Winter rock climbing near Boston?

Hey folks, I'm new to the area and wondering if someone could recommend south facing crags with trad climbing near Boston. Say, 1-2 hours driving distance? Looking for routes in the 5.9-11 range. 

Thanks!

Dennis

 It sounds like your best bet is going to be the south face of Whitehorse up in North Conway.  Your criteria is pretty narrow though around here. The only good Trad climbing destinations that are  within an hour are Crow Hill and then once you get up north a couple hours your options open up. Cathedral, Whitehorse, Cannon etc. Some of the Kangamangus Crags I believe are south facing. This time of year your going to run into ice as well. Sometimes the best type of climbing near Boston this Time of year is bouldering. Some of the smaller crags near Boston have Trad routes like Quincy Quarries and Hammond Pond, but options are limited. I’m happy to help you out best I can.

if you head out west, you can check out places like Farley and Rose ledge. A bit more and you’ll get to the Gunks. There’s likely some stuff at Farley that would be good in the winter.

generally folks climb rock year round in these parts.

South But. of Whitehorse is good, but Humphrey's Ledge (about 2 miles north of Whitehorse-Cathedral) also gets direct southeast sun, and may have less ice above than Whitehorse. (and what ice there is, is more easily seen on this 300-350 ft cliff than on So. Buttress of Whitehorse) However, North Conway area is a bit more than "2 hrs drive", and often has dramatically different weather than Boston. (i.e. clouds vs sun)  Once the snow packs starts, the trail into Humphrey's is usually packed out. 

In NH in the winter even the sunny-side cliffs generally go into the shade about 1 or 2 pm.  

Closer to Boston - parts of Quincy Quarries can "bake" in the sun, and if you're going to drive 3 hrs consider the Gunks...direct southeast exposure and sheltered from Northwest winds.

Closer than the Gunks, but still a drive, CT has some stuff that gets sun...Pinnacle Crag gets afternoon sun,.while Southeast Pinnacle, &  SunRise cliff get morning sun. Ragged Mt in CT faces nearly due north and is COLD. 

Or...just hang up the climbing shoes and take up ice climbing! 

Check out Longstack Precipice, south facing and lots of routes in your grade range.

https://www.mountainproject.com/area/107651935/longstack-precipice

Hey guys thanks for the great info. I'll look into these options. I'm happy to drive further than 2 hours.... that was just a starting point. 

I've been to Cathedral, but looks like I'll have to check out Whitehorse as well. Thanks again!

Bport wrote:

Check out Longstack Precipice, south facing and lots of routes in your grade range.

https://www.mountainproject.com/area/107651935/longstack-precipice

+1, I went here in the spring and it was baking in the sun on a mild day. I'm not sure what the approach would be like or if some of the roads would be closed because of snow in the winter.

Not mentioned, but also in western mass just down the road from Farley is Mormon Hollow. I'm pretty sure it gets sun most of the day. It's not a huge area, but has a few nice gear routes in the 5.8-5.10 range. If you're willing to climb sport in the 5.12 range it opens some more quality climbing.

One of my favorite things about living in Boston was the opportunity to get back into ice climbing on a regular basis. At least try it out while you're there if you haven't already.

Where did you move here from? I suggest an immediate move back for multiple reasons. 

I moved here from Seattle and think the winter climbing here is more limited than both the Northwest and about the same as Montana. Best bets are all a drive away. Many have been mentioned. I’ll also toss in the Gunks and perhaps the best is Shell Pond in Maine. 

You should head south instead of north.  CT will be considerably warmer than NH or even MA especially in southern CT close to the coast.  The amphitheater at East Peak is remarkably warm on sunny winter days.  Ross Pond has some decent but limited trad routes.  

The gunks are considerably warmer than anything up north. 

Adrienne DiRosario wrote:

The gunks are considerably warmer than anything up north. 

Not always. As per anything outside, you have to look at a weather report. I've definitely selected north over west before due to weather.

Jimmy Downhillinthesnow wrote:

Where did you move here from? I suggest an immediate move back for multiple reasons. 

I moved here from Seattle and think the winter climbing here is more limited than both the Northwest and about the same as Montana. Best bets are all a drive away. Many have been mentioned. I’ll also toss in the Gunks and perhaps the best is Shell Pond in Maine. 

Sadly from Southern California, where the winter climbing options are numerous and fantastic. I've been to the Gunks many times and kind of hoping to find a closer crag....I'll look into Shell Pond. Thanks for the rec. 

Dennis wrote:

I'll look into Shell Pond. Thanks for the rec. 

It faces south-southwest and is a giant solar oven. Plenty toasty in the high 20s and lower 30s. Good sport climbing in the 11s-12s. Access in the winter is a bit of a pain but doable with your winter travel device of choice (snowshoes/skis/microspikes). Your best bet for winter trad climbing is probably booking a flight to Chattanooga or somewhere out west.

Dennis wrote:

Sadly from Southern California, where the winter climbing options are numerous and fantastic.

You'll have to recalibrate your definition of "cold".

Dennis wrote:

Hey folks, I'm new to the area and wondering if someone could recommend south facing crags with trad climbing near Boston. Say, 1-2 hours driving distance? Looking for routes in the 5.9-11 range. 

Thanks!

Dennis

Farley.

Rumney, Farley, Trap Rock, Crow Hill, Quincy Quarries. Dark rock, south faces, not too windy. The rock at the gunks does not heat up the way these other places do.

Farley faces southeast, not much of a window for sun on the  cliff ( the bouldering is better).  Mormon and Rose face southwest and get more winter sun, but tend to be windier with the wind out of the northwest on cold days.

As others have said, in western Mass. Farley in the morning, especially to Wall of Early Morning Light--a short walk up from the parking (though you won't be able to get into the lot if it has snowed recently!!!) is the best bet, but watch out for ice falling from above certain routes. Mormon and Rose are in the shade until late morning and are freezing, they do get afternoon sun but will then take a while to warm up. Further east Crow Hill gets sun to early afternoon, but has drainage issues on many routes. Quincy Quarries is a winter sun trap--have spent many winter days there in shirt sleeves or light pile--but it is the Quarries, so definitely not everyone's idea of a good climbing area. A number of the recently developed Boston-metro bouldering areas should be fine if there isn't too much snow on the ground. A  number of the Connecticut areas are sun-traps (at least in the morning) and are very popular winter destinations--particularly East Peak, Owl's Lair, and Winter Wall (at Short Mountain)--though the latter 2 have some access issues at times.

I was at ragged mountain this weekend and managed to stay pretty warm. The sun was on the cliff from about 11am to sunset.

dave custer wrote:

Rumney, Farley, Trap Rock, Crow Hill, Quincy Quarries. Dark rock, south faces, not too windy. The rock at the gunks does not heat up the way these other places do.

Crow Hill is a nice cragging spot, but be warned.  The cliff seeps like crazy, and even though ice might not be forming, the cliffs are often wet for a while when it is wet out.  I was there recently and it was soaked.  And as a fellow Southern Californian who moved, welcome to the northeast.  Turns out, everyone at home was wrong about 60 degrees being cold.

O man, Shell Pond getting thrown into the mix...

Dude, the way this winter is shaping up, put away your rock shoes.   The winter climbing window is tiny to begin with.... and it has to be kind of mild.