What Are Your Top Rock Climbing Destinations in North America That All Climbers Should Try to Visit?

What's your list of the best 5-10 rock climbing areas (not just single crags, but places with great climbing within 1-2 hours) in North America? Places every rock climber should try to visit at least once? I'm thinking for quality and quantity of climbing. Could be single pitch, could be multipitch. Could be different types of climbing, sandstone, granite, etc. And obviously this is opinion. I like long climbs and overhanging jug fests so I'll rate those type of places higher, but someone who likes crimpy face climbs can have a different opinion. And I have to break this into trad and sport because they are too different to try to rank against each other. I'm not really into bouldering but if you want to list your top 5-10 for that please do.

For me:

Traditional

1. Yosemite (the Valley, Tuolumne, etc.)
2. Sierra Eastside (Bishop, Whitney Portal, etc.)
3. Red Rock
4. Indian Creek / Moab
5. Squamish
6. Joshua Tree
7. The Gunks

Places I haven't climbed yet but from what I've ready could potentially beat out some of the above or fill out the top 10.

• Boulder Area
• Vedauwoo
• The Needles, CA

Sport

1. Red River Gorge
2. New River Gorge
3. Smith Rock
4. Sierra Eastside 

Places I haven't climbed yet that could potentially beat out some of the above

• Boulder Area
• Maple Canyon
• Rumney
• Rifle
• Shelf Road
• Chattanooga Area Crags

Nice try I'm not revealing my secret top destinations 

North Table Mountain…in July. 

New River Gorge for sport, but also stacks of cool trad nobody ever talks about. My favorite climbing area.

Glowering wrote:

I like long climbs and overhanging jug fests

Where is your favorite?

Mark Vigil wrote:

Nice try I'm not revealing my secret top destinations 

These should all be the well known areas that are already popular. One of my favorite big areas that could be on my list but flies under the radar is Sequoia & Kings Canyon. I'm not concerned about driving traffic there because it really could use more, especially development wise.

My secret destinations are some of my localish crags. Those I don't advertise LOL.

Ben G wrote:

Where is your favorite?

For long climbs it's my top trad areas, and for juggy it's my favorite sport areas.

Traditional

1. Valley
2. Squamish
3. Indian Creek
4. Red Rock
5. Bugaboos
6. High Sierra

Mark Vigil wrote:

Nice try I'm not revealing my secret top destinations 

No kidding!  Why are there so many dumb-assed posts like this?   

John Byrnes wrote:

No kidding!  Why are there so many dumb-assed posts like this?   

Again I'm wondering what people's top 5-10 "Destinations" that climbers should visit, not secret under the radar places. No one is keeping Yosemite, Red Rock, etc. secret. I'm looking for places widely known that every climber should visit. How is that so hard to understand? LOL.

Okay, serious response…in no certain order

Sport:

1. The Red

2. The New

3. Maple

4. Rifle

5. Wild Iris

Trad:

1. Yosemite/Tuolumne

2. Squamish

3. Gunks

4. Red Rock

5. Canyonlands/Moab (not the Creek. The Creek is sport climbing)

Boulder:

1. Hueco

2. Bishop

3. Joe’s

4. RMNP

5. Something in the SE. 

Hank Caylor wrote:

New River Gorge for sport, but also stacks of cool trad nobody ever talks about. My favorite climbing area.

The New is probably the best single pitch crag in the country. It’s best explored with a set of draws and a full rack. Climb what you find. 

Kings Bluff on the Cumberland River in Clarksville Tennessee should be on any climbers itinerary!

Glowering wrote:

Again I'm wondering what people's top 5-10 "Destinations" that climbers should visit, not secret under the radar places. 

...to make them even more crowded than they already are.  

No one is keeping Yosemite, Red Rock, etc. secret. 

So if they aren't secret, why are you asking?  Considering the level of experience of MP and the level of bullshit on the Internet overall, what confidence can you have in "the answer"?

I'm looking for places widely known that every climber should visit. 

WHY? Run a travel agency? Guide service? Just bored?

How is that so hard to understand? LOL.

Ha ha.  I clearly understand that your question is in the same category as "Where should I: move to/go to school, visit in January (without a car), take my dog, find partners, hear a Who, surf, etc. because I can't think for myself?  A subset of how do I: tie a figure-8, what's the weather going to be in June, do the French Blow, how do I find my zipper in the dark and I'm writing a paper for school questions.  

Cherokee Nunes wrote:

Kings Bluff on the Cumberland River in Clarksville Tennessee should be on any climbers itinerary!

That’s the first place I ever roped up outdoors. It was so fun and scary.  I still remember yelling “clipping!” at every bolt lol 

Right on Jeans! I learned to climb just upriver from there at Ashland City, back in the frickin late 70s/early 80s! We led several climbs on Sydney Bluff on hexes and stoppers! (insane!)

1) The local gym. Weather is always perfect. Also great for ogling bodies. 

2) The local chosspile. What's not to love about hangdogging up some quarry cutout and then spraying about how it was actually soft?

3) That secret spot out in the middle of nowhere. You've probably never heard of it, and I don't want it to get overrun but, like, sooooo amazing brah.

4) Buildering that parking structure around the corner. Splitter #2 and 3 all the way - it's basically like the Creek, but better. You wouldn't believe it.

5) Anywhere in Florida. Best sand(s̶t̶o̶n̶e̶) in the country.

Hank Caylor wrote:

New River Gorge for sport, but also stacks of cool trad nobody ever talks about. My favorite climbing area.

That's 'cause they're all loaded with spider webs, moss, dirt, vegetation, etc.

Pinnacles National Park and Steins Pillar

John Byrnes wrote:

So if they aren't secret, why are you asking?  Considering the level of experience of MP and the level of bullshit on the Internet overall, what confidence can you have in "the answer"?

WHY? Run a travel agency? Guide service? Just bored?

Why?

Selfishly: for myself. I've been to most of the top climbing destinations in North America, and I'm getting older and won't make that many more big road trips, and the majority will be to places I've already been because I know they'll be great. If there's other can't miss places I want to visit them. I won't just see a place listed here and go there, I'll do more research on it and make sure it's the type of climbing I like. But I'm already seeing places I want to learn more about. Places I've already heard about but don't know much about, and when someone says it's in their top 5-10 it may move it to the top of my list.

For the community: I've seen web pages written on this subject, but that's always one person's opinion, colored by the type of climbing they like to do, and limited by where they've been. When you have a group of people you're going to get a variety of responses and much broader experience.

Confidence in the answer:

There's all levels of experience on MP. And there's people from all over the country. Probably the biggest indicator is if someone provides a full list of 5-10 places it will likely include places I've already been. Then I can compare. If they rank a place I haven't been better than places I have been, I may want to visit that place. And if they list multiple places and rank them it gives a good indication of the type of climbing they like. So for example if their top 5 includes 4 of 5 of my top 5s and one I haven't been that's a great indication I should check it out. When someone lists places I've been that I wouldn't consider top 10 it also gives an indication that I may not agree, but someone else may.

Plus you also get interesting tidbits of info from people familiar with areas. I may not go there, but just check it out online and get more familiar with it. Or people can talk shit about other's favorite places. Or you'll get (hopefully) funny replies.

Cherokee Nunes wrote:

Right on Jeans! I learned to climb just upriver from there at Ashland City, back in the frickin late 70s/early 80s! We led several climbs on Sydney Bluff on hexes and stoppers! (insane!)

Nice! I was just clipping bolts back then so not sure my memory is spot on, but something tells me there weren’t all that many placements there…. Long live the hexes!