The guidebook lists several problems that go straight up through here and top out on fairly bad slopers, but I've always felt the best line was to begin on the starting jugs for Way Under and follow the good holds as they trend up and left to a crimpy top-out above Rover.  There are good holds for the top-out a bit back from the lip.

Under Rover traverse

Charlotte's Web

Hawaiian Tropic

Grotesque Old Woman

Deep Forest Arete

Grotesque Old Woman Sit

Cradlerock Style

Way Under

Cthulhu Crack

Jabberwocky

This is a great warm up. Beta is very cut and dry.

Start with the left hand on a good side-pull crimp and the right on a mediocre crimp.  After the first ten feet or so the grade drops to VB-.

Bob Bank's and Steve Edwards' guides both say this one starts on a small pocket and a crimp around the corner from Deep Forest Arete. There are a few pockets on this face and quite a few chossy crimps, but I ended up following the center of the face using a chest high 1-pad deep two-finger pocket for the left hand, an okay right diagonal crimp with a little thumbcatch, set a low left foot on the mossy rail down left, and then you throw straight up right to a really good open hand sloper, and follow with a good crescent dish for the left hand and decent crimps/slopers above.

The first move is really hard. Once established on the nice edge at about 10 feet the difficulty eases somewhat. However, at this point the climbing changes from hard pulls on bad edges/pinches to balancy squeezing on mediocre slopers. As a result, I can easily imagine a crimp pulling hardman getting shut down at the top, and I know that a strong compression climber will hike the top but will have heaps of trouble with the bottom (this is me).

In any case, this is an absolutely awesome climb and a must do for any V7+ climber.

Just like Charlotte's Web, after the first 15 feet the climbing goes to no-fall VB.

Sit start to Grotesque Old Woman, adds 2 moves. Start on two crimps, pop up to the start holds of the stand and do the rest.

Video

Sit Start. Both hands on the really small but obvious crimp rail. Go strait up left hand to another bad crimp (crux). Then do an easier move to a good right hand. Top out on the V0 jugs.

Start on the good jugs and move up and right over the bulge to a sloping top-out.

Another punishing sideshow on the Santa Barbara Offwidth Bouldering Circuit. I'm really proud of this one.

Story:

It was hot. Very hot. Bernd and I couldn't muster the enthusiasm to climb anything with edges, so we decided to get creative. For the last five years I had been scoping out massive boulders that intersect, an occurrence which typically creates flaring hands-to-offwidth cracks of a gritty, desperate nature. On the backside of the Charlotte's Web boulder, just such a discovery languished in undiscovered glory. Some digging, scrubbing, taping, suffering, and lots of laughing resulted in a truly burly and surprisingly technical off width roof problem.

Beta:

Jugs and toe-jamming at the beginning, followed by hand-jams and side pulls. As you emerge from the cave, vicious arm-barring awaits. Once you figure out what to do with your feet, top the sucker out. Then vomit your lunch.

I have really no idea how hard to rate this thing, because it requires such a unique set of skills. I said V5/6, but that could be a sandbag. Or not. Go with friends and long sleeves. You'll need the company of both to enjoy this rig.

Description

Location

Protection

Routes in Charlotte's Web Area