Planning a road trip- suggestions for logistics?

I just graduated from college and will be starting at graduate school in August. In the meantime, I've been saving up money to travel the US for a few months and go climbing! I've never taken a climbing trip more than a week and a half long before, so this is pretty much uncharted territory for me. It's also made a little more complicated by a few obligations- I'll need to tour grad schools sporadically (although this should be done with by the end of March), and I need to be home for my brother's high school graduation in mid-June.

With all that out of the way, here are some places I was looking to go. I'd like to stay in the West in order to save on gas. Bulleted names are strong priorities, non-bulleted names are possibilities. Please let me know if and how this could work, and suggestions for other possible places and times to climb there!

Departure- March 7th or so, leaving Seattle, drive to Joshua Tree

• Joshua Tree until March 27th
• Drive to Moab area until mid-April
• Colorado (where?) until early to mid-May
• Yosemite for 2 weeks

Tahoe

Smith Rocks

Drive back to Seattle mid-June for brother's graduation

• Washington cragging and alpine
• Up to Squamish for a month until the start of grad school

There's room in between some of these places for more, and I might like to add a bit of alpine in there as well. Could someone help me with suggestions for climbing destinations? I like multipitch trad the most, but sport climbing, aid climbing, alpine climbing, and ice climbing are all solid options as well.

Looks like a damn good itinerary to me. You'll be hitting each place pretty much in the prime season, so you're timing it well.

J-Tree in March...Good. Partners easy to find, weather should be perfect (though sometimes a bit windy...bring sturdy tent stakes...or sleep int he truck)

Moab late March to mid-April... Good. Start at Indian Creek to get your crack technique dialed and meet partners, then go do some towers in April once it warms up a bit more.

Colorado mid April to early May... I'd say skip this one, unless you have to go out to CO for a grad school visit. Although CO has many classic destinations, it is a fair bit of extra driving on your itinerary, and honestly the climbing is better farther west. My choice for the second half of April, for long routes, would be to go to Red Rocks. Late April is absolutely prime season for long routes in the canyons there. Although it is hot in town, the classic long trad routes are up at higher elevations, in shady breezy canyons, so you want the warmer weather, plus the longer days, of late spring. Amazing long trad climbs. Spending two weeks there would be about right, since after 2 weeks you'll be tired of the shitty campground.

Alternatively, if you want to sport climb, spend late April in Bishop at the Owens River Gorge (if you climb 5.10-5.12 sport) or at the Cathedral in Saint George (if you climb 5.12 or higher sport). Both are great at that time of year, with good shade options if it gets warm.

Yosemite in early May to late May.. Very good time to be there. You are in the time period with 1-week camping restrictions, so that is a challenge that you'll need to deal with.

Smith late May- early June...not bad, possibly a bit warm. Even better: skip Smith and spend this time block in Tahoe, especially Lover's Leap.

PNW in the summer... Paradise, obviously.

Mark Straub wrote: There's room in between some of these places for more, and I might like to add a bit of alpine in there as well. Could someone help me with suggestions for climbing destinations? I like multipitch trad the most, but sport climbing, aid climbing, alpine climbing, and ice climbing are all solid options as well.

Honestly, I would't recommend adding in too many extra stops. For a long trip like this, I find it is best to spend 2-4 weeks at each place, to really get to know the place.

If you want alpine, a trip to the Bugaboos, North Cascades, or the High Sierra would be prime. Given the way snowpack is this year (pathetic), the High Sierra will probably come into season earlier than usual for alpine. You could possibly skip SMith Rock, and go from Yosemite (early-late may) over to the eastside High Sierra access points for late May into Early June.

This may be a silly question but isn't partner finding for 2-4 weeks at a time in certain locations one of the big logistical questions as well?

JCM wrote:Looks like a damn good itinerary to me. You'll be hitting each place pretty much in the prime season, so you're timing it well. J-Tree in March...Good. Partners easy to find, weather should be perfect (though sometimes a bit windy...bring sturdy tent stakes...or sleep int he truck) Moab late March to mid-April... Good. Start at Indian Creek to get your crack technique dialed and meet partners, then go do some towers in April once it warms up a bit more. Colorado mid April to early May... I'd say skip this one, unless you have to go out to CO for a grad school visit. Although CO has many classic destinations, it is a fair bit of extra driving on your itinerary, and honestly the climbing is better farther west. My choice for the second half of April, for long routes, would be to go to Red Rocks. Late April is absolutely prime season for long routes in the canyons there. Although it is hot in town, the classic long trad routes are up at higher elevations, in shady breezy canyons, so you want the warmer weather, plus the longer days, of late spring. Amazing long trad climbs. Spending two weeks there would be about right, since after 2 weeks you'll be tired of the shitty campground. Alternatively, if you want to sport climb, spend late April in Bishop at the Owens River Gorge (if you climb 5.10-5.12 sport) or at the Cathedral in Saint George (if you climb 5.12 or higher sport). Both are great at that time of year, with good shade options if it gets warm. Yosemite in early May to late May.. Very good time to be there. You are in the time period with 1-week camping restrictions, so that is a challenge that you'll need to deal with. Smith late May- early June...not bad, possibly a bit warm. Even better: skip Smith and spend this time block in Tahoe, especially Lover's Leap. PNW in the summer... Paradise, obviously.

IMO, Tahoe doesent compare to Smith. Smith is worlds better. I was not particularly impressed with the climbing at Tahoe. I found it to be rather similar to Yosemite, except 1/100th the size. Lover Leep is cool, but nothing worth writing home about IMO. Big Chief was okay for sport, but Smith has 50x the routes. I would allocate the time used at Tahoe to Yosemote instead and skip Tahoe all together. Yosemite is infinitely better.

OP: If you climb sport go to Smith for sure. It's the largest sport climbing destination west of the RRG. Also, it might be worth checking out Ten Sleep, WY in the middle of the summer if you like long sport lines. Ten Sleep is probably #3 best sport destination in the USA (RRG first, then Smith) IMO.

I agree, go to Red Rocks. Red Rocks is the largest destination south of Yosemite and it has a large mix of sport, trad, and long trad lines. Just note that if you go there in the summer partners will be a problem and the campground is closed in the summer for three months. The second nearest campground is Lake Meed which is 60 min away.

Devils Tower might be worth checking out.

Owens River is good, but extremely hot in the summer so dont go past June.

If you are going to go to Canada check out the EEOR/ Canmore area. It's about 500 miles east of Squamish. It has killer sport climbing and tons of very long lines. There is a fun 1800' sport line up there. The temps are perfect in the summer, and the lakes are beyond beautiful. America's best lakes probably cant even match the quality of Canmore's. Also, Canmore is not too far from Banff, which has some of the best remote alpine in the world. I even think they have as high as grade VII bigwall up there. Skaha is nearby too which is similar to French limestone (sport).

SRB25 wrote:This may be a silly question but isn't partner finding for 2-4 weeks at a time in certain locations one of the big logistical questions as well?

Yes, I find that to be the single largest challenge of a climbing trip, regardless of where I go. I typically find that I make decisions on where I climb largely by where I have free partners. If I have a partner I know I can climb with for a few weeks and he is in location X, I'll drive there and climb with him so I dont need to look for new partners everyday.

Some areas are easier to find partners than others. Areas that have "climbers campgrounds" such as Red Rocks, Yosemite, RRG and Smith are easier to find partners if you climb there during high season. Other areas that do not have specific areas that climbers sleep (e.g. Canmore, NRG to some extent, Seattle area) are much harder to find partners. Also, some areas just dont get much traffic, even during high season (e.g. Black Hills, SD). For these areas I find MP has been the best resource for finding partners. You can try Climb Find and Facebook as well.

The single best thing to do is find another roadripper so you have a guaranteed partner everyday. I will be roadtripping for the entire time you mentioned and I plan to visit a number of the spots you listed. I should be free to climb if you need a partner depending on what you are looking to climb.

The 1 week camping limit in Yosemite Valley goes into effect May 1, so you may want to take that into account in planning your trip. Also, Tioga Pass (east entrance to Yosemite, CA state highway 120) usually does not open until late May, which will have an effect on travel times from Moab or Colorado.

Red Rocks is definitely worth a week or two, maybe instead of Moab or Colorado?

If you want to do some alpine stuff, maybe the Wind River Mts in Wyoming in August? Alpine stuff in RMNP or Grand Teton National Park would be good, too. Late July/August is the best climbing time for these places.

Yeah, like many have mentioned, you'd be insane not to stop in Vegas and hit Red Rock

I'd skip Colorado. If Tioga's still closed, stopping over in the Needles for a few days on your way around to Yosemite Valley would be well worth it. Like others said, with the pathetic snow year, the High Sierra may be doable by early June, and there's some great climbing in the Palisades and Whitney area. Tuolomne and Mount Conness would also be good.

+1 for skipping tahoe and go to the needles. The needles and bugaboos have been the highlight of my 9 month/45000 mile road trip...
Edit: one too many zeroes hahaha

450000 miles in 9 months? Where do you find tme to climb?

Thanks for all the responses guys! From what I've been gathering, here are some changes I might make:

-Go to Red Rocks for at least a week, possibly more (Is late April good for this?)

-Pass up Tahoe, go to the Sierras or the Needles (Sierras sound fantastic, plus some alpine would be nice)

-Possibly add Smith Rocks (best season for this? Was thinking possibly June) and/or Devil's Tower (best time for this one?)

Mark

Mark Straub wrote: -Pass up Tahoe, go to the Sierras or the Needles (Sierras sound fantastic, plus some alpine would be nice)

Pedantically-wise-speaking, Tahoe and the Needles are both part of the Sierra Nevada, but very different from the High Sierra. If you want alpine climbing, the Palisades are probably the place to go. The Needles are huge granite blobs with fun trad routes (e.g. "White Punks on Dope") and relatively short approaches. If you were clear about what you wanted to solo, lead, and follow, it would be easier for people to offer suggestions.

Mark Straub wrote:Thanks for all the responses guys! From what I've been gathering, here are some changes I might make: -Go to Red Rocks for at least a week, possibly more (Is late April good for this?) -Pass up Tahoe, go to the Sierras or the Needles (Sierras sound fantastic, plus some alpine would be nice) -Possibly add Smith Rocks (best season for this? Was thinking possibly June) and/or Devil's Tower (best time for this one?) Mark

Smith is doable in June, although it will be warm. You can do Red Rocks in April. Devils Tower is orientated in way that basically 50% of the routes get sun in the morning and the other 50% get sun in the afternoon, so you can climb there anytime in the summer, although peak summer will be warm.

seano wrote: Pedantically-wise-speaking, Tahoe and the Needles are both part of the Sierra Nevada, but very different from the High Sierra. If you want alpine climbing, the Palisades are probably the place to go. The Needles are huge granite blobs with fun trad routes (e.g. "White Punks on Dope") and relatively short approaches. If you were clear about what you wanted to solo, lead, and follow, it would be easier for people to offer suggestions.

I usually climb routes in the 5.10 range, although I would hope this would be up to 5.11 by the time I make it to the Sierras. I'm not really sure where to go in the Sierras since I've never been there and they are quite big. I like a diverse selection of climbing, and I'd really like to get some long alpine climbs in the Sierras if possible.

Mark Straub wrote: I usually climb routes in the 5.10 range, although I would hope this would be up to 5.11 by the time I make it to the Sierras. I'm not really sure where to go in the Sierras since I've never been there and they are quite big. I like a diverse selection of climbing, and I'd really like to get some long alpine climbs in the Sierras if possible.

This has good beta and classic routes for the Sierra:

supertopo.com/routebeta/hig…

People may refer you to Croft's book, too, but it isn't as detailed.

Mark Straub wrote: I'm not really sure where to go in the Sierras since I've never been there and they are quite big. I like a diverse selection of climbing, and I'd really like to get some long alpine climbs in the Sierras if possible.

I'd pack into Iceberg Lake (near Whitney) for awhile. That puts you near the base of all the climbs on Russell's south face (Fishhook, Mithral Dihedral, etc.), plus the east side of Whitney, Keeler's Needle, etc. You should have no trouble getting a walk-in permit for a weekday in Lone Pine.

Then head north and pack into 3rd Lake on the north fork of Big Pine Creek. From there you can do the aretes on Temple Crag (especially Dark Star), the Swiss Arete on Sill (maybe scramble), and scramble the Thunderbolt-to-Sill traverse.

seano wrote:If Tioga's still closed, stopping over in the Needles for a few days on your way around to Yosemite Valley would be well worth it. Like others said, with the pathetic snow year, the High Sierra may be doable by early June,...

Just keep in mind that if Tioga Pass is closed, it's possible/likely the Needles access road would be closed as well. Again, it all depends on the remainder of the snow year. And if the Needles road is closed, it doesn't eliminate climbing there - it just adds some additional miles to the 3 mile approach (for things in the heart of the Needles, but Dome Rock and stuff accessed from the low road - eg: White Punks - are a different story entirely). Finding pick-up partners in the early season in the Needles would be more problematic than other areas.