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Skull Rock
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Routes Sorted
L to R R to L Alpha
Inca Gold 
Overhanging Crack 
Skull Fracture 
Temple, The 
Thor's Horn 
Unsorted Routes:

Skull Rock 


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Administrators: Ben Mottinger, Leo Paik, John McNamee, Frances Fierst, Monomaniac, Tom Erickson
Submitted By: Jim Redo on May 27, 2002

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  Print a Mini-Guide with routes

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Chance of a Thunderstorm
57° | 34°
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64° | 36°
Thunderstorm
63° | 43°
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75° | 45°

BETA PHOTO: Skull Rock with Skull Fracture's roof crack splitt...

Description 

As far as I know, there is only one route on this formation. The rock is granite like everything else in the Big Thompson Canyon. Not very good in the summer as it is full on South facing.


Getting There 

Going from Estes Park to Loveland on US Hwy 34. Drive about 1.5 miles from the town of Drake (the turnoff for the Monastary and Combat Rock). Park in a big dirt pullout by the Dam. Hike up a gully North of the parking lot for about 30 minutes to the base of the obvious skull formation.


The Classics

Mountain Project's determination of some of the classic, most popular, highest rated routes for Skull Rock:
The Temple   5.11a     Trad, 1 pitch, 110 feet   
Inca Gold   5.12b     Trad, 1 pitch, 110 feet   
Skull Fracture   5.13b     Trad, 2 pitches   
Browse More Classics in Skull Rock

Featured Route For Skull Rock
Jake Hains pulling the second roof.

The Temple 5.11a  CO : Estes Park Valley : ... : Skull Rock
This mixed route climbs the arete to the left of Skull Fracture. Begin in an easy crack, or on the face to the cracks right(5.9s), and work your way up to a bolt. Follow a couple more bolts straight up to a small roof at the base of a left-leaning groove. Clip a bolt and mantle over to a stance. Place a piece into the crack on the right, and make a balancy 11a no hands move over to the crack. Follow the flared 5.9 crack to its top with good gear. Move up left to the next roof and cl...[more]   Browse More Classics in CO


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By allen simons
Sep 22, 2003

When did Tommy climb it?? Cool, [didn't] know it had actually been done. Thanks Tommy!Comment: There are some fun moderate top ropes on the slab to the left of this route, and a fun climb around the right on the east side. It takes pro. 5.10 or so. I forgot about this climb til I saw this. Thanks. al

By jason seaver
From: Estes Park, CO
Jan 23, 2010

A friend and I went cragging at Skull Rock last weekend for the first time in a couple of years. We found a few new bolted lines on the nice slab left of the prow that's left of Skull Fracture. Anybody know anything about these?

By allen simons
Feb 1, 2010

Jason, nice to know, I thought about adding routes there myself but never got around to it. Did you climb them??? Ratings???

By Rob DeZonia
Sep 3, 2011

I put up the two routes to the left of Skull Fracture in '08 or '09. My brother nabbed the 1st ascent of the burly Inca Gold. I was going to rate it 12c, but we had just messed with a 12a slab in Vedauwoo and Pat didn't feel it was harder than 12b. I worked it on the sharp end and figured out the moves after like 20 falls and sent the route about an hour after it saw its first ascent. The 11a is awesome. I like to combine the start of The Temple with Inca Gold's finish for a link up I call The Temple of Doom. This link up was climbed before Inca Gold. Climbing the start of Inca Gold into the top of The Temple is a clean classic line as well.