Ewephoria

Sheepshead 6545′ – Ewephoria
Rock Climbing– Arizona
Total Time: 8:20
Distance: 3.2 miles
Elevation Gain: 1700′
Crux: 5.8 +
Pitches: 5
Protection: Trad rack with double to 2, lots of single and double length slings, dozen quick draws
Companion: Colin Pickles

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It was time for my annual pilgrimage to Cochise Stronghold! After a year playing on Yosemite’s slick granite, I felt ready to try a Cochise 5.8, not a particularly difficult grade, but in an area known for difficult run out climbing, one that I wanted to be confident in to lead. With a pregnant wife, it would be just Colin and I, and we decided on an attempt of Ewephoria on the Sheedshead, a 5 pitch 5.8 with well protected cruxes. I was staying with my sister in Tucson for the night, so Colin and I met off I-10, driving south and exiting at Benson for the Western Stronghold. The Sheepshead is in view for almost the entirety of the drive down Middlemarch Road, the large granite dome near the southern edge of Cochise with several smaller domes on each side. We turned left onto FR 687, then made the first right onto an unmarked road, dead ending at a gate with the Sheepshead directly across a grassy drainage. We quickly sorted gear, then went through the gate and followed the well defined use trail east towards the dome.

Although the use trail was overgrown from the big monsoon season Arizona had had, it was still easy to follow, weaving around several small hills before dropping across a drainage to the slopes at the base of the dome. Although the approach was flat to start, the grade increased considerably as we followed the thin, cairned trail up slabs and switchbacks to the base of the granite.

Ewephoria was still another 15 minutes of steep uphill hiking on the northwest face, the approach taking about an hour from the car. The first pitch is often considered the crux, not because it has the most difficult moves, but it’s the most polished. Time to put my polished granite Yosemite climbing skills to the test.

I started up the groove slinging a tree lower down before moving higher onto a ramp and into a dual crack system. The groove was actually wet with a trickle of running water from a recent rain, which actually served as a nice visual as to which part of the rock would be the slickest. Luckily, I was tall enough where I was able to stem well above the groove, along with utilizing knobs and face holds on a rib of rock just to the left. The crux of the pitch came about 2/3s of the way up when the crack narrowed to baggy fingers. But the thinner crack offered great lie backing with good rests on knobs for placing pro. I reached a high bolt, then traversed left on a narrow ledge to a two bolt belay ledge.

After another bathroom break, Colin started up the pitch. He did find it as slippery as advertised, blowing a foot on the slick slabs lower down. It was enough to shake his confidence for the rest of the day- I would be on the sharp end the remaining five pitches. The second pitch is the easiest of the climb, a quick traverse left on knobs to another bolt, and up to a featured 5.7 finger crack. From there the climbing eases considerably on low angled 5.easy and up to another two bolt belay.

I started up off the belay high stepping up to the bolt and moving up to the crack. I had a 0.5 cam ready to go, but had to overcam to place it in the crack- a 0.3 or 0.4 would have probably worked better. There was a flared pod above the crack that could have taken some marginal larger cams, but I climbed past to much easier terrain, clipping the next bolt at a slabby waterfall. The upper part of the pitch was a bit run out, but the climbing was very easy, probably only fourth class in spots. I clipped into the belay, this one on little more than depressions in the slab, and brought up Colin.

The third pitch is the other crux pitch, following a 5.8 watercourse slab, going up and over a bulge with an interesting traverse up to chicken heads and plates. I slowly started up off the belay, my Yosemite slab climbing serving me well as I climbed up from bolt to bolt. There was a nice ledge below the crux moves of the pitch, requiring a mantle over a bulge, well protected by two bolts only a few feet apart. The bolt line traversed right before I reached the chicken head highway.

The section past the bolt traverse is advertised as run out, but I was able to find multiple cam placements between the large plates. I clipped into the two bolt anchor and Colin started up. Normally a slab hater- he rather enjoyed the pitch and I thought it was one of my favorites of the climb as well.

The fourth pitch continues up the run out chicken heads and plates, although I similarly found a few small cam placements along with a few knobs I was able to tie off with double length slings. The middle third of the pitch climbed fairly steep slab through bolts and was a bit more heads up than I was expecting. Near the top of the pitch, I traversed out right and mantled onto a massive ledge with a healthy pine, quite welcome after the small belay stations we had the rest of the day. Colin quickly climbed up to join me, and we contemplated the finishing pitch. From the ledge, there were two basic options- heading directly up from the belay onto an arete, ascending the final pitch of Too Tough to Die, rated 5.8+. The second traditional option moves the belay about 50′ right, climbing a wide chimney up to the summit.

While I had been leaning towards the TTTD finish, I developed a splitting headache on the previous pitch, probably due to the hot sun. I rested a bit under the tree and drank some water, but the headache persisted. So it seemed like it made the most sense to climb the chimney pitch, which I thought I had remembered was rated 5.6. We moved the belay and I started up, climbing over a series of boulders.

The chimney was very wide, much too large to stem although featured a tight squeeze chimney in the back that looked harder than 5.6. I then noticed the bolts above the boulders on my left, trending up a ramp above the squeeze chimney. I clipped into the first bolt, then made a very awkward mantle onto the ramp, belly flopping to the second bolt.

The ramp was wide enough to walk across and I reached an additional bolt protecting a tricky move around a bulge that took me a few minutes to work through before committing. Once above the squeeze chimney, a final bolt protected a sloped mantle move onto the summit rocks. The pitch felt a good deal harder than 5.6, and when we checked the guidebook after, it was indeed rated 5.8+. Colin headed up joining me at the summit, and we untied, sorted our gear and took in the views across the Southern Stronghold.

The Sheepshead is one of the few domes in Cochise with a walk off option, and we walked to the northeast side, quickly finding the cairned and well defined path leading to the saddle between the Sheepshead and smaller Muttonhead to the north. We continued down the trail back to our packs, loaded up our things and reversed the approach to the car. As we were crossing a wash at the base, we stumbled upon a pair of horses grazing in the high grass. It’s no wonder people consider the Cochise a magical place…