This area is secluded & shady most of the time. Routes consist of steep cracks & low-angle slabs.
Approach
Hike north on the ?Almo Creek Trail?. Follow signs west that say "Comp Wall". The trail winds uphill toward the east end of the formation and around the back, to the north side.
I noticed that some of the routes going up are lower grade R and X. My suggestion is to make these routes non R or X for the following reasons.
1. The City of Rocks is known and acclaimed for its bolted safe climbing. There are plenty of other areas in the nation that sport routes that are hairy. Like in my neighborhood, Fort Collins.
2. By putting up R and X routes you are limiting the number of people who would climb these routes. Is it fair for a hard 11 climber to put up a 5.7 R-X? Anybody climbing at that level would possibly pass over a beautiful route due to the danger. Even worse someone might try it, fall and become seriously injured. The cost of such evacuations are exorbitant. Most municipalities are running on a limited budget as it is. If the cost for rescue strains their budget, the simplest and easiest path is to prohibit climbing in these areas. Do you want to take the risk of loosing our climbing privileges in the City as well as Castle Rock? 3. Once a climb is established it is forever! Why would anyone want to limit the access to a climb forever due to a dangerous runout that could possibly be cured with an additonal bolt or two. I see this all the time at Lumpy Ridge in Estes Park. Perfectly good death routes that hardly ever get climbed because some one like suicidal John Yablonski put it up. p.s. He killed himself.
I just returned from the City for the first time in six years. It is really a great fun climbing area were most of the climbs are pretty safe and protected. A nice reprieve from psychotic runout routes.
By Brian in SLC From: Salt Lake City, UT Oct 12, 2006
There's always been a mix of styles especially at the City. For instance, Dowdle Face is now Delay of Game (used to have no bolts, or just one old stud, and yet, folks still have been hurt/killed on it). Twist and Crawl, Tribal Boundries, etc, have had bolts added over time. Look at Chocolate Face, Batwings Direct, Suburban Sprawl, Infinite, etc etc. Plenty of R and X rated routes still exist.
These are new routes. Give them time. There's tons of well protected routes. If a few non well protected lines gather dust, no biggie. And, most FA'ers who don't protect their routes adequately, seem to not mind an upgrade later on.
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