Upper Canyon Bouldering

In the Upper Canyon, Saguaro Lake takes on more of the characteristics of its true self - which is the Salt River. The walls are high, often there is a subtle current, sometimes quite a strong one, and the channel narrows considerably. The rock at the River Crag is maybe a slightly higher quality than down-canyon too and water is noticeably cooler. This is because when water is release from the dam just upstream, it's coming out from the bottom of the dam where the water is super deep and hasn't seen any sunlight for a while. As it moves down the channel it is warmed by the sun to the point where it's bathwater warm sometimes in the middle of summer in the Lower Canyon.

The two main areas in the Upper Canyon that have seen a fair amount of climbing are The River Crag and Behemoth Wall. The River Crag is a lovely quiet little area that has a high concentration of routes. It's 30-40 feet high and pretty long. The Behemoth is an unmistakably huge formation with decent rock and tons of potential. The water depth beneath each is greater than 20ft, even on a low-lake day.

Most powerboaters don't take their boats past Cottonwood Creek Beach. Mostly they pull out there, have a beer or two and turn around. The channel upstream from the beach has some unmarked hazards and only the foolish or those that really know the lake right there are willing to risk their expensive hulls. Not a problem for paddles and oars however so if you can get there, you should find some peace even on a weekend.

It's understood that this area is pretty remote and hard for most landlubbers to access. Facebook group Phx Local Climbing Friends has regular outings to the area and The DWS Express goes pretty frequently. If you're regularly going out there and you're willing to bring some folks, leave information in the comments how you can be reached and what you're doing here and in the local climbing forums.