Pecos River Canyon Rock Climbing

Pecos River Canyon is a picturesque granite crag northeast of Santa Fe, NM in the Santa Fe National Forest. The crag offers five separate cliffs of one-pitch, mixed trad and sport climbs on excellent pink-hued granite, nestled among the pines above the trout-filled Pecos River. On a typical weekend day, climbers will be outnumbered by fishermen 3 to 1. This ultimate roadside crag suffers and benefits from its accessibility. Complete solitude will be difficult to attain while belaying from the highway shoulder at Cathedral Rock; however, the dense vegetation and mandatory river crossing can make the Bleachers, only 100 feet distant, feel a world apart.

This crag offers excellent climbing on thin slabs, steep jug hauls, and blocky cracks (usually with a roof or two). This is a haven for the granite face-climbing afficionado, reminiscent of the best rock in the Sandias and Gilman. There are a number of pure trad lines (generally dihedrals), but this crag doesn't have any 'splitter' cracks. The real prime routes are in the 5.9 to 5.11- range, which would make this place popular in any state but NM.