Mud Mountain
New Mexico
> Truth or Consequences…
Description
Beautiful winter limestone crag overlooking the city of Truth or Consequences. All of the sport climbs here are well-bolted, with user-friendly anchors, and have plaques with names and grades below the route.
11/29/22 - when camping, please bring your own firewood. There is no firewood in this desert environment. Please don't tear down ocotillo for firewood, they may look dead but are just dormant.
Getting There
Take Exit 75 for Williamsburg from I-25 which will put you on S. Broadway. Continue past the second gas station on the left and look for a solar panel field on the left and the Sierra County fairgrounds a bit further on the left. At the point where you see the Williamsburg Village offices on the right along with a street sign for Mona Avenue, turn left into what looks like an empty lot. You'll see a road in that lot that lead that heads towards the fairgrounds for a moment and then bears a left. At the t-junction a few minutes further along the dirt road, go left. (Note the junction for your return trip when you'll make a right to get back to Broadway. You'll see a street sign for Mesquite Lane on your left that marks your turn.) As you go under the interstate, set your odometer to 0. Head up over the dam, and at 1.4 miles (or 1.3 miles on some odometers), turn right into a large arroyo. A cairn marks that turn. Be sure to follow the visible tracks in the arroyo and continue for .5 (or .6) mile where you'll see a doubletrack road on your left that heads up on to the mesa. Follow that road to the water tank and park here (unless you have high clearance 4 wheel drive, and can park at the upper parking). This point is 2.9 miles from where you set your odometer. Walk to the end of the road and follow the cairns to the wall.
The first wall you'll reach is the
Winter Wall. Climbs here range from 5.8 to 5.12.
Follow the trail along the base and descend a short, easy down-climb to reach the
Crow Feather Wall. Climbs here range from 5.8 to 5.12.
To reach the
Yellow Wall, follow a trail across the scree at the bottom of the down-climb.
To reach the
Vacation Wall, continue up the switchbacks along the Crow Feather Wall to the saddle. Follow cairns west to a rock point where you'll see the Vacation Wall.
Local Amenities
One of the best things about winter climbing in the T or C area is being able to take some time to enjoy some of its' eclectic experiences. For a nice place to stay,
Fire Water Lodge is a great local experience with in-room hot mineral springs tubs, and they allow dogs.. Rocket Inn is a good value with clean rooms and a nice bed. They also allow dogs.
Riverbend Hot Springs has hot mineral tub soaks on the river. You have the option for both public or private tubs and a hot shower after a wonderful winter day of climbing.
Blackstone Hotsprings is a luxury lodging option with some interesting themed rooms with in-room hot spring tubs.
Other must-do stops are Passion Pie Cafe, which has amazing coffee and baked goods or breakfast before you head to crag. For a more traditional breakfast check out the Old Brick Cafe or Carmen's ( not open Sunday). Both are a good value. The T or C brewery is very cool with live music, lots of good beer, and an amazing food truck in the back alley. For a good value, the A & B Drive In is fairly fast and gives you a good local experience.
[Hide Photo] End of a long winter day
[Hide Photo] Do not burn desert plants. The desert is fragile! Bring your own firewood!!!!!
[Hide Photo] Mud mountain and the road
[Hide Photo] Ocotillo blooming in the spring. DO NOT BURN THESE PLANTS. They are dormant in the winter, not dead.
[Hide Photo] Ocotillo in the summer months. Please do not burn these plants! When you are here in the winter they are dormant, but they are not dead.
[Hide Photo] From lower parking and camping area
Perhaps there has been more erosion since this description was written? Perhaps I took the wrong arroyo ( i clocked the 1.4 two times from underpass). How much farther was the "parking" and the crag? Jan 31, 2019
Las Cruces, NM
The hiking approach trail is well marked and designed. We appreciated all the work that was done at the base of Winter Wall to prevent erosion and make for good belay stances. The routes we did were great. There is a nice variety of technical edges, steep slopers, interesting pockets, etc. The routes we did were VERY well bolted and safe from the ground up. The rock is definitely still "cleaning" as it's climbed...beware below. This area reminded me of Caballo with a little Tunnel thrown in.
Thanks for all the hard work and quality hardware! Feb 1, 2019
Durango, CO
Big thanks to those who put this area together! Awesome winter climbing spot. Feb 19, 2019
Los Alamos, NM
In a 2018 Rav4 with 6 inches of ground clearance we were able to drive up the arroyo to the base of the steep hill that climbs out of the arroyo. We spent a good bit of time clipping back the desert vegetation on the edges of the arroyo road and had to pick good lines in a couple spots but it wasn't bad. From where we parked in the arroyo, it was an easy .6 mile hike to the normal "lower parking" mountainproject.com/approac… at the big, empty water tank. From the empty water tank parking, it was another .6 mile hike to the Winter Wall. mountainproject.com/approac… The entire hike took us 35 minutes and was pretty low key. Dec 16, 2019
It is definitely worth being mindful of the parking situation. There is TONS of parking by the water tank, but the top parking is limited, and it's not particularly easy to turn around.
Great crag, awesome climbing, and beautiful area! Jan 5, 2020
Albuquerque, NM
Thanks so much Lance and Sarah for another NM crag to enjoy in the winters! I appreciate all of your hard work putting these routes up. Feb 24, 2020
Albuquerque, NM
Mesa, AZ
Santa Fe, NM
El Paso, TX
Albuquerque, NM
Truth or Consquences, NM
These are live cactus dormant in the winter. If you are reading this comment please help educate other climbers about this issue as it is a recurring problem - someone burnt some in the last week (mid janurary 2024) so if you know whom was camping up there please talk to them.
A group of locals in TorC are actively working to stop this before it becomes a bigger issue and the area is shut down to climbing! So many climbing spots are threatened and no one wants to loose this one to some fools trying to burn live cactus.
We ask you all to do your part in cleaning this place of the trash and toilet paper which is showing up more and more and to keep this fragile desert environment intact.
Educate your fellow climbers about the cactus!
Educate your fellow climbers about having respectable toilet practices!
Clean up any trash you find!
Thank You Jan 23, 2024
Albuquerque, NM