Joshua Tree

cover photo
Feb 18, 2019 - Feb 18, 2019

Cool day of climbing at Joshua Tree with real snow in the desert!

Beautiful scenerey from a fresh coat of snow on Joshua Tree as we arrived in the morning. Spent the day on a single 5.7 route (Spaghetti & Chili?) where Andre practiced placing trad gear while I toproped. A single crux involving undercling holds on a big flake made the route feel much harder than a 5.7, but good practice and plenty of rest in between climbs. Rappelling down from the ~75ft pitch added some reward to the ending.

Watched a nearby group toprope a 5.10d on a longer route - looked kind of fun but probably v challenging. Enjoyed views of the snow-covered Joshua trees and boulders from the top of the crag. Called it a day after 4 or so climbs.

While packing up, a passing climber informed us that someone had died on our route a few years ago - hit his (unprotected) head on a shelf after a piece of gear slipped...yikes! Joshua Tree lead climbing is for pros only! I'll stick to toproping there.

Difficulty5.7
Distance
Nights
Highest Elevation
JurisdictionJoshua Tree National Forest
MapUSGS Keys View
TrailheadN park entrance - Hidden Valley