Two Aussies planning a NA Road Trip

Ryan Williams wrote:I hate to be the one to say it but a trip to the North American west without crack climbing and trad climbing is a wasted trip. Everyone was "green" at one point. I can't think of a better time to become a good trad climber than while on a three month road trip in trad climbing heaven. If you are competent on 5.8 then there is a lot of fun to be had. And after a few weeks you'll be looking at big 5.9's and 10's in the guidebooks.

Absolutely true, but some places are a better "first introduction" than others. If you've never jammed and show up at Indian Creek, the smackdown will be brutal. If, however, you first spend a few months at other destinations where the crack climbing is somewhat less demanding, you'll be able to go to the Creek and have a good time. Thus, the order of destinations is important.

As some others have said, the best way to do a trip to North America is to devote it to learning how to climb trad, cracks, and long routes. You may be a crack-gumby when you show up, but you'll be an expert when you leave.

The best time to do such a trip is from mid/late summer into fall. This gives you the most stable weather and the most options.

I would start in Squamish in July or August. I recommend Squamish because it has the best weather in late summer, and I think that it is the best place to learn trad skills. It is a kinder and gentler training ground for Yosemite. For some reason, there are always tons of Australians there. A month to two months in Squamish would not be excessive. The scene and camping are great. Good bouldering and decent sport climbing too.

Sometime around the beginning of September, head sputh. Stop in Smith Rock briefly. It will be hot still, but it is right along your way. Then go to Tahoe and/or Toulomne for September. Temperatures will be nice. Stay a few weeks there, until the weather starts getting good in the Valley in October. Spend October int he Valley.

In November, head to Utah. Indian Creek, Towers, etc. You will be ready for the Creek by this point.

By late November, Indian Creek is getting cold. At this point, either head home, or go to Hueco or Bishop or Joshua Tree to eek out a bit more of the season. Alternatively, early December would be a great time to head to Mexico (don't get kidnapped/shot/boiled in acid).

This is a pretty standard itinerary. There a a few other places you could squeeze in, though. Index (Washington) would be good to stop at ont he way down from Squamish. The Needles (California) would be a good extra stop in September. Some time in the High Sierra in late summer would be good, if you feel ready for the alpine experience. Maybe squeeze in Red Rocks some time in October or Novemeber.

You also mention Tahquitz/Suicide. While these are really nice crags, they really don't have anything to offer that Yosemite doesn't. The style and season are similar. You would be better off just spending more time in Yosemite.

As an addendum to the schedule I described above, you could also add in some of the sport areas toward the beginning of the trip. Start in June at Maple, then to Tensleep, then to Canmore/Bow Valley in July, and then to Squamish in early August, and then continue with itinerary above.

This would work well because it would be geographically efficient (no backtracking, just a big loop from Utah back to Utah), and would put you at each area in the right season.

My East Coast heritage is evident here, but if you are more of a sport climber I'd get to Rumney, NH. The climbing there is world class, and Sept or Oct in Vermont or New Hampshire is simply an awe inspiring place to spend some time. You can go to the Shawagunks on the way (the Gunks), and there is plenty of granite trad around NH/VT too if you develop a flavor for it. You can fly from NYC back to SF or LA for really short $ before returning home.

Jon Moen summed it up great!

Well this trip is still definitely on the plans. But.. I'm having lots of trouble working out what to do for transport. There is really only two company's that do cheap camper van rentals ($8000-$10000 for 3 months). I have even had trouble finding cheap long term car rental, not that I really want a small car.

The best option I have found is renting a Uhaul cargo van. The online quote I got was around $2500-3000 for 3 months which is pretty decent. Just have to check if they will rent it to me.

I really want to fly into vancouver and do Squamish first, moving east and south from there.

Anyone got any transport input?

Thanks

Jason

jasoncm wrote:Well this trip is still definitely on the plans. But.. I'm having lots of trouble working out what to do for transport. There is really only two company's that do cheap camper van rentals ($8000-$10000 for 3 months). I have even had trouble finding cheap long term car rental, not that I really want a small car. The best option I have found is renting a Uhaul cargo van. The online quote I got was around $2500-3000 for 3 months which is pretty decent. Just have to check if they will rent it to me. I really want to fly into vancouver and do Squamish first, moving east and south from there. Anyone got any transport input? Thanks Jason

What the hell, $10,000 to rent an RV for three months?! That is insane! Also, Uhaul charges millage, and with as much as you are going to be driving you will probably pay 3x the quoted price!

The best option would probably be to buy a vehicle and resell it when you are done. Dont get something new. Just get something cheap you can live out of.

$9000 for one of these

jucyrentals.com/vehicles/ju….

Hardly a RV. If you want a decent size RV that sleeps 2-3 you would be looking at $14,000.

Buying a car - from all the research I can do online, I have found that its super hard for a non resident to buy, register and insurance a car in most of the USA.

Anyone want to buy/insure me a car for profit :-)

Jason

Jason,

You might try contacting people that have vans/rv's/cars for sale on Craigslist. Work a deal with them where you boost their insurance to cover you & your pals while on the trip. Pay the seller some or all of his asking price for the vehicle, with the understanding that they get the vehicle back when your trip is finished. A great way to go cheap with 3 people would be a Dodge/Plymouth mini-van (they're cheap as hell & fairly abundant) and a tent. If you want more room you could add a pop-up trailer camper but even a crappy used one will be about $1500.

jasoncm wrote: Buying a car - from all the research I can do online, I have found that its super hard for a non resident to buy, register and insurance a car in most of the USA.

What about in Canada? Might it be easier there, maybe? (This is pure speculation). The one downside is that at the end of the trip, you would probably have to drive backt to Canada to sell the car since importing it would be difficult.

jasoncm wrote: I really want to fly into vancouver and do Squamish first, moving east and south from there.

Good plan. One additional note: Squamish is one of the few crags in North America where it is reasonable to get by without a car. The town (which is large enough to have everything you need) is within walking distance of the majority of the climbing. A car makes everything easy, but is not neccesary, and lots of travelers for overseas spend a month or more there without a vehicle. This is relevant because, if you go to Squamish for a while first, this gives you more time to figure out the car situation. You can just go to Squamish, hnag out there and climb for a month, and on your rest days try to find a car. This is probably easier than trying to arrange things by email.

The only other climbing area that is reasonable without a car is Yosemite. In Yosemite, it is in some ways easier to get by without a car; the car can be a liability...it is just one more thing that the rangers can bust you over (if you haven't heard, Yosemite is a police state). In the Valley, there is a grocery store within walking distance of Camp 4, and there is a good bus system, so it is easy to get around. Additionally, it is really easy to find a ride from Squamish to the Valley in September, since a lot of people are doing that drive...just post up on the message board and offer to help pay for gas. Seriously, it is probably the easiest 1000 mile hitchhike on earth. I gave a British guy a ride on that route a few years ago.

Anyway, if the bulk of your trip is Squamish and the Valley, and finding a car is prohibitively difficult and expensive, you could consider going carless. It limits you options a bit, and means you have to travel light, but it is totally reasonable if it is you only option; lots of people do it this way.

To go basically anywhere else, though, a car or extremely advanced hitchhiking skills are necessary. However, going carless in Squamish and Yosemite would really cut down on the amount of time you need to rent for, significantly reducing expenses. You could spend a month each in Squamish and the Valley, and then only need to rent a car for the last 3-4 weeks for Indian Creek.

jasoncm wrote: I really want to fly into vancouver and do Squamish first, moving east and south from there.

Another note on this plan: Don't show up in Squamish before early-July; it can still be rainy there in June. July is usually good; August is even better.

Thanks for all the input. I'm not flying solo on this trip, my Girlfriend and I are both going. This trip is not going to be a pure dirt bag climbing trip so I am not interested in going car-less. It could be possible to buy,register a car and Canada from what i've read. Might have to try find some more info.

I just found out last night that my girlfriend has some long lost part relations that live in the USA. She is finding out where they are and maybe they can help sort something, which would be great.

Thanks

It is worth noting that the OP said he climbs 5.9 trad and 5.11 sport. So spending a month in Yosemite which has zero sport under 5.11 and very little trad under 5.9 is probably not the best option. Smith Rocks is another option that does not absolutely require a car, and Smith has far more routes in his grade range as it is mostly a sport climbing area.

There's a lot to do in Yosemite and Tuolumne if you can lead 5.9.

TWK wrote:There's a lot to do in Yosemite and Tuolumne if you can lead 5.9.

And probably after a month in Squamish, and then a month in the Valley, he would be climbing solid 5.10 trad anyway. In that case, there is even more to do.

That said, make sure to visit Lover's Leap, CA (near Lake Tahoe). it is probably the best crag on the West Coast for 5.7-5.9 trad climbs in the 2-5 pitch range. It is a tall vertical granite crag, but these fantastic horizontal dikes (actually sills, to be precise) provide jugs and stances to keep the difficulty very reasonable. Weather is good there in summer to early fall; it would be a great place to go in September.

If you're spending $2500 on a vehicle, you may as well just buy a junker and spend the extra cash on repairs.

It will be more memorable that way. You can even cap off the end of your journey by lighting it on fire and rolling it off a mountain!

Totally agree with the Lovers Leap endorsement. If you're leading 5.9 it would be an excellent stop for up to a week before Yosemite.

Hey,

Got a reply back from the Canadian ICBC, there will be no problems buying. Registering and insuring a vehicle in BC as a tourist. This sounds like the best plan.

I like the sound of lighting the car on fire and pushing it off the cliff, but I'm sure that's not an accepted practice for travelling climbers.

I'm confident I will be climbing 5.10 trad after a month in Squamish. I have done a a couple of 5.10's already.

Will definitely be checking out Tahoe area, I got the super topo guide and it looks good.

Cheers

Jason

Well the tickets are booked and the big 777 will be taking us to Vancouver on 2st July. We are so pumped for this trip. Thanks everyone for the advice.

Jason

Hey guys,

The trip has come along great. Climbed in Squamish, Lake Louise, Canmore, Tensleep, Devils Tower and now in city of rocks.

We leave on the 8th of October. Looking at some suggested itineraries for the rest of the trip. We were think of heading to maple canyon next and would really love to go to Moab area, even though its going to be hot. We do have to drive back to Vancouver so we probably will make the mandatory stop at Yosemite and Tahoe for a look/climb.

The biggest attraction is cheap/free camping and super easy/friendly place ie. city rocks, Tensleep.

Cheers

Jason

Honestly, at this time of year, I'd drive into Tuolumne Meadows and climb the classics. Smoke from the fire may be a turnoff though.