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What’s the best major US city to live in to maximize access to good bouldering?

Original Post
Dan Barkhorn · · Unknown Hometown · Joined Feb 2019 · Points: 185

I’m thinking places that allow weekend trips, maybe week long trips now that WFH is more common. Variety is good also (in terms of rock type, setting, etc). 

Dan Barkhorn · · Unknown Hometown · Joined Feb 2019 · Points: 185

Bay Area / SF is great. I think (someone correct me if wrong) the biggest downside is there best really close spot is Castle Rock, which is just fine in my experience. Other spots like SLC, Las Vegas, or Denver / Boulder have world class areas within an hour I think.

That being said, BA / SF is a quick flight to and from SLC and LV, and 3-4 hours to Tahoe. It also has Yosemite & Bishop as good options for week long trips. 

JCM · · Unknown Hometown · Joined Jun 2008 · Points: 115

There was this thread with 10 pages of debate on the best big cities. Focused more on route climbing, so the bouldering-specific list might look a bit different. Denver, SLC, and Vegas are still the top 3 though.

https://www.mountainproject.com/forum/topic/120995670/top-10-best-us-large-cities-for-climbing

One thing that continually came up in that thread is what qualifies as a "major" enough city. Are you looking only at th biggest cities- the likes of LA, SF, NYC? Or are cities a step down in size like SLC in consideration? What about yet another step down in size, to something like Chattanooga or Reno?

Whatever your criteria, Bay Area is pretty far down the list. While there is a variety of local bouldering, it is just too far from destination-quality areas. There are other good cities where you don't have to drive quite that far for climbing.

Nick Budka · · Adirondacks · Joined Jul 2020 · Points: 187

Albany ny is central to the northeast with the gunks and the adirondacks within 2 hours, western mass has good stuff, vermont has more good problems and rumney is less than 4 hours away. Never been out west though. I imagine the bay is similar but with bigger and better stuff…

Ackley The Improved · · Unknown Hometown · Joined Mar 2020 · Points: 0

Boulder

JCM · · Unknown Hometown · Joined Jun 2008 · Points: 115
JCM wrote:

There was this thread with 10 pages of debate on the best big cities. Focused more on route climbing, so the bouldering-specific list might look a bit different. 

https://www.mountainproject.com/forum/topic/120995670/top-10-best-us-large-cities-for-climbing

That linked thread goes deep into all this, but taking an attempt at a modified list that considers bouldering only. As with the other list, considering metro areas of 1 million or greater. Some cities have good route climbing but less so for bouldering (Tucson; Portland), and fall significantly in ranking. Others have more/better bouldering options than they do routes (Bay Area; San Diego) and are ranked higher on a bouldering-only list than on a routes list. East Coast cities also gets higher consideration on a bouldering-only ranking; the lack of big mountains isn't so much an issue (though the weather still is an issue).

1. Denver

2. SLC

3. Vegas

4 San Diego

5. Sacramento (Could potentially drop in the rankings depending on how much damage the Caldor fire has done)

6. LA

7. Seattle

8. Bay Area

Past this is gets a bit murkier, but possibly:

9. Boston

10/11. Cities in the South? Chatt and Asheville are great, but too small for a "major cities" list. Atlanta? Charlotte?

12. NYC? Providence? 

13 Phoenix 

There are lots of other contenders if you start letting smaller cities onto the list.

Very subjective, and depends on priorities. For instance, to rank the CA cities, would you rather have a local bouldering zone but be kinda far from major destinations (Bay; San Diego), or lack in-town bouldering but be a shorter trip from the "good stuff". How much do you emphasize weather and length of season?  Do you want to live in to most cosmopolitan city possible, or are you ok with a quieter backwater city? Etc ..

Claudine Longet · · Unknown Hometown · Joined Sep 2020 · Points: 0

Manhattan.

1. Best city life on the planet.

2. Dumbo Boulders, Central Park, the Gunks.

3. If you can afford to live there, you can afford a charter or private flight to anywhere.

Mark Frumkin · · Bishop, CA · Joined Feb 2013 · Points: 52

Become ungovernable picks Manhatten, how pathetically ironic! 

Claudine Longet · · Unknown Hometown · Joined Sep 2020 · Points: 0
Mark Frumkin wrote:

Become ungovernable picks Manhatten, how pathetically ironic! 

Weird flex. There are lits of people in Manhattan who are literally above being governed. Also, ground zero for capitalism. True, NYC itself is a Marxist shithole. But I'm talking about 5th Avenue here

Jordan Wilson · · Unknown Hometown · Joined Dec 2017 · Points: 65

Wasatch Front, LCC for spring fall, West facing benchs in Ogden for winter bouldering, Joes, moes, Ibex and southern Idaho all close. Uinta/the cotton woods for Alpine summer bouldering. 

Jason Beals · · San Luis Obispo, CA · Joined Dec 2019 · Points: 25

Probably Las Vegas? (unfortunately, lol)

You want to be near Bishop and Joshua Tree, Red Rock and Joe's Valley. That's the best bouldering IMO. Bishop takes the cake easily.

Anthony _ · · Unknown Hometown · Joined May 2018 · Points: 66

Atlanta maybe? Within striking distance of chatty, hp40, hospital boulders, etc

Mark Frumkin · · Bishop, CA · Joined Feb 2013 · Points: 52

If Bishop takes the cake then L.A. is the place to live. It's an hour closer than Vegas & has bouldering all around it. Plus it is a rock throw away from the Southern Sierra. The San Gabriel Mts., the San Bernadino Mts., Suicide Tahquitz, & JT are in its backyard. In the front yard, you have the coastal range which is filled with boulders & the Pacific Ocean. 

Andrew Child · · Corvallis, Or · Joined Sep 2015 · Points: 1,552

I lived in San Jose for a bit and IMO the Bay Area is pretty terrible as far as bouldering access goes when compared to the other options that usually get thrown around (SLC, Vegas, Denver, LA, etc.). Within a two hour radius the only bouldering options are Castle Rock (rad but small), and Indian Rock (never went, very small and pretty far depending on where in the bay you are located). Options outside of the Bay Area (Yosemite, Bishop, Tahoe) are world class but they are pretty far (5+ hours) and the awful traffic getting out of the Bay Area often makes them even farther away.

Guideline #1: Don't be a jerk.

Bouldering
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