where to climb in USA

Hi,
I put a post on this site the other day asking where I could climb near Washington DC as I have a few days spare during a work trip from the UK during April.

The answer seems to be Seneca.

If I could add a couple of more days to make, say 5 days out of DC, and get an internal flight or drive, where should I head? The west coast seems too far but might be possible if I fly back to UK from there.

I like trad multi pitch and if possible somewhere I haven't been (i.e. not Boulder, New Mexico, Moab, Yosemite).

I guess it would be good it it was somewhere I could find a partner easily as well.

Thanks in advance for your help!

If you want multipitch trad in the eastern US in April, these are your best options:

Seneca (driving distance) - quartzite
Gunks, NY (sort of driving distance) - quartzite
Adirondacks, NY - gneiss
North Conway, NH (Cathedral/Whitehorse Ledges and Cannon Cliff) - granite
Looking Glass Rock, NC - granite
Linville Gorge, NC - quartzite
Laurel Knob, NC - granite
Whitesides, NC - quartzite
Rumbling Bald, NC - granite
Moore's Wall, NC (mostly one pitch) - quartzite
Tennessee Wall (one pitch) - sandstone

April can be rainy, but you might get lucky. If it is rainy go to the Red River Gorge, KY or potentially the New River Gorge, WV. If you open up your options for multipitch trad in the western US, your choices expand significantly. The stuff in the east is all good though and well worth checking out.

April can be rainy on the east coast for sure. Instead of bothering with a flight, I would rent a car in DC. Go to Seneca for a lot of moderate routes up to three pitches. Then continue on to the New River Gorge for trad and sport cragging. The New is considered to be one of the best crags in the United States.

I'd go with Eric's plan unless the weather is bad in WV. As a backup, if it's clear to the south, the NC destinations are awesome, but a little longer of a drive. If the south is a washout, but north looks OK, the Gunks are awesome. Keep in mind in could still be chilly in NY in April, but if you're lucky, the weather will cooperate somewhere.

Agreed, if you go to Seneca you might as well go to the New as well. And then if the weather really craps out, you're not that far from the Red (dry rock about 350-360 days/yr)... there is even good multipitch trad here believe it or not:
redriverclimbing.com/RRCGui…;id=900
redriverclimbing.com/RRCGui…;id=2342
redriverclimbing.com/RRCGui…;id=2434
redriverclimbing.com/RRCGui…;id=435

Red Rock, Nevada.

Bob M wrote:I'd go with Eric's plan unless the weather is bad in WV. As a backup, if it's clear to the south, the NC destinations are awesome, but a little longer of a drive. If the south is a washout, but north looks OK, the Gunks are awesome. Keep in mind in could still be chilly in NY in April, but if you're lucky, the weather will cooperate somewhere.

This seems like a pretty good plan. With only 5 days, getting on an airplane to the West would be a bit much...there is plenty of interesting rock within 6 hours drive of DC. April can be wet, but so can any month of the year in the east. Temperature-wise, April is one of the better months of the year in the east. As others have mentioned, Seneca/New would be a worthy excursion. Also, the Gunks are amazing, and about 6 hours from DC. Definitely would be worth visiting I'll disagree slightly with Bob M; April is a great month for the Gunks, since the cliffs get a lot of sun exposure, climbing there is great at that time of year. Lastly, NC offers good crags as well.

None of those east coast crags offer guaranteed good weather, but they are far enough apart that if the forecast is bad for the Gunks, it might be good in NC, or vice versa. Your best option would be to rent a car, form a loose plan about where to go, but be ready to change it at the last moment to chase a better forecast. Overall, though, I'd suggest you plan to visit the Gunks. I think it is the most unique and destination-worthy area in the East for a visitor from abroad. Plus, there is a nice town very nearby (New Paltz), and I hear the hostel there is quite good, since I imagine you won't want to haul camping gear out here.

If you do decide to get on an airplane and go west, go to Red Rocks. It is only a half hour from the Vegas airport, and inexpensive direct flight to/from Vegas are easy to find. April weather there is generally excellent. For multi-pitch trad climbing, it is incredible. Cheap hotels available nearby.

So it's looking like:
if dry in north then Gunks
if wet in North the New etc.
if Dry near washing to then Seneca

if wet everywhere then Red Rocks (which, along with Zion I forgot to say I've visited)

The New and Seneca are fairly close to each other. The weather will be pretty much the same at both places.

Good plan. If it's wet everywhere you can also still climb in the Red River Gorge, a bit of a drive from DC but doable. Many of the crags are steep enough to stay dry in a downpour. You will probably have pretty good weather in April tho if your luck is decent.