Subject: Left Hand of Darkness
Rating: V9
Quality: 3 stars
Location: Tram
Notes: Steep Cranking!

Study: Left Hand of Darkness is a great steep and powerful boulder problem. Not only does it climb out of the juiciest section of an ominous black boulder, but it also finishes with a big slap for the moderately tall top of the stone. The problem is actually a sit down extension of the classic Over the Boardwalk problem, which was first put up by Wills Young just before the turn of the century. Dan Mills made the logical extension to the large shelf below (around '04), christening the addition Left Hand of Darkness.

The problem starts as a sit at a large shelf that runs across the bottom of the boulder. From there, long reaches lead out the bulge on thin tramslots and crimps, to an upper horizontal crack. Follow the crack to the left for about three feet and launch for the sloping top!

Daniel Woods flashing Left Hand of Darkness ...as a warm up!
Photos: C. Anastasi