Arkansas

Photo by Jim Grace

Description 

Anyone ready for some backwoods climbing. That's right, there ain't no high alpine to be found here. There's just down and dirty backwoods climbing on high-quality sandstone. Though overlooked for a long time by the big names, the locals haven't complained. Over the years they have put up excellent quality natural lines from the classic dihedral Poison Ivy(5.7+) to harder lines such as Titanic (5.11X) and Bear Bait(5.12- S), all at Sam's Throne. In addition to trad routes, the Horseshoe Canyon Ranch hosts a number of excellent quality bolted lines of all difficulties, even up to The Prophet(5.14a).

Guidebook: Arkansas Rock: Volume I by Clay Frisbie. Put out by Boston Mountain Press, the same publisher that put out the Horseshoe Canyon Ranch guide in 2006.

Getting There 

Ahh, the midwest.

Featured Route For Arkansas

Poison Ivy 5.7+  Arkansas : Sam's Throne and Surrounding Areas : Poison Ivy Wall

Climb the ever steepening dihedral crack as it slims from hands/fists to thin hands and fingers. Classic route on excellent rock....[more]