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West Kootenay Rock Climbing

Climbing Area Map

Areas in West Kootenay

Castlegar 134 / 191 / 14 / 1 / 0 / 0 / 0 / 0 / 329

Kootenay Lake 3 / 8 / 0 / 0 / 0 / 0 / 0 / 2 / 11

Nelson 81 / 117 / 40 / 0 / 0 / 3 / 0 / 0 / 201

Rossland 4 / 18 / 0 / 0 / 0 / 0 / 0 / 0 / 22

Slocan Valley 41 / 42 / 3 / 0 / 0 / 1 / 0 / 29 / 85

Trail 0 / 9 / 1 / 0 / 0 / 0 / 0 / 0 / 9

Explore this area in 3D

Use onX Backcountry to explore the terrain in 3D, view recent satellite imagery, and more. Now available in onX Backcountry Mobile apps! For more information see this post.

Elevation:	3,553 ft	1,083 m
GPS:	49.41189, -117.49462 Google Map · Climbing Area Map
Page Views:	700,156 total · 5,087/month
Shared By:	allenclimbs Rollin on Sep 12, 2014 · Updates
Admins:	Rukas Fodor, Mark Roberts, Kate Lynn, Braden Batsford, Mauricio Herrera Cuadra Page Updates (admin only)

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The Climbing

Outstanding Alpine, Cragging & Bouldering in the areas around Castlegar, Nelson, Kaslo & The Slocan Valley. Beautiful mountains, valleys, lakes & rivers, tons of great camping opportunities. High Quality Granite & Gneiss.

There is a brand new (Fall 2025) West Kootenay Bouldering Guidebook! Check out westkootenaybouldering.ca/ for tons of great information and to get your hands on the guidebook . There are over 1000 problems at 15 different areas.

There is also lots of recent route development that's been happening in the area. There are now over 1000 routes!. Check out 'West Kootenay Rock Guide' for all the rope climbing information. Its a bit outdated and there has been lots of development since its release. http://wonowmedia.com/ has an updates document for free download and lots more info.

Lastly, go to tawkroc.org for more climbing info, topos and to sign the Kinnaird/Waterline waiver.

Getting There

Located in a very quiet corner of Southern B.C
7 hours from Calgary - 3 hours from Spokane - 8 hours from Vancouver - 4 hours from the Okanagan.

657 Total Climbs

Route Finder - Best Climbs for YOU!

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Classic Climbing Routes at West Kootenay

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

5.8 5b 16 VI- 15 HVS 4c 22 ● Megawatts Sport 8 pitches Castlegar > Megawatts
5.8 5b 16 VI- 15 HVS 4c 18 ● Sunshine Crack Trad Castlegar > Kinnaird Bluffs > Open Book Wall
5.8 5b 16 VI- 15 HVS 4c 6 ● Frog Suicide Crack Trad Castlegar > Kinnaird Bluffs > Whirlwind Wall
5.9+ 5c 17 VI 17 E1 5a PG13 77 ● South Ridge Trad, Alpine 7 pitches Slocan Valley > Valhalla Mountains > Mt Gimli
5.9+ 5c 17 VI 17 E1 5a 13 ● Hail Mary Trad 3 pitches Castlegar > Kinnaird Bluffs > Hail Mary Wall
5.9+ 5c 17 VI 17 E1 5a 8 ● Black Magic Sport Castlegar > Waterline > Corners
5.10a 6a 18 VI+ 18 E1 5a 14 ● Maniacs Sport Castlegar > Arrow Lake > Zebra Wall
5.10a 6a 18 VI+ 18 E1 5a 6 ● Face Only A Mother Could Love Sport Castlegar > Kinnaird Bluffs > Open Book Wall
5.10b 6a+ 19 VII- 19 E2 5b 6 ● The Engagement Sport 3 pitches Nelson > Pulpit Rock
5.10b 6a+ 19 VII- 19 E2 5b 7 ● The Long Haul Trad 6 pitches Nelson > Pulpit Rock
5.10c/d 6b+ 21 VII+ 21 E3 5b 17 ● The Mercenaries Sport Castlegar > Arrow Lake > Zebra Wall
5.10d 6b+ 21 VII+ 21 E3 5b 14 ● Lieutenant Sport Castlegar > Waterline > Ravens Wall
5.11b 6c 23 VIII- 23 E3 5c 6 ● TISM Sport Castlegar > Arrow Lake > Zebra Wall
5.11b 6c 23 VIII- 23 E3 5c 8 ● Super Grover Sport Castlegar > Waterline > Ravens Wall
5.12a 7a+ 25 VIII+ 25 E5 6a 7 ● Feather Quest Sport Castlegar > Waterline > Ravens Wall