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Best Trad Climbing in Joshua Tree
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Im going climbing in Joshua on December 22nd for my birthday and I wanted to ask and see if anyone had good trad recs. I climb 5.11a on sport and 5.8 on trad but im looking to try a challenge on trad around 5.10a/b as well as look for some underatted gems along the way. I prefer climbing on slab/vert with solid pro and don't mind a hike, also I have already gone through and looked at alot of the classic routes but knowing how a climb actually feels is usually hard to figure out based on desciptions alone plus I know alot of climbs get slept on so some first hand experiences would be nice to hear. Thanks! |
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Stop saying ’on trad’ and you’ll immediately climb 2 letter grades harder :) . . Perfect Fingers |
Rob Dillonwrote: Had no idea, ill keep this in mind lol. Also thanks for the rec ill make sure to check this one out |
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If you like slab, check out routes at Echo Cove. Heart and Sole (10a) is one to look into. Echo has a good amount of that A word of caution - if you haven't climbed there before, start at 5.7/5.8 and see how you feel. Jtree has a reputation of being sandbagged compared to many areas for a reason. |
Cosmic Hotdogwrote: Not only this. Grading can be extraordinarily inconsistent, and the actual difficulty dependent on your own skill set. Feeling OK on one 5.10 does not mean your next 5.8 will be OK. Look at the history of "Double Cross" 5.7. many accidents and even some death due to inexperienced climbers not knowing how to protect, and not knowing their limits thinking 5.7 is easy and within their capability. Plus if you are coming from a sporty background, do not expect bolted routes at JT to be as well protected as what you may be used to. A huge number of bolted routes were put up on lead in old bold trad style, not close bolted like modern sport routes. |
George Krkawrote: Yeah dude good addition here. Jtree is my weekly spot and even across the 10s the variety can be pretty big. I've noticed the same across 8s and 9s in the park too Toe jam 5.7 is soft and a good one to start with if you're new to the park. Meanwhile, a few routes down is Dogleg 5.8+ which isn't bad but certainly awkward if you're a new 8 leader. And double cross on the same formation at 5.7 which gets newbies into trouble as you said Dandelion (10a) is also on The Old Woman formation and it's a combo of crack climbing with a slab finish. It protects well, that's one to try if you're feeling good after getting a feel for the grading |
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This list was compiled by Alan Bartlett, first published online by Todd Gordon, and just today republished by Dan Delange in the Southern California Climbers Facebook page. If you have success with the routes on the 5.9 list as a 5.8 gear/crack climber, post up here and I'll expand the list with Barlett's recs for the higher ratings. "I picked these climbs because they all have good protection, are excellent lead climbs, and a competent, confident leader, climbing within his/her abilities, should find these climbs safe. Some of Joshua Tree's "classic" routes are scary, and down right dangerous. Being scared out of your gym bag can detract from the overall climbing experience, and getting hurt or killed is never a good idea. These suggested climbs should not have you wetting yourself on the lead, but remember that all climbs can be scary and dangerous when things go bad, for whatever reason. Bartlett…
5.7 *Tiptoe, 5.7 Fun, short climb, protected with 3 closely spaced bolts. Be careful getting to the first bolt. Tricky, fun moves. Close to road. Sunny in afternoon. Vogel, p.33; Bartlett Lost Horse, P15 *Andromeda Strain, 5.7 1 bolt face to crack. Sunny in afternoon. Close to road. Good protection. Vogel, P40; Bartlett Lost Horse, p.23 ***White Lightning, 5.7 Classic straight on crack. Bring enough pro to protect this large pitch. Bring bigger stuff too. Vogel, p.126; Bartlett Lost Horse, p.46 *Smooth as Silk, 5.7 Finger crack to anchor. Close to road. Vogel, p.95; Bartlett Lost Horse, p.53 *Minotaur, 5.7 Steep, short crack climb. Shade in afternoon. Located in popular Atlantis area, more moderates in area. Vogel, P105; Bartlett Lost Horse, p.64 **Classic Corner, 5.7 Hand crack in corner. Located in quiet area. Vogel, P109; Bartlett Lost Horse, P68 *Bush Crack, 5.7 Straight-on hand crack. Walk from Atlantis parking area. Shady in afternoon. Vogel, p.120; Bartlett Lost Horse, p.73 *Jumping Jehosaphat, 5.7 Straight on jamming, low angle crack. Vogel, P152; Bartlett, p.42 **Toe Jam, 5.7 Great climb, good protection. Campground classic. Vogel, p.188; Bartlett Hidden Valley, p.63 **Lazy Day, 5.7 Excellent 5.7 crack climb. Sunny in AM and very close to road. Vogel, p.381; Bartlett Central JT, p.93 *Water Moccasin, 5.7 Bolt protected steep face. Located near campground in a hidden corridor in Indian Cove. Adequate protection. Make sure you are on the correct climb; there are a lot of climbs close together; some better protected than others. Vogel, p.533; Bartlett Indian Cove, P45 *Beck's Bear, 5.7 Left facing dihedral with pro. Close to road. Shade in afternoon. Vogel, p.132; Bartlett Lost Horse, P40 *Frosty Cone, 5.7 Straight on steep crack with buckets too. Fairly close to road. Shade in afternoon. Located on popular Dairy Queen Wall. Vogel, p.131; Bartlett Lost Horse, p.43 **Double Dogleg, 5.7 Zig-zag crack. Fairly close to road. Shade in afternoon. Vogel, p.98; Bartlett Lost Horse, p.58
5.8 Campfire Girl, 5.8 This excellent climb is a great lead with great protection. The moves are fun, solid jams, and the climb is in the shade on hot days. It's easy to find, easy to get to, and you lower off after the climb. Because the anchor is part-way up the climb (which is 5.10d to the top), this climb is mostly led anyways. Great lead! Vogel, p.516; Bartlett Indian Cove, p.28 Palm Reader, 5.8 This is an awesome, but short hand crack. Easy to find, easy to get to, with great protection. Vogel, P520; Bartlett Indian Cove, p.28 *Jelly on Springs, 5.8 This newish route is easy to get to, has sport pro, and is a fairly safe lead. Located at the end of Indian Cove group campsite. **Dinkey Doinks, 5.8 Hand crack, morning sun, good jams. Vogel, p.97; Bartlett Lost Horse, p.56 **Dappled Mare, 5.8 2 pitch climb. Vogel, P101; Bartlett Lost Horse, p.61 **Sail Away, 5.8 Great climb, great pro, fairly steep, easy to find, extremely popular. Vogel, P156-157; Bartlett Hidden Valley, p.39 **Straight Flush, 5.8 Left leaning crack, steep, strenuous jamming. Vogel, p.196; Bartlett Hidden Valley, p.99
*Peyote Crack (Right), 5.8 Fingers/hands, sun in afternoon. Close to campground. Good pro. Vogel, p.224; Bartlett Hidden Valley, p.99 *Planet X, 5.8+ Straight on finger/hand crack. Short. Sunny in AM. Short approach. Vogel, p.359; Bartlett Central JT, p.71 **Catch a Falling Star, 5.8 Traversing crack. Good pro, good climb, close to road. AM sun. Vogel, p.362; Bartlett Central JT, p.73 **Santa Cruz, 5.8+ 2 pitch route on left side of Saddle Rocks. Crack and face. 2 rappels down. Good protection, in shade most of the day. Bartlett Central JT 2002 supplement, p.144 **Gem, 5.8 Excellent, fairly long, jamming crack with good pro. Located in a shady, hidden corridor. Vogel, P445; Bartlett Pinto Basin, p.25 **Pinky and the Brain, 5.8 Well protected sport climb. Fairly short approach. QDs only. See New Routes for location. Split Rocks area. **Continuum, 5.8+ Joshua Tree jamming. Shady in afternoon. Fairly close to road. Vogel, P459; Bartlett Pinto Basin, p.55
5.9 **La Reina, 5.9 This climb is steep, short, and strenuous, but has good pro if you can lock off and hang by one hand while you place pro. It's also hard right from the get-go, so don't crater. Tape up? Vogel, p.534; Bartlett Indian Cove, P47 *Jack of Hearts, 5.9 Steep, hard crack. Good jamming, good pro, good climb. Shade in afternoon. 45 minute approach. Vogel, p.38; Bartlett Lost Horse, p.19 ***Popular Mechanics, 5.9 Great rock, great jamming, great pro. Shade in afternoon. Other 5.9 cracks nearby. 45 minute approach. Vogel, p.38; Bartlett Lost Horse, p.20 **Ace of Spades, 5.9 Great rock, great steep jamming, great pro. Other 5.9 cracks nearby. 45 minute approach. Vogel, p.38; Bartlett Lost Horse, p.20 **Norm, 5.9 Well protected climb with mostly fixed protection. Small run out section is on easy climbing. See New Routes. **Overseer, 5.9 Great pro, great steep climbing, exciting roof section. Vogel, p.126; Bartlett Lost Horse, p.46 ***Cake Walk, 5.9 Great climb, great pro, great moves, great jams. Sun in afternoon. Fairly long pitch. Vogel, p.96; Bartlett Lost Horse, p.55 **Smithereens, 5.9 Short, steep, thin crack. Good climbing, good pro. Shade in afternoon. Vogel, p.98; Bartlett Lost Horse, p.58
**Young Lust, 5.9 Steep, short, thin crack. Good climbing, good pro. Shade in afternoon. Vogel, p.98; Bartlett Lost Horse, p.57 **Mare's Tail, 5.9 Multi-pitch climb, tricky crux, good pro. Sunny climb. Vogel, P101; Bartlett Lost Horse, p.61 ***Sexy Grandma, 5.9 Newish route on Old Woman. Lots of fixed gear. QDs only. See New Routes **Strawberry Jam, 5.9 Straight on, steep, strenuous, tricky jams. Sun in morning. Near campground. Vogel, p.196; Bartlett Hidden Valley, p.70 **Hands Off, 5.9 Excellent jamming. Right in campground. Afternoon sun. Vogel, p.197; Bartlett Hidden Valley, p.71 *Damper, 5.9 Fist crack. Practice for Canyonlands, Yosemite, and Devil's Tower. Shortish climb in campground, steep, solid fists. (off width for smaller hands) Vogel, p.200; Bartlett Hidden Valley, P73-74 **Super Roof, 5.9 Hands through roof. Easy to get to, near campground. Morning sun. Vogel, p.210; Bartlett Hidden Valley, p.88 *Peyote Crack (Middle), 5.9 Fingers/hands, short. Afternoon sun. Close to campground. Vogel, p.224; Bartlett Hidden Valley, p.99 ***Touch and Go, 5.9 Great route, great pro. Crux near bottom. Steep and some say pumpy. Can be strenuous to get gear in a crux. Morning sun.
***Pope's Crack, 5.9 Mostly hands in a corner. Sunny, close to road, popular. Vogel, p.245; Bartlett Central JT, p.25 **Room to Shroom, 5.9 Splitter hands. A bit of an approach, but worth the hike. Vogel, p.278; Bartlett Central JT, p.54 **Alice in Wonderland, 5.9 Steep fingers to fists. Difficult, lengthy scramble to approach. 45 minute approach. Afternoon sun. Vogel, p.263; Bartlett Central JT, p.64 *Small World, 5.9 Hands. Located near road. In the shade most of the time. Vogel, p.394; Bartlett Central JT, p.115 **Electralux, 5.9 Fairly well protected face climb. Shade. Bartlett Central JT 2002 supplement, p.133 ***Colorado Crack, 5.9 Mostly hands. Excellent climb, great pro. In a shady, hidden corridor. Vogel, P459; Bartlett Pinto Basin, p.25 ***Invisibility Lessons, 5.9 Mostly hands. Jam crack. Shady in afternoon. Vogel, P459; Bartlett Pinto Basin, p.55 **Lesbian Lust, 5.9+ Small, cool bolted arête on big boulder. 1 hour approach, isolated area. Vogel, p.503; Bartlett Pinto Basin, p.80 **High Strung, 5.9 Thin to off width. Great climb. 30-40 minute approach. Morning sun only. Vogel, p.286; Bartlett Wonderland, p.70
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It's good that you are motivated and want to challenge yourself, but I would reign in your expectations and objectives a bit. Based on your tick list, the list posted by phylp phylp will provide plenty of challenges for you. Redpointing one 11a doesn't make you an 11a climber and climbing some trad 5.8's doesn't really prepare you for 5.10's especially at Joshua Tree. You'll get to the 5.10's soon enough, just don't rush it. Enjoy your trip. Let us know how it went. |
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It was recommended I climb 50 5.8 Trad routes before I deem myself a 5.8 Trad leader. J tree as all have mentioned is sandbagged. Numbers are not the point, learning, good technique, good energy to other climbers is the game. |
McKinley Thompsonwrote: I do not consider J Tree sandbagged. When I lived in Northern California, I climbed extensively in Yosemite Valley and Donner summit, and visited J Tree for winter outings, and I thought the grades were comparable. Which is to say not soft. The issue is, the J Tree crack routes are often less protectable (often because the cracks are flaring) and you have to be experienced at gear placement to protect a number of things. I used to be a solid 5.10 crack leader, and there have been plenty of 5.7-5.9 cracks in J Tree where I was glad it wasn't a grade I would fall on. There are probably 10 cracks with marginal gear where you had best be super solid at the grade for every one crack you can lace up with a double rack. As people have mentioned above there is a lot of variation within one grade. Which is why the Bartlett list is a good place to start. Even on that list, if my memory serves, there are a couple of cracks where there are cruxes close to the ground or up higher over ledges where you would hit something if you fell and your gear placement wasn't good. |
George Krkawrote: Do you have any links to any articles about deaths on Double Cross? |
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For one day of climbing, I suggest Ace of Spades/Popular Mechanics (5.9) if it's not windy and freezing. There are other routes to do in the area and you could give Right Baskerville Crack (.10a) a go on your way back to the car. If it's cold and windy, then Siberia is a good choice with lots of great routes within your parameters and it's south-facing and can be very comfortable even on cold days. Both areas have longish approaches. If time is an issue, there are plenty of good routes around Hidden Valley and the campground. Double Cross is a good choice because all the bodies piled up at the bottom will break your fall if you slip off. |
FrankPSwrote: Nope. Could be parroting a falsehood perpetuated here: mountainproject.com/route/1… |
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I say forget about grades and make your to do list based on quality of routes. J-Tree is one of those places where the quality of the experience is related to things having little to nothing to do with the grade. Also, when people say it's "sandbagged" what they really mean is it climbs very differently from most places. Slab technique is really vital on most J-tree climbs. What passes for crack climbing there is rarely what we would think of as great crack climbing in, say, Yosemite or Indian Creek. Be ready for lots of run outs, grainy rock, sharp cracks and, yes, difficult protection. But it's amazing and beautiful. |
FrankPSwrote: Googled, "climber death double cross joshua tree". Bingo. |
Cosmic Hotdogwrote: Good find! Thanks. |
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Something that hasn't been mentioned is the route finding in joshua tree can also be very difficult. In a sea of boulders everything kinda looks the same. I would avoid searching for climbs in the wonderland and gravitate to climbs closer to the road if I only had a weekend. |
FrankPSwrote: I've died two or three times on it. |
Chronic Robwrote: +1. To that end, here are some suggestions with short approaches or almost no approach at all that contain easy and moderate climbs:
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George Krkawrote: Im coming from sport background with minimal trad experience so ill keep this in mind while im checking out routes in the area. Thanks for the heads up! |
Cosmic Hotdogwrote: Dandelion sounds like a blast, ill definitly check it out once ive tried some other stuff to get a feel |
