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Balcony Rock Rock Climbing

Climbing Area Map

Routes in Balcony Rock

L › R R › L A › Z

	Bluto's Bluster T,TR 5.10c 6b 20 VII 20 E2 5b PG13
	Brutus TR 5.10c 6b 20 VII 20 E2 5b
	Cliff Monster T,TR 5.8 5b 16 VI- 15 HVS 4c PG13
	Cookie Monster T 5.9 5c 17 VI 17 HVS 5a PG13
	Crown Of Thorns T,TR 5.7 5a 15 V+ 13 MVS 4b
	Gold Medallist T,TR 5.10b 6a+ 19 VII- 19 E2 5b
	J. Wellington Wimpy TR 5.10d 6b+ 21 VII+ 21 E3 5b
	Nemo stepper V1-2 5 R
	Olive Oyl T,TR 5.8 5b 16 VI- 15 HVS 4c
	Poopdeck Pappy TR 5.10c 6b 20 VII 20 E2 5b
	Popeye's T,TR 5.10b 6a+ 19 VII- 19 E2 5b
	Popeye's Left T,TR 5.10d 6b+ 21 VII+ 21 E3 5b
	Professor Watasnozzle TR 5.10c 6b 20 VII 20 E2 5b
	Sweet Pea T,TR 5.9 5c 17 VI 17 HVS 5a PG13
	Thumb Press T,TR 5.8 5b 16 VI- 15 HVS 4c
	Thumb Press Right T,TR 5.8 5b 16 VI- 15 HVS 4c
	Train Song TR 5.9+ 5c 17 VI 17 E1 5a
Unsorted Routes:

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Elevation:	113 ft	34 m
GPS:	39.3249, -77.7178 Google Map · Climbing Area Map
Page Views:	28,130 total · 163/month
Shared By:	Phil Westcott on Mar 17, 2012 · Updates
Admins:	Frances Fierst, C S Page Updates (admin only)

See Weather Forecast

Access Issue: Seasonal Raptor Closures; Road Closures. See nps.gov/hafe/planyourvisit/… Details

See nps.gov/hafe/planyourvisit/…

Description

Just West of Sandy Hook, Maryland is Balcony Rock, one of the areas tallest routes (around 80 feet) on dense, vertical and surprisingly clean rock. This area is surrounded by boulders that seems to be frequented a bit more than the rope climbing but I can not be certain. With that said, this is a fairly local crag that will rarely see more than one climbing party in a day.

Getting There

Balcony Rock is about 100 yards west of the School Bus turnaround down the road (West/towards Maryland Heights Proper) from town of Sandy Hook. Some say this turnaround can be used as parking on weekends, but the easiest thing to do is park down in the gravel by the Railroad lights closer to town - only a few hundred yards before the turnaround. If you do choose to park in the turnaround, don't attempt this risky move during the week and be mindful of those in town who daily use this as a turnaround.

Regardless of where you park, with the river on your left, walk until you get to two gates, follow the obvious trail with awesome stone steps to the right of these two gates. PLEASE use the stepped approach to reduce the risk of erosion, which we all know leads to access issues.

17 Total Climbs

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Classic Climbing Routes at Balcony Rock

Mountain Project's determination of the classic, most popular, highest rated climbing routes in this area.

5.7 5a 15 V+ 13 MVS 4b 34 ● Crown Of Thorns Trad, TR
5.8 5b 16 VI- 15 HVS 4c 11 ● Thumb Press Trad, TR
5.8 5b 16 VI- 15 HVS 4c 5 ● Thumb Press Right Trad, TR
5.8 5b 16 VI- 15 HVS 4c 4 ● Olive Oyl Trad, TR
5.9 5c 17 VI 17 HVS 5a PG13 16 ● Sweet Pea Trad, TR
5.9+ 5c 17 VI 17 E1 5a 7 ● Train Song TR
5.10b 6a+ 19 VII- 19 E2 5b 5 ● Gold Medallist Trad, TR
5.10b 6a+ 19 VII- 19 E2 5b 19 ● Popeye's Trad, TR
5.10c 6b 20 VII 20 E2 5b PG13 17 ● Bluto's Bluster Trad, TR
5.10d 6b+ 21 VII+ 21 E3 5b 8 ● Popeye's Left Trad, TR

● Crown Of Thorns

5.7 5a 15 V+ 13 MVS 4b Trad, TR

● Thumb Press

5.8 5b 16 VI- 15 HVS 4c Trad, TR

● Thumb Press Right

5.8 5b 16 VI- 15 HVS 4c Trad, TR

● Olive Oyl

5.8 5b 16 VI- 15 HVS 4c Trad, TR

● Sweet Pea

5.9 5c 17 VI 17 HVS 5a PG13 Trad, TR

● Train Song

5.9+ 5c 17 VI 17 E1 5a TR

● Gold Medallist

5.10b 6a+ 19 VII- 19 E2 5b Trad, TR

● Popeye's

5.10b 6a+ 19 VII- 19 E2 5b Trad, TR

● Bluto's Bluster

5.10c 6b 20 VII 20 E2 5b PG13 Trad, TR

● Popeye's Left

5.10d 6b+ 21 VII+ 21 E3 5b Trad, TR

More Classic Climbs in Balcony Rock »

Sun & Shade

Sun Angles Details:

Routes Mostly Face: Southwest

Sunny Roughly 9am to 6pm during high season

6am

8pm

Details: Paritally shaded at the bottom during foliage season. Lots of tall trees shade about half the belay area and rock face until you get above the trees about halfway up. On a very hot day, the upper rock could get too hot to touch, but mostly it’s tolerable.