Julia's Outcrop Rock Climbing

Julia's Outcrop, a little sandstone cliff just above Chuckanut Drive, is an overhanging outcrop with sport and trad routes. Lots of bolted routes some with pro. Usually unoccupied during the weekdays and even on the weekends  Climbs range from 5.5 to 5.12 and from 30 to 70 feet. Some of the rock even stays dry during rainy weather. It's still sandstone, so please give at LEAST 48hrs from the last rain for most of the routes to be dry, and more after longer periods of rain. 

Great place for a day trip. On other guides, this may be listed as Governor Lister Cliff, after a plaque on a boulder near the base. 

In the past, this area had gained a bit of a reputation for being dangerous because the bolts and fixed gear had deteriorated and were in very bad shape. In 2022 with the joint effort of local climbers and donations from the Washington Climbers Coalition, most of the crag has been re-bolted with glue-ins using marine grade epoxy. Many of the original routes were hand bolted on lead, and can be a bit bold by modern sport climbing standards. The first bolt for several of the routes are higher up than some might be comfortable with. Many routes can take some small gear or nuts between bolts for added security. 

As a note from Spencer Moore: Please respect the character of the cliff and refrain from any further attempts to retro bolt old routes. These climbs help preserve the character of the Bellingham climbing scene, and are a haven for those trying to develop a sharp head game. I asked the FA's for input before putting in any new hardware, and was instructed to keep the character of the crag. I have only moved bolt placements for anchors and where the rock was suspect. Wonky clips and bold spacing has been kept intact. If you want to climb some more modern routes with stellar development, check out the new Burnout Crag. It has high quality routes from 5.6 to 5.12 and is bolted with a modern climber in mind. Please let these mental test piece crags stay as they are. The rock is too fragile for a bolt war, and I think the folks that have been climbing here for a decade or more deserve some consideration before any more work is done. I personally really appreciate the thought about safe climbing. It's the whole reason why our climbing group decided to replace manky old bolts. We wanted to know that if we were going to take that long winger it would at least be on a bolt that we could trust. If you are actively thinking about adding more bolts, please contact me and I will help direct you to projects at the outcrop and at other crags that need updated hardware and are a worthwhile effort. We really want to keep the character of the crag "old school" without trying to exclude newer folks. We want the community to feel safe without compromising on the ethics that established the crag. Lets all go enjoy an afternoon at the outcrop, and don't forget to bring some offsets for the runout ;)