Mountain Project: Climbing Los Alamos & White Rock

East facing basalt crag known for its short, moderate sport routes. This is often the place local aspiring sport climbers cut their teeth. Winter climbing is great here with the dark, east facing aspect receiving plenty of sun.
Gallows is comprised of three areas: The Main Wall, The Pit and The Upper Tier with most of the routes located on the Main Wall.
The routes are packed tightly and it can get quite crowded but the social scene is often friendly and fun.

The crag was discovered by Carlo Torres, Jon Butler, Lucas Laeser, and Mike Lyons, among others, and remained almost totally undeveloped until very recently. Most first ascents were done solo.

A very nice online PDF guide by Guido Bender can be downloaded from the Los Alamos Mountaineers website.

Getting There

From NM4, turn south on Rover Blvd. Turn left on the first street on your left, Meadow Lane. Stay on Meadow Lane for 1.3 miles and park near 719 Meadow Lane. Please respect the homeowners and don't block mailboxes or driveways. A concrete public access trail heads down between 719 and 721 Meadow Lane. You'll know you're on the correct trail if two large, seemingly nasty, Golden Retriever dogs are barking at you. At the end of the concrete veer slightly left and continue straight towards the cliffs. Follow the good climber's trail down to the third shelf. This is Gallows Edge.

The Classics

Mountain Project's determination of some of the classic, most popular, highest rated routes for Gallows Edge:

Princess Buttercup 5.6 Sport, 32 feet Main Wall

Pejos Route 5.7 Sport, 45 feet Main Wall

R.O.U.S. (Rodents Of Unusual Size) 5.7 Sport, 40 feet Main Wall

99 Red Balloons 5.8 Sport, 45 feet Main Wall

The Fire Swamp 5.8 Sport, 40 feet Main Wall

The Odor Takeda 5.8 Sport, 1 pitch, 40 feet The Pit

Once Were Warriors 5.8 Sport, 45 feet Main Wall

Planet of the Apes 5.8+ Sport, TR, 40 feet Main Wall

The Thunderbird Crack 5.9 Trad, 35 feet The Pit

Dave And Crissa's Route 5.9 Sport, 1 pitch, 45 feet Upper Tier

Fay Drostenson 5.10b Sport, 1 pitch, 30 feet The Pit

Gralisa Leen 5.10c Sport, 1 pitch, 40 feet The Pit

Comments on Gallows Edge

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By Jason Halladay
Administrator
From: Los Alamos, NM
Apr 4, 2007

NOTE: Rust-colored steel (and some aluminum) carabiners were placed on the chains of all routes on the main wall of Gallows recently. PLEASE DON'T STEAL THESE! The carabiners make it safer and more convenient for everyone and extend the life of the chain anchors because the carabiners can be easily replaced while chains aren't as easy to replace.

By caughtinside
From: Oakland CA
Apr 4, 2007

just a suggestion. on fixed biners around here, sometimes they're held in place with a little baling wire, or a nylon zip tie. Helps keep them correctly oriented, and also lets people (who might be clueless as to local fixed gear ethics) know that they're supposed to be there.

By C Miller
Administrator
Apr 4, 2007

Good info about the bailing wire as it discourages the casual thief, but zip-ties are a bad idea as the plastic degrades over time and becomes trash.

By Wa3lt
Jan 2, 2009

Anchor upgrades are much appreciated, guys - the chains I installed when I bolted most of these are close to 10 years old now, and from what I've heard, the routes are quite popular.

Unfortunately, the folks who are most likely to climb here are also the most likely to *really* want/need booty gear, or to just not know the score enough to not take them.

I'm glad to hear that folks are enjoying the Gallow's Edge. We certainly enjoyed putting up the routes!

By Curt Dvonch
From: los alamos, nm
Nov 3, 2011

I lost a Merrell down jacket near Gallow's Edge last weekend (Sunday) and haven't been able to find it while searching the area. Anyone see it? It is dark green.

By Brett Kettering
Apr 18, 2013

Over the past year, in consultation with Jason Halladay and other FAs, I:

1) Placed an additional bolt on The Fire Swamp to protect against potential ground falls. It is the new 3rd bolt.

2) Placed steel biners (painted rust) at the top of The Fire Swamp. The biners are zip-tied to the chains to discourage removal.

3) Placed 22kn-rated chains, links, and steel biners (painted rust) at the top of ROUS. The biners are zip-tied to the chains to discourage removal.

4) Placed 22kn-rated chains and links (painted rust), and aluminum biners recycled from the tops of other GE routes at the top of Giant Killer. The biners are integrated with quick links and should be obvious that they are meant to stay there.

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Gallows Edge

Description

Getting There

The Classics