Thunder Mountain Railroad

Overview: Fifteen pitches of crack, off-width, chimney and sport climbing. You'll need 5.10 trad skills to do the full route. Do not underestimate the amount of time you'll need to get to the top AND get down safely. All pitches can be rapped but it gets increasingly more difficult as you move higher. Read the descent info. below and be prepared for a few rope snags as you descend. Be sure to pack a headlamp, windbreaker, snacks and water. If there's a forecast of thunder, or any hint of it, do not head up this climb. They call it Thunder Mountain for a reason. 

P1 – Wide Gauge – 5.10-, 50’:  Start on Wide Gauge (5.10) or the crack to left, Railroad Rodeo (5.10). Wide Gauge is the obvious chimney.  

P2 – Bryan’s Chimney - 5.9, 50’: At the top of Wide Gauge (or Railroad Rodeo), shift right to your next obvious off-width/chimney. Great views at top of this pitch. If you only had time for 2 pitches, this would be a good place to stop. Bryan first led this pitch in the dark with a headlamp.

P3 – Charli’s Chimney (aka the Bowling Alley) - 5.10, 60’: Start on right under the giant, looming chockstone. It’s been there a while so it’s probably not going anywhere? Stay right of the chockstone for cool chimney moves (or stay left for insecure face moves – slightly harder). After mounting the chockstone (and saying a quick thank you to the gods of stable chockstones), make an easy, but spooky, long reach to your next bolt on the face. Work your way up and left through the Bowling Alley without killing your belayer. Notify your belayer that they need to be ready to jump left or right at any moment. Charli led this pitch “on-sight” while delicately dancing over a myriad of smaller chockstones caught in the upper portion of the chimney. Every stone was ready to make its final trip home toward the ocean. These have (mostly) been sent on their way. If someone happens to be on this pitch and you're considering starting this climb, it's wise to wait until they are at least one more pitch above you. 

P4 – John’s Chimney – 5.9, 70’: Be careful, the belayer is in the line of fire. Work your way right up easy ground, then head left up into the obvious (but easy) off-width/slot thing. There’s a fun, mentally committing crux as you move above the “bomb bay” section of the chimney to top out. If you only have half a day, this a great place to call it and rap off.

P5 – Transition – 5.easy, 30’: Not really a pitch but it gets you up to the start of the next section. Work your way slight left then right to the “shield tree” at the base of the big crack/corner. The tree got its name after Charli (accidentally) sent a giant rock down to Bryan as he hid behind the tree. Give the tree a hug and thank it for watching out for wayward climbers.

P6 – Shield Tree Crack – 5.9, 50’: A fun mix of chimneying and crack climbing. Add a cam and belay at the bolt on the obvious ledge. It is possible to connect to P7 if you have the gear and confidence to continue. If anyone is above you on P7 or P8, wait until they clear off P8.

P7 – Money Pitch – 5.10, 70’: Bryan described this as the best pitch in Sedona. Let me know if you agree. This is a steep climb with a mix of crack climbing, chimney climbing, stemming, off-width climbing and maybe even some lie backing. Some loose blocks will keep you paying attention.

P8 – Wild Pitch – 5.10, 50’: Belay from the top of P7 anchors or move up 30’ on easy terrain to belay directly under your climber (very comfortable stance). More chimney moves await you with a mix of airy crack/face moves. You’ll find gear placements and holds on both the left and right walls.

P9 - Short Transition - 5.3, 40': From top of the P8 anchors work your way up the slot to your right to the bae of the obvious rock wall.

P10 – Red Rocks Pitch – 5.7, 70’: From top of Pitch 8, stay on belay and move your way up through the wide slot immediately to your right – about 30’. Belay at the base of the vertical, patina rock with great holds that is reminiscent of Red Rocks. Go straight up the short face (maybe 30’) then work your way over a large platform and clip a bolt after doing an easy step across. Continue up a short, easy face (5.3?) and across a mini spire to a 2-bolt anchor. Note - go past the two-bolt rap anchor and don't stop till you get to the Sky Belay.

P11 - Sky Traverse - 5.8/5.9? 70': Welcome to the Sky Belay. You will have no trouble discerning whether you’re at the Sky Belay. You’ll have several hundred feet of air below you. Take a minute to enjoy the view and try and get your partner to lead the Sky Traverse. Work your way straight up, then head left over the traverse. I have no idea how to grade this. The climbing is “easy” but the exposure is off the chart. Continue up and over this mini tower and down the other side to another anchor at a big platform. Your follower will have to do a bit of unprotected 4th class to join you at the anchor. That’s what they get for not offering to lead the sky traverse. OR, if you want to watch your second struggle, you can place gear and build an anchor on top of the tower instead of continuing over the top and down the other side to the “Bivy Site”. 

Bivy Site: After working your way over the tower, you'll discover a two bolt anchor below a giant boulder with lots of fragile flakes. This spot would make a great bivy site for anyone practicing for a big wall. 

P12 - Crack in the Sky - 5.10, 70': Probably the best (or second best) pitch of the entire climb. From the Bivy Site, move the belay down to the anchor at the base of the obvious crack to your left. Enjoy some amazing hand, fist, and off-width crack climbing. Belay at the small tree at the top of this pitch.

P13 – Chossineering – 5.6,  100’: Work your way left over the top of the tree at the anchor. Then use the crack and work your way up placing gear and clipping bolts along the way. Ends at the base of a big ledge below a mini version of the Red Rocks pitch.

P14 – Spire Traverse – 5.4, 70’: Climb a short (12’), Red Rock style wall, pass a 2-bolt anchor (you will use this later for the descent) and work your way left over the spire-like feature until you get to a tree at the base of a large wall. Take a minute to enjoy the amazing, airy view as you walk across the top of this spire. Step over a small gap and squeeze past the tree at the base of the wall. There are no anchors at the tree so just give your partner an “alpine belay”. You can leave your trad rack here at the base of this pitch and pick it up on the descent. 

P15 – Sport Pitch in the Sky – 5.9, 80’: This is your last pitch. Why a sport pitch? I just thought it would be a novel way to end the this mostly trad adventure. This pitch starts directly above the tree. You will need to climb into the tree to get to the first bolt. Of course, that’s “aid” but at this point you probably won’t care. Plus, it makes me smile to think of you struggling through a tree to clip the first bolt while cursing my name. 

Descent: Rap the route at any point. Note that it gets progressively harder after the Sky Traverse. DO NOT UNDERESTIMATE THE DIFFICULTY AND POTENTIAL DANGERS IN THE DESCENT. Plan on about 3 hours for your descent. Consider "saddle-bagging" the rap lines if it's windy. It does get windy up there!

1 - From the topo of the Sport Pitch in the Sky, rap to the tree at the base. 2- Reverse the traverse to the 2-bolt anchor above the mini Red Rocks wall. 3 - Rap to the big ledge below this wall. DO NOT RAP STRAIGHT DOWN TO THE TOP OF THE CRACK IN THE SKY PITCH. If you do, you'll be dropping into the area we call Narnia. And you may not come back from Narnia for many years. 4 - Instead, rap down to an anchor that is 30' or so above the giant, flaky boulder (above the Bivy site). Lots of choss and loose blocks. Be careful where you step and when you pull your rope. 5 - Do another really short (30' or so) rap to an anchor just above the flaky boulder. Dodge the cactus, yucca, and agave along the way. 6 - Rap another short rap to the Bivy Site. Note that you will be quite a ways to the right of the anchor for the Crack in the Sky Pitch. If you do this correctly, you won't get lost in Narnia or have to do shenanigans to traverse back right to get to the correct descent route. 7 - Instead of reversing the Sky Traverse, you'll need to rap down the spooky loose gully from the Bivy Site that connects to the base of the Red Rocks pitch. Feel free to curse my name as you dodge loose rocks and do an easy, but spooky step across move. THERE ARE MANY LARGE LOOSE BLOCKS IN THIS GULLY. BE CAREFUL. As of 4/2025, a rope was fixed at this spot to aid your descent. 8 - The fixed line leads you to the base of the Red Rocks pitch. From there, you just need to do a short rap to the anchors above Pitch 8, the Wild Pitch. From here, you can rap the 6, 7, and 8 in 2 raps. 9 - Reverse the loose, dirty scramble from the shield tree and do a tiny rap to the top of P4. IMPORTANT, the lower section just above the anchor on P4 has some poorly seated "belayer slayers". Instead of rapping the fall line, rap the climbing line. Go around the bush to the right and back to the anchor. If you're the first to rap P4, when you arrive at the P3 anchor, put yourself on a long leash and be prepared to jump left/right as needed. In general, right is safer. Diving into the rock may work, but will likely result in rocks landing on your back. 10 - Almost home! Rap P3. 11 - Rap P2 and P1 together and you're on the ground and one step closer to comfy shoes, a burrito and a beer.  

Just be aware of other parties that might be coming up behind you. 

Caution: Rocks launched from the top of P8 land at the base of P6 (the Shield Tree). And often keep going all the way down to top of P3 and eventually to the base of P1. Rocks launched from top of P4, John's Chimney, will go all the way down the route and eventually through the "coal chute" right of the start. After cleaning P3, Charli's Chimney, I recognized a few rocks way down on the approach trail. 

Start in obvious wide crack on the left side of the Railyard. Be careful of the "Coal Chute" to the right of the start. This chute has randomly spit rocks at me while just sitting at the base. Consider it the mini version of the Khumbu Icefall. Any rocks knocked off from P2 to P4 will roar down this chute.