Connor Herson secures the fifth ascent of the legendary Magic Line (8c+) in Yosemite Valley. The 35-meter crack, first climbed by Ron Kauk, has only been repeated by a handful of climbers in the past 28 years.
“The Conner Crush Fest continues.” Tim Emmett's comment on Connor Hersons Inspection of Magic Line (8c+) couldn't be more fitting. In a never-ending series, the young American is currently repeating the most difficult trad routes and cementing his status as one of the world's strongest trad climbers.
Magic Line: A crack in a class of its own
Five ascents in 28 years. That is a ratio that says a lot about a route and about those who repeat it. Magic Line is a 35 meter long trad route in the Yosemite National Park and one of the most severe crack lines in the world. After Ron Kauk (1996) Lonnie Kauk (2018) Hazel Findlay (2019) and Carlo Traversi (2022), Connor Herson is only the fifth person to complete this extraordinary feat.
One difficult line follows the next
Connor Herson first attracted attention beyond his own country’s borders when he free climbed The Nose on El Capitan at the age of 15Two years ago he climbed the 9a+ Route Empath only secured by mobile and thus created the potentially most difficult trad climbing route in the world. A little later he succeeded in free walk along the Salathe Wall.
In the summer of 2023 he repeated with Crack of Destiny (8c), Cobra Crack (8c) or Tainted Love (8b) during a single climbing trip the hardest cracks of SquamishIn 2024, he achieved, among other things, the first ascent of Didier Berthod's trad route The Shark (8b+), the second ascent of New Leaf (8b) in Yosemite or the onsight ascent of Prayer for a Friend, a difficult crack in Washington.
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Credits: Cover picture Connor Herson