Out to Lunch

This long and excellent climb goes up the center of Muralla Grande, passing the biggest obvious roof just to its left. It might be considered a major variation to Warpy Moople, as "Out to Lunch" shares the start with that route. This may be a small step up in seriousness from Sandia 5.10 classics like Yucca Flower Tower and Mtn Momma. Expect good rock and possibly some complicated route-finding on what is maybe the best 5.10 line on the cliff.

Pitch 1: The first 1+1/2 pitches are shared with Warpy Moople. Start at the highest pine tree below the big roofs. Follow a shallow right-facing corner straight above, then weave your way left then back right, then back left again to a belay on a grassy ledge (5.7, 130’).

Pitch 2: Go up and right, undercling right past a roof, then go straight up passing a big flake. Move left to a ledge with a piton, belay. (5.9, 100’).

Pitch 3: Climb above the ledge and work left to a belay ledge left of the biggest roof. This belay has a fixed pin and fixed nut (5.7, 90’).

Pitch 4: This crux pitch is full-on Sandia wildness. Climb right and up a tricky right-facing corner passing a piton (a 2nd pin shown on the topo is missing in 2018). Clip a 1/4” bolt below a roof, make a thin traverse right 15’ to a new bolt. Go straight up technical terrain with small knobs to a crack, then turn a small roof and step right to a 2-bolt belay. (5.10b, 110’)

Pitch 5: (a) Traverse right and slightly downward 20’, to a short hand crack (rejoining Warpy Moople, which traverses in from the right). Face climb, continuing up and right, sometimes with infrequent protection to a 2-bolt belay on a small ledge. (5.9, 120’). (b) Or go straight up from the belay (see comment from John Kear below).

Pitch 6: Straight up from the belay to a fixed pin. Make one tricky move just past the fixed pin, traverse right, and go up to a grassy ledge. Angle up and left, first climbing past a small chimney, then along an easy left-trending ramp to a belay at another grassy ledge (5.8+, 160’).

Pitch 7: Stem a weird dihedral off the belay; then straight up loose open corner to the top (5.8, 180’).

There are other options from the belay after pitch 4, going straight up or to the left; one of those is probably the original route. Consult the guidebooks and see comment below.

Cams and nuts to 4”, with some doubles in finger/thin hands sizes.