Learning Class 4

FAQ and threads for those just starting to hike the Colorado 14ers.
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Michaeldadof4
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Learning Class 4

Post by Michaeldadof4 »

This may be a stupid question and the information may be somewhere on this site, but I can't find it. A little bit about me. I live in Memphis, TN and try to make a yearly trip to Colorado to hike/climb 14ers. Most of what I have done in Colorado has been class 2 routes with some class 3 stuff thrown in. I enjoy class 3 scrambling and prefer a good amount of exposure. I climbed Mt. Rainier 3 years ago and and do class 5 climbing in Tennessee, Arkansas, and Illinois. What I haven't' done is class 4 climbing. I realize there are some great class 4 routes in Colorado and would love to give them a try. So here is the question: how can a low/flatlander learn? My guess is that class 4 climbing involves many of the skills I already have, but I don't know how to put those skills together for use on a class 4 route. Can anyone suggest a class, a book, or a website that can point me in the right direction?
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SchralpTheGnar
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Re: Learning Class 4

Post by SchralpTheGnar »

If you can climb class 5 you can climb class 4, there are some exceptions to this for sure, but it is a general guideline to which one can usually adhere.
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Michaeldadof4
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Re: Learning Class 4

Post by Michaeldadof4 »

That is what I assumed. I've never done multi-pitch routes because they are difficult to find near my home and I've only done class 5 sport routes. Maybe what I'm looking for is information how to set protection for the climb (which on a 14er is going to be multi-pitch) and how to retrieve gear on the rappel.
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justiner
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Re: Learning Class 4

Post by justiner »

For Class 4 routes you'll find on Colorado 14ers probably will be safer to not set gear on them - there are exceptions (I guess?), but perhaps a big difference between a Class 4 route and a Class 5 on Colorado 14ers, is that a Class 4 route may be pretty loose, meaning pro will make things more dangerous potentially - a rope could knock things off onto your belayer, for example.

Exceptions to this would be Longs Peak, where everything is pretty solid for Alpine. Capital Peak has some nice spicy Class 5 routes, but it's going to be loose stuff for some of the pitches.

So, knowing how to rock climb 5.something is good! You may want to also be comfortable with loose crap though. Dont trust your holds, push down, rather than pull out when you can, test them but knocking on them to see if they're hollow and know if you get off route in a Class 4 route, you're looking now at a much harder grade, or something you really don't want to be on, at all (very loose, and very dangerous).

The only time I've really personally seen people set gear on Class 4 routes is in the Flatirons, which are pretty busy, but the rock is generally quite good. You may see this happen around RMNP when the rock is again pretty good. Generally high up you wanna move at a good pace, and setting up a belay well takes time - another slight reason that adding pro could make things more dangerous for you.
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polar
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Re: Learning Class 4

Post by polar »

Michaeldadof4 wrote:Maybe what I'm looking for is information how to set protection for the climb (which on a 14er is going to be multi-pitch) and how to retrieve gear on the rappel.
You won't need to. Climbing class 4 route as a multi-pitch trad route will just slow you down and create a higher chance for you to epic. For a competent rock climber, it may be difficult to distinguish between class 3 and class 4 because the movement and technique involved are so easy compared to class 5. Most do class 4 unroped for a good reason: you don’t need a rope. The risk on class 4 is higher, so just go with your level of risk tolerance.
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SikYou
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Re: Learning Class 4

Post by SikYou »

This topic comes up pretty frequently and there have been some great suggestions on routes, technique, etc. I'll take a look and see if I can find some of the recent threads to point you to.
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ChrisinAZ
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Re: Learning Class 4

Post by ChrisinAZ »

Lots of good advice here already. And I've certainly heard of very experienced rock climbers who balk at class 3/4 stuff due to the lack of protection!

If you've done lots of technical climbing, agreed that the two biggest hurdles to overcome are the loose rock you might encounter, and the mental aspect of being unroped. Yes, some "class 4" stuff (Granite Peak MT, most California class 4 routes coming to mind) are done roped, but Colorado class 4 is generally less stiff than those. In a nutshell, I'd say: have 3 points of contact, always test your holds, push down rather than pull out on handholds, and don't climb up something you don't feel you can safely downclimb without a rope.

I'd recommend tackling some routes that have either a single class 4 section, like N Maroon, or that have the option to make things more spicy, such as Pettingell's East Ridge route. Alternatively, you can go play around on the hogbacks outside of Denver or FoCo and practice going up little 10' 4th class walls.

Honestly, most of the 4th class 14ers aren't all that 4th-classy--the only one that really freaked me out in that regard was Little Bear. Capitol and Mt. Wilson's summit block were both on very steep faces with horrific exposure, but had huge, solid hand and footholds. Pyramid and the Bells were just fun blocky stuff and never really sustained 4th--though see the above note on handholds! On none of them did I feel the need for a rope.
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MountainSlayer
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Re: Learning Class 4

Post by MountainSlayer »

Why don't you just try to link up with someone on this site for a class 4 adventure? Although I have not yet used this site for anything other than reconnaissance, members seem to be very willing to show others the ropes.
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justiner
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Re: Learning Class 4

Post by justiner »

MountainSlayer wrote:Why don't you just try to link up with someone on this site for a class 4 adventure? Although I have not yet used this site for anything other than reconnaissance, members seem to be very willing to show others the ropes.
Or lack-of-ropes!
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MountainSlayer
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Re: Learning Class 4

Post by MountainSlayer »

justiner wrote:
MountainSlayer wrote:Why don't you just try to link up with someone on this site for a class 4 adventure? Although I have not yet used this site for anything other than reconnaissance, members seem to be very willing to show others the ropes.
Or lack-of-ropes!
Touche!
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Re: Learning Class 4

Post by Tornadoman »

Honestly with your experience I bet you will be fine. I have never climbed anything class 5 in my life, not so much as a climbing wall, but in my limited experience class 4 has not been very difficult. If you have several class 3 routes then I would recommend giving it a try (preferably with a good partner). The line between class 3 and 4 is a bit gray, and in my opinion class 4 is a bit more vertical with smaller holds.
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Re: Learning Class 4

Post by onebyone »

Class 4 will not be a problem for you. The only trick about class 4 is staying on class 4. One wrong turn and next thing you know it, you're on some sketchy stuff. So yeah, for you, researching the route is more important than the actual difficulty. Kit Carson would be a good example of a class 3 route turning into a class 5 route by mistakenly going off route.
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