Climbing, month by month?

Okay, I dimly remember a thread, but can't come up with it.

Pretty simple, what locales are prime in what months? I'm gonna be able to do some traveling, down the road, mainly in the western US, but I'd include Canada and El Portrero. 

Thanks! Maybe this will help out the daydreamers trapped in cubicleville, eh?

Best, Helen

I’m curious too.
If you don’t get any replies, PM JCM. Jon seems to know about everywhere.
I’ll add my $0.002  if wiser members don’t speak up. 

this is a fun game!  daydreaming here, if i got fired from cubicleville tomorrow and embarked on a climbing road trip:

jan: bishop
feb: joshua tree
march: red rock
april: moab
may: yosemite
june: cascades - city of rocks
july: squamish
august: bugaboos - tetons
september: high sierra
october: yosemite
november: zion
december: el potrero chico

Mark E Dixon wrote: I’m curious too.
If you don’t get any replies, PM JCM. Jon seems to know about everywhere.
I’ll add my $0.002  if wiser members don’t speak up. 

Guilty as charged.

For the OP: need more detail to make good suggestions.
Prefer trad, sport, bouldering, or a mix?
Any particular types of climbing you love (or hate)?
Grade range?
Travelling alone or with a partner?

Speaking for me and my sweetie, sport routes and bouldering.
510-12c or so. Might try a 13- if we stay somewhere for a while. 
Low Vs.
Nice to have cell coverage (writing this from dispersed camping near Black and Tan crag near St George.)
Which is not nearly as sharp as I feared.

Don’t know what Helen is looking for. 

Just for the fun of it I listed a number of areas that I haven't been to but have sparked my interest, then used MP's graph of the best weather window, eliminated all areas east of Colorado to keep a more compact footprint and came up with the following trip:

March: Red Rock
April:?
May: Suicide
June: Tahquitz, Needles, City of Rocks, Sinks (busy month!)
July: Wild Iris, Devil's Tower, Squamish, Needles
Aug: Devil's Tower, Squamish
Sep: Devil's Tower (long season!)

Not the most linear trip from a driving perspective...

Maybe simplify it to this:

March: Red Rock
April:?
May: Suicide
June: Tahquitz, Needles, City of Rocks
July: Squamish, Wild Iris
Aug: Devil's Tower,

Well, my sympathies to the cubiculytes, but...

My last day of paid employment is June 28th! Wahoo!!!

Just a daydream list, kids, but....

Some of it will happen!

This isn't an itinerary. No dots need to be connected, most of it won't happen....but some of it will! Watch out, kids, this girl just wanna have fun!

Best, Helen

Mark E Dixon wrote: Speaking for me and my sweetie, sport routes and bouldering.
510-12c or so. Might try a 13- if we stay somewhere for a while.
Low Vs.
Nice to have cell coverage (writing this from dispersed camping near Black and Tan crag near St George.)
Which is not nearly as sharp as I feared.

Don’t know what Helen is looking for. 

Mark,

Looking at your recent ticks, it looks like you've been on quite the road trip, and already visited recently a number of the "usual suspects" for the type of climbing destination you are looking for. Especially for late winter and spring areas: St. George, Bishop/ORG, Red Rocks etc. So I can't tell you much more about those than you aready know. Good choices for spring destinations. I see you also went to New Jack City. What was that like? I've heard mixed things.

Anyway, lets assume you are staying on the road for the rest of 2019. A few places worth considering given the climbing you are looking for. All are good for the grades you are looking for. I've treid to include a variety of rock types and styles. The areas are fairly widespread, but I tried to list them in semi-sensible driving order.

Before it gets too hot: Joe's Valley for some bouldering
Late May into June: City of Rocks early June; more time at Maple Canyon in late June
July: optional quick stop in the Uintas; Tensleep for most of July
late July / early August: Canmore and Lake Louise sport climbing, plus being a hiker/tourist in Banff/Jasper
mid August to early September: Squamish (see notes below)
mid-late September: Skaha
Alternative option for September: Black Hills (Spearfish, Rushmore, etc)
October and November: the classic SE sandstone sport climber's circuit: New/Red/Obed/Chatt. Mix & match as you wish.
Early December: Potrero Chico.
Late December: Take a break and spend Christmas on the beach in Mexico

A few notes:
Uintas are a neat little alpine quartzite zone worth a few days stop. With the big snowpack this year, check in on that situation before going.

Tensleep has lots to offer and is generally a good time had by all. If you can, wait until after the 4th of July crowds to show up.

Canmore offers the best (coolest) mid-summer conditions, and the scenery is amazing. Many crags have burly and long appoaches.

Squamish is better known for its trad and bouldering, and not as a sport climbing area. However, there has been enough sport development (including some high quality recent development) that it  now deserves recogniotion as a major sport climbing destination. I can give more specific crag and route beta if you want. If you also enjoy mixing in bouldering, the offerings are vast. Beware though that there are some significant camping issues starting up (ban on sleeping in vehicles in the municpal boundary) that could affect van dwellers this season.

Skaha: Let me sing the praises of Skaha for a moment. Why don't most Americans know about this area? It is outstanding. It isn't famous since there is nothing cutting-edge, and it isn't especially historic. But for density of quality, varied, friendly sport climbing in the 5.10-5.12 grades, it is one of the best destinations in North America.  In addition to the climbing, it has great scenery, a good town, a bunch of wineries nearby, and a big lake. Late September offers good weather there.

Black Hills: I haven't been here yet, so not much beta to give. Looks quite promising though. September looks like a good month, and it could be a good stop while driving eastward.

New/Red/Obed/Chatt: These speak for themselves.

Potrero: Most famous for the long sport routes, but the single pitch sport is totally worthy too. Nice hang, cheap, nice weather. Good vacation Early to mid December is great, as is February, but avoid December 20 through January 15 (ish) if possible. It turns into an overcrowded junkshow during Christmas and New Years.

Note again that this list is for Mark, and is mostly about 5.10-5.12 sport climbing. For anyone else, the list may be different. There is no "best September destination". It always depends on who you are, and what you're interested in doing.

January -  skiing!
February - El Potrero Chico
March - J Tree
April - Red Rock
May - Kalymnos
June - City of Rocks
July - Canmore and Lake Louise area, Alberta, Canada
August - High alpine, Wyoming
September - Tuolumne
October - Yosemite
November - Peña de Bernal (Mexico)
December - Smith Rocks

Don't forget a visit to McCall for Slick Rock

Thanks Jon!
We are not actually "on the road", just taking 2-3 week trips away from home for now.
However, next year may be a different story.

I'm particularly curious about good areas from January to April.
Hueco was nice in Jan, but Box Canyon was COLD! Even the Tunnel was frosty.
Driving a mini-van so the Homestead and other southern NM areas out.
Eventually settled into Tucson area for a bit, especially liked Milagarosa Canyon.
Wasn't super charmed by the lower crags on Mt Lemmon highway, I think the higher crags are better?
Red Rocks was really cold in December and January- not super high on my list any more. Camping is a hassle and conditions iffy.
I'll definitely avoid Christmas and spring break in the future! 

We spent a lot of time at New Jack, in large part because it was convenient for visiting family in SoCal.
Even so, we both liked it. I'd call it a good local crag, certainly not a destination.

Fairly casual, free camping, a pretty area.
Bit of an LA circus on weekends, but you can get away from the main crags.
Mix of sun and shade.
Mix of hard and easy routes, at least up to hard 12s.

Rock is volcanic I believe, good friction, so footwork is useful.
Hard to read holds, "is that a jug I'm going for or a terrible sloper?" so makes on sighting fun.
Varied movement for the same reason.
Often vert or a little more, usually short cruxes and often short routes.

Mark E Dixon wrote: We spent a lot of time at New Jack, in large part because it was convenient for visiting family in SoCal.
Even so, we both liked it. I'd call it a good local crag, certainly not a destination.

Fairly casual, free camping, a pretty area.
Bit of an LA circus on weekends, but you can get away from the main crags.
Mix of sun and shade.
Mix of hard and easy routes, at least up to hard 12s.

Rock is volcanic I believe, good friction, so footwork is useful.
Hard to read holds, "is that a jug I'm going for or a terrible sloper?" so makes on sighting fun.
Varied movement for the same reason.
Often vert or a little more, usually short cruxes and often short routes.

Interesting. Thanks for the report. I do a lot of climbing travel now with my girlfriend, and as such am always on the lookout for areas that have a mix of really easy (5.7-5.8) and hard-ish (5.12-5.13) climbing in close proximity. A hard thing to find, and have thought that NJC might have that. It sounds like it wouldn't be worth a trip on its own, but probably worth a stop if we were in SoCal for other reasons.

Mark E Dixon wrote: I'm particularly curious about good areas from January to April.
Hueco was nice in Jan, but Box Canyon was COLD! Even the Tunnel was frosty.
Driving a mini-van so the Homestead and other southern NM areas out.
Eventually settled into Tucson area for a bit, especially liked Milagarosa Canyon.
Wasn't super charmed by the lower crags on Mt Lemmon highway, I think the higher crags are better?
Red Rocks was really cold in December and January- not super high on my list any more. Camping is a hassle and conditions iffy.
I'll definitely avoid Christmas and spring break in the future!

I don't have any secret beta to give regarding January/February. Those months are just hard to do. I agree that Red Rocks as a reliable mid-winter destination is kind of a myth. It can be good, or it can be cold and windy. Kind of a tossup. And even if the climbing weather is good, the nights are still long and cold, and camping is rough. Same applies to J-Tree. That wind. These places work well for mid-winter weekend trips if you are in the local region and the forecast looks good, but (for me) are too much of a gamble to plan a trip in advance.

Bouldering trips are easier to do for mid-winter. It is just better suited to short days and cold temps. I've always enjoyed the Happy/Sad Boulders, and have had good luck finding climbable conditions there even in the coldest parts of winter. There is always a sunny, wind-sheltered pocket pf warmth to be found in those canyons. ORG can be good for winter sport climbing (a bit of a gamble, like other places), but you have the bouldering as a more-reliable backup plan. Camping is still a problem, though - long cold nights. At this point I'm pretty much over camping in the cold, and if I'm doing a trip somewhere in the colder months I get an AirBnB. My transition from dirtbag to yuppie is complete.

I've never been to Hueco, but that does seem like the one place in the US that is genuinely good as a mid-winter destination. Need to go. Slightly put off by the red tape, but it sounds like it is maybe manageable once you figure out the system?

Mid-winter sport climbing trips for me nowadays involve a passport. Now that I live in Seattle, it is a long ways (and usually a flight) to get to anywhere good for mid-winter. Once you are getting on a plane, it is worth the extra bit of effort or expense to fly to Monterrey instead of Vegas. Mexico has so much good sport climbing, the weather is good, and once you are there is it really cheap to stay a while. There are a lot of crags I want to visit in that country, and I hope of take a trip each winter for the foreseeable future.

Mark E Dixon wrote: 
I'm particularly curious about good areas from January to April.

Check out MX. El Salto is awesome. There's El Chonta further south, which I've heard is fantastic. Also, some great looking climbing near Mexico City.

I think that the ORG/Bishop should also be good in that timeframe.

To summarize to very coarse scale, the US has great destinations for spring and fall, and on the edges of summer and winter. Unless you are going high alpine, in mid-summer you should probably just go to Canada. And unless you primarily want to boulder, in mid-winter you should probably just go to Mexico.

JCM wrote: To summarize to very coarse scale, the US has great destinations for spring and fall, and on the edges of summer and winter. Unless you are going high alpine, in mid-summer you should probably just go to Canada. And unless you primarily want to boulder, in mid-winter you should probably just go to Mexico.

Thanks! This is starting to be for real. About five trips in the works, or in mind, so I'm bumping this, just for grins!

Pagosa springs is becoming important. Is fall good there?

Bozeman ice fest in December, several trips to City of Rocks coming up, including the less than optimal August one to the Idaho Mountain Fest. That, will be fun anyway! Should be a good temp contrast to Bozeman, lol!

I'm not ready for big, long trips, but I can fly and rent a car now, so some of it will be very doable. Down the road? Hmmm.......

And, anyone heading for City, definitely hit me up if you'd like to meet and climb! 

:-)

Best, Helen

JCM wrote:

Interesting. Thanks for the report. I do a lot of climbing travel now with my girlfriend, and as such am always on the lookout for areas that have a mix of really easy (5.7-5.8) and hard-ish (5.12-5.13) climbing in close proximity. A hard thing to find, and have thought that NJC might have that. It sounds like it wouldn't be worth a trip on its own, but probably worth a stop if we were in SoCal for other reasons.

JCM, we had ropes on 5.5 and 5.12c at COR last weekend. Not hard at all to find easy and stiffer stuff pretty close on most of the crags, especially if you can be happy on single pitch and "old school" doesn't freak ya. We just walked from our campsite, too! 
Best, Helen

OLH, fall is perfect in Pagosa Springs. Even in July the walls at Piedra are in the shade by 2 o'clock. And the river is right there for a quick dip.

Bumping this! I'm making trips, and planning trips, both. In between, gotta daydream when I mow the lawn, eh?

Colorado will happen, but latest I've heard from Steve is late fall at the earliest. I know that trip will be huge, to (hopefully) meet him, but I have friends, there now, met and unmet!

Since June, I've been on 5 overnight trips (all more than one night) and the next is in a few days, back to City of Rocks again. This is more than all the earlier trips combined, or close to it.

Thanks, all. My life is wildly different now, and I am very, very grateful.

Best, Helen

In case Europe is an option: I can recommend Frankenjura - it can be nice roughly March through October. 

The best month to visit Red Rock is October. The weather is the most stable and temperatures are good for both climbing and camping. Unfortunately, it is likely to be most crowded then as well for the same reasons. 

I got in COR quite a few times, all summer, and it's doable right now, although October was the coldest on record. Go figure.

Got the two week road trip to CO in, and climbed OLH. A trip to Maple Canyon the start of the season.

So, coming up? Bozeman ice fest, but after that? Hmmmm.

Ice is obvious for winter, but there's getting there and staying someplace. Approaches, once you're there. Ice, I will likely leave up to my cold blooded partners to suggest trips.

But winter into spring is still kinda blank. And the weather is always going to be part of it.

When does southern Utah get doable, generally? SLC is a really short hop from Boise, then it's a rental car and not too bad drive.

Gotta get that passport rolling, too!

Dunno if I'll even have a gym until 2020, sheesh.

Best, Helen