Window Dome- Four Course Meal
Cochise Stronghold- Rock Climbing
Total Time: 6:20
Distance: 2.2 miles
Elevation Gain: 1080′
Crux: 5.7
Pitches: 4
Protection: Rack of single cams with doubles of 0.75-2, nuts.
Companions: Holly, Colin Pickles
Trailhead: West Cochise Stronghold, 4WD, no services
Few climbing areas in Arizona are as wild as Cochise Stronghold. Extending through the Dragoon Mountains of Southern Arizona, the climbing area is a series of granite domes and spires extending through several valleys. I had only climbed in the area once before, tackling the ultra-classic “What’s My Line” at 5.6, which some would argue is in contention for one of the best moderate climbs in the state. The area is notoriously sandbagged and run out, and does not host a ton of easy lines that I felt I was up for, particularly given my lighter amount of climbing in times of COVID. Four Course Meal, a four pitch 5.7-5.8 seemed like a good option for a reasonable day. Located on the more rugged west side, the approach is short by Cochise standards (assuming your car can handle the drive) with four pitches of varied and progressively better climbing, ending in a sandbagged splitter crack up and over a natural arch on a feature called Window Dome. Unless you’re camping, even the more straightforward multipitch routes in Cochise require an early start, and we left my sister’s home in Tucson before day break, stopping at a Starbucks and grocery store en route and ultimately reaching the trailhead shortly after 8 AM. The road in was actually better than I expected, the majority graded washboard with only the last 2 miles requiring high clearance. We parked at a turn out at the end of the road, the only car at the remote trailhead on a autumn Monday morning. Aside from one short rappel, the descent from Four Course Meal was a walk off that spits you out closer to the trailhead than the route base, and given the short approach, we donned our harness and gear at the car, bringing only two small packs between the three of us for our climbing shoes and water. The maintained trail that started from this trailhead actually cuts across the range connecting the east and west Stronghold canyons. But we never set foot on the actual trail, instead heading directly north in a wide wash.
We needed to utilize use trails out of the wash a handful of times at some of the short dry falls or in areas that were clogged with brush, slowly climbing towards Window Dome. The approach is shared with Whale Dome, another classic feature in Cochise Stronghold, and we could see the namesake face of the dome ahead up canyon.
We left the wash as Four Course Meal rounded into view, reaching a shaded albeit bouldery staging area at the base of the climb. From below, the dual crack system of the first pitch seemed fairly mellow, although it was already beginning to get quite hot, the temperatures warm for even early October.
With harnesses already on, we just needed to don our shoes and flake the ropes before I started up on the sharp end, finding ample protection and holds as I ascended the dual cracks. I felt a bit rusty heading up the first pitch and was glad for the solid rock and easy stances, quickly reaching the first belay station at the base of a chimney. This belay would have been a bit uncomfortable for the three of us in the hot sun, and I continued past to link the first two pitches together.
The rock became more featured as I climbed the chimney with knobs and alligator skin on the right making for very enjoyable climbing. At the top of the chimney, I needed to step across a small gap, utilizing a massive flake before a bit more chimney climbing up to a slot below a wide ledge. I was feeling quite a bit of rope drag at this point, and although I could see the start of the third pitch a bit higher above, I decided to set the belay here off a large shady tree and flat clearing, one of the nicer belay ledges I’ve used in the desert.
We decided Holly would go second, and I brought up what little slack remained in my 70 meter rope before putting her on belay. I realized running the two pitches together were long, but I was a little surprised at how slow she was moving. I assumed I had gotten a piece stuck in the chimney that she was retrieving.
But when Holly got within ear shot, I could tell she was seriously struggling. She yelled out that she was feeling dizzy, and hung on the rope trying to rest and drink water. It sounded like the rope she was towing to bring up Colin was slotted in the crack below and she was struggling to climb with the rope pulling her backwards. The tension in the tow rope was pulling her harness into her abdomen making breathing difficult, made worse by the pack she was carrying. She probably rested for at least 20 minutes before she recovered enough to finish the pitch and collapsed next to me under the shady tree while I brought up Colin. At this point I was assuming we would be bailing off this tree and calling it a day, but it just so happened to be my birthday, and after a short rest, Holly was insistent that we finish the climb. We made the simple adjustments of Holly ditching the pack and having Colin clean and go second, and we were off up the next pitch. The third pitch (second for us) scrambles up to a left leaning crack that disappears on a knobby face then tops out on another great belay ledge with another nice and shady tree.
I scrambled up and placed a small cam in the lower crack before it became more vertical, plenty of knobs and chicken heads outside of the crack if crack climbing wasn’t your forte. About halfway up the pitch there was an easy but exposed move, and I place a 0.4 cam in a flared crack that I planned to immediately back clean. But in the time it took me to make the one move and place a new piece higher, the 0.4 had walked too deep to retrieve. Both Holly and Colin were unable to retrieve it, although it was thankfully the oldest cam I owned. Cutting my losses, I climbed on. I wanted to utilize a shady tree for a belay and although you would usually belay off the large boulders at the top of the pitch, I had just enough rope with my 70 meters to go tree to tree, stepping over a gap and building an anchor off a large branch making for another easy belay. I brought up Colin first, and aside for some time wasted on my stuck cam, he joined me quickly. Holly was feeling much better as she started up the pitch, unencumbered by the trailing rope or follower pack.
While she climbed up, I had a chance to look at the final crux pitch, a splitter crack rated a sandbagged 5.7. The first few moves were steep but it looked like it mellowed out quickly, although there weren’t a ton of options for feet outside the crack.
I considered the options for a while, but ultimately decided for the easier arete variation considering Holly had nearly passed out earlier, unsure if she would be up for the crux crack. Although no where near as difficult, the arete variation is far more exposed, and after shifting the belay to a closer tree, I made an unprotected step around to the left and on to the arete. I carefully climbed up chicken heads and knobs before I found a small pod to place my first piece. The climbing was low fifth class, but a fall would have been extremely dangerous. I continued up the arete where it merged with the top of the splitter crack, slinging the occasional chicken head for protection as I headed to the summit of the route.
The exposed but easy climbing made the final pitch incredibly fun, and I quickly brought up the others to the top to enjoy the views across West Cochise, including Cochise Dome and What’s My Line to the east, and Whale Dome to the north.
We ate a late lunch at the summit and enjoyed the views before making a plan for the descent. The route is a walk off, but requires an initial class 4 downclimb of about 10′, easy to pick out from above but difficult to see the holds in the deep crack until you were committed. Rappelling off one of the many chicken heads was an easy choice, and I found one with a deep lip around the sides and held it still while Holly rappeled the short 10′ first.
Colin rappelled second and I went last, cleaning our anchor and coiling the ropes at the base. To get back to the car, we needed to head northwest just left of the spine of the dome, traversing through some brush on a thin use trail to eventually reach a gully that descended to the left of our climb. The trail became more well defined as we descended, merging with the approach trail for routes on Paleface Slab.
The natural arch for which Window Dome is named was in full view about halfway down, and we stopped for another photo every 50′, one of the larger natural arches I’ve seen in Southern AZ. The descent route spit us out in the approach gully less than 10 minutes from our car, and we headed back for the cooler waiting with celebratory drinks. We finished them in the shade near the dry wash before heading out along the rough road, scoping out the other west side crags for future adventures.
