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Shuteye Ridge
California
> Southern-Wester…
> Hwy 41: Fresno Dome,…
Description
Vast number of granite domes scattered throughout the Southern Yosemite area.
Getting There
From the city of Fresno, take state highway 41 to Oakhurst. Drive to Bass Lake to Beasore road 10 miles to 6s42 5.5 miles to 6s59 4 miles to the gate, past the gate need 4x4 to lookout 2 miles.From North Fork drive up Minarets road.
[Hide Photo] Kent Schmitz on the first pitch of, O-Maggie. 5.12b.
[Hide Photo] Shuteye Ridge road map - showing best access in May 2020
[Hide Photo] Gerry Jesserun "pulls a tendon" on the back side of the "fist" feature of 'Power To The People' (5.9R), Shuteye Ridge. This photo is also within the Shuteye Ridge guidebook, under the Lost Eagle se…
[Hide Photo] Eric Walden on Voodoo Child Voodoo Dome Shuteye Ridge Ca.
[Hide Photo] Munter Bitch 5.8*** at Doggy Dome, Shuteye Ridge. New route, just right of Living Water. 7 bolts and #3 cam. Chain anchors. FA Jeremy Ross/Tom Slater 11-25-17. 100' of sustained edging.
[Hide Photo] John Vargas belayed by Eric McGee on an area classic "3 Feathers" 5.9. photo: G. Jessurun.
I think that there are some places that are better left as "choose your own adventure" areas. Luckily there are a bunch of places like this left in the Sierra (Cal Dome, Hwy 108, Southern Sierra, Shuteye). For these areas I am in some sense glad that there is minimal info because it keeps the place a bit more wild (i.e. there are plenty of destinations to choose from that are info'ed into submission...The Leap, Tuolumne, the Ditch, etc). The guidebook is nice, but I would submit that part of what makes Shuteye special is exploring, which I might add, you really had to do prior to the book being published. That said, the book is wonderful and I would recommend picking it up.
I would suggest that you just grab a copy of the book and go have a look for yourself!!
Mar 14, 2014
[Hide Comment] Got the guidebook, read it pretty much cover to cover. Fantastic. Made a plan, then headed up to check out the area around Big Sleep. A couple of notes for folks like us who have never been to Shuteye and are headed up there with a freshly minted copy of the new Grahm Doe guide in their sweaty little hands:
1. The guidebook shows hundreds of spectacular climbs, beautifully photographed, on spectacular granite. What we saw confirmed that the granite is tremendous and in places, highly featured, and the slab is clean, solid, and very grippy. Keep in mind that the beautiful route on page 27 might be an hour's drive or more from the beautiful route on page 30. Plan to spend some time at every area you go to, since it's going to be more work to get there than you think.
2. The roads in the area are engineered to confuse. Ha! Most roads have three names, which are used interchangeably. The dirt roads are generally poorly signed, and a maze of unnamed roads and motorcycle trails will add to your confusion. For the most part, Google maps will only provide marginal assistance, since for some reason, the roads on Google are not labelled with the "7S02" sort of USFS names that are used in the forest and on quad maps. Go figure. Be sure you know where you're going before you head out. Having someone in your party who really knows how to read a map is a bonus.
3. The approaches are not necessarily trails. Well, there appear to be trails, but you better find them and stay on them if you're not planning to bushwhack. We found some that were well-cairned, and even some wide swaths of well-gardened trail, but the trails were easy to lose and very lightly used. If you're planning to bushwhack (be prepared to even if you're expecting a trail), have a good sense of direction and a map and compass or GPS and know how to use them. Unless you're out on open slab, don't expect to be able to see more than a couple of hundred feet in the forest. You could pretty easily get lost out here. Allow a lot of time to find your way to and from the climbs.
What a place! Beautiful quiet forests. Spectacular rock. Even where the rock is covered with lichen, it's super positive to climb on. This place is so spread out and hard to navigate (relative to more popular areas) that I'd say there's little risk of over-use. We spent a three day weekend sampling the slab and featured face climbing near Big Sleep, and the swimming holes that pepper the stream above Rock Creek campground.
[Hide Comment] Be aware! The mileages in the guide book are often approximations which can lead to a very confusing find route. Additionally, we encountered signs the that did not read as stated in the guide book and some directions that are vague at best. I do not mean to minimize the efforts of the guide book author as I can only imagine recording beta for an area this large but rather to issue a friendly warning to prepare for confusing find routes, convoluted roads both public and private with multiple names, downed signs, and mileages that disagree with the guide. Come prepared with a full tank of gas and plenty of time.
[Hide Comment] The fires haven't really affected the area at all, but last winter has turned many of the roads into 4wd only.
Drivers beware, getting to the "2wd" camp for Shangri La would be quite terrifying in an AWD Subaru and downright insane in anything with less clearance. We we there with a 31-inch wheel Tacoma and had to be really careful in more than one spot.
This place is quickly turning into 4wd/dirt bike only.
Aug 22, 2017
[Hide Comment] For sure, getting to the high eagle/shang ri la (blue) area is pretty rough right now. in an outback, we made it to within probably a mile of the 2wd camp. and probably should have parked well before that.. There were a group of boys in side-by-side's and some light equipment fixing (and roughing?) it up in a few spots.
The 7so2 road is in pretty good shape for most of it. with pretty good clearance (at least subaru), you can make it from beasore to the other side via 7so2 without going all the way around.
Sep 8, 2017
[Hide Comment] went up SR 6S66 this weekend to the grey eagle approach, made it past the fork, we had to move a few fallen trees, the road is fairly clear but it is pretty heinous up there, i don't recommend making the trip, pretty grim with all the dead trees and lack of clear infrastructure for camping and trails.
Jul 25, 2022
[Hide Comment] As of August 2023 I'd advise my friends without a big ol' Jeep or side-by-side to stay away from the road up to Shangri-la (rd 8029). A plugged/washed-out culvert and big rock features await. I'd say bring >12" clearance for low-stress.
Aug 6, 2023
[Hide Comment] Hi all, google maps is wrong on the numbers of the roads up there, Central Camp Rd is 6s42 not 8029 and the road to the fire lookout is 6s59 not 8029 and google maps show you cross one creek but in reality you cross two creeks! Its interesting google maps shows the fire lookout is the climbing area? Looks like google maps needs to go back and do their home work LOL :-)
Aug 7, 2023
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Seattle, WA
A new guidebook is now available for Shuteye Ridge. Written by Grahm Doe and published by Wolverine.
This is a very pretty guidebook with 400+ pages in Full color.
the couch
What gives?
Some nice pictures, but some solid "beyond the guidebook" beta from locals would be great. Mar 14, 2014
Colorado
I think that there are some places that are better left as "choose your own adventure" areas. Luckily there are a bunch of places like this left in the Sierra (Cal Dome, Hwy 108, Southern Sierra, Shuteye). For these areas I am in some sense glad that there is minimal info because it keeps the place a bit more wild (i.e. there are plenty of destinations to choose from that are info'ed into submission...The Leap, Tuolumne, the Ditch, etc). The guidebook is nice, but I would submit that part of what makes Shuteye special is exploring, which I might add, you really had to do prior to the book being published. That said, the book is wonderful and I would recommend picking it up.
I would suggest that you just grab a copy of the book and go have a look for yourself!! Mar 14, 2014
the couch
1. The guidebook shows hundreds of spectacular climbs, beautifully photographed, on spectacular granite. What we saw confirmed that the granite is tremendous and in places, highly featured, and the slab is clean, solid, and very grippy. Keep in mind that the beautiful route on page 27 might be an hour's drive or more from the beautiful route on page 30. Plan to spend some time at every area you go to, since it's going to be more work to get there than you think.
2. The roads in the area are engineered to confuse. Ha! Most roads have three names, which are used interchangeably. The dirt roads are generally poorly signed, and a maze of unnamed roads and motorcycle trails will add to your confusion. For the most part, Google maps will only provide marginal assistance, since for some reason, the roads on Google are not labelled with the "7S02" sort of USFS names that are used in the forest and on quad maps. Go figure. Be sure you know where you're going before you head out. Having someone in your party who really knows how to read a map is a bonus.
3. The approaches are not necessarily trails. Well, there appear to be trails, but you better find them and stay on them if you're not planning to bushwhack. We found some that were well-cairned, and even some wide swaths of well-gardened trail, but the trails were easy to lose and very lightly used. If you're planning to bushwhack (be prepared to even if you're expecting a trail), have a good sense of direction and a map and compass or GPS and know how to use them. Unless you're out on open slab, don't expect to be able to see more than a couple of hundred feet in the forest. You could pretty easily get lost out here. Allow a lot of time to find your way to and from the climbs.
What a place! Beautiful quiet forests. Spectacular rock. Even where the rock is covered with lichen, it's super positive to climb on. This place is so spread out and hard to navigate (relative to more popular areas) that I'd say there's little risk of over-use. We spent a three day weekend sampling the slab and featured face climbing near Big Sleep, and the swimming holes that pepper the stream above Rock Creek campground.
It was wonderful. Jun 30, 2014
Bend
Phoenix, AZ
The climbing is well worth it! Aug 18, 2016
Asheville, NC
Drivers beware, getting to the "2wd" camp for Shangri La would be quite terrifying in an AWD Subaru and downright insane in anything with less clearance. We we there with a 31-inch wheel Tacoma and had to be really careful in more than one spot.
This place is quickly turning into 4wd/dirt bike only. Aug 22, 2017
reno
The 7so2 road is in pretty good shape for most of it. with pretty good clearance (at least subaru), you can make it from beasore to the other side via 7so2 without going all the way around. Sep 8, 2017
Ojai
Santa Cruz, CA
Oakhurst, CA