Welcome to the New Mexico section of Mountain Project!
The contributions that are made to this site are greatly appreciated; this site is made up of an awesome community of users that make the site what it is.
Although there is very little information regarding “rules” for submitting climbing areas and routes to this site, the New Mexico Administers all agree that the following guidelines may be helpful to truly make this site go “Beyond the Guidebook”.
1) Don’t be a jerk (this one states the obvious). 2) Route and area submissions should truly be helpful to those out climbing. Before posting, you should have some first hand experience actually climbing the route. This always results in a much more useful description. 3) Please, please, please… Don’t copy route descriptions directly out of guidebooks, online publications, etc. This is plagiarism! Remember, BEYOND the guidebook! 4) Please use the spell check and make an effort to use correct grammar.
Again, the Mountainproject community truly appreciates the efforts taken to make good route descriptions. If you feel that a route or area description is not up to standard, a brief email to one of the area admins for suggestions on improvement will be greatly appreciated.
Thank you for taking the time to make the New Mexico section of Mountain Project quality! We look forward to seeing you out there!
BETA PHOTO: Map
Description
In the shadow of Hueco Tanks lies this lesser known and lesser quality area. Pena Blanca is a sprawling rock playground on the southern foot of the Organ mountains. There are scores of established boulder problems and potential for more. Much of the rock is of poor quality which keeps the area relatively free from the crowds seen at Hueco.
There are a handful of short sport and trad routes, as well as top-rope problems that merit a visit. But what Pena Blanca has most of is bouldering, and it is through bouldering that this area will get known.
The area is currently designated as Wilderness Study Area by the BLM which restricts off-roading activities. Petroglyphs are found here and if you find some refrain from climbing near them.
Getting There
When driving between Las Cruces and El Paso on I-10, Pena Blanca is clearly visible to the east. Take the Mesquite exit and head east. The paved road takes you buy a landfill and liquid waste site, then turns to a dirt road. When you are approximately due south of the rocks there are rough roads that lead to the different climbing spots. A 4WD vehicle is required to reach some of the parking areas.
Resources
There is a collection of rough maps with names/difficulties of routes and problems at Pena Blanca. Contact Aaron Hobson (or see the above link and browse)to get them sent to you. They are by no means complete, and only give the user an idea of the large amount of climbing that occurs here.
By Aaron Hobson Administrator From: Las Cruces, NM Feb 28, 2006
Once again I am having naming issues. I have some documents that someone put together about route names and which formation they are on (see the above link). However, I don't have specific information as to what the routes look like, where they are located etc... The problem I am faced with then is trying to match the names I have with the actual routes.
If you see that a route is named wrong SAY SOMETHING. Hopefully this site can be used to bring some of this information together.
Here's a link to the eGuide. If anyone has a new route or boulder problem or if you see a mistake like the wrong grade, name, etc. please post it on MountainProject or email me so I can update the guidebook.
QUOTE "In the shadow of Hueco Tanks lies this lesser known and lesser quality area. - Much of the rock is of poor quality which keeps the area relatively free from the crowds seen at Hueco."
All crags are in the shadow of such a diamond like Hueco Tanks. Pena is actually your more common crag found throughout the world. The word "lesser" should be replaced with "common". And "poor quality" should be "typical". Local climbers tend to compare other places to Hueco. None in this region will ever come close.
There is no debate on the quality of the crags rock or its routes as mentioned on the huecotanks.com website. The true debate is if you climb what this region has to offer or not. Climbing at only one place has become a thing of the past. Just like the hundreds of routes and areas listed on MountainProject. Pena Blanca aka Bishop's Cap is one of them. You'll always have your icon crags and crumbs of the earth. But climbers should respect and honor all developments.
Taking a day to visit and explore Pena Blanca with an open mind and strong guns will change any climbers attitude. Pre-cursing this enchanting area with pre-mature claims could be a mistake.
Bishops Cap/Pena Blanca
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