This rock is mostly lower angled slabs of Fountain Formation sandstone with decent to excellent opportunities for protection (some runouts possible but the angle is VERY low here). Great area to practice placing pro on lead and it gets lots of sunny exposure (east-facing). Climbs here range from 5.0 up to about 5.8, with most being of the lower levels of difficulty.
Getting There
Follow Table Mesa Rd. to its end at NCAR. Park at NCAR and take the NCAR trail (TH on west end of parking lot, entrance) to Skunk Canyon trail. You are looking for Hillbilly Rock, situated directly below and east of the summit of Ridge One (Skunk Canyon). This is the first rock ridge encountered on the trail and it will be directly in front of you and before a switchback in the trail. At the apex of this switchback is a climber's trail that ascends a steep gully to the base of Ridge One. There are a few large outcroppings passed coming up the gully (they are climbable). Hillbilly Rock will be the first "wall" or face of any real size.
After climbing Billy Goat Arete, I found no adequate rappel options from the summit. There is a wimpy tree with bad roots off to the west which appeared unsafe and would be difficult to downclimb to. There is a large summit block that I guess most people rap off of, but it appears completely undercut by a rotten layer of rock. The North Face route appeared littered with loose rock. There were no rap slings or fixed hardware anywhere. I downclimbed Warren's alternate descent route described under the North Face route and it was dirty, mossy, and lichen-covered. If I went back again, I would downclimb the entire Billy Goat Arete. One might imagine that the beginner nature of these climbs begs for a secure fixed rap anchor. Otherwise, this rock is probably best left to its namesake visitors.
Hillbilly Rock
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