AKA Prison Sex Bouldering Area (PSBA). Tucked away in the very southern corner of Jean Lake Valley, PSBA is a three mile stretch of granite outcrops along the eastern side of the Lucy Gray Mountains. This area is on good ol' climber friendly BLM land without a wilderness area in sight.
The rock is rough with large feldspar crystals, some of it is grainy and flaky but most is solid. The majority of bouldering is near the road along the base of the Lucy Grays but there is much and more up on the hillsides and in the upper ends of the canyons going west though the mountains. A lot of the climbs are in the 10-20' range and the holds tend to be thin and crimpy. With the exception of some top roping, only a handful of spread out rocks and cliff faces are tall enough to merit roped climbing. If you do want to top rope, bring slings and gear.
This is a great place to get away from it all, people, cars, town, tourists (the other people), even climbers. Hardly anyone comes here. The biggest users of the area are off-road enthusiasts. Dirt bike trails crisscross all along the base and through the Lucy Gray Mts. Camping spots are limited but there are a couple of good ones right in the rocks. There's no water or firewood out here, so bring yer own.
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Old Pueblo
In 85-86, George Smith, Jim Lybarger, Rob Otis (Rob Smith), discovered the area for climbing. Driving past the prison and finding a bunch of graffiti on the rocks surrounded by bullet shells, the banter turned to freedom from prisons and darker thoughts; Thus Prison Sex Bouldering Area was born. As word spread, more climbers showed up and in 89: Tom Ray, Mark Quinn, myself, Jon DeBoer and still others found their way out and began making regular visits here. No one kept any written records of the development that was done during this time but many of the names were derived from nearby graffiti. Most of the climbs that were done are 5.10 or less, with a few in the 5.11 range.
By the mid 90s some of us had scattered to the four winds and the rest of us found other interests. We didn't use crash pads or do any terraforming and so left no real evidence of our passing. Although none of Team Vegas knew of any climbing out here at the time we started coming here it's entirely possible that there were climbers here before us. If you're out there, I'd love to here from you and your adventures here. Jan 19, 2016
Los Angeles, CA