Tamo - Have you ever climbed there?

This past weekend I met with John Sherman and Chris Dunn at the new Tamo climbing area near Kearny, AZ. It was good to see it and do a little climbing. I appreciate John's and Chris' hospitality and tour. The road in wasn't nearly as bad as I had heard, and I think any short wheel based 4-wheel drive could probably make it. It is a fairly long way for a one-day trip from the Phoenix area, but doable. It has lots of potential for a weekend trip with a ton of level ground for camping, etc.

While originally being somewhat skeptical, I must admit I was impressed with the many and varied climbing opportunities Tamo affords. Seeing it is much different that simply hearing about it. And I found the climbing very interesting and challenging. IMHO it has a ton of quality climbing.

What I didn't find was evidence of much traffic at the crags. Without getting into the "politics" of it all (personally I don't see it as a direct substitute for the half day climbing option that Queen Creek gives us Valley residents, but I do see it as a major climbing resource very much worth securing), I was wondering if many folks actually have gotten out there and tried it.

So, my question -- Has anyone climbed there and what do you think of the climbing?

I've been out there a few times over the last three seasons. I enjoy the climbing, I too find it very challenging. I haven't climbed on a lot of quartzite, so I'm still getting used to the style of climbing there. Lots and lots of rock to climb! Tons of rock! Though none of it is real tall. I like how there is something for everyone unless you are a big wall climber. There's gear routes, bolted routes, mixed routes, a section that is set up for TR only, and even bouldering. So it is very divers in its options for rock climbing. I totally agree that it is "a major climbing resource very much worth securing"!

I also agree that the road in is not nearly as bad as people lead it on to be. The reason that you didn't see much evidence of traffic at the crags is because hardly anybody knows how to get there, thus hardly anyone is there to wear down the trails or put chalk on the walls. Also, with all the rain we got this winter, the lightly used trails were washed up and new plants and weeds grew in them making it harder to find a "trail". That rain also kept a lot of AZ climbers home this winter too. I'm sure there would be a lot more people climbing there if it was more well known on how to get there. On that note; last I checked the Tamo page on this site, it said that legal access is a totally different way than how you got there, and that there is a four mile (hard to find the way) hike from where you park. That will keep a lot of people out!

Tamo is an amazing place with amazing views and tons of rock/climbing. It will be a sad day when we loose access to that place! Hopefully we won't!

The Tamo page gives a pretty fair description.
"The various cliffs of the area range from about 30 feet to over 100 feet with the bulk of the climbable rock in the shorter range."

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Tamo has just about everything to offer but height - all routes can be toproped with a 60m. All climbing styles from comfy clip-ups to X-rated brassie puke fests are found on incredibly solid and unique quartzite.

Erik,

It was really great meting you out there Sat. I'm glad that somebody so involved in this process actually took the time to come see what is on the table.

After you and Dane left Sherman and I had the place to ourselves on Sunday. We put up 3 more trad FA's at the Pig Pen. Pig Mania is 5.5 thin cracks up a vert. face with such good pro I used only stoppers and hexes. The most perfect friction and holds you can imagine hence the 5.5 rating. Musk Hog is a 5.7 crack in a left facing corner that goes through two small roofs. Again, perfect pro and stemming. John finished up Boss Hog a burly 5.11ish crack that overhangs 15' in the first 25' that is right between these two easy climbs. We had a great day with windy cool weather and a little bit of rain.

While packing up the gear and looking out across the canyons at several other cliffs we talked about the future of Tamo. Even though we have been trying so hard to deliver Tamo to the climbing community as mitigation for losses at OF we decided Sunday that we'd just as soon keep it wild as it is now. Once the masses arrive it will be overused and abused. There will be road scars, camp grounds, parking lots, trash, beaten down vegetation around the cliffs and boulders, rangers, throngs of loud pad people, etc. It will have a totally different feel than the true sense of adventure available there now. I guess it is another case of a rock and a hard place.

As far as the location, Kearny is only 25 miles from Superior. Only about 15 minutes further than OF. The drive up takes between 20-40 minutes depending upon your rig and skill. The reason the road is not so bad now is because of all of the hand work we did moving rocks and fixing washouts. There are brand new survey markers next to the road so I suspect that the nearby mine is planning to open soon. The current road will be closed when that happens.

I was just out there today... I am going to put in a few more routes on the Tamo Peak... not sure just yet what kind of height I will get but there is some great rock there and it is right next to the camp therefore easy access... it will definitely turn-out to be a mix of Trad (some great crack lines) and sport (some good overhanging stuff). The rock on Tamo peak is a mix but it is more like the rock at the Homestead.

I was there by myself today and basically got a pathway cleared and marked to the base of the wall... I am all for sharing the area but we need to be careful... not quite sure how much private land (if any) the road goes through but I would hate to see a no trespassing sign up there one day...

Thanks folks. Red, you are right on. Meghan, great photos (I want to get back there!). Chris, thanks again for the "intro." Marcy, you'd love it... JD, was that on the limestone "cap" to Tamo peak? I was wondering about it. (Dane, great to meet you too. PM me your contact info if you catch up with this thread.)

I'm glad to see some folks have been able to sample Tamo. I agree that the climbing is pretty much one pitch from what I saw, but there is quite a bit (I was climbing mostly on the Main Crag) of long 1-pitch stuff. One thing I noted was that the climbs looked tougher from the ground than they actually were when on them. There are a ton of hidden delights. Holds tend to appear just when you need them (at least at my climbing ability!)

My description of the general layout would be that there is a mountain (Tam O'Shanter) that has a big cliff around its top. Then there is a plateau around the peak. That is where you drive in, could camp, etc. The east, north, and west aspects under the plateau are quartzite cliff bands where much of the climbing occurs. Underneath the cliff bands there are huge boulders in a number of places that have great potential for that art (my "old" bones don't do well with bouldering but I love to watch...). The Homestead is visible to the east across of the Valley from Tamo, but at a lower elevation.

Yes, unfortunately the road access is one where folks need some sensitivity from what I understand. The current road is open (for now) but crosses private property, so I'd encourage anyone who goes out there to respect private property rights and be respectful of other users. But that should be what climbers do anyway. We are one of the most gentle land users out there.

John mentioned to me that he had laid out conceptually an alternative road access and that the current road may not be available in the future because of that private property. He has worked closely with the land owners involved and rightfully hasn't wanted any climber actions to interfere with the long term solutions.

A while back, I obtained a map (public document) that had been produced by Resolution Copper that showed the existing road access and the proposed alternative that could be the permanent access. I understand that that proposed alternative does not exist but has had some level of due diligence investigations conducted already.

ErikF wrote:Marcy, you'd love it... JD, was that on the limestone "cap" to Tamo peak? I was wondering about it.

Yes Marcy you would love it! :) Hit me up and I will be more than willing to take you and Geir out there for an intro.

Yes, that is a limestone band... really nice... really sharp... I call it Spiderman rock LOL throw a hand on anything and it is good friction. there are 2 cliff bands the upper and lower... the lower looks like maybe 60' to 70' at the tallest spots?? might be able to tie in the upper band to the peak with some work.

meghan c. wrote: Tamo has just about everything to offer but height - all routes can be toproped with a 60m. All climbing styles from comfy clip-ups to X-rated brassie puke fests are found on incredibly solid and unique quartzite.

I agree wholeheartedly with Meghan. The rock is different from anything else I've climbed. The approach isn't bad, the scenery is breathtaking, and the routes vary in intensity and difficulty.

Feeding the Rat

One thing that I'd like to add about Tamo that was briefly mentioned by Red is that the views are incredible. Tamo is a very, very scenic area. Being situated on the ridgeline of the Dripping Springs Mountains, the vistas are gorgeous. On a rest day that we had out there several months ago, we hiked around the western front and the greens. We then took to the ridgeline to go back to the campsite. We hiked right by the small peak directly to the north of Tamo Shanter Peak and WOW!!!! What a view!!!! Definitly a beautiful place! And the climbing is fun too!

I was lucky enough to catch a ride into Tamo with John Sherman and Chris Hill a few years ago. They gave me a great tour of the boulders. Most of the problems had only been climbed a couple times each. I have bouldered in many places across western North America and I've never climbed on such high quality rock. I don't think a bullet could even make a dent. I was intimidated pulling on some flakes that would break in other areas but they were as solid as could be at Tamo. I live in Canada so it is a big trip down to Tamo but I'd go again for a while if the access issues were all settled.

I've been to Tamo once and it has a lot of potential. Hopefully, it can be protected and set aside as a recreational resource that many generations of future climbers can enjoy.

Curt

Great stuff, folks.

One thing that stuck out to me was the varied pro. Over time my 'standard' rack has changed and I seldom bother with hexes. However, when John offered me his lead rack I noticed a full set of hexes including some of the bigger ones. I ended up using many of them over cams.

It turns out that the very sculptured cracks and pockets at Tamo take the "old school" pro very well indeed. I think the hard rock also makes the use of stoppers and the smaller wired hexes especially possible and secure pro.

Awsome, after reading this I am now wanting to go out there. I am all for having someone re-write the page on Tamo because it sounds like you guys know alot more than my friend Braxton who wrote the original page for Tamo. I remeber asking him about the place after I read his description, and he said "Oh I've never been out there, I just got some info and posted it". Thus by all means grace us with your superior knowledge of the area. Also what does the crag tend to have a majority of grade wise??

Ryan,

Interesting about the Tamo page. I'm not sure how to do that and I probably don't have sufficient knowledge yet to take the lead, but the page could use some correction or improvement. Hopefully as climbers get down there we can build that knowledge base.

As far as the climbs, I know that there are literally hundreds existing and identified. In addition there are many, many routes yet to be established.

The difficulties/ratings of the climb are probably more varied than at most AZ crags. A fun 5.7 cruise is right next door to a 5.12 nightmare (for me!). The ratings on climbs I saw ran from 5.4 to 5.13. In statistical speak and having taken a look at the guidebooks (as they are), I'd say they form a pretty standard Bell Curve with the Mean probably around 5.10 and the Standard Deviation of 1.5 or so, i.e., lots of stuff for everyone.

Hope that helps.
Erik

To get it changed you probably either need to contact braxton, or the administrator. The latter probably being the easier of the two.

I was able to get back out to Tamo this past weekend to do a little more exploring. It has so many different variations and crags it's hard to get it all in.

This time I was able to visit The Corridors. It is a unique set of formations. Imagine big blocks of a cliff that have separated but not tumbled over. Instead, the cracks between the giant blocks have widened to 8 to 15 feet apart to be the equivalent of streets among skyscrapers. You walk up one alley and another presents itself. Tons of developed climbs, many top ropes. It is easy enough to scramble on top of most of the "blocks" I saw to check things out or set up climbs.

It reminded me of my early cragging back in the 1950's in central Pennsylvania. A place near my home called Bilger's Rocks was a set of large blocks of sandstone separated by "corridors" through which you could walk in amazement. Back then we had to redo the pitons we used for anchors on top each year because the sandstone quickly weathered out. Neat flashbacks at this neat resource right here in AZ. But the stainless steel bolts will likely be there for our lifetimes.

Erik,

I think Sherman counted over 120 established routes in the corridors. Mostly topropes. One day we put in over 20 toprope anchors serving about 40 routes. The rock there is absolutely amazing.

Spent time in Tamo Shanter in the winter of 2006 with John and Chris Hill. I was totally blown away with the amazing rock quality of the bouldering and routes. Along with Chris, Zack Smith and I developed some new problems during those weeks. I hope it all works out, the area is one of a kind and I feel climbers, business' and AZ would benefit if it becomes a park.

Climb on,

Eric Odenthal
Moab, UT