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Suggestions for winter climbing in the southeast

Original Post
John Groh · · Unknown Hometown · Joined Nov 2012 · Points: 295

Hey all,

My girlfriend and I are road tripping to New Orleans (starting and ending in Pennsylvania) and are looking for climbing areas to break up the drive. I'll climb just about anything, but she dislikes bouldering, crack climbing, and anything cold.... I'm game for up to 5.12 or so, but she's more of a 5.9/10 climber.

Can anyone suggest sport or trad destinations in not-so-cold places? Probably NC, TN, KY, AL, GA, or VA would be more or less on the way. From browsing MP, it looks like Linville Gorge and Looking Glass have lots of face climbs and are supposed to be pretty awesome - can anyone tell me how they are during early January? Is snow/rain an issue? What are the average temps? Are there any other areas I should be looking into instead?

Don't sweat the petty things, just pet the sweaty things,
JCG

Aaron Moses · · Richmond, Va · Joined Aug 2009 · Points: 830

Linville isn't one of the better cold weather options in NC. Laurel and south of the nose at LG can be quite good on a sunny day but take some time to warm up as they face SW. I think the best winter conditions in NC are at Rumbling Bald and Stone Mtn(neither is much good in rain or snow). South Clear and the Obed proper at the Obed are very sunny and offer lots of sport routes that stay dry down to 5.9. Then there are tons of options around Chatty: Fosters, Castle, T-wall(head left for good face climbing and less crowds), parts of Deep Creek, Jamestown, Little River, ect.

george wilkey · · travelers rest sc · Joined Jan 2013 · Points: 235

man, the good thing about the southeast is you can climb just about anywhere all winter. usually rain/runoff is more of a concern than cold. however, if you happen to come through during cold spell just stick to the south faces of anything.

in nc; looking glass, rumbling bald, crowders, all have nice warm walls in the coldest of times.

if you want to boulder try; rock town in ga, and sand rock in al. rumbling bald also has good bouldering.

jack powers · · St. Paul, Mn · Joined Feb 2012 · Points: 25

I agree that the Linville Gorge is probably not the best bet for January. Even getting up there without chains might be iffy. The Obed has a bunch of south-facing walls (Tierrany and South-Clear) with plenty of high-quality routes in the 5.9-5.12 range, and there are routes that stay dry in the rain (an area called the Stephen King Library) as long as it doesn't rain for so long that the walls begin to seep. And the Obed Hostel provides a dirt cheap roof and bed in an eco-friendly cabin nearby. If you prefer camping, Del and Marty's Lilly Pad can't be beat. But you should probably just play it by ear and head where the conditions are good. In general, I'd aim for the southern end of the Cumberland Plateau in Tennessee, Georgia, and ALabama. HP40 in Alabama can serve up some sunny and 70s that time of year if you are into bouldering. Holler at me if you want a guide for the Obed. I'm off work until January 11th and looking to climb.

Guideline #1: Don't be a jerk.

Southern States
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