Kentucky's Finest

This is a really fun outing featuring intricate face climbing, thin cracks and challenging gear placements.  There is still some fragile rock on this climb, helmets are recommended.

We scrambled up the initial ramp of Nightcrawler to a ledge about 30 or 40 feet off the ground where we dropped our packs and set up to start climbing.

P1:  Leave the ledge and continue up the left leaning ramp that marks the beginning of Nightcrawler.  Climb up the ramp for about 40 or 50 feet until you see a bolt about 8-10 feet out to the right.  Face climbing past another bolt leads to a thin crack system with tricky gear.  Another bolt appears with some face climbing eventually leading to an anchor at a foot rail.  (160ft)

P2:   Climb up the beautifully varnished face to a bolt.  It is a bit committing to get to this first bolt, and is a couple of body lengths off the belay on some slightly fragile holds.  From here the next bolt is even more committing to get to, but now you are on some of the best varnished rock on the route.  Thin face climbing eventually leads to a thin crack with creative gear placements. This crack peters out at a ledge where the climb steps left a few feet.  Leave the ledge and climb up the unprotected face to an anchor that is hidden away in the back of a corner.  I had to get a party on Nightcrawler to held me figure out where I was heading because this anchor is difficult to see.  (160ft)

P3:  The outrageously beautiful corner! While this pitch is short compared to the climbing that precedes it, It makes up for it in quality.  Jam, layback and stem your way up the 60ft to an anchor that hides out on the face to the right of the corner.  This anchor can be seen from the belay below.  (80ft)

From the top of pitch 3 the climb can be linked into Hourglass Diversion for that route's final 2 pitches.  If choosing this option refer to H.D.'s descent information.  Otherwise rappel from here, one rope will get you down the 3rd pitch and then double rope rappel to the ground.  The guidebook mentions a 70m would work for rappelling, but I am not convinced of that.  These pitches seemed much longer than suggested there.

Shares the start with Nightcrawler and eventually heads straight up the face to the right.  

Single rack to 2 camalot with extra small pieces should cover it. I used 2 #1 camalots on one pitch, but other options exist. Lots of draws.