Valkyrie

Another enduro jughaul, Valkyrie would fit in perfectly at Rifle’s Wicked Cave, right between

Zulu

and

Slice of Life

. This is a great choice for the aspiring 5.14 climber, with a relatively mellow crux followed by many pumpy, gymnastic moves that can be learned down. There is a bit of off-balance slab groveling at the start, but it gardually gives way to uber steep swinging and hooking between sloping jugs.

Begin from part-way out the upper-left fixed line. Follow a brief slab to a horizontal alcove and the first bolt. Climb awkwardly into the alcove, making sure to take advantage of the no-hands head-jam rest. Exit the alcove, heading up and right, to reach a perched mini-slab. Tiptoe along the slab to an active rest below the crux. The pegmatite band is surmounted with a shouldery reach between opposing gastons. Rock over the bulge to find a great rest—including more opportunities for head-jamming--below the inverted bowl. Pump up the cresting wave, hooking, and toe-camming wildly towards a hanging dihedral. Turn the capping ceiling, squirm into a stem, and work easily up to the anchor.

This is the next line right of Charlie (the large right-fiacing dihedral), beginning a bit left of the Bottleneck, climbing up and slightly right to the apex of the cave. The two best belay options are the Dirt Ledge, or the flat-ish stance below the Bottleneck.

Many bolts to a 2-bolt chain anchor, currently all fixed.