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Best Cities in U.S. for Multipitch/Trad

doligo · · Unknown Hometown · Joined Sep 2008 · Points: 264
Nivel Egres wrote:Boulder area in terms of climbing diversity. Having world-class granite and word-class sandstone within 10 min drive is priceless.
Huh?
doligo · · Unknown Hometown · Joined Sep 2008 · Points: 264

I wouldn't call them world class. Ok for local climbing, not even regional...

Michael Swanson · · Oregon · Joined Feb 2013 · Points: 0
krispyyo wrote:Don't want to hijack the thread, but I'm looking for some beta about some towns near others that have already been mentioned. Been living in CO my whole life, but will likely have to move out of state for surgery residency, so I'm restricted to towns where there are residency programs. Some of the options that seem like they could be okay but I'm not sure about are Modesto CA, Ventura CA, Corvalis OR, and Kingsport TN. Can anyone say anything about these cities (quality of living, outdoor and climbing access, etc)? Thanks!
I can't speak to the other areas, but Corvallis is an awesome little town. It is a bit of a college town, so you'll have to deal with the population just about doubling during home football games, but it frequently tops "best places to live" type lists. An hour to the beach, 2.5 hours to Smith, 1.5 hours to Portland, it's pretty close to everything without dealing with all the traffic. Plus they have a decent climbing gym at OSU. Sure it rains a bunch in the winter/spring, but summers are beautiful.
On second thought, Corvallis sucks, no one should move here, move along.
20 kN · · Unknown Hometown · Joined Feb 2009 · Points: 1,346
doligo wrote:I wouldn't call them world class. Ok for local climbing, not even regional...
What regional area is better for sport than Boulder Canyon? Clear Creek? Table? I think Boulder Canyon has the best sport in the state that I am aware of.
JCM · · Unknown Hometown · Joined Jun 2008 · Points: 115
20 kN wrote: What regional area is better for sport than Boulder Canyon? Clear Creek? Table? I think Boulder Canyon has the best sport in the state that I am aware of.
Not to beat a dead horse (this is covered time and again on this site), but calling the climbing around Boulder “world-class” is kind of missing the point. It isn’t world class. If you think that Boulder Canyon is world class granite, then pay a visit to Yosemite, Squamish, or the Needles, and then report back. Same goes for Eldo (visit the New or Red Rocks and report back as to whether Eldo measures up). But this is all OK. Instead of one amazing crag, Boulder has a vast amount of very convenient decent climbing, a long rock season, and a very climbing-centered culture. Depending on your tastes, if may be one of the better places to live as a climber in the US for these reasons—even without any “World Class” climbing.

Regarding Boulder Canyon sport climbing specifically: Dolgio is spot on. BC is the highest concentration of sport climbing within 20 minutes of Boulder, but that is about it. It is definitely not the best sport climbing in the state, not by a long shot. State-wide, Rifle wins for mid-5.12 and up sport, and Shelf wins for mid-5.12 and down. Of local Boulder/Golden/Denver sport crags, there are several options that are better than BC in various different ways. Local to Boulder, the sport routes are in the Flatirons are amazing, but they are spread apart, generally difficult, and you have to hike a ways to get to them. The rock in Clear Creek is (IMO) better suited to good sport climbing than BC, and definitely has more offerings and more interesting climbing on offer in the upper grades. If we want to be specific to rock type, Devil’s Head probably wins the award for best Front Range granite sport climbing area—it definitely beats BC (depending on whether you call the Monastery granite).

Anyway, the summary of all this is that Boulder Canyon is a great local resource, but not a regional destination. Even when I lived in Golden, I rarely made the trip up to BC; other options such as Clear Creek, Eldo, and the Platte were of greater interest. Meanwhile, Eldo and the Platte are worthy destinations of regional caliber, but perhaps not of national caliber (and definitely not a world-destination).
Drew Spaulding · · Boulder, CO · Joined Aug 2009 · Points: 3,885

To the OP, Rachel... There are plenty of good climbing cities/towns in the US... Vegas, SLC, Bishop, Tahoe, North Conway, Maob come to mind... But few that compare and have the massive amount of easily accessible, truly diverse, "world class" sport and multi-pitch trad climbing within 10minutes-4 hours than the greater Front Range Area of Colorado. If you've really climbed in Eldorado Canyon, RMNP/Lumpy Ridge, South Platte Region or the Black Canyon, and don't call these "World Class" multi-pitch trad climbing areas, I think you're wrong. If all the multi-pitch trad climbing areas in the states were placed on a top 20 list, just these 4 areas alone would be in the top 10.(especially if we are talking about easily accessible) I know, you can't beat Yosemite, Zion, Canyonlands, Red Rocks, High Sierra's>Tahoe, Index>Washington Pass, Tetons>Winds.....BUT, it's also hard to beat Eldo, RMNP, The Black and even South Platte... ELDO alone is like the Lover's Leap of California x 4!(1500+ routes) The Black is like all the classic High Sierra routes all in 1 spot x 1.5. Nothing quite compares to RMNP/Lumpy Ridge, particularly THE DIAMOND! "South Platte" is a 550 square mile area(over 1500+ routes) with endless amount beautiful granite cracks..... Besides these big 4, you have Shelf Road, Clear Creek Canyon, The Flatirons, Boulder Canyon, SSV, Poudre Canyon, and Vedauvoo all along the Front Range.... Rifle, Grand Junction and Canyonlands are also all at your fingertips.... So Rachel, you asked about "best city?".... I would suggest Boulder, Colorado. There, I said it.

Drew Spaulding · · Boulder, CO · Joined Aug 2009 · Points: 3,885

^^^^ Whoa, you dared to say it too...^^^^

runout · · Unknown Hometown · Joined Jun 2013 · Points: 30
Drew Spaulding wrote:^^^^ Whoa, you dared to say it too...^^^^
I applaud you for making a choice, defending it, and sticking by it. Boulder is a fine choice but you do have a lot more climbers too than other places.

Also, some of the places you listed are a bit far from Boulder for a weekend warrior (Black, Rifle, Canyonlands).
morgoth70 · · Bountiful, UT · Joined Jan 2011 · Points: 25

Modesto is a true shit-hole, one of the worst cities in Cali. It is, however, pretty close to Yosemite and the western Sierra and within weekend striking distance of the eastern Sierra. Corvalis has some limited climbing in the area - ok but definitely not great. Smith Rock is about 3 hours away and it is pretty great, though there's less trad than sport. You can get a pretty good trad fix at Smith, though. Don't know anything about the other 2 places. Hope this helps!

Bill M · · Fort Collins, CO · Joined Jun 2010 · Points: 317

World Class maybe not, but the Front Range alone has a lifetime climbing that is pretty damn good in my Book. With that said Red Rocks in Vegas IS a world class destination for the moderate trad climber.

doligo · · Unknown Hometown · Joined Sep 2008 · Points: 264

People on Western Slope are just damn spoiled - all these World Class areas within a stone throw away: Indian Creek, The Black, Rifle. People never travel specifically to climb say to Eldo from Western Slope, while they would drive 10+ hours to climb in World class destinations of WY, ID, NV, CA...

Bill M · · Fort Collins, CO · Joined Jun 2010 · Points: 317

Using that definition The Diamond would be considered world class. I started climbing in the late 70s and at the time Eldo was world class. Eldo, Gunks, Yosemite the big 3 back then for the aspiring climber

neve · · Unknown Hometown · Joined Jan 2015 · Points: 15
krispyyo wrote:Don't want to hijack the thread, but I'm looking for some beta about some towns near others that have already been mentioned. Been living in CO my whole life, but will likely have to move out of state for surgery residency, so I'm restricted to towns where there are residency programs. Some of the options that seem like they could be okay but I'm not sure about are Modesto CA, Ventura CA, Corvalis OR, and Kingsport TN. Can anyone say anything about these cities (quality of living, outdoor and climbing access, etc)? Thanks!
Modesto is a hole. Close to Yosemite, but too much inland. Ventura is sweet. You got your King's Canyon and Yosemite, Tahoe very drive able along with J Tree. Central Cali is beautiful. Orchards are everywhere. Santa Barbara is close. Very cool town not too much climbing though very close by, but you can find a few places to crag after work. If you are willing to drive a few hours you will have many lifetimes of world class climbing. Culture and diversity wise Ventura is a sweet place. Not to mention the ocean and Channel islands. Pick Ventura!
krispyyo · · Duluth, MN · Joined Apr 2006 · Points: 65

THANK YOU to everyone answering my question about those specific towns. Your info really helps me figure out where to focus my efforts. Corvalis and Ventura will for sure be my top two choices, with Vegas being next. The program in Modesto sounds good, but I don't know if I can hang in the worse city in Cali! Although it may be better than most of the other options in places like Ohio, Michigan, and big east coast cities. Anyone know about Kingsport, TN?

Guideline #1: Don't be a jerk.

Trad Climbing
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