One of the finest sport routes in all of the Red, and for that matter, anywhere. That is the reason for my choice for it to be the first one I went back for upon 'homecoming' in Y2K. The name is a great coincidence.

Climb an easy face past a few bolts and move out left onto a steep arete in the sun. Climb past perhaps 10 bolts to the anchors on smaller holds than are common in the red, using the arete frequently for hands and heels.

No Place Like Home

Spiny Norman

Yellow Brick Road

Ruby Slippers

Green Piece

Beast

Solitaire

Somebody Else's Problem

Mandarin

Stemulator

Let the Wookie Win

Flying Monkeys

The Shining

Mercury in Retrograde

Skittles

Father's Day

Ripple

The Man Behind the Curtain

Big Toe Arete

Generic Layback

BJ and the Bear

Black Magic Arete

The Fictitious Egg

Whiteout

Ghaffi Stick

In The Middle

Lollipop Kids

Sweat of the Wookie

Winkie Guard

Saint George

Wolverine

Cornerstone

Tusken Raider

Shelf Life

Knobs, Etc.

Constellation

Hollow Threat

Fall Guy

Toto

Sonsphear

Hot Wheels

Watto (SDS)

T. Frump

Best Clockmaker on Mars

The Bulge

Diamond In The Rough

Long Shot

Dangatang

Sharp

Generator

Yellow Brick Toad

Whiteout Direct (aka Nerds)

My Sexy Cranberry

The crack itself is fairly easy and secure. When the crack turns a ledge step left and pull onto a slab. Protect out of the thin crack and practice your slab technique.

I love this route, but some people think it's stupid. It's really a matter of taste I guess.

Climb the dihedral by stemming and locking to a ledge with a large loose block and rappel. The route can be continued to the top through the dirty crack system.

A fun, albeit dirty hand crack that climbs through a few small rhodos to nice ledge topout, making liberal use of face holds when the crack tightens up. The FA started from a dirty hueco below the ledge that ruby slippers and flying monkeys start from, but you can also skip the lower start and traverse to a hueco and begin there.

As of Oct. 2020 there's a solid anchor/rap tree on the right once you reach the ledge. Bring some cord for the belay. No need to leave tat for the rap, the rope should pull just fine.

Climb through some 5.9 edgy slab terrain to a stopper crux. After committing to the fierce move relax for a moment on a good ledge. Then mantel (or dyno!) your way to easier ground and the anchors.

Beautiful stone and great moves make for a classic (though anti-sterotypical) RRG climb.

Another great climb on Emerald City.  A great circuit for this area is to access the ledge and do all 5 adjacent climbs without untying your shoes or rope.

Just right of the obvious scoop at the bottom of Flying Monkeys lies another bolted line. Climb up the edge of the "dish" and head for anchors at the top. There may be no particular crux on this climb, but it is not without some hard moves. The holds are small, but mostly good. Wear your edging shoes!

On the Witch's Castle (Boulder)

This is the boulder downclimb.  Climb the left end of the west face of the main boulder using a nice flake feature.

On the east face of the Wolverine boulder is a one move wonder. Grab the overhanging slopey flake and do a tenuous semi-sit start. Throw for the positive lip above and mantel out the finish. This is just a single low-percentage move.

Solitaire Boulder

Sit start, climb the blunt arete, laying off slopers, and top out on the horseback arete.

Shelf Life Boulder

Start on the same hold as

Shelf Life

, but go up and slightly right to top out.

Climb the vertical face to a committing move from the slabby face on the right onto the arete. Easier ground takes you to the ledge.

Climb pockets and stem off edges on the north side of the main Witch's Castle boulder.  Downclimb

Green Piece.

Wookie Boulder

On the west face of the boulder begin low and to the right and traverse left all the way back to the trail utilizing flat ledges and thin feet.  This was the original problem on the boulder.

Beware of the flat rock behind you in the middle of the traverse.

A short hard crux on smaller holds leads to easier climbing on the face above.

Start off the ledge by stepping into a bowl-shaped depression in the wall and start climbing in earnest. Clip a bolt and crimp up over the lip of this bowl and boulder through the crux. Clip another bolt and climb easier face  moves to the top with a good anchor.

Boulder out the tough opening moves with a good spot or tricky gear. Once you get established at a rest the route is pretty straightforward. Plug up some good fingerlocks on an aesthetic splitter crack in beautiful, solid stone. It needs to be much longer, but alas!

Sound & Fury Boulder

In the center of the downhill face begin on two deep pockets.  Undercling and lay off to the left, throw for a good hold, and top out.

Walk off back

Skittles Boulder

Start low on the right-hand side of the face and do the rising traverse along the slopey lip. Either continue down the other side or top out at the apex of the face.

Pitch 1 (5.3): Climb the nice looking, but extremely sand crack in a dihedral to a ledge. Move left from the rockhouse and bushwhack vertically to a ledge below the second pitch.

Pitch 2 (5.5): Climb the face next to the right arching crack to a committing top out.

Ripple Boulder

Climb the center of the downhill face on cool sandstone ripples.  Walk off back.

Start off the ledge into the right-leaning finger crack. Smear, lock and press your way through the entirety of the route.

If accessing via rappel, the gear anchor at the bottom of the crack takes hand-sized gear (recommended); however, there is also a bolted anchor 10ft below on a very sandy ledge.

Climb the northeast arete of the tall boulder. Start on edges, move to the arete, move up and pull over the top of the boulder. Very cool problem.

Downclimb (read jump) onto a crashpad, where the boulder creates a corridor at the corridor's west end. It's the shortest there, and there's a good jug and foot about halfway down the face.

Not technically hard, but definitely heady as described.  Begin in the low dihedral at the left edge of the Yellow Brick Toad boulder.  Layback off the front edge of the fin boulder with your feet on the slab boulder to the left.  Don't use the back edge of the fin.  Top out on the fin.

Same start as

Fall Guy

and traverse right and top out

On the block that creates a passage located between Scarecrow and Yellow Brick Road is this heady (for the grade) face and arete problem. Climb the right side of the northeast arete (the one closest to YBR) to a good top out.

The landing is bad and the moves are sort of commiting as you fight the barndoor effect.

Fictitious Egg Boulder

Weird sit/contort start in the scoop on the corner of the boulder utilizing thin edges for your hands. Pop up to a sloper edge, match, mantel and slab to the top.

Climb the original flake and ramp system to the left for full trad experience of climb an alternate start which has been bolted and is in a plumbline with the rap anchors on the first belay.

Once you reach the exposed and comfortable ledge continue up the dihedral. You need to exit the crack onto the left face when it becomes possible (about 15 feet above where the crack jogs hard right at a horizontal). Climb up big ledges to the bolt anchors. Rappel twice to get down.

This route is mostly face climbing near a crack and is a whole heck of a lot of fun!

On the Wolverine Boulder

Layback off the arete between

Tusken Raider

and

Beast.

Climb the north face of this boulder. Start on crimps and double digit crimps. Move to limited options, and pull up on top.

Downclimb (read jump) onto a crashpad, where the boulder creates a corridor at the corridor's west end. It's the shortest there, and there's a good jug and foot about halfway down the face.

The right-most bolted line on the ledge above the approach trail. Start up past a few bolts and a few hard moves on pockets to reach good edges (better holds) on a slabby face. Head up to the anchors past 4 more clips.

But was it Lollipop Kids or Lollipop Guild? Me thinks the latter in the Wizard Of Oz.

Wookie Boulder

R to L traverse.  This is an extension of

Let the Wookie Win.

Went back later and added a few more moves. Begin as far right as feasible and traverse into and finish on

Let the Wookie Win.

Step off in the trail.

On the Witch's Castle.

Immediately to the right of

Green Piece

climb up nice edges to a crimp sidepull and top out.

Sit start on right side of Dangboy Boulder on a deep pocket and jug. Move up to a good edge, then bump over to the big pocket. Move up on pockets to a great ledge and top out in a tricky position.

Wolverine Boulder

Body english will get you up this steep offset prow. The moves are fun, but hard to unlock. There are established problems to the right on this boulder.

Sit start and climb the steep arete left of

Green Piece.

Wolverine Boulder

Climb the less than vertical face to the right of the prow and top out.

Shelf Life Boulder

Begin on a chevron shaped hold left of center, deadpoint to the slopey shelf to the left, mantel up, and top out.

Downclimb to the right

Solitaire Boulder

Utilize the iron oxide "eyebrow" and the blunt arete to ascend this boulder to the summit.  Downclimb chimney in the back

On the east face of the Monkey's Lair.

Sit start under a hollow flake feature on small edges. Crank up on a series of better edges taking you up and slightly right to the apex of the overhanging face.

Generator Boulder

Climb the southwest corner of the boulder.

This problem ascends the southeast dirty crack on this boulder. Begin with a cool chickenhead, and make your way up and through a a good portion of moss to the top of the boulder.

Down climb on the north side of the boulder. Be  careful it's quite mossy.

This climb is more for the type of person who wants to climb everything regardless of how dirty/short it is.

On the Witch's Castle

Thin slab in the middle of the west face.  Climb straight up through a round iron oxide feature.

Shelf Life Boulder

Just right of center on the uphill face climb the small arete feature on slopey holds and small feet.

Downclimb to the right.

This problem ascends the southwest corner of the Welcome Boulder. Start from a sit down start using the hidden undercling and make your way up. End with a surprise and bask in your glory!

Down climb on the north side of the boulder. Be careful it's quite mossy.

This climb is more for the type of person who wants to climb everything regardless of how dirty/short it is.

Sound & Fury Boulder

Climb the obvious obtuse arete on the left side.

Walk off back

Early and fun crux but not fun enough to make the rest of the route worth it.  Look out at the chossy bulge.

An excellent sport route up thin, crimpy holds.

Generator Boulder

Start same as

Generator

but go left

Start matched on small angled jug, move left on decent edges to a big pocket. Big move to the sloper on the corner, then move up for the top out. Resist the temptation to use the mossy slab around the corner for feet; stay on the front face only.

Generator Boulder

Sit start left of the southwest corner on crimps and climb up the edge of a circular feature to the top.

A thin crimpy face climb up the left side of the wall.

Layback the right edge of the fin shaped boulder near the base of the sport route

Yellow Brick Road

and top out.

Climb easy, but off balance moves to a distinct crux where the angle changes from vertical to low angle. The climbing is much easier after the crux.

One first time climber, having trouble with the crux moves was reported to have called out, "These nerds are hard to hang on to!"

Check out the cool iron oxide features.

On the Witch's Castle (Boulder)

Climb right of center of the west face on the best and most obvious line up some nice rounded iron oxide edges. This is the first reasonable line left of the top of the Knobs Boulder.

Downclimb

Green Piece

on the left end of the same face.

Description

Location

Protection

Routes in Emerald City