This is a great tower with many different types of routes on its soft sandstone. Most routes get to the awesome summit in 4-6 pitches and all routes require double ropes to rappel. This tower should definitely be on your tick list if you haven't done any climbs here, and if you've never done any desert climbing like the Fishers or Moab, you'll get a nice introduction to that type of climbing.
The rock is generally solid, but flakes and small holds sometimes break off and all the climbing is sandy, nearly negating the need for chalk.
Getting There
Going South on 340 from Fruita, go past the entrance to Colorado Monument on the right a couple miles. As you pass over the crest of a hill with a housing division on the right look immediately for a right turn down what appears to be a driveway to the Monument Trail parking lot. This small lot leads about 2 miles (1 hour + hike) to the base of the monument.
A great route with exhilarating exposure and generally good rock. Route-finding is straight-forward and the line is fairly direct right to the summit. Start on the SE side of the monument at a detached pillar. It's a wide 5.10 on the right or 5.8 on the left. Climb to top of the pillar for a single bolt belay. P2: Supposedly the first part of this section goes free, but the pro is difficult to place, and there's not really a good rest stance...[more]
It looks like there is no unchipped, free route on this tower. Otto's route goes free, but using some large gouged artificial holds. It would seem unlikely to me that Otto's top pitch it could be freed without these pockets.
George, Bob D. here. With all of the talk about the "Sport Park" and chipping, are you saying that the chipped holds are ok as there would no free climbing route on the tower? Just trying to follow the logic here!
I'm just saying that surprisingly there appears to be no natural free route up this tower, at least nobody has discovered one yet. Bell Tower, Sentinel Spire, these all have free routes, but apparently not Independence Monument. No I am not saying that this justifies Otto chipping a free route up the thing, of course not. The search should now be on for a natural free route up the tower!
By brent armstrong From: Closer to RR than the Strip Apr 16, 2003
While these days everybody seems to be tearing the brotha Otto down for "chipping", I kind of hold him in high regard for his actions. When was this route put up 1912/1913? This guy was out there before climbing was really climbing doing his thing to get to the top of a rock. Plain and simple. There were no rules, gear, or magazines. He went out by himself (to the best of my knowledge) started at the bottom and did something absolutely visionary.
Why? It probably seemed like a good thing to do, maybe he wanted some time alone, some time away from the old lady, or maybe he had climber inside him and there was noway he couldn't try to climb it.
He also planted a flag up there (that was him right????)...that's much more patriotic in my book than colonizing the muslim empire.
Quit labeling this proud guy with today's fulcrum of ethical yap!
The summit is STELLAR and probably the most accessible of all desert summits.
I am in total agreement with Brent on this one! Think of WHEN this was done an give the ole' boy the respect he deserves. Thankfully climbing evolves. Apparently, closed minded arrogance is eternal...
Heading up to the Monument in a little over a week, and am stoked. Just one question: Is it possible to hike from the base of Sentinel Spire (with its convenient rap-in) to Independence Monument by way of, say, Wedding Canyon? Ideally, we'd like to have the opportunity (perhaps overly ambitious) to do Otto's Route and then Fast Draw. And if one were able to do this, how does one get back to the CG? Any and all beta would be much appreciated.
It would be easy to combine the two, either via x-country/trail travel, or by doing Independence and then driving up to rap in for Fast Draw.
By Mike Morley Administrator From: Oakland, CA Feb 2, 2006
Jon: I just now saw your comment posted 8 months ago. In fact, it is very do-able to rap in as for Sentinel Spire, leave a fixed line, hike over to and climb Otto's, rap down, climb Fast Draw, then jug back out to get back to the campground.
I actually have a funny story about doing just that. I met my friend Robert out there a few years ago with that very plan in mind. We were both trying to travel light, so between us we just had 2 full-length ropes. We forgot that we'd need another rope to leave fixed to jumar back out! Well, luck was on our side. Robert was in-between Outward Bound courses, and driving a 15-passenger OB van with about 100 feet of retired, chopped up rope being used as tie-downs for gear on the roof rack. Well, we figured it was probably good enough to rap on, so we tied about half dozen pieces together and rapped down in. The main difficulty was in passing the knot multiple times! I don't think anybody at OB ever found out.
By Joe Forrester From: Charlottesville, VA Mar 10, 2006
Does anyone have any info on the South Face or South Face II routes on the monument? I was trying to find a topo but was having a hard time locating one. Also, if anyone has done the South face clean I would be interested to hear how it went.
Independence Monument
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