Where to go Sportclimbing near Johnson City

Hi,

i'm Fritz from Austria and i'm here in Johnson City for work.
My German colleague and me want to go rockclmbing again this weekend.
We are searching for a Sportclimbing Area's (Bolted as we have no additional gear) near Johnson City, should not be more than about 2h drive.
Range from 5.8 to 5.12 would be great.

What can you recomend?
We have allready been to HiddenValley and on one area near grandfather mountain.

Hope someone has a good tip for us.

Best Regards
Fritz

Maybe it is a little too far for you to drive, probably closer to 3 hours than 2 hours, but the Obed is pretty great.

mountainproject.com/v/obed-…

It's over 2 hours away, but the Obed should be on your list.

Obed on MP

I would also consider driving to Foster Falls near Chattanooga.

Are you looking for really good climbing or just a piece of rock to get outside and play on? You can just zoom in on the map of the US on the home page of MP and look at the areas near Johnson City. Foster Falls and the Red River Gorge are the same drive time for you (3.5 hr), both amazing (but the Red is far more amazing with 10x more routes, so it just depends how long you have to climb).

There is a new bolted route in Knoxville that is not on here yet called Ijams Crag. Its a few short routes but could be fun. Also Devils Racetrack may be nice I have never been there but have been told its fun climbing. If your ever in the Knoxville area be sure to check out the new climbing gym Onsight Rock Gym. It is supposed to open after the first of the year. Im new to the area and always looking for new climbing partners feel free to send me a message if your ever climbing in the area. I would love to checkout Devils Racetrack. And Obed is nice with lots of routes, it may be worth your drive.

Hi!

Thank you very much for all your answers!
As the weather should be great the whole weekend, we decided to go for the red river gorge for both days. The pictures from there look great and i think it is a good spot for spending our last weekend here.
So what are the best sectors to go there for Routes in the Range from 5.8 to 5.11d?
And are there good hotels/motels for one night someone can recommend?
In the meantime, thank you so much for your attention and participation.

Fritz

Fritz, For accommodations there are several campsites (most popular and cheapest being Miguel's Pizza Shop, can be crazy packed on nice weekends), Lil' Abner Motel, Torrent Falls has cabins for rent (never stayed there but if you stay there you get access to the climbing there which is great and will be right out the back door). Those are the most convenient places I know of.
As far as climbing you can go to Muir Valley if you want to have access to a lot, PMRP if you want a lot (depending on road conditions high clearance may be helpful), Roadside Crag (now called Graining Fork Nature Preserve) has many classics in that grade range (make sure you find their website and fill out a waiver before you go or the owner will threaten to hit you with a pick axe!) Those are my favorites, it's a huge place though and it's hard to go wrong.
ENJOY!

Miguels is closed for the season but you can still camp there and they have running water and toilets. Land of the Arches is another campground that has a huge indoor area where you can sleep inside so all you would need is a sleeping pad and bag. As far as hotels Black Bear Lodge Motel is on Expedia.com and looks like a decent hotel to stay at although I have never been...

As far as climbing I would check out Muir Valley, PMRP, or Roadside/Torrent. There are tons of crags at Muir valley and PMRP so you will have to do some research and see what looks good for the grades you want but Chocolate Factory is a good bet with tons of climbs of all grades. Muir Valley is also a great area with lots of climbs and a little bit easier to find your way around. And Roadside and Torrent are both super close with grades of all ranges but you do need a permit to climb at both but permits are super easy to get. Check out redriverclimbing.com they have an awesome online guidebook with a great search function to find specific climbs in your range.

Hidden Valley - just outside of Abingdon, VA - is only about an hour away.
carolinaclimbers.org/hidden…

Thank you very much!
Still at work and can't wait to get on the rocks tomorrow.
Hope the weather will be good.

Just to mention this MOUNTAIN PROJECT .com webpage is relay great!