A Dream of Ultraviolet Unicorns
5.10b/c trad · 17 pitches · 2,000 ft · ★★★☆
Route 15 of 28 from left to right on Black Velvet Wall, with Dream of Wild Turkeys on its left and The Gobbler on its right. Black Velvet Wall has 28 routes, from 5.9 to 5.11d; 8 are harder.
First ascent: Cryptid Conservation Alliance of Southern Nevada
Description
Ultraviolet Unicorns adds several pitches of quality climbing above Dream of Wild Turkeys and is a great option for those hungering for a little more action after completing that route. And for the adventurous souls who want to top out the main Black Velvet Wall, these pitches get you very close to the summit via good climbing on good rock thus keeping the adventure chossaneering to a minimum. The entire route, including DOWT, can be rapped with a single 80m, but it is quicker to summit Black Velvet Peak and walk off. This involves a rope length (probably best broken into a couple shorter pitches) of very easy, but loose, 4th class/low 5th terrain, followed by 2 minutes of 3rd class scrambling. It can all be done in approach shoes but requires some care and route finding. Note: “17 pitches” reflects pitching everything out. Linking pitches, especially on DOWT, is commonplace and easy to do thus significantly reducing then overall pitch count.
Location
Climb Dream of Wild Turkeys - all of it. Continue.
Protection
3x 0.3-sized pieces (0.3 Camalots are a bit too big; 0.3 X4’s, Z4’s, Blue Metolius, Green Aliens, etc recommended). 1x 0.4 to #1 Camalot. 80m rope if rapping.
Hikes, approaches and descents
- Black Velvet Peak Descent Route — Class 3
Access
The 13-mile Scenic Drive requires a timed-entry reservation October to May and has seasonal gate hours. Calico Basin and Kraft Mountain sit outside the Scenic Drive and need no reservation.
Wet rock: Aztec sandstone loses much of its strength when wet. Do not climb for at least 24 to 48 hours after rain or snowmelt, or holds break off and routes are permanently damaged.
More routes on Black Velvet Wall
- Epinephrine 5.9
- Sour Mash 5.10a
- Dream of Wild Turkeys 5.10a
- Malicious Mischief 5.9 R
- Prince of Darkness 5.10c
- Sourpuss 5.11a
- Velveeta 5.11a R
- Norepinephrine 5.10b PG13
- Refried Brains 5.9
- Rock Warrior 5.10b R
- Sandstone Samurai 5.11a X
- Cutting Edge 5.11c PG13
- Smooth as Silk 5.10d PG13
- My Little Pony 5.11d
- Steel Monkey 5.10+
- Fiddler on the Roof 5.10+
- Spark Plug 5.10b
- Yellow Brick Road 5.10b
- The Gobbler 5.10-
- Epi Arete 5.9+
- The Fiddler Roof 5.10
- Overhanging Hangover 5.10a
- Jugs on Drugs 5.9+
- American Flesh Dance (Combination of The Flesh plus American Ghost Dance) 5.10 PG13
- Johnny Come Lately 5.10+
- Hybrid Drive 5.10b
- Old Fashioned 5.11c