Whodunit (5.9; eight pitches) Tahquitz Rock, California

A delectable mystery leads to a satisfying cliffhanger 

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As you rack up in the parking lot below Tahquitz Rock, it’s nearly impossible not to feel the history seeping out of every dignified crack and feature on the granite above. This is, after all, the embryonic loins, the Fertile Crescent, and the cradle of civilized (if you can call it that) American climbing all rolled into one. A place where climbers in the 1930s — by way of manila rope and tennis shoes — honed the craft we would all come to use. Where one of the first 5.9’s came to be climbed and rated, and on that note, where the decimal system ratings came from in the first place. 

But it is also impossible not to notice one very stately crack shooting seven pitches up to the summit in a line that, even by Tahquitz standards, puts a whole lot of class in classic. That eye-catching line is of course the Whodunit or Hoodanette as it was called in the days of yore. Whatever the name, the mystery remains the same. In 1957, Royal Robbins and Joe Fitschen were halfway up the route when they came across a lone piton. Below and above there was no sign of human passage. Hence, they gave the apparent question “who done it?” some cultural cadence, turning mystery into modesty while managing to corrupt the French language. 

The route wasn’t freed until the prolific partnership of Bob Kamps and Tom Higgins put their Kronhoffer and Cortina clunker shoes to the route nine years later. “The God of the period was Royal Robbins,” says Higgins, who is 63, still climbing a bit, and, by the way, coined the term “trad” in the 1984 Ascent article, Tricksters and Traditionalists. “We knew he was on the first ascent party, the line looked beautiful and we wanted to meet the challenge of his route. We had no idea it would go free, but it did, well within the standards of the day.” 

It still does. Whodunit is, for the most part, fingers to hands to offwidth — often in a single, beautiful pitch. Bring gear to 3” and some runners. The climb begins auspiciously enough on low angle slab to a dihedral that steepens into a chimney. Getting in the chimney is easy. Getting out is the crux. Soon after awaits a nice belay ledge to let the mind cool. Then, straight up to a flake to find a belay ledge above a dead-bleached tree. Ten feet to the right, catch another crack that leads to an exposed roof. From there it’s any easy pitch to the summit where you should have time to jump on some more classics as you wind your way down and around the base to the aptly named Lunch Rock. Mystery solved — almost.