- Edit (TBD)
Description
This route is listed in Castles in the Sand (Bloom 2002) as "East Face". It is found in the Flag Climbing topo binder as "East Side - South Facing Chimneys". After climbing it (and all other chimneys on BJ Rock) I've attempted to give it a more easily identifiable name.
Pitch 1: Shared with Direct South Chimney. Start at the saddle shared with Joe's Tower. Scramble through limestone band and drag the rope through cacti/brush to a belay at the base of the chimney. (5.easy) - note: the FA team approached from the left with a pitch of loose 5.10 climbing
Pitch 2: Venture up a chossy chimney to a big ledge. (5.8 PG-13)
Pitch 3: Move the belay to the back of the ledge and lurch up the bomb-bay chimney to a big ledge shared with the Original Route. (5.9)
Pitch 4: Same as Original Route, with optional belay at top of chimney. (5.8)
Rappel the Direct South Chimney directly back to your packs. Or rap the north side and scramble back around (tricky).
Location
The easiest approach, if you don't have a 4x4 vehicle, is to hike from the Chapel trailhead (see formation page for alternate approach). Hike out to Chicken Point where you can say hi to the Pink Jeeps and more importantly identify the tower and the route (very obvious; see photos if unsure). Hike north along the Broken Arrow trail until it is possible to scramble up slab/gully to the notch between the formation itself and Joe's Tower, the satellite limestone-capped mudtower below Blowjob Rock on its southeast side. Total approach: 40-60 mins
With a 4x4 vehicle, you can drive Broken Arrow road to Mushroom Rock, leaving only 15 minutes of scrambling to the base of the tower.
Protection
Single set cams to 6"
Routes in Blowjob Rock
- 2South Chimney - Right Fork5.9Trad