Spooky (5.9) The Needles, California

Spooky, 5.9, Charlatan Needle, California
Backcountry Granite at its Finest

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The Needles of California dish out inspiration in spades. It’s a feeling that intensifies during the hour-long approach atop a remote, wooded ridge. The warm summer breeze quickly gives way to cold drafts that hint at deep canyons ahead, at a benevolent land changing into something darker, wilder.

Then, when you see the towers, new emotions prevail: Respect? Maybe. Wonder? Probably. Apprehension? Definitely.
Some say the wild green domes in the Needles are haunted by the spirits of Native Americans ... or by something even older. I like to think the two-pitch Spooky is an offering by these spirits. Rich Smith and Herb Laeger made the line’s first ascent, in 1976. Laeger, still active and cranking in the Needles today, pioneered many of the Southern Sierra’s backcountry climbs. Now, 30 years after its FA, Spooky has solidified its status as the classic 5.9 at one of California’s finest climbing areas.
Spooky’s allure begins with its perfect positioning: An easy slab provides elevation and views of the surrounding walls before the hard climbing begins, with a flawless, 5.8+ corner splitter to a spacious belay. The second pitch starts with a challenging section of offwidth (this can be avoided, at stiff 5.10, via a three-bolt arête on the right) that leads into a stunning and exposed face with thin cracks before finishing with unique, airy, granite rib pinching.
As you near the summit, a 360-degree panorama opens up on the tips of many of the Needles, the 5,000-foot-deep Kern River Canyon, and the distant, looming peaks of the High Sierra. In the afternoon, inky-black shadows creep across the green and yellow walls below, and the low sun gives new perspective to the stone: Formerly benign dikes morph into teeth sprouting from ghoulish faces. Indeed, the names of the domes and spires make sense in the waning light — a witch, a sorcerer, a demon, a warlock, a charlatan. Welcome to the Needles.