On January 7, 2013, Drew Smith and I walked into Cochamó Valley with 160 pounds of food, climbing gear for any situation, and the intentions of having an adventure. After a week of climbing some established routes, we decided to explore the 1,000m Pared Arco Iris, which is dominated by striking dihedrals and large blank faces. It is one of the first faces you see when walking into the valley and looked to offer good free-climbing potential. Arco Iris had not seen a true bottom to top accent, and our goal was to put up a quality free route doing just that.

We worked in capsule style, first aiding and fixing ropes up the wall. Once we had a good idea how the pitches would be broken up, we bolted the anchors and started cleaning the pitches and adding necessary bolts on top rope. We spent a total of six weeks establishing the route. On average each pitch took two days to clean and bolt. In all, we put in 38 belay bolts and 64 protection bolts over 19 pitches. The climbing consists of delicate yet powerful stemming through the many dihedrals, connected by sections of straight-in crack and pure face climbing. Most pitches are 5.9 to 5.11, and there’s one unforgettable pitch of 5.12, with powerful stemming for 40m.

Excited to check out the route, locals Daniel Seeliger and Mono Gallardo joined us for the first one-day ascent, climbing with Drew and me, which allowed us to confirm the grades and quality of the climb. The route took us 17 hours round trip. We named the route Positive Affect (975m, 19 pitches, 5.12b) in memory of my late wife, Jennifer Dinaburg, whose positive affect lives on.

Chance Traub, USA