Leaning Tower - West Face

Though suffering from its neighbor immediately across the valley (a piece of rock you might have heard about, called El Capitan), the aptly named Leaning Tower still has the distinction of being one of the most overhanging walls in North America. The regular West Face route is a great first big wall for many Yosemite aspirants, and the nearby Wall of Ages and Fifi Buttress are seeing some interesting and rarely climbed new routes being regularly put up.

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Route List

1: Voices of the Drowned/Mama, 5.8 A2/5.12a, J. Mundo, J. Thompson, 12/2004/S. Jones, J. Jones, 2006
2: Misanthropic Execution, 5.8 A3, J. Thompson, B. Law, 08/2004
3: Resisting Arrest, 5.8 A3, J. Mundo, J. Thompson, 04/2005
4: Yellow Corner/Turning Yeller, 5.12a R, L. Kor, T. Fender, 06/1965/W. Shipley, T. Tech, J. Morgan, 1992
5: Age of Exploration, 5.9+ A3, B. Kay, J. Thompson, 02/2002
6: The New Age, 5.8 A3, J. Thompson, J. Mundo, 10/2004
7: The Anomaly var.,10/2004
8: A Gift from Wyoming, 5.13b, A. Honnold, 2013
9: Disco Strangler, 5.9 A4, E. Redfern, T. Bepler, E. Brand, 03/1985
10: Jesus Built my Hotrod, 5.7 A4, E. Kohl, E. Rasmussen, 09/1992
11: Wet Denim Daydream/Wet Lycra Nightmare, 5.7 A3+/5.13d A0, D. Hatton, A. Thuermer, 1977/T. Skinner, J. Hewett, 2004
12: West Face/Westie Face, 5.7 C3/5.13a A0, W. Harding, A. MacDonald, 10/1966/L. Houlding, J. Pickles, 05/2001
13: Heading for Oblivion, 5.8 A4+, J. Beyer, 1986
14: Roulette, 5.6 A4, E. Redfern, T. Bepler, 03/1984
15: Love Without Anger, 5.8 A3, S. Bosque, R. Albuschkat, 10/1988
16: West Face Traverse, 5.4+ X, G. Harr, C. Wilts, E. Wilts, 1957
17: Center of the Universe, 5.11-, D. McDevitt, C. Jones, 2015
18: Voyager, 5.11c, D. McDevitt, R. Kelly, R. Pitts, S. Hordley, 10/2013
19: Backburner, 5.7 C3, D. McDevitt, R. Kelly, R. Pitts, S. Hordley, 10/2013
20: Make It So/The Niels Tietze Memorial Route, 5.8 A4/5.13a/b, B. Adams, A. Ramsey, 05/2017/Lynch, Sullens, 2020
21: The Final Frontier, 5.7 A3/5.13b, D. McDevitt, S. McDevitt, P. Black, B. Griffith, 1999/N. Berry, J. Lucas, 05/2013
22: Techno Geek, 5.6 A3+, B. Law, 10/1999
23: Romulan Warbird, 5.9 C2/5.12c, D. McDevitt, 1999/L. Rivera, 05/2013

Sources

• “Yosemite Big Walls, The Complete Guide,” Erik Sloan, Yosemite Big Walls, 2020

• “Rock Climbing Yosemite Valley, 750 Best Free Routes,” Erik Sloan, Marek Jakubowski, Yosemite Big Walls, 2020

• “Yosemite Climbs: Big Walls,” Don Reid, Chockstone Press, 1993

• “A Climber’s Guide to Yosemite,”Steve Roper, Sierra Club, 1964

• Mountain Project

• American Alpine Journal

• Brandon Adams

• Kevin de Weese

Updates

Feb 28, 2023: First version published.

July 24, 2023: Minor graphic update

Apr 26, 2026: Caption update