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First trip to the RED

Original Post
Bootz Ylectric · · Las Vegas, NV · Joined Apr 2012 · Points: 165

I'm excited to finally hit RRG in a week.

Looking for suggestions on areas to go to. My partner and I are both pretty experienced moderate level trad climbers who will do some sport as well. We're bringing a couple friends who we got to fall in love with climbing at Devil's Lake. We're looking for a decent area where a group of 8 with a handful of beginners won't get in the way. Devils Lake is pretty laid back and we know the less traveled areas so we've never had a problem bringing them there to climb even if they end up hangdogging something a bit harder than they should be on.

Looking for a good mix of trad and top rope with maybe a bit of sport mixed in. Mostly 5-fun to 5.9 I'd say will be best for our group. Anyone have some suggestions of "Must do" for my first trip to the gorge where we won't be piled on top of other people or having our beginners get in the way.

camhead · · Vandalia, Appalachia · Joined Jun 2006 · Points: 1,240

first off, you are going on the busiest weekend of the year. Unless you find a trad-only crag that is WAY off the beaten path, you will be in the middle of a lot of clusterfucks.

Pebble Beach is a great place for moderate trad and bigger groups, though you will want to get there earlier so that you get the best pick of the lines.

Beyond that, check out the routes database at redriverclimbing.com. It is pretty searchable to find what you are looking for.

NickinCO · · colorado · Joined Sep 2010 · Points: 155

I would never go back there during rocktoberfest! Good luck... get ready for people everywhere and gumbies galore at all the moderate areas. You aren't
going to find an empty area of moderates for a group. Just contribute to the clusterfuck that is rocktoberfest

Bootz Ylectric · · Las Vegas, NV · Joined Apr 2012 · Points: 165

We won't be there this weekend for Rocktoberfest. Next week.

Matt Kuehl · · Las Vegas · Joined Nov 2010 · Points: 1,712

I'd recommend bringing lots of swill and a tent that's easy to open late at night. I haven't been to the Red in a while but I'm sure Miguel's will be stuffed with people looking for advice/giving out advice that could fit your needs. Be prepared to deal with some local drama (always more swill) and your experience should be pretty good. If there are some hotties in your group you might even yourself a hillbilly guide that would follow you around for free!

Bootz Ylectric · · Las Vegas, NV · Joined Apr 2012 · Points: 165
Matt Kuehl wrote:I'd recommend bringing lots of swill and a tent that's easy to open late at night. I haven't been to the Red in a while but I'm sure Miguel's will be stuffed with people looking for advice/giving out advice that could fit your needs. Be prepared to deal with some local drama (always more swill) and your experience should be pretty good. If there are some hotties in your group you might even yourself a hillbilly guide that would follow you around for free!
LOL. Solid advice. Thanks.
Alex Mitchell · · Boston, MA · Joined May 2012 · Points: 2,367

Any wall with multible moderate sport lines are going to be gang banged this time of year. There is really no TR lines at the Red. You have to lead them and set a TR. You will find wonderful moderate trad lines between two gangbanged sport routes with no one on it.

A trick that seems kind of stupid is start the day a bit late and climb till dark. The crags usually start clearing out around 3 and you may even get a whole crag to yourself by 5. Early starts are kind of pointless. By 8 you will be surrounded by 20 people.

If you like quiter camping Land of the Arches is closer to most crags and for $5/night includes showers and WiFi. They also allow campfires. They have a web site and a FB page.

Double J · · Sandy, UT · Joined Apr 2006 · Points: 3,931

Indian Creek. Go there!

Bootz Ylectric · · Las Vegas, NV · Joined Apr 2012 · Points: 165
Alex Mitchell wrote:Any wall with multible moderate sport lines are going to be gang banged this time of year. There is really no TR lines at the Red. You have to lead them and set a TR. You will find wonderful moderate trad lines between two gangbanged sport routes with no one on it. A trick that seems kind of stupid is start the day a bit late and climb till dark. The crags usually start clearing out around 3 and you may even get a whole crag to yourself by 5. Early starts are kind of pointless. By 8 you will be surrounded by 20 people. If you like quiter camping Land of the Arches is closer to most crags and for $5/night includes showers and WiFi. They also allow campfires. They have a web site and a FB page.
Yeah I had planned on any TR setups having to be led first...which is just a bonus for the two of us that lead. I also figured that Trad routes may have slightly less traffic than any of the sport routes depending on the area. Any suggestions on actual areas for us to focus on?

Thanks for the suggestions, very helpful.
Bootz Ylectric · · Las Vegas, NV · Joined Apr 2012 · Points: 165
jon jugenheimer wrote:Indian Creek. Go there!
Oh wow, Crack Attack and Slimy Creature look like absolute blasts!
Alex Mitchell · · Boston, MA · Joined May 2012 · Points: 2,367

Indian Creek has some great routes that do not get to busy. Other good crags are Funk Rock City, Long Wall, Dip Wall, Pebble Beach, and Wall of Denial are all good places to climb trad on busy days. Moderate sport is a bit harder to find that will not be busy. Stay away from Military, Left Flank, Bruise Brothers, Great Wall, The Shire, the Gallery, and Volunteer Wall. All get very crowded.

A good set of walls all right in line with each other is What About Bob Wall, Courtesy Wall, and, Rival Wall. They oddly do not get busy even with there very short approach. There is some decent sport routes, with a few good trad lines squeezed in. These are not classic crags by any account but a good place to escape crowds and still clip some bolts.

A lot of new routes have been put up since the last guide book so it is also a good idea to check out redriverclimbing.com and the online guide book which has lots of great beta and all the routes added since the last book.

Bootz Ylectric · · Las Vegas, NV · Joined Apr 2012 · Points: 165
Alex Mitchell wrote:Indian Creek has some great routes that do not get to busy. Other good crags are Funk Rock City, Long Wall, Dip Wall, Pebble Beach, and Wall of Denial are all good places to climb trad on busy days. Moderate sport is a bit harder to find that will not be busy. Stay away from Military, Left Flank, Bruise Brothers, Great Wall, The Shire, the Gallery, and Volunteer Wall. All get very crowded. A good set of walls all right in line with each other is What About Bob Wall, Courtesy Wall, and, Rival Wall. They oddly do not get busy even with there very short approach. There is some decent sport routes, with a few good trad lines squeezed in. These are not classic crags by any account but a good place to escape crowds and still clip some bolts. A lot of new routes have been put up since the last guide book so it is also a good idea to check out redriverclimbing.com and the online guide book which has lots of great beta and all the routes added since the last book.
Indian Creek has my partner and I drooling over a few of the trad lines, but I think most of the climbs there are just a touch above what our friends are going to want to be on. They are mostly in the 5-fun area with a couple of them managing to grunt through a 5.7-5.8.

I'm going off Devil's Lake ratings on that too since that's the only place we've taken them.
Alex Mitchell · · Boston, MA · Joined May 2012 · Points: 2,367

The Red is really messed up when it comes to grades. Depending on where you are the grades can feel really old school or really soft.

Given the Juggy nature of the climbing a noob that can do a few pull ups can hang dog up almost anything that would normally be at of there league.

Bootz Ylectric · · Las Vegas, NV · Joined Apr 2012 · Points: 165
Alex Mitchell wrote:The Red is really messed up when it comes to grades. Depending on where you are the grades can feel really old school or really soft. Given the Juggy nature of the climbing a noob that can do a few pull ups can hang dog up almost anything that would normally be at of there league.
Cool, good to know. I was told that compared to the Lake the ratings at the Gorge are going to be a lot more accurate or indicitive of the "actual" difficulty.

Thanks for the input. I cannot wait to get down there. We have a full day of Trad Climbing before our friends coem down to hangdog so we're currently debating between indian creek and long wall. So many beautiful lines so little time.
NickinCO · · colorado · Joined Sep 2010 · Points: 155

A 5.9 sport route is very different then a 5.9 trad route there.

Bootz Ylectric · · Las Vegas, NV · Joined Apr 2012 · Points: 165
NickinCO wrote:A 5.9 sport route is very different then a 5.9 trad route there.
That is something I fully expect.
Ryan Williams · · London (sort of) · Joined May 2009 · Points: 1,245

You can't call it "The Gorge." There isn't really a gorge there.

Alex Mitchell · · Boston, MA · Joined May 2012 · Points: 2,367
Ryan Williams wrote:You can't call it "The Gorge." There isn't really a gorge there.
Most people cal it "The Red" so as not to be confussed with "The New".
Bootz Ylectric · · Las Vegas, NV · Joined Apr 2012 · Points: 165

Yep. I screwed that one up.

That kinda gumbie mistake could get someone killed lol.

Bootz Ylectric · · Las Vegas, NV · Joined Apr 2012 · Points: 165

Title of thread FIXED

Mike Belu · · Chicago, IL · Joined Jun 2012 · Points: 135

I recommend the "rock house" for a burger and a beer at the end of the day-the food is very good and a nice change from pizza at miguels. If your group hasn't climbed much, check out the arrowhead at pebble beach. They should think its a pretty cool feature. Once u lead, the others can climb.

Guideline #1: Don't be a jerk.

Southern States
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