Mountain Project: Climbing California

For sheer variety of rock and stable weather it is hard to beat California as a climbing destination.

Want soaring granite? Head to Yosemite National Park. Want thousands of sport routes and world class bouldering? Head to the Buttermilks or Owens River Gorge on the East side of the Sierra. Looking for limitless climbing under a warm, desert sun, visit Joshua Tree.

Head West to find the goods.

The Classics

Mountain Project's determination of some of the classic, most popular, highest rated routes for California:

Midnight Lightning V8 Boulder Yosemite Valley : Camp 4 Bouldering

Southeast Buttress 5.6 Trad, Alpine, 5 pitches, 700 feet, Grade II Tuolumne Meadows : Cathedral Peak

Snake Dike 5.7 R Trad, 8 pitches, 2000 feet, Grade III Yosemite Valley : Half Dome

Double Cross 5.7+ Trad, 1 pitch, 95 feet The Old Woman : The Old Woman - West Face

Sail Away 5.8- Trad, 1 pitch, 100 feet Real Hidden Valley : Hidden Tower

Nutcracker 5.8 Trad, 5 pitches, 500 feet Yosemite Valley : Manure Pile Buttress (aka R...

Central Pillar of Frenzy 5.9 Trad, 5 pitches Yosemite Valley : Middle Cathedral Rock

Mithril Dihedral 5.9 Trad, Alpine, 6 pitches, 500 feet, Grade III High Sierra : Mt. Russell

Open Book 5.9 Trad, 3 pitches, 490 feet South Face : Open Book Area

Regular Route 5.9 Trad, 12 pitches, 1000 feet, Grade III Tuolumne Meadows : Fairview Dome

The Nose 5.9 C2 Trad, Aid, Grade VI Yosemite Valley : El Capitan

Sons of Yesterday 5.10a/b Trad, 6 pitches Yosemite Valley : Royal Arches

Illusion Dweller 5.10b Trad, 1 pitch, 100 feet Real Hidden Valley : The Sentinel

East Buttress 5.10b Trad, 9 pitches, 1200 feet Yosemite Valley : El Capitan

Serenity Crack 5.10d PG13 Trad, 3 pitches Yosemite Valley : Royal Arches

Positive Vibrations 5.11a Trad, Alpine, 12 pitches, 1200 feet, Grade IV High Sierra : Incredible Hulk

The Vampire 5.11a Trad, 4 pitches, 400 feet West Face Bulge Routes : Upper Bulge Routes

Astroman 5.11c Trad, 10 pitches, 1000 feet, Grade IV Yosemite Valley : Washington Column

Separate Reality 5.12a Trad, 1 pitch, 50 feet Yosemite Valley : Wildcat Falls & Above the C...

Regular Northwest Face of Half Dome 5.12a/b Trad, 23 pitches, 2200 feet, Grade VI Yosemite Valley : Half Dome

Featured Route For California

Rave V6-7 CA : Sierra Eastside : ... : Slow Dance Cave

A tuff bouldering classic: powerful, yet technical, and immensely satisfying. Grab the pumice banana and a small right crimp and pull a couple steep moves to the big sloper. Keep it tight for a radical sequence through the large dish to a gaston, and finally, a baseball-sized pocket and the huge shelf. Beautiful.(Word has it the starting pinch and a crucial foot have been steadily disintegrating over time, so step lightly and/or get this done qui...[more] Browse More Classics in CA

Photos of California

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High Sierra. Photo by Blitzo.	A dirtbag meets the squeeze.	BETA PHOTO: California Regions
The ghost town, Bodie. Photo by Blitzo.	Tufa Towers-Mono Lake. Photo by Blitzo.	Kirkwood Lake area. Photo by Blitzo.
Merced River Canyon, below El Portal, CA. Photo by...	Sunset storm, Colorado Desert, Southern California...	Echo Lake. Photo by Blitzo.
Death Valley-Spring. Photo by Blitzo.	Climbing in the Colorado/Sonoran Desert. Photo by ...	Nolina bloom taken at the base of Popular Mechanic...
Bear Cub-Sequoia National Park. Photo by Blitzo.	Sequoia Forest-Sequoia N.P. Photo by Blitzo.	Forest-Sequoia N.P. Photo by Blitzo.
Boulder-Kings River. Photo by Blitzo.	Sunset in Sequoia-Kings Canyon	Bristlecone Pine-White Mountains. Photo by Blitzo.
California Poppy-State Flower. Photo by Blitzo.	Morro Rock-Sequoia National Park. Photo by Blitzo.	Titus Canyon, Death Valley
Eureka Dunes, Death Valley	Classic Yosemite Valley view.	A classic High Sierra dome, photo: Bob Horan.
Mt. Tom, Bishop area Sierras	Joshua Tree National Park	Sunset, Death Valley, NP
Crazy desert clouds, Death Valley, NP	Devil's Golf Course, Death Valley National Park. ...	The "Artist's Palette" formation, Death Valley NP.
Zabriski Point, Death Valley NP.

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California

Overview

The Classics