On both August 18 and October 3, the Alpine Rescue Team responded to the east end of the Creekside wall to assist stranded climbers. The climbers had started up the neighboring multi-pitch sport routes Playin’ Hooky (5.8) and Black Gold (5.7), and in each case they had ended up at the final belay anchor for Black Gold. In both instances, the climbers rappelled directly from bolts set at least 10 feet back from the edge of the cliff. Each used a single 70-meter rope to rappel, barely reached the roomy ledge and belay anchors below the last pitch of Black Gold. Because of excessive friction, the climbers could not pull down their ropes, and they ended up calling 911. One pair made their call well after sundown, resulting in a cold, dark wait. Rescuers hiked up the walk-off trail, and two rescuers rappelled from the Playin’ Hooky anchors to the stranded climbers, then helped them down the next three rappels.

ANALYSIS

While the three-bolt anchor atop Black Gold was convenient for topping out, this was never intended to be a rappel anchor. Rather, the bolts were placed as the anchor for a slackline across the adjacent gully long before the climbing route existed. Besides being well back from the edge of the cliff, the bolts also are slightly below the edge, causing rappel ropes to bend more than 90° and resulting in significant friction.

After word got out about the stranded August climbers, Black Gold’s first ascensionist added temporary warning tags to the bolts, one saying “NO RAPPEL HERE” and the other “RAPPEL PLAYIN HOOKY,” with an arrow pointing to the climber’s left. (The Playin’ Hooky top anchor is about 25 feet to the left.) When asked why they ignored these tags, one of the October climbers replied, “We thought the tag meant not to use that specific bolt.” [User-friendly rappel anchors now are in place for this route.] In addition to the possibility of rappelling the neighboring line, there is a walk-off from the top that follows a climbers’ trail north and around the top of the obvious gully, then down the next gully to the east.

Situational awareness is an acquired skill, gained through experience, but the process can be accelerated by climbing with skilled instructors and experienced mentors. With a little extra knowledge and gear, the climbers likely would have been able to recognize the problems with this anchor, identify a rope that might get stuck (conducting a pull test once over the edge), or deal with a stuck rope (carrying prusiks to ascend back up). In addition, carrying an extra layer, especially in spring and fall, can add some comfort when things do not go according to plan. (Sources: Dale Atkins and Curt Honcharik, Alpine Rescue Team.)