A straight-up, vertical layback crack in a shallow corner. It starts with a few fist jams, but quickly narrows to fingers. Relatively short (~40-50 feet), but quite sustained.

Making the Little Ducks Quack

Man in the Box

Little Fire

Message to Love

Them

Planet Caravan

Sweets for Manuel

Endless Skies

Meadow and Spicer

Index Air Force

Walk up forested ledge towards Meadow and Spicer. Near the crest, about 30' from that route, cut left and down slightly on the obvious ledge.

P1: Walk the above ledge. From the end of the ledge go up to the base of a clean corner (5.5).

P2: Climb the clean, large left-facing corner. Sustained. Traverse out the roof (pumpy) to a rest. Then climb the wide crack with face holds on the main Duck Wall face. Some excitement as you approach the fixed anchor (5.10).

P3: Traverse right and up to the base of a roof band.

P4: Traverse left, just under the roof band (5.10d).

P5: Go up, trending right to the top. This pitch can be combined with P4.

Rap from here, or rap down Meadow and Spicer (top rap of the latter is a tree).

An excellent climb that stands out by its radical hanging stem box. It also has great corners, fun face and some tricky slab. A total classic!

P1 5.10+ - Start face climbing past 3 bolts and traverse right into the corner.

P2 5.10a - Climb the stem box.

P3 5.11a - Traverse left on the slab.  Continue up and right up the fun blocky overhangs.

A wonderfully physical climb. Start on slopers leading to laybacks and compression. Quite steep for Index. No one move is hard but linking them is the crux.

This short route is really good.  It starts out with a thin corner, followed by a cool traverse, and ending with a short wide section.

A scrambly approach pitch leads to a large ledge and bolt anchor.

P1: Climb the granite AF bolted corner to the base of a large chasm. 5.11-

P2: A rarity for Index. Small gear behind your back, a couple of bolts, and some larger cams protect an amazing squeeze chimney. Head out right and up onto the slab. 5.9

P3: Splitter! A finger crack in a corner leads to chain anchors. You can top out Duck Wall and combine this with any of the routes on the Diamond for a nice long day! 5.9

Follow a crack-corner system to a small roof. The crux is a fingertip layback about 20 feet up. Go right around the roof, then cut back left.

Five stars. Completely overhung climbing, perfect rock, a proud position, wild, pumpy movement and a sicky gnar gnar crux sequence combine to make this one of the finest routes at Index. You owe it to yourself to get your grrr on and do this thing.

Aside from 2 or 3 holds at the top (one of which is a huge jug) the route stays dry in the rain for climber and belayer.

P1 starts with a stick-clip (see stick lying nearby) to the first bolt. Either pull up on the rope to reach the ledge or do a short V2-3 (5.11c) sequence. From the ledge, follow the corner up to the roof (~10a), go over the roof (~10a/b), face climb up to the crack, and climb the wide crack (~8+/9) to a large, slightly downsloping ledge with a chained 2-bolt anchor.

P2 starts up the corner just above the anchor, and goes up to the crack above on the headwall. The crux move is about 5.8, getting into the crack. The crack, which is finger-sized with hand pods every few feet, goes to a nice flat ledge with a two-bolt chained anchor.

P3 goes up the short flake/corner system to the top (~5.6). There is no metallic anchor up here, just a bunch of trees. But the view and setting is wonderful.

Great route, recently cleaned. 5.8 hand crack leads to a crux finger crack section near top of route. Fun route!

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Protection

Routes in Duck Wall