East Bluff - Potholes Area

Wild rose in the woods

Description 

The East Bluff - Potholes Area is made up of three formations, Ramsay's Pinnacle, Doorway Rocks, and Red Rocks. Doorway Rocks is one of the largest formations on the bluffs surrounding Devil's Lake, but in spite of this it isn't as popular as other formations at the park. The well known Devil's Doorway sits atop Doorway Rocks and attracts many day hikers, though this shouldn't be of concern to climbers since the Doorway's immediate vicinity contains only a few of the climbs found at this group of rocks. There are two smaller areas on either side of the Doorway Rocks that are worth a visit. To the west sits Ramsay's Pinnacle, a grouping of shorter climb easily accessed from the Devil's Doorway Trail. To the east you'll find Red Rocks, a collection of rocks that straddle the Potholes Trail.

Getting There 

To get to the rocks in the Potholes Area, park at the South Shore parking lot and follow the paved trail north over the railroad tracks to the junction of the Grottos Trail and the Balanced Rock Trail. At this junction, take a right and walk along the Grotto's Trail at the bottom of the bluff. After about 10 minutes of easy walking, turn left on the Potholes Trail, and head up the bluff on the rock steps. The Potholes Trail winds its way up through the talus slope to the top of the bluff, meeting the Devil's Doorway Trail near the top. Just before the top of the Potholes Trail, you will find it hard to miss the Red Rocks. The trail squeezes through a two foot wide fissure that separates two 20 foot tall blocks. This is Red Rocks. To access the Minor Mass of the Doorway Rocks, cut across the talus field to the left just after passing through the Red Rocks formation. Continue along the bottom of the cliff to the Major Mass of the Doorway Rocks (difficult) or follow the Potholes Trail to the top and turn left on the Devil's Doorway Trail to access the top of the Major Mass of Doorway Rocks. To reach Ramsay's Pinnacle, follow the Devil's Doorway Trail past the Doorway Rocks. Ramsay's Pinnacle is about 150 west of the Doorway Rocks.

The Classics

Featured Route For East Bluff - Potholes Area

LadyFingers 5.10a  WI : Devil's Lake : ... : Doorway Rocks - Minor Mass

LadyFingers starts on the ledge gained by climbing Obduracy (route 5). It follows the groove and crack found almost directly behine the large oak tree. Climb from the ledge up to the groove using small holds and horizontal ledges. Try not to get spit out when you reach the groove. To surmount the groove reach up to the finger crack above and pull past the groove. Finish using the crack to the top....[more]   Browse More Classics in WI