South Fork Cliff Rock Climbing

Plan on a long, very dusty drive on Forest Service roads. While there are quicker (and better) ways to get to the cliff (especially if coming from the west), this one is the most straightforward.

From Highway 12 (coming from either the east or west), turn onto the Tieton Road, which is a loop road that skirts the south shore of Rimrock Lake. Once you're along Rimrock Lake, watch for the South Fork Tieton Road (Forest Road 1000) on the left if you're coming from the east, right if you're coming from the west. Turn onto this road. If you're coming from the east, you'll cross a bridge over the South Fork of the Tieton just before the turn. If you're coming from the west and hit the bridge, you've come too far.

Follow Road 1000 5 or 6 miles until the pavement ends. Right where the pavement ends, turn right onto Forest Service Road 750. (At this point, you can see the South Fork Cliff above you.)

Follow Road 750 (somewhat rough) to the top of the ridge and turn left at a T-intersection. After 1.3 miles, turn left again onto Road 1204 ("Section 3 Lake").

Follow Road 1204 another 1.3 miles, then turn left yet again onto Road 755. Stay left whenever there's a choice, eventually reaching a choice between continuing down a rough logging spur or turning right into a spacious parking area. Turn right and park if you're nervous about driving the spur. Otherwise, continue down the spur another 0.7 miles to its end at a berm. The road is rough, but a Subaru Outback handles it fine. There's limited parking at the end, so park carefully and leave room to turn around.

From the end of the spur, follow the road trace through an old clearcut, then pick up a trail that follows the top of the cliff to a descent gully next to the Astral Wall.