The Phoenix | E7/7c+ Trad climb at Cascade Falls

First ascent. 14 attempts.

An incredible ascent for it's time, combining cutting edge difficulty with the technical innovation of friends, which Jardine invented and put to good use on routes like this.

Gripped.com:

In 1977, armed with a handful of Friends, Jardine rappelled into The Phoenix project. Instead of lowering after he fell, he hung and worked out the moves. Though other Valley climbers scorned his hangdogging, Jardine pushed through. On his 14 try, he climbed the route, protecting it with nuts and pins at the bottom and Friends on the splitter.

“The Phoenix is the hardest thing I’ve ever done,” said Jardine in a 1979 Mountain Magazine interview. Not only had Jardine shown what cams and hangdogging could do, he’d also established the world’s first 5.13 trad route. [2]

References

[1] https://www.facebook.com/climbing.in.the.80s/photos/a.270388289694020/511968895535957

[2] This was the World's First 13a Trad Climb, Gripped.com 6th December 2022 https://gripped.com/routes/this-was-the-worlds-first-5-13-trad-climb/

Second ascent.

https://www.facebook.com/climbing.in.the.80s/photos/a.270388289694020/462380993828081

https://www.instagram.com/p/CTmkokWDd3g/

References

[1] https://www.ukclimbing.com/news/2011/06/honnold_solos_the_phoenix_-_yosemite-62712

[2] https://ukbouldering.com/board/index.php/topic,4660.3825/topicseen.html

https://www.instagram.com/p/BbSII__ld8A/?utm_source=ig_embed&ig_rid=1fa1264f-5f66-4ae9-84ca-0c28f8fb3b12