Kolob Canyon, Nagunt Mesa, Cos the Boss. In late October and early November 2001 I did a new wall route in Kolob Canyon with Steve Gerberding and Scott Cosgrove. The formation is called Nagunt Mesa, and we made the first ascent of the east-northeast face, following an obvious big corner system in the center of the face. The route involved nine pitches on the wall, plus a 5.9 pitch on the approach. The approach is serious, with loads of 3rd and 4th class slabs. The previous year Cosgrove had climbed 2.5 pitches of the wall solo, before bailing. We re-climbed those pitches, then continued. The climbing followed obvious systems and required minimal drilling. Most pitches involved aid on high-quality sandstone—good for Gerberding and me, the sandstone rookies. The climbing was never desperate, with most pitches logging in at A2 or so. We didn’t bivy on the wall, but had fixed five pitches before we finished the route in a long day. We rappelled more or less the line of ascent. We’ve had a hard time coming up with a name, but it’s probably gonna end up Cos the Boss (V 5.9R A2+).

Odd-Roar Wiik, Norway