Diamond Sees First Free Ascent, Second Ascent of 5.13

Haas was motivated to try the line after spending time last summer working on the Dunn-Westbay. He had come close to sending the Dunn-Westbay, having done the crux pitch, but was stopped by the soaking-wet upper pitches. Soon after, Josh Wharton snagged the first free ascent in July 2011. “I was super psyched for Josh, but I wanted to continue to have that feeling of exploring new and unknown territory,” Haas says. Friend and guidebook author Richard Rossiter convinced Haas to have a go on Waterhole this season, and “that was sort of that,” he says.

Waterhole #3 was named because it’s constantly seeping: “You start the first pitch by climbing through and behind an actual waterfall,” Haas says. “The upper half was soaked. Something tells me it won’t see another [ascent] for quite some time.” He climbed near the top wearing a rain jacket, while enduring inclement weather. “It started raining on me while leading the fourth pitch, and I didn’t even notice,” he says. “It’s definitely not awesome. It’s like ‘your dog getting out of the bathtub wet.’”

Two days later, Haas made the second free ascent of the Dunn-Westbay (5.10 C3), which was first climbed by Jimmy Dunn and Billy Westbay in 1972. The free grade goes at 5.13b. “Overall, the climbing is great, and it felt like a lingering project,” Haas says. “I feel really fortunate to have been able to do both [routes].”

Dates of ascents: July 2012

Source: Jason Haas (Fixed Pin Publishing)

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