Trip Report
New El Cap Route - Saladita, Grade 1, 5.10c

by Chris McNamara
Friday December 16, 2005 11:52am
Link and I finished a new El Cap route yesterday. It’s a variation to the PO Wall and we are proud to finally be a part of the El Cap first ascent club...

Well, actually, its just an 80-foot 5.10c trad climb. But its pretty fun and you can climb it in a t-shirt in December. Combine it with other base climbs like the Gollum and some of the stuff on the Footstool for a lazy winter cragging day under the coolest chunk of rock in the world.

We called it Saladita because Link and Dov just got back from surfing there in Mexico. Which is on the Pacific Ocean. And we were climbing right next to the Pacific Ocean Wall. We also just liked the sound of the word. We are not sure what Saladita means, but we think it might mean “saltine cracker.”

Here is a shot of link on it.

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Here is a shot of me

Visit on chrismcnamara.com



The route is the obvious corner about 30 feet right of the Gollum and 30 feet left of the big bush that marks the start of the PO wall. Its 80-feet tall and has a bolt anchor that you can lower off from. For rack, bring 2 each cams from the small stuff to 1.75 inches. (I basically led the whole thin on green, yellow, red, and orange aliens).

After climbing it, I tried to lead the first pitch of the PO wall. It is rated 5.11 in my guidebook but it feels harder. I got shut down.


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The day would have been perfect if we could have ended it on the Alcove Rope Swing. Ill send free beer and guidebooks to anyone that wants to re-establish that.

  Trip Report Views: 3,300
Chris McNamara 		About the Author
Climbing Magazine once computed that three percent of Chris McNamara’s life on earth has been spent on the face of El Capitan—an accomplishment that has left friends and family pondering Chris’ sanity. He’s climbed El Capitan over 70 times and holds nine big wall speed climbing records. In 1998 Chris did the first Girdle Traverse of El Capitan, an epic 75-pitch route that begs the question, “Why?”

Outside Magazine has called Chris one of “the world’s finest aid climbers.” He’s the winner of the 1999 Bates Award from the American Alpine Club and founder of the American Safe Climbing Association, a nonprofit group that has replaced over 5000 dangerous anchor bolts. He is a graduate of UC Berkeley and serves on the board of the ASCA, and Rowell Legacy Committee. He has a rarely updated adventure journal, maintains BASEjumpingmovies.com, and also runs a Lake Tahoe home rental business.

Comments
jiff

Ice climber
colorado
  Dec 16, 2005 - 12:09pm PT
Nice job! Or it could just mean "little salty" in Spanish.
thedus

climber
Anchorage, AK
  Dec 16, 2005 - 05:05pm PT
Wow, I could be wrong, but I think that this is actually a FFA and I have the FA. Back in May I did my first aid lead on what I thought was P1 of the PO Wall, but those first two pictures look a heck of a lot like what I did, and the last doesn't look much like it. Here are some photos from my climb - let me know what everyone thinks.




Oh, and great job on the climb!
Bart Fay

Social climber
Redlands, CA
  Dec 16, 2005 - 05:22pm PT
Yup. Saladita, of course, means little salty 'one'.

And their common brand on saltine crackers is called
Saladitas. I think there is even a bilboard for them
along the highway driving up from Zujatenajo to Las
Saladitas.

Good job guys.
Have you not heard that The Valley is all climbed out ?
Wade Icey

Trad climber
www.alohashirtrescue.com
  Jul 28, 2010 - 12:58pm PT
1111!!!666
Levy

Big Wall climber
Calabasas
  Aug 12, 2011 - 05:59pm PT
I just saw this and I thought I might add that I believe this is where "Every man for himself" begins. It is a Gerbeding/ Stowe / Swanson / Bowling creation that has many long pitches in the 200 to 350' length. Obviously, special ropes are needes but I believe that this new offering The 5.10c pitch) is just a FFA.
bringmedeath

climber
la la land
  Aug 12, 2011 - 06:10pm PT
Hmm, I kinda thought everyman started in a crack to the left of this and went up that loose ass looking tooth flake.
the kid

Trad climber
fayetteville, wv
  Aug 13, 2011 - 12:25am PT
sorry buddy but base climbs don;t count as el cap routes..
similar to going to valley to boulder and claiming you climbed in the valley..
try again.
ElCapPirate

Big Wall climber
Ogden, Utah
  Aug 13, 2011 - 12:31am PT
Yep, I agree with Levy... Every Man for Himself
'Pass the Pitons' Pete

Big Wall climber
like Ontario, Canada, eh?
  Aug 13, 2011 - 01:07am PT
Three per cent, eh? That was Chris Mac BITD when he was only about 20. I haven't actually seen him on the side of El Cap very much lately, so he may be down in the low two per cent range. In which case, I may have overtaken him. {wink}
KP Ariza

climber
SCC
  Aug 13, 2011 - 02:26am PT
If it is a pitch that Steve, Scott and Al did, I can't think of why they would not have freed it. All three are (or at least were) capable of climbing 5.12....
ß Î Ř T Ç H

Boulder climber
ne'er–do–well
  Aug 13, 2011 - 03:11am PT
No dis respect, but seems odd people claimin' fa on this. It coulda been done in the 60s or something for all we know.
bringmedeath

climber
la la land
  Aug 13, 2011 - 06:01pm PT
I always thought it climbed this wild flake tooth thing. I swear there is a crack to the left of this route, that leads to the belay. That is the one I always thought Everyman... climbed. It has a little roof overlap where the one on topo is shown too... if my memory hasn't failed me.
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