Anchor Maintenance: Cragganmore / Shady Lane - Maple Canyon
Last week, October 21 - 25, the anchor crew finished its anchor season with a final push at the much-needed Cragganmore in Maple Canyon. Cragganmore is a popular crag home to some of the longer mid-5.12s in the canyon, where most routes end with a pumpy bulge that sees many leader falls. Despite its popularity, there is still some loose rock on the right side of the main wall. The crew did its best to clean up any obvious loose rock, but some may still remain. All routes, except RedBreast, were maintained.
The crew prioritized the classics first, such as Popcorn and 50. Our goal was to go hole-for-hole for most routes but quickly had to start drilling new holes. Why? Most of the bolts at Cragganmore were 3/8" studs. To remove these, the bolt must be pushed slightly back into the hole to disengage the sleeve. This is why all bolt holes should be over-drilled to anticipate future rebolting efforts. Unfortunately, we found that many bolt holes were under-drilled, with the stud already at the back of the hole, making removal extremely difficult, time-consuming, and occasionally damaging to our equipment. In these cases, it’s best to drill new holes and patch the originals.
After about 3.5 days at Cragganmore, we headed over to Shady Lane to work on the classic 5.10s in the area. Despite the very cold temperatures, we were able to complete three routes. We plan to return to complete the remaining routes during the 2025 season.
The work at Cragganmore was much needed! We encountered many sketchy washer-stacked anchors, pre-snapped bolts, and loose hangers. This crag is now ready for the 2025 season!
All lead bolts and anchors were replaced with FIXE stainless steel glue-ins, and mussy hooks were installed on all the routes we worked on.
A special thanks to Stefani Day, who has been letting the anchor crew stay at her place in Fairview. Without these accommodations, we would not be able to accomplish nearly as much as we do in Maple Canyon. Thank you, Stefani!
Routes Maintained
Cragganmore”
Slay 5.12a
Sweet Pea S 5.12a
Clyniesh 5.12c
Laphroaig 5.12c
Daddy 5.12c
50 5.12c
Popcorn .12b
Loch Dhu 5.12b
Black Water Fall, The 5.11a
Fat Man Fetish 5.10b
Shady Lane:
Blunt Arete 5.10b
Bicycle Man 5.10d
245 North 5.10b
Rock climbing is an inherently dangerous activity and we encourage anyone who participates to obtain the appropriate education and training in order to minimize accidents. We also encourage participants to consult resources including but not limited to guiding outfitters, SAR, Utah Avalanche Center, ranger stations, and weather reports. Nevertheless and although tragic, accidents can happen even when the participants have the proper training and have consulted authorities on conditions. Participants in outdoor climbing are assuming a risk, just as they do in skiing, mountain biking, kayaking, or other outdoor activities. Anchors once maintained by the SLCA are not guaranteed to be in the same state or condition as when they were maintained.