Squamish Climbing Magazine. Retrieved 18 September 2023.
  19. ↑ "Didier Berthod Redpoints New 5.14 Trad in Squamish". Gripped Magazine. 25 June 2023. Retrieved 15 September 2023.
  20. ↑ Bailey, Nat (10 July 2023). "Didier Berthod Returns to Climbing Limelight With FA of 5.14 Crack". Climbing . Retrieved 15 September 2023.
  21. ↑ Zeidler, Maryse (18 July 2023). "Legendary free climber conquers the 'Crack of Destiny' in Squamish, B.C." CBC News . Retrieved 16 September 2023.
  22. 1 2 3 Bailey, Nat (16 May 2024). "After 10 Years in a Monastery, Climber Send One of the World's Toughest Trad Routes". Climbing. Retrieved 17 May 2024.
  23. 1 2 McDonald, Dougald (15 June 2012). "Cobra Crack: Nico's Story, Ethan's Near Miss". Climbing . Retrieved 18 September 2023.
  24. ↑ Whittaker, Pete (January 2020). "Chapter 2: Finger Cracks". Crack Climbing - Mastering the skills & techniques (1st ed.). Vertebrate Publishing. p. 2.1.7 Donut Jams. ISBN   978-1911342762. It was made famous by Didier Berthod in the film First Ascent. Didier is seen attempting the first ascent of Cobra Crack in Squamish, with a sequence that involves him inserting his middle finger upwards into an undercut mono into the crack in the 45-degree wall above him.
  25. 1 2 3 "Cobra Crack at Squamish climbed by Mason Earle". PlanetMountain. October 2017. Retrieved 18 September 2023.
  26. ↑ "Watch the Second Ascent of Cobra Crack". Gripped Magazine. 10 June 2023. Retrieved 18 September 2023.
  27. ↑ "Nicolas Favresse repeats Cobra Crack, Squamish, Canada". PlanetMountain. July 2008. Retrieved 18 September 2023.
  28. ↑ Corrigan, Kevin (20 February 2021). "Interview: Matt Segal on His Life as a Pro Climber and Entrepreneur". Climbing . Retrieved 18 September 2023.
  29. ↑ "Yuji Hirayama, Cobra Crack and back to his roots". PlanetMountain. September 2009. Retrieved 18 September 2023.
  30. 1 2 "Tom Randall and Pete Whittaker repeat Cobra Crack at Squamish". PlanetMountain. September 2013. Retrieved 18 September 2023.
  31. ↑ "Ben Harnden Sends Cobra Crack 5.14". Gripped Magazine. 1 June 2016. Retrieved 18 September 2023.
  32. ↑ Berry, Nathalie (27 September 2017). "Logan Barber on Cobra Crack Interview". UKClimbing. Retrieved 18 September 2023.
  33. ↑ "Said Belhaj Gets Lucky 13th on Cobra Crack 5.14". Gripped Magazine. 11 September 2017. Retrieved 18 September 2023.
  34. ↑ "Ryan Sklenica Sends Cobra Crack 5.14- in Squamish". Gripped Magazine. 30 July 2021. Retrieved 18 September 2023.
  35. ↑ Climbing Desk (7 May 2023). "Hong Does 'Biographie,' Cobra Crack Sees a Repeat, and 70th Anniversary of Everest FA". Climbing . Retrieved 18 September 2023.
  36. ↑ "Cobra Crack Sees Summer 2023 Sends". Gripped Magazine. 25 September 2023. Retrieved 29 September 2023.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.