Move upward using the main crack system to a sloping stance on highly textured, orange rock. Continue upward through the crux of the climb by stemming up a wide dihedral that is well protected with small gear in a thin crack on the left. Pull over a small roof and continue on easier ground to the anchor.

The Ramp

Mission Control

Clear Light

Skyline Chimney

Skyline Arete

Chicken Fart

The Stairs

True Skyline Arete

Skyline Pinnacle

Skyline Face

Chicken Heart

Your Lead

Cactus Flower

Ramp Arete

Can't touch this

Lunch Rock Right Crack

Lunch Rock Left Crack

The Steps

Beautiful

Waiting for Bruce

The Trauma

Orange Walk

Lunch Rock Slab

Toprope the arete just left of the Ramp, and just right of the Stairs.

This is a great climb. The crux is at the top through the last three bolts where it gets pretty vertical. This is a great climb for beginners because the first 5 bolts are probably in the 5.6-5.7 range, plus you can skip the last 3 bolts by heading to the right after the 5th bolt and clipping in to the "Beautiful" rap station.

Climb the shallow dihedral/ramp just left of the Stairs.  Face climb to top.

From the top of Lunch Rock proper you can see a ledge that runs to the right, past Mission Control.  Near the right end of this ledge is a big pod with a hand crack running up a little ways.  This is best accessed by hiking past Lunch Rock and scrambling up to the left, to the end of the ledge.  Be sure to have your belayer set a piece (small nuts work fine) in one of the cracks before you begin.  Start in the pod and use the crack to pull out of the pod to another ledge.  Staying left of the arete, face climb past three bolts and top out on the first pinnacle (Orange Ledge).  There is a two bolt anchor that can be used for top roping several climbs that finish here.  You'll need slings to extend the anchor for that.  When cleaning, just walk off to the East (past the tree, onto the hillside) and follow the last chute down and back to the right.

This route is an alternate start to Chicken Heart. It starts with an easy dihedral, that you can stand ontop of to clip the only bolt of the route. There are a few options to handle the crux. A great left hand crimp at chest level is the only good foothold, and if you are flexible enough you may be able to step directly to it. Your right hand can mantle on a perpendicular face to the right for support. If you cannot make the step you may be able to scramble up the slick face.

After the bolt you traverse a ledge to left to merge with chicken heart and continue up the 2" crack to the anchor (quick links in good condition as of 2020).

This outstanding beginners route is located between The Trauma and The Ramp. Climb up a block section to a stance atop a small pillar, then continue up a trough to the anchor.

In Messier's no-longer-available online guide to Mission Gorge, pro for the True Skyline Arete is listed as being the same as that for Skyline Arete.  This needs some clarification.  Although I've led the true arete several times, pro is hard to come by.  The bolts of Skyline Arete are well to the left and the bolts of Orange Walk are well to the right, so you'll wander a bit on lead.  The crux is simply staying on the arete, rather than climbing the face.  If just leading at the grade, this one is best first done on top-rope.  Start as for Skyline Arete but follow the small crack up and right from the pod.  From the ledge, climb straight up the arete proper, finishing at the anchor atop this pinnacle.  To descend, walk past the tree and onto the hillside and head down to the right at the last chute, continuing back right to the base of the climb.

This climb starts 15 to the left and up from Mission Control.  Follow the obvious hand crack up across a series of big ledges to the base of the orange block at the top of the pinnacle.  Climb the orange face to the top, passing two bolts.  The major portion of this climb is very easy trad, probably no harder than 5.4 which is too bad; were there less ledges and more verticality, this could be a really great crack.  But this climb is all about the orange block, which offers some real fun and somewhat exposed movement over moderate ground.  Skyline Pinnacle does not lend itself well to top-roping; better to lead and follow.  There is no bolted anchor.  To descend, scramble down to the east (away from the climb) and then follow the 3rd/4th class gully back to the trail/base of the rock.

This is really just a variation to Skyline Arete.  Start as for Beautiful, on the ledge that runs from the top of Lunch Rock, past Mission Control and Skyline Arete.  Continue up Beautiful until you can climb up and right onto the face.  From there, clip the first bolt on Skyline Arete, then move up and left.  Continue straight up to the top of the pinnacle (Orange Ledge); the crux is passing the last bolt.  A TR can be set up using long slings from the two bolt anchor.  After cleaning, walk East (onto the hillside past the tree) and follow the last chute down to the right.

Belay from a sloping ledge. Climb past two bolts on slippery features and a shallow, small cam placement  to a ledge. Continue up a right facing dihedral to a rap station.

Leave the Trauma up and left up past two bolts.  This climb is basically kick back climbing with a hard 5.9 boulder problem thrown in the mix.  The trick is traversing left past a blank section after the first bolt is clipped.  This climb gets much easier once you learn the moves.

One star since the short and hard crux is out of bed with the easy clmbing on the rest of the route and the gear anchor and rappel is kind of a hassle.  This does open up another route in a very popular area however.

Starts up a hard finger crack immediately left of The Steps. Climb the face and dihedral above. Either finish at The Steps or The Ramp anchors. Very hollow sounding rock at the top of the dihedral. Because of this, it makes for a scary lead.

Squeezed face climb just right of the Trauma, and left of Clear Light. Various starts at the bottom. Stay 4 feet right of Trauma. All holds on Trauma are off. Good moves. On the upper part, head right (polished crux) to Clear Light.

Just to the right of Lunch Rock Slab is a corner.  Ascend the corner using small holds in the center of it.  The move off the ground is the crux and then it gradually becomes more easy.

Good OW practice, if nothing else... Short fists to off-width crack beneath the start of the Ramp. Set a TR atop Lunch Rock by slinging a block or by plugging a few cams. Set your TR slightly off to one side of the crack to avoid unnecessary rope interference whilst climbing.

The route starts up and to the right of The Ramp. Follow the crack up to the bolted anchors. There's one bolt right below the anchors.

From the ledges below, scramble up 3rd class rock to a left trending hand crack.

This route lies right of the Bush Slide. From the left, move up and right to a bolt (shared with Your Lead) then up to the top.

Climb up a large chunky flake system using face and chimmney moves to a stance just below a large right facing dihedral.  Step out to the right and continue up to the anchor on easier ground.

From the hillside just right of the True Skyline Arete, climb up easy blocks to a ledge right of the arete.  Clip the bolt in the middle of the orange patina and head up to the right.  Thin holds and smears get you to the second bolt which is on the second orange face.  The following sequence is the crux.  Once you can reach the bomber hold up high, you're through it - pull up and over onto the top of the pinnacle, also known as Orange Ledge, to a two bolt anchor.  This route was originally rated 5.10a in the old Gerberding MG guide as well as in Kennedy and Hubbard's San Diego County Climbing Guide.  Messier rated Orange walk a 5.10b in his online guide.  I rate it here as 5.10c because I believe the micro-holds of the crux have become quite polished over the years.  What once was a very nice, balancy move has become something far more desperate.  Still a very fun climb, but a little run-out, although the bolts are where you need them.  Walk off to the right to descend, past the tree and onto the hillside, taking the last chute down and back to the right.

This is a left facing corner with low angled ramp.  Friction up the ramp using a crack just outside the corner.  Then bump up over a small roof and reach for the top.

Description

Protection

Routes in Lunch Rock