Telluride/Norwood area Climbing

This is probably the most remote part of Colorado. It is a great place to find new climbs, escape the crowds of the crags close to the populus, and try a variety of great climbs.

Per Ross Perrot: the Telluride region encompasses the Box Canyon, Ophir, and down valley (Norwood). The three predominant rock types are Dakota Sandstone, Telluride Conglomerate, and Ophir's Diorite Rhyolite (close to granite). The highest concentrate of routes can be found in Ophir and at the Falls Walls/Pipeline Walls at the end of the Telluride box canyon. Rock climbing is possible year round, and the variety of sunny/shaded crags, trad, sport, ice, mixed, alpine, and bouldering is endless. Although the San Juans are notorious for choss, the rock quality can be superb in many of the more developed areas.

Cliff access, new route development, trail development, hardware replacement, and the immensely popular via ferrata have all been supported thanks to the efforts of the Telluride Mountain Club and dedicated local climbers. A .pdf of the out-of-print guidebook Telluride Rocks III can be found on the Telluride Mountain Club website.  

Bouldering has seen a wave of new development thanks to the efforts of Christian Prellwitz and his guidebook A Guide to Bouldering In The Telluride & West End Areas of Southwest Colorado. Links to a few of his videos can be found in the comments sections of the pages in this section.