Tom's Thumb

Not my friend Tom, but I'm really not sure where the name came from. Yesterday I took my bike up to the top of Janesville Grade and headed up toward Thompson Peak.

I decided to ride up a road I hadn't been up for many years and ended up on the escarpment at Tom's Thumb, a huge granite rock that local rock climbers must have named. There are quite a few pitons embedded on the almost sheer rock face. I tried to climb up the only side that looked like it was climbable without ropes but chickened out after getting over half way up since I was alone and if I fell it could be a long time before anyone found me. The right side of the rock in the bottom picture is the one I tried climbing. It really didn't look too tough and next time I get a buddy to go with me I might try getting to the top.

I went all the way around this thing and checked it from all angles. The downhill side was really impressive in it's formidable appearance and I took the bottom picture looking up at it from near the bottom but you can't get the full perspective. It's a little too steep to climb from this side but you really can't tell from this view.