A great crag for people looking for some hard climbing. This crag has mostly 5.12s/+ for people looking for some hard climbing. There are a handful of moderate fun routes as well, but the mildly overhanging walls of The Monastery seem to favor the natural formation of harder climbs. Like many areas of chek, there are some routes with an initial pitch and an added extension for some extra credit. The climbing of this area is great and varied, demanding a wide skill set from powerful overhang to technical face, dihedrals and delicate slab (due to how the walls form very varied terrain, depending which area you find yourself in).

This area is broken up into 4 main parts. From left to right is, the left sector, the prow, the cave, And the right sector. The trail from the lower lot drops you off by the left sector. This wall is short and steep, a steep overhang with a ledge through the middle. Then is the prow, a solid continuous overhanging wall (about 30degrees). The next section around the prow is mostly vert, and well capped from the rain. The right sector has varied terrain. A few climbs run through the steeper wall(pump junkies 12d) and then around the corner are a few more climbs that go up the vert/slab ish face (satori 11a, water tension 12b)

Routes here generally get morning sun and afternoon shade, with the exception of Prancercise 12c that sits in the shade of nearby trees.

A free topo is available for download here (scroll down and click the link).

1) Park at the lower lot for cheakamus canyon climbing area. When you enter off 99, it will be the small lot on the right, fitting about 5 cars. A few additional cars can fit in pull off areas ahead on the road. From here, take the road to the right and walk up the trail, passing Electric Avenue (about 5 minutes up a steep road), and continuing into the woods on a steep but maintained trail (this includes a few switchbacks) for 15-20 minutes.

2) after turning off 99 into the lot, you can make a right up the steep road and drive up to a new lot right by the electric avenue. This cuts about 5ish minutes of steep walking off, however, as of 08/16/19, this trail has quite a few pot holes and is quite steep. 4wd and a raised suspension recommended. Otherwise just walk from the lower lot.