All Locations > Colorado > Grand Junction Area

Westwater Area Rock Climbing

Climbing Area Map

Areas in Westwater Area

Black Rock 4 / 0 / 0 / 1 / 0 / 3 / 0 / 0 / 5

Mee Canyon 21 / 0 / 0 / 1 / 0 / 11 / 0 / 0 / 22

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Elevation:	4,442 ft
GPS:	39.1413, -108.998 Google Map · Climbing Area Map
Page Views:	43,419 total · 202/month
Shared By:	Andrew Gram on Aug 25, 2006
Admins:	Jesse Zacher, Bradley Mark Edwards, Nick Reecy, Leo Paik, John McNamee, Frances Fierst, Monty, Monomaniac, Tyler KC Page Updates (admin only)

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Description

There are a number of towers, canyons, walls, and even interesting granite walls in the roadless area of Utah and Colorado east of the River Road and west of Colorado Monument. The best access is primarily via raft, though you can access places by the Kokopelli bike trail and other long cross country orienteering adventures.

There are a number of established routes, though few are documented. You can spend a few enjoyable days floating these canyons and staring at the walls searching for rap anchors. There are also a number of major side canyons with towers - Mee Canyon along the Ruby/Horsethief Canyon stretch in particular is beautiful.

Eds. This was originally posted in the Utah section, but the climbs are actually in Colorado. So, by an MP.com user suggestion, we're moving it to Colorado under the Grand Junction subarea.

Getting There

The easiest access is by raft. Ruby/Horsethief Canyon is a flatwater stretch between Loma and the Westwater Ranger station. In can be floated in a day, but there are so many great campsites that you really should make a weekend of it. Permits are now required for this river - the BLM website is changing a lot these days so google for information. There is one small rapid around Black Rocks that can be tricky in a canoe, but nothing to worry about even for rafting novices in a raft. There are a couple of operations that rent rafts and portable toilets in Fruita, and will take care of vehicle shuttles as well.

The section of the river between the Westwater Ranger station and Cisco is another story. Westwater Canyon is the best one day rafting trip on the Colorado River and is wildly popular - permits are not easy to come by in high season. This section of the river also has a number of Class III and Class IV rapids, some of which can be very dangerous at high water levels(above 13,000 cfs). Even under favorable conditions, these are not good rapids for the inexperienced, so look in to the numerous guide services in Moab if you aren't a solid boatman.

After the Cisco takeout, the river is tame as it winds through ranches before you get to the Moab Daily section along River Road.