Over the summer, Jake Whittaker and I put up a new free route approximately 100 yards left of the Widow’s Tears amphitheater. We called the climb the Lurch (7 pitches, 5.12c/d), after one of the last moves on the route—by far the crux.

The Lurch follows an obscure, unknown aid line that may be from the ’90s, judging by the bolts at some anchors. Our line veers from the aid route in a few places to allow for free climbing and/or avoiding death. For example, a leftward traverse on the fourth pitch avoids monstrous and very precariously stacked, Volkswagen-size chunks of granite. The aid route appears to climb to the major ledge 400’ below the rim—our route stops short of this ledge by about 400’. You could keep going, but the quality of terrain diminishes drastically, and it would take a silly amount of scrubbing and work—plus, this would leave a white streak on an otherwise black wall, visible from two of Yosemite’s more frequently visited pullouts.

The Lurch is characterized by quality stone, quality climbing, and relative safety. It’s a great route to throw oneself at if pushing the grade. And if you don’t climb 12+, this might be a good one to see where you’re at—you can really go for it at the cruxes. The seven pitches go at 10+, 11a/b, 12b, 11c/d, 10c, 12a, and 12c/d, and some are short for ease of belays and diminishing rope drag on the hard sections. Overall, the route is PG, but the cruxes are as G as G can be.

At the top of this no-summit, silly little route tucked into an obscure corner of the Ditch, climbers will be rewarded with a secluded, stunningly gorgeous perch where they can sit in peace, breathe, and take in the overall contentment that only accompanies climbing routes longer than a few pitches.

– Bob Jensen