Cobra Crack

Canadian climbers and Squamish regulars, Peter Croft and Tami Knight, made the first ascent of Cobra Crack in 1981, a route that is located at the 'Cirque of the Uncrackables' behind Stawamus Chief, in Squamish. They used aid and graded it at A2. The route was named after the distinctive cobra silhouette of the groove that leads into the main crack. By the 2000s, the route had become an open project with the leading traditional climbers vying for the first free ascent.

Swiss traditional climbing and crack specialist, Didier Berthod, attempted to free climb the route in 2005, but failed due to a serious knee injury.{{cite web |magazine=Climbing |url=https://www.climbing.com/videos/listen-to-crack-climbing-legend-didier-berthod-give-one-of-his-first-interviews-in-13-years/ |access-date=4 January 2023 |title=Listen to Crack-Climbing Legend Didier Berthod Give One of His First Interviews in 13 Years |first=Fred |last=Moix |date=17 May 2021 |archive-date=24 August 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240824092242/https://www.climbing.com/videos/listen-to-crack-climbing-legend-didier-berthod-give-one-of-his-first-interviews-in-13-years/ |url-status=live }} Berthod's efforts were recorded as part of an award-winning climbing documentary film, First Ascent, at the end of which he says to the camera (in crutches), "I came here to feed my ego and my vanity – to be the first".{{cite web |newspaper=El País |url=https://english.elpais.com/sports/2022-11-15/didier-berthod-from-rock-climbing-star-to-monk-and-back-again.html |title=Didier Berthod, from rock-climbing star to monk and back again |date=15 November 2022 |access-date=4 January 2023 |first=Oscar |last=Gogorza |archive-date=4 January 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230104114834/https://english.elpais.com/sports/2022-11-15/didier-berthod-from-rock-climbing-star-to-monk-and-back-again.html |url-status=live }} Berthod immediately quit climbing and became a Franciscan monk, and his struggles on the "world's hardest crack-climb",{{cite web |newspaper=Los Angeles Times |url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2005-oct-04-os-cobra4-story.html |title=DIDIER BERTHOD: True grit and grip on the Cobra |first=Emmet |last=Berg |date=4 October 2005 |access-date=4 January 2023 |archive-date=24 August 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240824092120/https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2005-oct-04-os-cobra4-story.html |url-status=live }} and his subsequent religious vocation, attracted international attention.

Canadian climber Sonnie Trotter made the first free ascent in June 2006, after 40 attempts spread over 3 years, placing all of his climbing protection as he was lead climbing on the route. Trotter felt it was a "solid 5.14" route, and with subsequent repeats, the consensus grade has settled on {{climbing grade|5.14b}}. A tradition was started of successful climbers signing a wooden fingerboard (called the "Earlmarker") that hangs near the base of the route.

Berthod, who had returned to climbing after more than a decade's absence, visited Squamish in 2023 for the first time since 2005, and made the first free ascent of the long-standing open project, The Crack of Destiny, which he graded as being harder than {{climbing grade|5.14a}}.{{cite web |magazine=Gripped Magazine |url=https://gripped.com/news/didier-berthod-redpoints-new-5-14-trad-in-squamish/ |title=Didier Berthod Redpoints New 5.14 Trad in Squamish |date=25 June 2023 |access-date=15 September 2023 |archive-date=24 August 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240824092122/https://gripped.com/news/didier-berthod-redpoints-new-5-14-trad-in-squamish/ |url-status=live }}{{cite web |magazine=Climbing |url=https://www.climbing.com/news/didier-berthod-first-ascent-5-14-crack-squamish/ |title=Didier Berthod Returns to Climbing Limelight With FA of 5.14 Crack |first=Nat |last=Bailey |date=10 July 2023 |access-date=15 September 2023 |archive-date=2 November 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231102194734/https://www.climbing.com/news/didier-berthod-first-ascent-5-14-crack-squamish/ |url-status=live }}{{cite web |website=CBC News |url=https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/british-columbia/crack-of-destiny-conquered-1.6910679 |title=Legendary free climber conquers the 'Crack of Destiny' in Squamish, B.C. |date=18 July 2023 |access-date=16 September 2023 |first=Maryse |last=Zeidler |archive-date=24 August 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240824092124/https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/british-columbia/crack-of-destiny-conquered-1.6910679 |url-status=live }} In May 2024, Berthod returned to the route to make the 20th ascent of Cobra Crack.

Cobra Crack is a crack climb with a narrow crack that barely accommodates any fingers. The route has an abrasive surface, causing many to limit their attempts to once or twice per day to avoid excessive skin wear. It, therefore, requires a higher pain threshold, with Trotter saying in 2006: "pain is ever-present, and the mental crux is overlooking the pain move after move".

While the entire route is over {{Convert|45|m|ft|adj=off|abbr=off}} long, the main crack is {{circa|{{Convert|30|m|ft|adj=off|abbr=off}}}}. Halfway up the main crack, it begins to sharply overhang at {{circa| 45 degrees}}, and entering this section requires an extremely difficult and painful move where the climber inserts their middle finger vertically upwards into an "undercut mono pocket" in the 45-degree wall above them.{{cite book |title=Crack Climbing - Mastering the skills & techniques |date=January 2020 |first=Pete |last=Whittaker |author-link=Pete Whittaker |publisher=Vertebrate Publishing |edition=1st |page=2.1.7 Donut Jams |isbn=978-1911342762 |chapter=Chapter 2: Finger Cracks |quote=It was made famous by Didier Berthod in the film First Ascent. Didier is seen attempting the first ascent of Cobra Crack in Squamish, with a sequence that involves him inserting his middle finger upwards into an undercut mono into the crack in the 45-degree wall above him. }}

The technical crux is getting over the lip at the top of the overhang and then immediately making a critical move upwards. In 2006, Trotter said: "The redpoint crux comes over the lip on a slippery side pull; the feet are next to nothing, and it takes momentum and a huge throw to latch the final edge, at which point you're about 15 to 20 feet [above] your last piece of gear—it's really exciting". Contemporary climbers use route beta that employs a dramatic inverted heel hook (i.e. the climber's legs are above their body) to get through this lip.

After its first free ascent in 2006, Cobra Crack was considered the hardest traditional crack climbing route in the world.{{cite web |magazine=Desnivel |url=https://www.desnivel.com/escalada-roca/favresse-repite-cobra-crack/ |date=30 July 2008 |access-date=18 September 2023 |trans-title=Favresse repeats Cobra crack |language=es |title=Favresse repite Cobra crack |quote=Sealing Cobra Crack's candidacy for the hardest crack on the planet |archive-date=7 October 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231007115734/https://www.desnivel.com/escalada-roca/favresse-repite-cobra-crack/ |url-status=live }} Reporting on Didier Berthod's failed 2005 attempt, El País called it "the most difficult fissure on the planet", while Desnivel said that Favresse's 2008 repeat had: "sealed Cobra Crack's candidacy for the hardest crack on the planet". Two decades after the first free ascent, Cobra Crack still ranks amongst the hardest traditional climbing routes in the world, and only one to two notches below the hardest, which are at {{climbing grade|8c+}} to potentially {{climbing grade|9a}}.{{cite web |magazine=Gripped Magazine |url=https://gripped.com/profiles/the-worlds-hardest-trad-routes-by-winter-2021/ |title=The World's Hardest Trad Routes by Winter 2021 |date=1 February 2021 |access-date=21 March 2023 |archive-date=24 March 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230324181941/https://gripped.com/profiles/the-worlds-hardest-trad-routes-by-winter-2021/ |url-status=live }}{{cite web |website=99 boulders |url=https://www.99boulders.com/hardest-trad-climbs |title=The Hardest Trad Climbs in the World |first=Willis |last=Kuelthau |date=24 September 2019 |access-date=15 September 2023 |archive-date=5 December 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231205195700/https://www.99boulders.com/hardest-trad-climbs |url-status=live }}

Cobra Crack remains an important route in traditional climbing history and repeats are covered in the climbing media. In 2017, after Mason Earle made the 11th ascent, PlanetMountain wrote: "Cobra Crack immediately struck a cord, in part due the heinous finger-locks required to power through the crux, in part due to its innate beauty. Over the years some of the best crack specialists in the world have been drawn to the line and while it may have lost some of its original fearsome reputation, the climb is just as beautiful as ever." In 2021, Gripped Magazine said: "Over the past decade and a half, it's become one of the world's most sought-after single-pitch gear [traditional] climbs". In 2023, Climbing called the route "famous" and "iconic".

File:Laurel pokes Cobra Crack 2.jpg' silhouette groove at the start of the route]]

Cobra Crack has been climbed by:{{cite web |magazine=Gripped Magazine |url=https://gripped.com/news/cobra-crack-is-canadas-famous-hard-gear-route-heres-whos-climbed-it/ |title=Cobra Crack is Canada's Famous Hard Gear Route, Here's Who's Climbed it |date=20 October 2021 |access-date=18 September 2023 |archive-date=7 October 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231007123242/https://gripped.com/news/cobra-crack-is-canadas-famous-hard-gear-route-heres-whos-climbed-it/ |url-status=live }}

• 1st (as an aid climbing route). Peter Croft & Tami Knight in 1981 (as an A2-graded aid route).{{cite web |website=PlanetMountain |url=https://www.planetmountain.com/en/news/climbing/sonnie-trotter-climbing-cobra-crack-squamish-canada.html |title=Sonnie Trotter climbing Cobra Crack at Squamish in Canada |date=June 2020 |access-date=19 September 2023 |archive-date=24 August 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240824092124/https://www.planetmountain.com/en/news/climbing/sonnie-trotter-climbing-cobra-crack-squamish-canada.html |url-status=live }}
• 1st (as a free climbing route). Sonnie Trotter in June 2006.{{cite web |magazine=PlanetMountain |url=https://www.planetmountain.com/en/news/climbing/sonnie-trotter-frees-cobra-crack-514-bc.html |title=Sonnie Trotter frees Cobra Crack 5.14 b/c |date=June 2006 |access-date=18 September 2023 |archive-date=7 October 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231007115154/https://www.planetmountain.com/en/news/climbing/sonnie-trotter-frees-cobra-crack-514-bc.html |url-status=live }}{{cite web |magazine=Climbing |url=https://www.climbing.com/news/trotter-climbs-5-14-icobra-cracki/ |title=Trotter Climbs 5.14 Cobra Crack |date=29 June 2006 |access-date=19 September 2023 |first=Dougald |last=McDonald }}
• 2nd. {{ill|Nicolas Favresse|fr}} in July 2008.{{cite web |magazine=Gripped Magazine |url=https://gripped.com/video/watch-the-second-ascent-of-cobra-crack/ |title=Watch the Second Ascent of Cobra Crack |date=10 June 2023 |access-date=18 September 2023 |archive-date=7 October 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231007115722/https://gripped.com/video/watch-the-second-ascent-of-cobra-crack/ |url-status=live }}{{cite web |magazine=PlanetMountain |url=https://www.planetmountain.com/en/news/climbing/nicolas-favresse-repeats-cobra-crack-squamish-canada.html |title=Nicolas Favresse repeats Cobra Crack, Squamish, Canada |date=July 2008 |access-date=18 September 2023 |archive-date=24 August 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240824092124/https://www.planetmountain.com/en/news/climbing/nicolas-favresse-repeats-cobra-crack-squamish-canada.html |url-status=live }}{{cite web |magazine=Climbing |url=https://www.climbing.com/news/cobra-crack-nicos-story-ethans-near-miss/ |title=Cobra Crack: Nico's Story, Ethan's Near Miss |date=15 June 2012 |access-date=18 September 2023 |first=Dougald |last=McDonald |archive-date=18 April 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210418045528/https://www.climbing.com/news/cobra-crack-nicos-story-ethans-near-miss/ |url-status=live }}
• 3rd. Ethan Pringle in August 2008.{{cite web |website=UKClimbing |date=17 August 2008 |access-date=18 September 2023 |first=Mick |last=Ryan |title=Pringle Succeeds on Cobra Crack: 3rd ascent |url=https://www.ukclimbing.com/news/2008/08/pringle_succeeds_on_cobra_crack_3rd_ascent-45263 |archive-date=27 July 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230727182808/https://www.ukclimbing.com/news/2008/08/pringle_succeeds_on_cobra_crack_3rd_ascent-45263 |url-status=live }}
• 4th. Matt Segal in September 2008.{{cite web |magazine=Climbing |url=https://www.climbing.com/people/interview-matt-segal-on-his-life-as-a-pro-climber-and-entrepreneur/ |title=Interview: Matt Segal on His Life as a Pro Climber and Entrepreneur |date=20 February 2021 |access-date=18 September 2023 |first=Kevin |last=Corrigan |archive-date=9 December 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221209223127/https://www.climbing.com/people/interview-matt-segal-on-his-life-as-a-pro-climber-and-entrepreneur/ |url-status=live }}
• 5th. Will Stanhope in July 2009.
• 6th. Yuji Hirayama in September 2009.{{cite web |magazine=PlanetMountain |url=https://www.planetmountain.com/en/news/climbing/yuji-hirayama-cobra-crack-and-back-to-his-roots.html |title=Yuji Hirayama, Cobra Crack and back to his roots |date=September 2009 |access-date=18 September 2023 |archive-date=7 October 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231007115154/https://www.planetmountain.com/en/news/climbing/yuji-hirayama-cobra-crack-and-back-to-his-roots.html |url-status=live }}
• 7th. Alex Honnold in 2011.
• 8th. Pete Whittaker in September 2013.{{cite web |magazine=PlanetMountain |url=https://www.planetmountain.com/en/news/climbing/tom-randall-and-pete-whittaker-repeat-cobra-crack-at-squamish.html |title=Tom Randall and Pete Whittaker repeat Cobra Crack at Squamish |date=September 2013 |access-date=18 September 2023 |archive-date=5 September 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230905055532/https://www.planetmountain.com/en/news/climbing/tom-randall-and-pete-whittaker-repeat-cobra-crack-at-squamish.html |url-status=live }}{{cite web |magazine=Desnivel |url=https://www.desnivel.com/escalada-roca/tom-randall-y-pete-whittaker-repiten-cobra-crack-en-squamish/ |date=26 September 2013 |access-date=18 September 2023 |trans-title=Tom Randall and Pete Whittaker repeat 'Cobra Crack' in Squamish |language=es |title=Tom Randall y Pete Whittaker repiten 'Cobra crack' en Squamish |archive-date=22 September 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230922105731/https://www.desnivel.com/escalada-roca/tom-randall-y-pete-whittaker-repiten-cobra-crack-en-squamish/ |url-status=live }}
• 9th. Tom Randall in September 2013.
• 10th. Ben Harnden in May 2016.{{cite web |magazine=Gripped Magazine |url=https://gripped.com/news/ben-harnden-sends-cobra-crack-5-14/ |date=1 June 2016 |access-date=18 September 2023 |title=Ben Harnden Sends Cobra Crack 5.14 |archive-date=7 October 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231007114453/https://gripped.com/news/ben-harnden-sends-cobra-crack-5-14/ |url-status=live }}
• 11th. Mason Earle in October 2017.{{cite web |magazine=PlanetMountain |url=https://www.planetmountain.com/en/news/climbing/cobra-crack-at-squamish-climbed-by-mason-earle.html |title=Cobra Crack at Squamish climbed by Mason Earle |date=October 2017 |access-date=18 September 2023 |archive-date=7 October 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231007155357/https://www.planetmountain.com/en/news/climbing/cobra-crack-at-squamish-climbed-by-mason-earle.html |url-status=live }}
• 12th. Logan Barber in September 2017.{{cite web |website=UKClimbing |url=https://www.ukclimbing.com/articles/features/logan_barber_on_cobra_crack-9719 |title=Logan Barber on Cobra Crack Interview |first=Nathalie |last=Berry |date=27 September 2017 |access-date=18 September 2023 }}{{cite web |magazine=Gripped Magazine |url=https://gripped.com/news/logan-barber-makes-12th-ascent-of-cobra-crack/ |date=26 August 2017 |access-date=18 September 2023 |title=Logan Barber Makes 12th Ascent of Cobra Crack |archive-date=7 October 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231007115117/https://gripped.com/news/logan-barber-makes-12th-ascent-of-cobra-crack/ |url-status=live }}
• 13th. Said Belhaj in 2017.{{cite web |magazine=Gripped Magazine |url=https://gripped.com/news/said-belhaj-gets-lucky-13th-cobra-crack-5-14/ |date=11 September 2017 |access-date=18 September 2023 |title=Said Belhaj Gets Lucky 13th on Cobra Crack 5.14 |archive-date=29 August 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230829120248/https://gripped.com/news/said-belhaj-gets-lucky-13th-cobra-crack-5-14/ |url-status=live }}
• 14th. Tristan Baills in 2019.{{cite web |magazine=Squamish Climbing Magazine |url=https://squamishclimbingmagazine.ca/tristan-bails-makes-ascent-of-cobra-crack-5-14a-recent-news/ |title=Tristan Bails makes ascent of Cobra Crack (5.14a) |date=3 July 2019 |access-date=18 September 2023 |first=Tim |last=Schaufele |archive-date=7 October 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231007114453/https://squamishclimbingmagazine.ca/tristan-bails-makes-ascent-of-cobra-crack-5-14a-recent-news/ |url-status=live }}
• 15th. Ryan Sklenica in July 2021.{{cite web |magazine=Gripped Magazine |url=https://gripped.com/news/ryan-sklenica-sends-cobra-crack-5-14-in-squamish/ |title=Ryan Sklenica Sends Cobra Crack 5.14- in Squamish |date=30 July 2021 |access-date=18 September 2023 |archive-date=7 October 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231007123739/https://gripped.com/news/ryan-sklenica-sends-cobra-crack-5-14-in-squamish/ |url-status=live }}
• 16th. Stu Smith in 2021.
• 17th. Nat Bailey in May 2023.{{cite web |magazine=Gripped Magazine |url=https://gripped.com/news/cobra-crack-5-14-trad-repeated-in-2023/ |title=Cobra Crack 5.14 Trad Repeated in 2023 |date=29 May 2023 |access-date=18 September 2023 |archive-date=7 October 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231007115123/https://gripped.com/news/cobra-crack-5-14-trad-repeated-in-2023/ |url-status=live }}{{cite web |magazine=Climbing |url=https://www.climbing.com/news/hong-does-biographie-cobra-crack-sees-a-repeat-and-70th-anniversary-of-everest-fa/ |title=Hong Does 'Biographie,' Cobra Crack Sees a Repeat, and 70th Anniversary of Everest FA |date=7 May 2023 |access-date=18 September 2023 |author=Climbing Desk |archive-date=24 August 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240824092127/https://www.climbing.com/news/hong-does-biographie-cobra-crack-sees-a-repeat-and-70th-anniversary-of-everest-fa/ |url-status=live }}
• 18th. Connor Herson in August 2023.{{cite web |magazine=Climbing |url=https://www.climbing.com/news/connor-herson-sends-5-14-squamish/ |title=Connor Herson Just Hiked 'Cobra Crack' and 5 Other Squamish Testpieces |first=Nat |last=Bailey |date=17 August 2023 |access-date=18 September 2023 |archive-date=6 February 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240206045138/https://www.climbing.com/news/connor-herson-sends-5-14-squamish/ |url-status=live }}
• 19th. Adrian Vanoni in September 2023.{{cite web |magazine=Gripped Magazine |url=https://gripped.com/news/cobra-crack-sees-summer-2023-sends/ |title=Cobra Crack Sees Summer 2023 Sends |date=25 September 2023 |access-date=29 September 2023 |archive-date=5 January 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240105190654/https://gripped.com/news/cobra-crack-sees-summer-2023-sends/ |url-status=live }}
• 20th. Didier Berthod in May 2024.{{Cite web |last=Bailey |first=Nat |date=16 May 2024 |title=After 10 Years in a Monastery, Climber Send One of the World's Toughest Trad Routes |url=https://www.climbing.com/news/didier-berthod-climbs-cobra-crack-5-14-squamish/ |access-date=17 May 2024 |website=Climbing |language=en-US |archive-date=30 May 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240530192528/https://www.climbing.com/news/didier-berthod-climbs-cobra-crack-5-14-squamish/ |url-status=live }}{{cite web |website=PlanetMountain |url=https://www.planetmountain.com/en/news/climbing/didier-berthod-finally-climbs-cobra-crack-squamish-canada.html |date=15 May 2024 |access-date=23 June 2024 |title=Didier Berthod finally climbs Cobra Crack at Squamish, Canada |archive-date=23 June 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240623135755/https://www.planetmountain.com/en/news/climbing/didier-berthod-finally-climbs-cobra-crack-squamish-canada.html |url-status=live }}
• 21st. Ethan Salvo in August 2024.{{cite web |last1=Pardy |first1=Aaron |title=Ethan Salvo Sends the Legendary Cobra Crack |url=https://gripped.com/news/ethan-salvo-sends-the-legendary-cobra-crack/ |website=Gripped Magazine |access-date=20 September 2024 |date=9 September 2024}}

• First Ascent: The Movie (2005), Peter Mortimer. Sender Films. ASIN B000IWPP4G. – Documentary with Didier Berthod.

• Indian Face, British E9-graded traditional climbing route from 1986
• Separate Reality, American 5.12a-graded traditional climbing route from 1978
• Prinzip Hoffnung, Austrian 8b/+ graded traditional climbing route from 2009
• Rhapsody, British E11-graded traditional climbing route from 2006

{{reflist}}

• [https://www.thecrag.com/en/climbing/canada/squamish/the-chief/route/17560777 Cobra Crack], theCrag (2023)
• [https://www.mountainproject.com/route/107234305/cobra-crack Cobra Crack], Mountain Project (2023)
• [https://www.climbing.com/videos/watch-sonnie-trotters-2006-fa-of-the-notorious-cobra-crack/ VIDEO: Watch Sonnie Trotter's 2006 FA of the Notorious Cobra Crack], Climbing (2020)
• [https://www.planetmountain.com/en/news/climbing/cobra-crack-at-squamish-climbed-by-mason-earle.html VIDEO: Mason Earle "Cracking Cobra"], PlanetMountain (2017)

Category:Traditional climbing routes

Category:Squamish, British Columbia

Category:Climbing in Canada