Axtel Campground Climbing

Axtel Campground is centrally located in the Rough River Lake area. Campers and boaters stay for easy access to boat ramps, smores cooked over campfires, beautiful sunsets over the water, and making family memories. Axtel is not known for climbing, but the campground does contain a few free standing boulders, a band of short cliff, and a small sandstone cave nestled between primitive campsites. The campground has a playground, flush toilets, hot showers, a sandy beach, water and electric hookups at some campsites, and internet hotspots.

Primitive campsites are directly beside the boulders, which are located between the H and I sections of the campground, and there is an established hiking trail through the rocks. Thousands of hands and feet clambering on the rocks have smoothed the obvious holds and easiest climbs. Some of the holds were cut into the rock generations ago to assist people in climbing up and down the boulders.

This isn’t an area for the “strong” to work the next “great” project. This is a place to warm up before you drive (or boat) to one of the other, larger, better areas on the lake. This is a place for campers, nature lovers, and families to introduce young children to climbing. A single pad provides most of the protection you want.

Generations of people have climbed and scrambled on these rocks while recreating at this campground. Please do not add to all the gross graffiti carved into the rock, please pick up after yourself (and others), and please respect the rules of the campground. In short, prove that climbers bring value to Rough River (and Axtel) by not just spending your money there, but by leaving the area better than you found it.