"Flag is your best option. I just moved from there. The climbing is not that close..."


uh what?

Overlook 15 min

Pumphouse 45 with hike


Solitude 20 minute hike FROM town

Forks 35 min

Winslow/Jacks 1:15 min

ISO 1.5 hr

Buffalo Park 5min hike

Gloria's 3 min hike

West elden 1o min from town

Sedona 45 min

THE priest's draw 15 min

the Pit 15 min

Dr. Office 25 min

Waterfall 1/2 drive 1/2 hour hike

Vegas 4.5 hours

Indian Creek less then 5 hours

Jtree 5.5 hours

Tuscon 4.5 hours

Zion lees than 4hrs

probably ten other areas with in half hour of Flag




As they say... nothing to see here move along


Edit: Tuscon I can see as a 'climber friendly' town. My good friend when people ask him where he's from he says 'Hell....., well O.K. Tempe' haha. What does he know he just lives there. Anyways, your headed in a good direction. Arizona is a nice state. Lot's to see.

I think the slow discovery that is developing is that you cant go wrong with Flag or Tucson. I moved to Tucson almost a year ago and I cant stop meeting people that want to climb with me. The bouldering might not be as good as Flag but all the other styles of climbing are top notch. Even the gym scene is friendly and connected heavily to outdoor adventures. The one point that I will make is that Tucson is off in its own world. To drive to red rocks, sedona, the creek, j tree, zion and most other hot spots, expect a longer drive. but if you are not looking at the road trip side of things, there is more local climbing than you will be able to get to after years of living in Tucson.

Good luck on making a tough decision! Either way you will end up on top

Amanda, have we confused you enough yet? Good luck with your choice!

The pit and the draw are only 5 miles out of town...totally doable on a bike. Yeah it gets cold here but I've been climbing at the Pit in short sleeves when my car thermometer read 20 degrees outside. There is climbing year round here.

I lived in Tucson for 18yrs before moving away. Hands down has the best climbing in AZ in terms of variety, volume and seasonal access. Has an excellent climbing gym. Mt. Lemmon itself is a massive complex with thousands of routes at all elevations on different types of granite and styles. Many other areas are listed in previous posts. All the social amenities(coffee shops, restaurants, etc) you'll ever desire. Tons of motivated climbers who never seem to lose the desire to continue route exploration and development. Great road and mtn biking. Several professional road racing teams use this area to get ready for their seasons. Tucson is a big city but still has a small town feel to it. It is a bit isolated so doing road trips will add a few hrs to your drive.

What it lacks....epic bouldering, and splitter cracks like Paradise forks. Who cares...do a road trip up north if your jonzin for crack or drive west to Hueco for a bouldering trip. I personally would get bored quickly climbing in Flagstaff alone. The proximity to other areas is the most appealing feature of Flagstaff climbing in my opinion.

Phoenix is the ghetto. Might as well move to LA. Better weather, surf and babes!!

i HATED tucson! (for the stint i was there, and have visited there a whole lot while living in san diego) but i am originally from the northwest. but still, ew!

actually just checked out albuquerque too...also, ew! so, maybe you will trust me.

i can't say anything about the rest of arizona...but i'm voting against tucson! and the drivers suck a$$ and the lights aren't timed so you stop at EVERY single one. but if you like strip clubs...they have a bunch of those.

my friend got hit by a van in the middle of the day while on his bike near the university of arizona (abiding by all traffic laws)...seeing as that is a high traffic area for bikes, one should be worried. hit and run. it wasn't pleasant!

(yes, mt lemmon is awesome! but biking to climbing there is a looooong and winding road...but uphill only one way...hahahaha)

You have to haul ass to make the green lights link up :-). Sounds like you spent too much time at the strip clubs and not enough time at the crags!!

Amanda: Here's one more vote for Tucson. I've been here for 13 years so far, after (and between) living a lot of other places, and I still love it. But, don't take my word for it. If you've got some free time and a way to get here from ABQ, you're welcome to surf my couch for a few days to a week to check the place out.

Brigette

I don't know if it's just me, but Tucson seems to have enough accidents for a city 3x its size. I admire the valor of those who ride bikes here, but I don't think I would ever do it myself.


Most Recent Tucson Traffic Incidents
5841 E 22 ST ,TUC ACCIDENT NO INJURY 10:19
215 E CONGRESS ST ,TUC HIT AND RUN ACCIDENT NEG INJ 10:18
S 6 AV/E I10 ,TUC ACCIDENT NO INJURY 10:06
1395 W MIRACLE MILE ,TUC MV NON TRAF PROPERTY DAMAGE 10:06
E RILLITO ST/N STONE AV ,TUC ACCIDENT WITH INJURIES 10:02
1010 W SAINT MARYS RD ,TUC HIT AND RUN ACCIDENT NEG INJ 10:01
S CRAYCROFT RD/E GOLF LINKS RD ,TUC ACCIDENT UNKNOWN INJURIES 09:57
W 22 ST/S I10 ,TUC PERS INJ MVA WITH ANOTHER MV 05:58

Well, since this is a rock climbing forum I think that proximity is a pretty good criteria and thanks for drawing my attention to this trenton place, it sounds nice. I'll have to check it out.

I lived in Phoenix for 13 years. Was born in Tucson and have visited extended family there for 25 years. Also been to Flag and Prescott numerous times. Climbed all over Arizona for several years.

Every city has its pros and cons.

David Sampson is correct that Tempe/Phoenix has the best central location to get to every kind of climbing and "destination" area in a reasonable drive time. Tucson, Flag, and Prescott simply cannot compete with Phoenix's climbing variety-to-travel time ratios. Also, not everyone thinks Mount Lemmon is the destination area its locals claim it is.

I would imagine Phoenix has the lowest rents and more libraries, culture, coffee shops, and work opportunities than anywhere else. Tucson is probably next in line in this aspect.

Tempe is a super bike-friendly town and many people live there with no car, but Flag probably offers the easiest bike-to-the-crag options. Don't know about Tucson, but it is by far the retard city in the state when it comes to handling its transportation and road construction issues. A real nightmare.

Arizona is a conservative state as a whole. However, I think all the major cities/towns offer large pockets of progressive people, especially in the climbing community. I've met great people in all major climbing towns in Arizona.

Also, if you prefer hotter temps, consider Tempe and Tucson. If you prefer colder temps, consider Flag. Prescott is kind of in the middle.

Good luck with your decision.

Umm, drank some beers (one called "The IPA Wipe Out" and one called The Lion Stout from Sri Lanka). As a result of my low tolerance I can not focus on all these posts. Very confused...BUT THANKS EVERYONE FOR ALL THE INPUT. Seems like Arizona climbing people are pleasantly accommodating. I shall revisit this post as soon as true clarity returns.....THANKS GUYS.

As a climber and ~150 miles/week cyclist, Tucson is fantastic for both. It's a whole different thing if you want to ride through mid-town during rush hour, but the cycling on the outskirts (where people generally for for a ride) is absolutely awesome.

Lots of very close climbing, much of it within biking distance for an avid biker.

Sure, Red Rocks is further, but there's so much climbing close by, who cares? Plus, Cochise is a very short drive (for those with cars) and you've got it practically to yourself.

It can be a bit hot getting around town on a bike mid-day in the summer, of course, but that's life without a car in most of AZ.

Ooooh, been visiting Flagstaff a couple days now. I like. There's people hacky sacking in the green by the library (a purportedly haunted library no less) and I saw a woman long boarding.

Plus, just saw Sedona. Wowsers. Read something about the area being void of first ascents by females. Hmmm.

Seems beuno here. The guy at the climbing gym was very kind and accommodating. And I attained my first cam thanks to my Mom who is visiting from Massachusetts!!!

Soooooo...anyone willing to get out tomorrow? Saturday the 30th? Maybe show me something nearby? PM me if so.

If not, I think I'll head up that beauteous mountain with the perfect point. Is it Humphrey?

"Eeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeek!!!"

(squeals of delight from a woman who has been stuck in the city for a whole darn year).

Yay.
So far, so good.

Hope I am not too late to cast my vote for TUCSON. I moved away to the Bay Area, CA last year because of work. But man, I still can't wait to be back there the moment I could.

I did not have a car the whole time I lived in Tucson (almost 6 years) - I used public transport to go to UofA/to work or just rode my bike. It gets hot during the day in the summer time, but the mornings and evenings are just fantastic! And the spectacular summer monsoon...

Recently, I finally able to articulate what makes Tucson so adorable - it is right at the perfect balance of giving you some of the convenience of being in a city while letting you living like it is a small town.

It really is pretty easy to get around by bike. Very friendly climbers (and people in general) and even the dogs are friendlier(compare to those living in cities)! And great climbing area nearby. Relatively lower living cost as well plus plenty of good restaurant (for food or work). And if you like Mexican food... boy, isn't Tucson the heaven for that as well?! And many many good local coffee shops... hey, the coffee shop at the Tucson Airport is a local chain instead of Starbucks!

People keep saying that Tucson is 2 more hours away from some of the climbing areas, but what about 2 hours closer to Hueco Tanks!

What truly is awesome is that there are many great and enthusiastic climbing partners who will carpool with you to climb at many of the great climbing locations mentioned by others. I just recently made a trip to climb at the Enchanted Tower in NM over Memorial Day weekend. Weather forecast was so so but 3 of my Tucson climbing friends brought a friend along in one car(just that I did not know her before this trip) to meet me there as soon as the weather forecast showed some promising sign. It is over 6 hours driving but they would do it! This is the kind of climbing partners you can find in Tucson! Amazing, right?!!!!

And, really, with Mt Lemmon right at the back yard, it is easy to just go and climb a good 3 - 4 hours even weather is not that great. It is very low investment to go and soon you will notice how much more climbing you had logged!

Great climbing and great people... Tucson is THE place to be!

Seems like one won't go wrong with Flag or Tucson.

From a trad climber who likes to crank, I don't think there is a better crag in AZ than Paradise Forks. Yeah Tucson dudes, Lemmon is pretty cool, but you're not going to find a better selection of hard crack routes than PF (unless you travel to Indian Creek).

Sport in Flag is good, but limited. Seems like Tucson may have the edge there. I climbed out the Pit within a year or two living in Flag. Jacks is flat out lame if you're looking to climb harder than 5.11. Asylum is good, but limited. I tend to go to Vegas for sport routes. Maybe I should check out Tucson.

Previous poster hit it right. Tucson in cooler months and Flag in the warm months.

Forgot to mention, you can find the highest number of routes listed for areas around Tucson (for the state of Arizona)- e.g. over 800 routes for Mt. Lemmon. Even though we have a great guide book for Mt Lemmon, there are still many new routes added and Eric FR (who author the guidebook and also an active FAist) is also the most active in sharing the routes (new or old) with us who wanted to climb there. And other climbers do the same in sharing information. This is the kind of openness, friendliness and willingness to share mentality that set Tucson climbing community apart.

I used to think that only the quality of the route matters, but the truth is, the people I climbed with that made the experience priceless!