Sundown Ledge--Main Cliff  Photos:  Recent | Best | Popular Lat, Long:  44.005, -71.2393 Map Page Views:  24,672. Good page? (2 likes)    Administrators:  Jay Knower, M Sprague, lee hansche, Tom Erickson Submitted By:  Jay Knower on Apr 17, 2007 Make this area a Favorite What's New   Print a Mini-Guide with routes Add Route  Add Photo  Add Comment  Add Event  Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat 63° | 46° 82° | 63° 81° | 59° 68° | 43° 55° | 39°

E-man climbs (then downclimbs and reclimbs) Dikens...

Description 

What if I were to tell you that a stellar sport cliff exists just outside the traditional stronghold of North Conway, New Hampshire? What if I said that this cliff offers high-quality bolted routes and that this cliff is decidedly different from Rumney? What if I said that this cliff saw the first emergence of "sport" ethics in New England and that one route actually sported a bolted-on gym hold. Would you believe me?

Probably not, and that is why Sundown Ledge is almost always deserted. Maybe it's because most climbers around North Conway set their sights on bigger and more grandiose objectives on Cathedral or Whitehorse. Maybe it's because the sport routes start at 5.11+ at Sundown where at Rumney, you can clip bolts on everything from 5.3 and up. At any rate, people seem to have forgotten about Sundown. Maybe it's a good thing that Sundown has faded from popularity because when the crowds get bad at Rumney, yet you still want that bolt-clipping fix, then Sundown is pretty much the perfect crag.

Plus, the sport climbs at Sundown are pretty slabby by modern standards and consist mostly of strenuous pulling on small edges up vertical or slightly overhanging walls. This place is no Orange Crush, that's for sure. While a few quality trad climbs exist, most notably the Henry Barber fingercrack testpiece Vultures (10d), it's the sport climbs that bring people to this quiet crag. Romper Room (12a) is the perfect little sport climb, and Eyeless in Gaza may very well be the best 12b in all of New England. Yellow Matter Custard (13a), The Argonaut (13a), and Pastryworks (13b) offer harder challenges for those who have maintained their dime-edge crimping technique that they cultivated in the eighties.

For a comprehensive look at Sundowns many crags, including the even lesser traveled outlying areas, Ed Webster's guidebook works well. The Rock Climbing New England guide lists the more popular routes at Sundown's main walls. Conway and North Conway, about ten miles away, hold every amenity imaginable.

Getting There 

All roads lead to the Kancamagus Highway, the scenic artery that cuts east/west across the state. On the eastern end, about ten miles west of Conway, you will see the Covered Bridge Campground on the north side of the road. Park on either side of the bridge in a lot (the bridge is closed in winter). Cross the river if you haven't already done so, and find the Boulder Loop, a heavily traveled hiking trail.

Set off on this trail and bear right (east) when you get to a fork. After about ten minutes, you should see the big cliff on your left. That's it. If you see a cairn, head up the talus to the base. If you miss the cairn, head up the talus to the base.

The Classics

Featured Route For Sundown Ledge--Main Cliff

Yellow Matter Custard 5.13a  NH : Kancamagus Crags : ... : Sundown Ledge--Main Cliff

Yellow Matter Custard is yet another perfect sport route on Sundown's Main Cliff. While Yellow Matter Custard retains a reputation for fingery, sharp climbing, the route still requires more than just finger strength. All of those crimps lead to a pretty sizable pump, and the redpoint crux might be managing whatever fatigue you sustained on the lower, crimpy crux. Start just left of the popular Romper Room, and climb up a series of stacked blocks. Pre-clipping the first bolt is a good idea. At t...[more]   Browse More Classics in NH

Photos of Sundown Ledge--Main Cliff Slideshow

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Muel taking a short and poor rest just before the ...	1: Dikenstein 5.11c 2:Glueless 5.14a	1:The Pastery Works 5.13b 2:yellow Matter Cust...
1:Big Papa 5.12d 2:Banannahead 5.13b 3:the big rip...	1:After the Fox 5.13c 2:Crank Case 5.11a 3:Midnigh...	1:Police and Theives 5.12c 2:She's Crafty 5.12c 3:...
1.Flirting With Dikes 5.10d 2Eyeless in Gaza 5.12b...	1:Vanishing Point 5.12d 2:Toothless grin 5.12a (to...