Activities: Hiking, Mountaineering, Trad Climbing, Sport Climbing, Toprope, Bouldering, Ice Climbing, Aid Climbing, Big Wall, Mixed, Scrambling, Via Ferrata, Canyoneering

Season: Spring, Summer, Fall, Winter

Page By: rpc, cp0915

Created/Edited: Jan 12, 2006 / Jun 13, 2008

Object ID: 171112

Hits: 6017

Page Score: 90.7% - 31 Votes

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Table of Contents

Overview

Suggested Hot Spots

Routes Overview

Larry DeAngelo's Classic Trad Lines

Images

Overview

Red Rocks, or Red Rock Canyon National Conservation Area (RRCNCA), as it's properly known, is located within the Spring Mountains of southern Nevada, just outside of town on the western edge of Las Vegas.

Being a sandstone paradise for sight-seers, hikers, scramblers and climbers alike, the area is very popular.

Sight-seers need only follow the park's 13-mile scenic loop, a paved one-way roadway traveling through the NCA that grabs the best possible roadside vistas of the area, to get their kicks. Many pull-outs are found along the loop for those wanting to take their sight-seeing to the next level.

For those looking for some exercise, a number of trailheads are found at various points along the scenic loop. With a variety of trails, some leading to mere overlooks, others leading to popular climbing areas near the road, and still others leading into the deep and spectacular canyons of the park and to the scrambling and climbing destinations within them, there's no shortage of options.

Climbers anxious to take a turn on any of the park's large number of classic routes should expect to get there early...or wait in line for their turn. Don't say we didn't warn you!

With brutal temperatures during the summer, the park sees most of its visitation during the fall-winter-spring portion of the year.

Getting to RRCNCA is easy - just consult a map, or a local, for Charleston Blvd., one of the major east-west trending streets in Las Vegas. Following Charleston Blvd. west to the mountains will take you right to Red Rocks!

*You might also check out CP's outdoor site, which provides access to trip reports, beta, photos and other stuff covering hiking, scrambling, climbing and canyoneering around Las Vegas. My new hiking and scrambling guidebook, Rambles & Scrambles: The Definitive Guide to Peakbagging Around Las Vegas, is now available too. Among other things, the book covers summit routes to a couple dozen peaks within Red Rock Canyon National Conservation Area.

Suggested Hot Spots

Your highly subjective opinions on the best of Red Rock are welcome!

Best Views
-North Fork of Pine Creek (north side of Mescalito) - (DonnieB)

Best Summit
-Rainbow Mtn - (DonnieB)

-Rainbow Mtn - (cp0915)

Best Overall

Best Hike (short)
-north fork of Pine Creek to the first waterfall (below Mescalito) - (DonnieB)

Best Hike (long)
-Bridge Mountain via the north fork of Pine Creek - (DonnieB)

Best Scramble
-"Because we're dealing with particularly scramble-rich country, it's hard to nail down a "best". That said, though lots and lots and lots of great and obscure routes are to be found in this area, one of the more prominent great ones, the Black Velvet Canyon route up The Monument, might take the cake. Fun scrambling (up to 4th class), enjoyable route-finding, seldom-visited country, and awesome scenery make this one fantastic." - (cp0915)

-Lost Creek, including Upper Lost Creek (below North Peak) - (DonnieB)

-North Peak via Lost Creek - (MoapaPk)

Best Free Route (short)

Best Free Route (long)
-"In an area famous for long multi-pitch lines, it is no easy task to choose the best line. If we narrow the field down to sub-5.10 lines, two choices are almost obvious: Crimson Chrysalis (III 5.8+) on Rainbow Mountain's Cloud Tower formation or Epinephrine (IV 5.9) on Black Velvet Peak's Velvet Wall. The former is a direct, 8-pitch line to a summit of a semi-detached pillar on the north side of Rainbow Mountain. It is very sustained at it's 5.8 grade (though no pitch feels harder than 5.8, most of them don't feel easier either). The line is nearly vertical and the going is very exposed with almost all belays being full on hanging! By the time you reach the last pitch, you have about a thousand feet of air separating you from your backpacks at the base. It is probably the best 5.8 line anywhere in the US. The latter, Epinephrine is equally unforgettable. Originally 18 pitches long, the use of 60 meter ropes now allows most parties to get the job done in 14 to 15 pitches. The lower third of the route offers some of the best chimney climbing anywhere - shady, deep, yet reasonably well-protected - these are incredibly fun to climb. The middle third of the route follows an exposed dihedral and face - a drastic change of pace from the shady dungeons below. As you pull onto the top of the 10th pitch (base of the right-trending ramp system) you have 1200 feet of air below you! The final third (or final quarter) of the route follows a relatively easy slab system (the ramp) to just below the summit of Black Velvet Wall. Deciding which of these two is the choice Red Rocks moderate line is impossible for this author." - (rpc)

Best Sport Route

Best Aid Route
-Original Route (Rainbow Wall) - (DonnieB)

Routes Overview

There are well over a thousand established routes to the summits of the various peaks of Red Rock and on the countless features comprising and surrounding them. The route overview below covers just a fraction of those routes, as represented on Summitpost.

Routes Overview:

- Turtlehead Peak
- West Gully - class 2

- Calico Hills
- Physical Graffiti - 5.6
- The Great Red Book - 5.8 PG13

- White Rock Mountain
- East Gully Scramble - class 3
- Group Therapy - 5.7 [5.6R]
- Tunnel Vision - 5.7
- Healy�s Haunted House - 5.7

- North Peak
- From Red Rock Summit - class 2
- Lost Creek Canyon to North Peak - class 4

- Ice Box Peak
- North Chute - 5.3

- Bridge Mountain
- From Red Rock Summit - class 3
- Birdland - 5.7+
- Big Horn - 5.8
- Frigid Air Buttress - III 5.9+
- La Cierta Edad - III 5.10

- Bridge Point
- Standard Route - class 3

- Mescalito
- Cat In The Hat - II 5.6+
- Dark Shadows - IV 5.8
- Black Widow Hollow - 5.9
- Y2K - 5.10a

- Rose Tower
- Olive Oil Plus - 5.7

- Juniper Peak
- Standard Hiking Route - class 3
- Geronimo - 5.6-5.7
- The Black Dagger - 5.7
- Armatron - 5.9
- Community Pillar - 5.9
- The Nightcrawler - II 5.10c

- Gunsight Notch Peak
- via Juniper Canyon - class 4

- Rainbow Wall
- via Oak Creek Canyon - class 4

- Rainbow Mountain
- via Oak Creek Canyon - class 4
- Juniper Canyon Scrambles - 5.0
- Solar Slab Gully - 5.3
- Solar Slab - 5.6 PG
- Johnny Vegas - 5.7
- Horndogger Select - 5.8
- Crimson Chrysalis - III 5.8+
- Beulah�s Book - 5.9-
- Sunflower - 5.9
- Ginger Cracks - III 5.9
- The Black Orpheus - 5.9+/5.10
- Sundog - 5.10a

- Oak Creek Peak
- East Ridge - class 4

- Cactus Flower Tower
- Oak Creek Canyon - 5.3

- Mount Wilson
- First Creek Canyon - class 3
- Oak Creek Canyon - class 4
- Cleaver Crack - class 4
- Lady Wilson's Cleavage - IV 5.9

- White Rock Pinnacle
- Standard Route - class 4

- Decision Peak
- Standard Route - class 4

- Indecision Peak
- East Face Gully - class 3
- Black Magic - II 5.8
- Lotta Balls - II 5.8 PG

- Mountain Springs Peak
- From Mountain Springs - class 1-2

- Black Velvet Peak
- Black Velvet Canyon - class 4
- Frogland - 5.8-
- Misunderstanding - 5.9
- Refried Brains - 5.9
- Epinephrine - IV-V 5.9
- Triassic Sands - III 5.10
- Gobbler - 5.10a
- Sour Mash - 5.10a
- Dream of Wild Turkeys - 5.10a
- Overhanging Hangover - 5.10a
- Wholesome Fullback - 5.10a

- Global Peak
- Mud Springs Route - class 3

- Windy Peak
- From Mountain Springs - class 2
- Windy Canyon - class 3
- Jackass Flats - 5.6
- Jubilant Song - 5.8
- Diet Delight - 5.9
- Hot Fudge Thursday - 5.9

Larry DeAngelo's Classic Trad Lines

Larry DeAngelo ("Scary Larry") - a prominent figure in Red Rocks' climbing history - had written a one-of-a-kind book on the area. The book focuses on 13 routes scattered throughout Red Rocks that are traditional in nature and with significant history behind them. These range in difficulty from 5.6 to 5.10 and grade II to IV (some of the grade IV's look like real "adventure" outings). His book is more than a guidebook (though it includes detailed beta on the 12 out 13 routes) - it also includes both a historical and personal account for each route. The writing is excellent (ranging from deeply sad to side-splitting funny) and the black and white photos are beautiful. If you have any interest in Red Rocks climbing, you will no doubt read it cover to cover in the first sitting and find yourself longing for the feel of Red Rock sandstone.

(1) Sentimental Journey IV 5.9 on Mt. Wilson.

(2) Jubilant Song III 5.8 on Windy Peak.

(3) Triassic Sands III 5.10 on Black Velvet Peak.

(4) The Snake Buttress IV 5.9 on Rainbow Mountain.

(5) The Velvet Wall IV 5.9 on Black Velvet Peak.

(6) Tunnel Vision II 5.7 on White Rock Mountain.

(7) Solar Slab III 5.6 on Rainbow Mountain.

(8) The Rainbow Buttress IV 5.8 on Rainbow Wall.

(9) Community Pillar III 5.9 on Juniper Peak.

(10) The Frigid Air Buttress III 5.9+ on Bridge Mountain.

(11) Cat In The Hat II-III 5.6 on Mescalito.

(12) Lady Wilson's Cleavage IV 5.9 on Mt. Wilson.

(13) The Black Orpheus IV 5.10 on Rainbow Mountain.

Images



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