Castine  Photos:  Recent | Best | Popular Elevation:  100' Lat, Long:  44.3841, -68.8204 Map Page Views:  1,468. Good page?    Administrators:  Ladd Raine, Tom Erickson Submitted By:  steitz on Feb 22, 2010 Make this area a Favorite What's New   Print a Mini-Guide with routes Add Route  Add Photo  Add Comment  Add Event

Most of the cliffs top out into private property. MORE INFO >>> All the cliffs except for one top out into private residences of summer people. Be sure to secure permission from the land owner before rigging a top rope or transiting their land. Most summer people are gone after October and don't return till June. This information is a public crowdsourcing effort between the Access Fund, and Mountain Project. You should confirm closures, restrictions, and/or related dates. Keeping climbing areas open and conserving the climbing environment

BETA PHOTO: Some of the cliff's right under Dyce's Head light

Description 

All the rocks are west facing, so after noon you'll have sunlight on the rock and you'll always have beautiful sunsets coming in right over Penobscot bay. When the wind is blowing though it will blow right on to you, and if there if it's a Spring Tide when high tide comes a few of the bases of the climbs will get wet.

The rock is generally poor and hard to access, so it is climbed primarily by bored locals from the town or Maine Maritime Academy, located in Castine.

There is a short 40' cliff close to the backshore that has a beautiful polished smooth face, but the rest of the cliffs are clustered around Dyce's Head, at the tip of the penisula. They can be accessed either by parking at Dyce's Head then following a trail past the lighthouse through the woods down to the water and cutting right (to the north) or by walking around from the beach known as the backshore. A large section of the penisula is a preserve known as "Witherle Woods" and a few trails lead through the woods to the tops of some of some of the cliffs.

In the summer there are several local restaurants open, but in the off season the only place to buy beer is the local bar "the reef". Drunk midshipmen will make it an experience.

The Maritime Academy has a climbing wall that is open to students and the public, monday-thursday from 430pm to 9pm, and local climbers there can give you some good beta on the current rock conditions and local secrets.


PS. The area does have a lot of potential for interesting boulder problems and a easy to moderate top rope routes

Getting There 

Drive along route 1 till right after Bucksport, you'll see a sign for Castine and Maine Maritime Academy, take the right (Castine rd) and drive till the fork in 166. Take the right fork-166a and when you reach a stop sign turn right back onto 166. Continue through Castine and about a minute after that the road will end at Dyce's Head lighthouse. The whole drive from Bucksport takes about twenty minutes.


Once you're at the lighthouse an obvious foot path will lead to the water, the climbing cliffs here are to the right (the north).

The Classics

Featured Route For Castine

Cat Scratch Fever V2  ME : Castine

Walk around the corner from the landing at Dyce's head and take in the improbable overhang of rock. Appreciate the sandstone-esque features of pancakes and chicken heads. Then reach up and break off a piece of the choss.This route starts from a sit start and works out the massive crack that splits the roof, then ascends it for the unsettling top out.The rock is sharp, and brittle. Make sure you've gotta spotters to knock you onto the pads.Oh, and it's only accessible at low tide....[more]   Browse More Classics in ME

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BETA PHOTO: The lighthouse from the street. Park on the left n...	looking down the sea cliff	BETA PHOTO: CSF boulder - Dyce Head, Castine Maine
BETA PHOTO: inaccessible wall, Dyce Head, Castine, ME