West Virginia in winter

I have an opportunity to possibly spend the winter in West Virginia this year but wondering how reasonable it is to expect to get out climbing? I know there are sunny walls but I also know it can be overcast for days on end in that part of the world. Bouldering is fine, sport climbing is better. Just don't want to go out there and spend 80% of my days indoors. Thanks for any help.

PS if this has been asked already please just direct me to the discussion. I couldn't find anything.

Eric Godfrey wrote:

I have an opportunity to possibly spend the winter in West Virginia this year but wondering how reasonable it is to expect to get out climbing? I know there are sunny walls but I also know it can be overcast for days on end in that part of the world. Bouldering is fine, sport climbing is better. Just don't want to go out there and spend 80% of my days indoors. Thanks for any help.

PS if this has been asked already please just direct me to the discussion. I couldn't find anything.

Have you been there before? Your options for climbing in the winter are far more plentiful here in SLC.

I've climbed at the NRG for about 3 years.  It can be hit or miss and you'll likely want hand warmers.  From my experiences, the rock does dry quick when facing.  However, if there is snow melting about the cliff then the wall can stay wet for a bit.  February and March was a little challenging from what I remember.  

If ever in doubt the local gear shop (Waterstone) can be very helpful with the rock conditions.  Definitely stop by their gear shop and check it out too.

Check out Summersville lake for climbing

I would say, it's going to be quite tricky.   Don't expect much.

Eric Godfrey wrote:

I have an opportunity to possibly spend the winter in West Virginia this year but wondering how reasonable it is to expect to get out climbing? I know there are sunny walls but I also know it can be overcast for days on end in that part of the world. Bouldering is fine, sport climbing is better. Just don't want to go out there and spend 80% of my days indoors. Thanks for any help.

PS if this has been asked already please just direct me to the discussion. I couldn't find anything.

Where would you be living in WV?  

If you're within an hour of the NRG, have a flexible schedule, and don't mind bouldering, you'll get plenty of winter climbing in.  Especially with the last few winters, weather has been mild with few prolonged cold snaps, and we've been able to climb a couple days a week every month of the year for the most part.  It's not a destination for winter climbing (though deep south destinations are all easy weekend distance), but there are way worse places for a climber to be stuck for the winter.

Be prepared for the worst. And I mean wrecked at El Rio Grande by 2pm after downing way too many ritas and coronas because you've been sitting in your shitty, moldy, dreary winter bungalow in WEST VIRGINIA, thinking WTF am I doing with my life- Worst. But that's only the beginning. Then the real Hell begins. Your buddies persuade you to go over to SSS for just one more beer. 1 turns into 5. You're riding the Porcelain Pony staring at the three different hues of pubes a mere millimeter from your face as you unleash the lime green beast with chunks of tomatoey salsa onto the floor. At that point, you sober up quickly and realize that it's time to get out of SSS fast or else the entire town will lynch you for being such a lightweight. You quickly rally your buddies over to the fine-ass establishment of Charlies where you decide to have just one more drink and a few casual rounds of pool to drown your non-outdoorsy, non-adventuring, and absolutely zero-having climbing week. Charlies turns into a class A Shitstorm when you see ol' Travis and his boys, with more hair on their face than you have on your whole body, and decide it's time to man up and replace those weak sauce IPAs for a man's drink and order a round of Jack Daniels. That's when the more manly-than you'll ever be (and heavier also) bartender laughs at your predictable choice of bourbon and decides to entice you with the bottle of Rebel Yell. You tell her poor em' tall as she motions over to ol' Travis and fellars to watch this shit. You shoot that tall (oh she fucked you all right) rocks glass of Rebel Yell, with a little dribbling down your stubbly, oh so en vogue I'm not growing a beard but I'm too wild and careless to care for I've been living in the mountains for the past week non-beard chin. That's when you begin to see sideways and your friends multiply. Now there are 2 of everyone in the bar. The only conscious thought you can make is that you need to GET OUT, and get out real quick. WTF am I doing in WV in the Winter? How'd I get here? Who is this Charlie? That bartender isn't hawt at all and I'm this drunk? That OK Chinese Buffet that I ate last week might still be poisoning me. Is it the water that's doing this to me? Is the climbing worth it? Oh fuck. Somehow you make it home and you wake up the next morning early (hung over as all hell), pack a bowl before you even leave bed and immediately feel a good bit better and get out of bed to get some water which will be the first process in a long, long multi-step recovery. That's when you realize that the skies have turned blue, the birds are chirping, and you have a handful of people like you who will want to play in the woods today. Woohoo, WV in the winter in a nutshell. 

^^ epic post!  Felt like a fun, Kerouac-esque short story...

Joseph's post above is a must read for anyone headed to the New this weekend!

I'm at the New now, and I can totally confirm Joseph's story. Damn it, Travis. 

Just leave the climbing and go skiing / snowboarding.

The best part is that Paul, Joe, and myself have done this time and time again. Goddamn WV in the winter, it’s beautiful. 

Chris Whisenhunt wrote:

The best part is that Paul, Joe, and myself have done this time and time again. Goddamn WV in the winter, it’s beautiful. 

Yeah, you guys can keep your Boulderado and Buttersad Bishop Boulders.  If you've never experienced a pounding hangover mixed with Tudors on the 14th morning of gray sleet in Fayetteville, well, you're just not a real climber.

In all reality some of the best climbing benders of my life happened at the new in the dead of winter with no weekend warriors in sight. Do it, but don’t say you weren’t warned. Local status is what now? 3 solid years of seasons back to back? Enough to see the rise and fall of at least one restaurant and two different guys that are friends be in a serious relationships with the same girl? Oh the high school drama of the ville. 

This place is sounding better and better with each post!

So not into trad? Irrelevant to talk about Seneca with you? Well I'm curious about ppl with exp. In seneca. I believe Seneca gets alot of southerly sun exposure correct me if wrong. They get some snow but also get some warmer days where it melts. Meaning in the 50s. Still always pretty cold at nite tho. Personally I can't seem to give up a weekend snowboarding as much as I would like to get down their to climb. I mean snowshoe would be the best mountain to hit up and it's actually a pretty good one by east coast ski standards, we will c. It seems like Seneca gets so much precip especially in the spring and summer, it's a very weather depending place, alota times they call for weather tho and it blows by

Just make sure you get your crew together for all the winter Rough and Rowdy events at the Summersville and Beckley "Convention Centers". 

Pro Tips: Pregame at Hooters and AppleBees. Make sure to stop for the Honey Flavoured Whiskey to sneak in and keep the vibe going, perhaps a few edibles beforehand, and most-definitely cheer on Gabby, daddy's pride and glory. Dat ass, those legs go to 11. Damn dawg. So hawt! Whatever you do, don't jump in the ring and don't attempt to beat your buddy at the Marine Corps pull up comp with weak-ass chin-ups instead of pull-ups. C'mon son! You might just make it home with a horse voice, a deadly hangover, blood all over your shirt, and a hole in both of your palms like Jesus himself being crucified, but instead your drunk ass fell trying to navigate a ditch jump in the parking lot. 

Yup, life in the 'ville in the winter ain't too shabby. Chris and Paul, I think we need make sure we get together every couple of years to relight the flame. We'll have to get some climbing in though, perhaps only minimally, but the real events will all revolve around regaining that WV Shitstorm effect once again.