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Climb Moab's Ancient Art, Fisher Towers Area

Moab, Utah

5.0/5
based on 1 reviews

Description

Added by Liam McNally

An exciting and scenic tower with solid protection.

This is one of the most popular towers in the Moab area and for good reason. It's well-protected, has super fun movement and variety, and the final spire summit will get your blood pumping. 

Aside from a few bolted moves that go around 5.10+ (or A0), most of the route is pretty cruiser ranging from 5.6-5.8. Even the summit spire is pretty easy climbing and bolted. The exposure is what will get you there - almost 500 ft down in every direction from a 3 ft platform - but don't let it psych you out. It feels a lot safer than it looks. If you're comfortable leading 5.10 sport routes, you'll have no problem on this. You can easily top rope the final pitch if anyone in your party doesn't want to lead.

The approach is pretty clear. You can see the spire from the parking lot. Take the well-worn trail from the parking lot until you pass the tower on your left, then veer left, following the obvious climbers trail.

Here's a quick breakdown of the four pitches:

Pitch 1: 5.Fun climbing to reach the base of the sporty, crimpy moves over the face. Keep your feet wide, look for little nubs to pinch (trust these little guys, they're solid), and keep moving. Brings slings to avoid rope drag later on. You could aide the tough section, but it's perfectly doable as a free climb. 5.10+ or A0 (Note: it really is only 2-3 moves of tough climbing on this pitch. The rest is 5.Fun-5.6.)

Pitch 2: Super fun, straight forward chimney climbing. Lot's of good protection, fun movement, and classic stemming fun. 5.8

Pitch 3: A nice crack leading to a few slightly more stout face climbing moves with bolted protection lead you to the big platform where you can anchor into chains and set up for the final plank walk and summit. 5.8

Pitch 4: This section is a little heady, but the most fun. Start by walking across the narrow bridge and do the "belly flop" up onto the diving board. It feels awkward and a little spooky, but it's super fun and usually leads to a few good laughs from your belayer. From there it's a pretty straight forward route, following bolts that wind around the spire to the top. Take a moment to soak it all in from the top, it's pretty epic. 5.10 (rating mostly for exposure).

Rappel from the ledge between pitch 3 and pitch 4. Head down off the wall to climber's left of the route, rather than following the path you took up. It's a popular route so you don't want to rap on top of another party heading up. The easiest way to do this is with two 70m ropes, but apparently it can be done with two 60m with just a few feet to spare. There are a few a other ways to rappel with a single rope and some maneuvering but to save yourself the headache and to avoid rapping on top of people climbing up, I recommend bringing two 70s.

Gear: standard single rack, slings, draws, 2 x 70m rope.

You can climb here year-round, but it'll be HOT in the summer and can get cold in the winter as well.

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Features

Rock Climbing
Easy Parking
Scenic

Climb Moab's Ancient Art, Fisher Towers Area Reviews

While the climbing may be sub-par the view and experience are not. The climbing is relatively easy and if you or your partner cannot climb 5.10, the gear can easily be pulled on. The beached whale move can be tough for the shorter folk but the experience is amazing.

Leave No Trace

Always practice Leave No Trace ethics on your adventures and follow local regulations. Please explore responsibly!

Nearby

Off Road to the Top of The World

Drive through Scenic Castle Valley

Parriott Mesa Trail

Hike to Castleton Tower

Mountain Bike Moab's Porcupine Rim

Descend MMI Canyon