Discussion Topic |
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Tahoe climber
climber
Texas to Tahoe
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Topic Author's Original Post - Oct 4, 2006 - 05:09pm PT
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Hi all,
I might be moving to the San Diego area soon and was wondering about the climbing in the area.
What kind of climbing available and where?
I boulder, trad and sport.
How close to Encinitas?
Best gym (I know there are at least three in the area)?
Most importantly: how long a drive to JTree!!!
TIA
Aaron
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NeverSurfaced
Trad climber
Someplace F*#ked!
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JT about 2 1/2 hours - the rest...?
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Jacob
Trad climber
yucky valley
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i bouldered at the santee boulders all the time, its a good area but alot of people play paintball and ride dirtbikes in the hills out there. but its a ways from encanetas (sp) there is a nice gym in poway but i forgot the name. im not positive on the good areas because i didnt climb much when i lived there but i know its about a 2 to 2 1/2 hour drive depending on traffic and your speed
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Tahoe climber
climber
Texas to Tahoe
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Topic Author's Reply - Oct 4, 2006 - 05:35pm PT
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Thanks, guys - keep it coming!
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reddirt
climber
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Tahquitz & Suicide!!!
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michaellane
climber
Spokane, WA
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Hi, Aaron ...
I used to live in SD and it's not a bad place to be a climber. You're two hours from Suicide/Tahquitz and three hours from Joshua Tree and five hours from Red Rocks.
Bouldering: Most popular spots are Santee Boulders, Mt. Woodson. Both are old-school bouldering areas ... mostly thin, crimpy slabs, but Woodson has some classic crack problems.
Trad/Sport: Mission Gorge is most popular ... dirty crag but has a lot of fun lines. Corte Madera is a huge chunk of stone with several multi-pitch lines ... an hour or so outside of town, if I recall correctly. There's been a bunch of new development since I left the area at El Cajon Mountain. And there are also crags outside of Poway, down in Otay near the border and a really cool plug of granite out in the desert about two hours east called Lowenbrau Pinnacle. A few other random crags are there, too. Call Adventure 16 and Nomad Ventures to get more beta ... you can find their numbers on the web.
Gyms: Vertical Hold and Solid Rock
Enjoy the sun!
--Lane
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salad
climber
San Diego
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also decent bouldering in Culp Valley (anza borego desert)
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bryan howell
Big Wall climber
truckee,ca
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Hey Aaron,
I too am moving from Tahoe to SD in 2 weeks. I grew up there and am finally going home.
Anyways, hit up Mt. Woodson. Endless problems to keep you busy for a long time. 2.5 to JTree and T&S. There is a pretty good quide book for the SD area. You can find it at REI, A16 or any of the climbing gyms.
Vertical Hold is the best
Solid Rock has two locations. One in Scripps Ranch (which will be closest to Encinitas for you), the other is just north of the Airport and downtown.
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reddirt
climber
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when I was researching beta for T&S I came across Los Alpinistas .
not sure how active they are but it's a good start?
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crotch
climber
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Encinitas isn't too far from a small sport crag above Lake Hodges. Maybe 20 mins. It's the same kind of rock as Mission Gorge.
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Mungeclimber
Trad climber
one pass away from the big ditch
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so cal is crap.
don't do it mang.
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brat
climber
Fish Camp, CA
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Unless you're friendly with the folks who developed the crag at Lake Hodges, you'll get your car vandalized if you climb there. It happened a few times when I was living in SD.
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Slakkey
Trad climber
From a Quiet Place by the Lake
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Brat writes, " Unless you are friendly with the folks who developed the crag at Lake Hodges, You will get your car Vandalized if you climb there". Funny I live right on the shores of Lake Hodges and to my knowledge this has not been the case. More than likely it was from some outsiders.
Also there is a Solid Rock Gym in San Marcos. Funny with the exception of Salad the rest who responded to this thread do not live in SD. The others are right though in that J - Tree, Suicide etc. are not far away and it only takes 6 hours to get to the Promised Land Yosemite.
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mdavid
Big Wall climber
CA, CO, TX
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I was climbing those boulders behind lake hodges in 87 and never saw anyone around; it was a nice break from the socializing on woodson over weekends.
If you're stuck in SD instead of norcal I'd go close to woodson, cheaper than other areas and the climbing is very cool.
I found some old pictures and now the office printer is also a scanner.
Next time I'm in town I'm going to go see if this place still exists....
Hodges boulders
Woodson is sometimes crowded (even in 87-89) and people always have ropes on Robbins crack
climbing made high school much better for me.....hitch hiking the grade before I got my liscense proved intersting.
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Slakkey
Trad climber
From a Quiet Place by the Lake
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Living on the shores of Lake Hodges I have the best of many worlds. I can Kayak in the morning before the sun even rises on Wed, Sat, and Sun. I can then go bouldering etc. not far from the house Mid morning and then finish off the afternoon with a windsurfing session on the lake. Not a bad place to live I think.
P.S. Mountain Biking too.
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Mungeclimber
Trad climber
one pass away from the big ditch
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Dear Slakkey,
We hate you.
Sincerely,
Nor Cal
;)
ps- jam up the I-15 to Big Bear areas and you can Night Ski in the Winter too. It ain't Tahoe, that's fer sure.
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Slakkey
Trad climber
From a Quiet Place by the Lake
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Mungie,
Its all good. I have often thought of giving it all up here in SD and moving to Nor Cal. The traffic continues to get worse, More and More people continue to move down here but I do live in what is a pretty unique area of San Diego County and so for as long as it stays this way its all good.
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Slakkey
Trad climber
From a Quiet Place by the Lake
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P.S. The Hodges Boulders still exist even with the waterfall in the springtime.
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kk
climber
overrun with traffic and people land
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DON'T DO IT!!!!!!!!!
i live in SD and visit Tahoe often, your going to seriously trade DOWN!!!
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salad
climber
San Diego
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slakkey,
lets hook up, im in Dido.
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Hootervillian
climber
the Hooterville World-Guardian
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Slakkey,
ever check out those guns up above ya on Israel?
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Watusi
Social climber
Joshua Tree, CA
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SD Rocks!! I grew up there, and I lived in Hodges for 8 years. Cool place!! I've been up to the old battleship guns atop Mt. Isreal. They were going to use the turret for a rotating platform to build this eccentrics home on!! I also put up the sport route "The Hodgeness Monster" just above the spillway of the dam.
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Mungeclimber
Trad climber
one pass away from the big ditch
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aye, many a classic at Rubidoux that I miss.
oddly enough I miss all the concrete overpasses with glued on holds. many a high school afternoon was blown doing traverses on concrete.
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Hootervillian
climber
the Hooterville World-Guardian
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"The Hodgeness Monster" classic. we could ride horses to the Rancho Santa Fe quarry, RIP, the back way too.
if'n anybody gets back up to the guns, there is a 'film canister' eh, uuummm, in the barrel of one. leave it!
hey Watusi, you musta been around for the 'three falls' hayday?
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Standing Strong
Mountain climber
1st star to the right & straight on 'til morning
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hey tahoe climber, you're moving? ok well, good luck in so-cal! go to the beach! and mexico's right there too! have fun.
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nutjob
Trad climber
San Jose, CA
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I went to school at UCSD (La Jolla) a while back. Went to J-tree a lot for camping, rock scrambling, and later roped climbing. Consistent 4 hour drive from La Jolla (same for Encinitas, Del Mar, etc.).
I did my first lead climbs on 5.9 cracks at Mission Gorge using hexentrics. Really fun place (a little dirty though), though I had nothing to compare it to at the time. It's a pretty little sanctuary from the surrounding urbanity. Don't get locked inside the gate after dark! They are strict!
My personal favorite for day-to-day was People's Wall in La Jolla (a 2 minute walk from where I lived one summer). Nice 5.9 traverse great for endurance training... do it in climbing shoes or regular shoes to increase difficulty. About 100 yards wide, 3-4 feet tall on ends and 20 feet tall in mid-section. Lots of possibilites... do laps finding easiest way, or seek on tougher problems, etc. All in the most beautiful setting right on the beach with the sound of breaking waves behind you. There is a sandstone cliff near a point that I never had the balls to top out on, but it was a great overhanging series of shelves with positive grips. Probably a V1 or V2 highball boulder problem over tidepool rocks & a little water at high tide. An old SoCal guidebook shoes this cool roof that collapsed some time before early/mid-90s. I spent a lot of time walking back and forth looking for it not knowing it was gone.
Somewhere out on Highway 8 or 10... forget which one... if you keep going east past the A16 shop and San Diego State and then about an hour east, you'll find it... a place called Valley of the Moon. 12 years ago there was no sign of climbers out there, no bolts, all granite nubby balls on the face that peeled off when you wiped your hand across it... this place has amazing potential. Cool formations, etc... I think I remember hearing it's actually developed as a regular climbing place now. Definitely worth checking out.
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ikellen
Trad climber
Mammoth Lakes, CA
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San Diego is a good place if you lots of various interests. If climbing is all you do, either hope you develop a new hobby, or think about somewhere else. In terms of climbing in San Diego proper, here are some notes from back when I was living there:
Mission Gorge
Somewhat dirty rock, but some decent routes. Most routes are short (less than 80ft.), but offer good options right in the middle of the city. Moderate routes are VERY crowded on weekends. Expect to take a number when trying to get on routes like "The Ramp", "Suzie's Wild Ride", and "Skyline Arete". However, most people climb at the Main wall, and Middle Earth offers some decent 5.10 sport climbing.
Santee Boulders
Thin, thin, thin slabs with a few vertical to overhanging problems. Intermixed in all this are a few akward yet fun problems like "Jumpstart" and stuff around the "Masochist Crack". The testpieces include a few stiff problems on the Amphitheatre boulder, and "Suzie's Discharge", a consensus V6/V7, with a v10 sds. Good afterwork spot, but traffic on the 52 getting there can be a pain.
El Cajon Mtn.
A true gem, and well deserving of the Rock and Ice cover it got. Great multi-pitch sport climbing, with some good trad lines mixed in. Classics from 5.9 to 5.11, and a few 5.12 testpieces. 45min to 1hr Approach, and deathly hot in summer, but it is prime in winter. Unfortunately, a certain individual has taken to chopping routes there, acting as though he owns the crag. Rumors have even said he stole thousands of dollars in bolting gear. Most of the routes are still there though, and it doesn't get much better in San Diego.
Pump Wall
My workout spot of choice. Vertical cracks and rails on a textured erosion prevention wall. Cool location, and a good spot for C1 aid practice.
Valley of the Moon
Long Drive, and winter only season, but great J-tree esque rock with lots of patina and knobs. Highly reccomended.
It's a great city, nice people, and plenty to do. Surfing is great, but most popular breaks are crowded. Close to Mexico (good surfing, Canon Tajo, El Trono Blanco), and excellent hiking and mountain biking fall through spring. Once late spring hits, everything inland reaches 100+ F, and is no fun. However, Fall, Winter and Spring are all great times for getting out in the bush.
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Slakkey
Trad climber
From a Quiet Place by the Lake
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Salad, Will send you an e - mail
Hootervillan, I have been up on Mt. Isreal a number times as it is a good hike and recently is part of my re hab program for my shoulder.
The Hodgeiness Monster myth still exists as well Hodgie for short.
I agree that the transition from Tahoe to SD would be more or less of a shock. But as far as So - Cal goes it is not a bad place to live. There is a lot to do year round.
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mooch
Big Wall climber
The Immaculate Conception
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Check out Big Bear climbing (ie Holcomb Valley Pinnacles).
And, yes, munge....I hate it down here too!
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mooch
Big Wall climber
The Immaculate Conception
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Valley Of The Moon?
Watch out for La Migra! Bad place for a nice new car!!!!!
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kk
climber
overrun with traffic and people land
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i killed a 2x4 toyota at valley of the goon!! battery bounced and the sh!t burned up!
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bvb
Social climber
flagstaff arizona
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i know why lots of people dis san diego climbing. it's 'cause they got their fukking asses kicked on the 5.11's, then they run home to momma where they can circuit V6's at the happies.
there is a reason san diego spun off some of the better california climbers of the 70's and 80's (mike paul, rick piggot, greg cameron, greg epperson, randy leavitt, tom lindner, chris lindner, etc.)....the climbing there is fuking HARD. spend your days at woodson and when you go to the valley sh#t like dog's roof will feel like a f*#kking warm-up.
any a you sukkers dissing san diego care to post your tick list? i'm guessing you guys got shut down on lie detector, hear my train, mission impossible, all those "oldskool" routes that the hardcore were running laps on 25 years ago.
you wanna get swoule and crush every area you travel to? train in san diego. oh, you fukking bisshes don't even know.
sandiegocragging4lyfe, bisshes.
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Slakkey
Trad climber
From a Quiet Place by the Lake
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Bvb. You rock, S.D has some killer climbs. There are a lot of great places to go and the climbing is first class.
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salad
climber
San Diego
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bvb represents. love how you make it look like im sending.
next time you come out, IF YOU F*#KING CALL ME, ill buy the Macallan 18.
f*#ker.
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salad
climber
San Diego
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more tv screen
munge crushin lemon
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mooser
Trad climber
seattle
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I was recently down at the Happys, and ran into a little squad of posers who'd been down to So Cal. I asked them all friendly-like if they'd been able to tour Woodson. In typical poser style, they started in on what a crappy place it was...blah, blah, blah. My first thought was: "How could someone have such antipathy for relatively small, inanimate, free-standing hunks of granite??" My second thought was: "You got shut down, didn't ya??!!"
Having lived only about 10 minutes away from Woodson for many years, and having cut my teeth (and fingers) on Woodson granite--I got a whole lotta love for the place. BVB is absolutely right about the place. It's old-school hard, but classic as it gets. Woodson is fantastic, and will keep you busy for years!
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bvb
Social climber
flagstaff arizona
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hey mooser, is that you and debbie spotting piggot in the photo of "nightmare on elm street" upthread?
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mooser
Trad climber
seattle
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Hey bvb...no, that's not me. There are a couple of black and white shots of me at JT in the "Adventures with Swamis" thread...
Not quite sure, but it looks a lot like Dave Hersey. Did you know him? I used to climb with him a lot back then. He's in the Boulder area, these days.
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Tahoe climber
climber
Texas to Tahoe
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Topic Author's Reply - Oct 15, 2006 - 08:31pm PT
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Thanks for all the beta, guys!
Decision is still not *quite* made as to Tahoe or SD, but now I'm armed with some more info, for sure, so thanks!
And BVB - that was one of the coolest, most inspirational posts I've seen on the taco yet! Double-thanks!
-Aaron
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Mr_T
Trad climber
Somewhere, CA
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Oct 16, 2006 - 10:00pm PT
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How long are the sport routes at Lake Hodges?
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bvb
Social climber
flagstaff arizona
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Oct 16, 2006 - 10:30pm PT
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about 35 feet. boulder problems these days.
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hossjulia
Trad climber
Eastside
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Oct 16, 2006 - 10:35pm PT
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I spent a chunk of my childhood living on Rumson drive in Santee. Used to play around on some of those boulders as a kid. Went back after I had done some roped climbing in Colorado, and realized I was bouldering 5.10 as a 12 year old, and didn't even know it!
Also got stranded on top of something there and "rescued" by some *real* climbers. (cir: 1972-4)
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Trashman
Trad climber
SLC
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ok, got a question for any present or past locals of the area. i'm flying out to the area for a wedding this weekend, and i've managed to secure most of a day to go explore woodson.
i'm wondering what type of gear i should bring. if possible i'd like to get by w/ shoes and a mini pad. i'd prefer to skip the rope, harness', gear, etc.
i'm specifically wondering how hard it is to get down from robbins, jaws, and crucible w/ out a rope.
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mooser
Trad climber
seattle
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Hey Trashman,
You can pretty much walk down the east side of the boulder Jaws is on, but the easiest way off of Robbins is downclimbing the same way. Really depends on your ability as to whether or not you should do it. Can't remember how to get off of Crucible. I think it's a walk off on the back side. Anyone? Anyone? Buehler?
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eeyonkee
Trad climber
Golden, CO
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You'd have to downclimb Robbins. You can jump off of Jaws to the adjoining rock that's to your back, but it's kind of scary. The top of Test Tube and Crucible can be easily walked off. You can walk off Longs Cracks, the Bat Flake, and most of the other classics. I climbed there for years with just shoes and chalkbag.
-edit. Mooser's right about Jaws...I remember doing that jump for some cheap thrills.
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Josh Higgins
Trad climber
San Diego
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I recommend a rope for Woodson. Of course, I'm a new-age gym bred wanker who's not nearly as hard as the old-school crowd. That said, I'm under the impression that a lot of people boulder stuff out there AFTER they have it wired. A lot of the best problems out there are over 20' tall, and they don't necessarily get easier as you go up. If you can, bring a half rope, a set of nuts, one set of cams to 3" and some stuff for extension for anchors and you can TR almost anything out there. One climb you just shouldn't pass up that is really a pure solo is Big Grunt. It's a 10- sqeeze. If you can get in, you've sent the problem. Check out the downclimb on the other side before going up it though. You have to down-mantle onto a stack of rocks. Pretty unique experience all in all.
Josh
Edit: Just scrolled up to BVB's post on Woodson. It's classic, and so true. I saw a thread once that had pretty good agreement Woodson had some of the hardest grades in the nation. I train there and do crush other areas, like BVB said. Woodson rules!
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Trashman
Trad climber
SLC
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thanks for all the info, one last problem i forgot on the initial list is "hear my train" any good walk off there?
i assume it will be obvious if i find these problems, but want to know if i should be climbing w/ a "just get to the top" mindset, of more of a "make sure you can reverse this" one.
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mooser
Trad climber
seattle
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My recollection is that "Hear My Train a-Comin'" has a walk-off on the back (south) side. Josh is right, though: make sure you check out the way off before committing to some of these bad boys. Have fun! Living in Seattle, I'm missing Woodson big time this winter!
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salad
climber
San Diego
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trash, just sent you an email.. you are welcome to use my ropes/pads/guide book etc if you want to swing by my house in escondido.
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eeyonkee
Trad climber
Golden, CO
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After reading the more recent posts, I'd have to admit that I was not really thinking. Most of the classics that you are asking about really are high enough that you would most certainly want a rope (before you have them wired, which of course, you don't).
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mooser
Trad climber
seattle
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Yeah, I'm with eeyonkee. Some of the really classic "must-do" problems get harder the higher you get. Even if the walk-off is cake, falling from the high point can be a real ankle-breaker on many of the great ones. I also think Josh's gear and rope recommendations make sense at Woodson.
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crotch
climber
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Train = walkoff
Robbins = downclimb
Jaws = walkoff to the right of Baby Robbins
Big Grunt = can down climb and then chimney sideways out the back side if you don't like the crazy downclimb onto the stacked rocks
Crucible = high crux, walkoff
If you bring a short rope, a few slings, 0.5 - #3 camalot, and a mini-traxion, you'd be set on most of the stuff. I've got an 80' rope you're welcome to borrow, though I'm probably heading out of town Friday eve or Sat. morn.
You might be able to scare up a partner over on http://www.climbsd.com and then you could leave the gear at home and just bring a harness.
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eeyonkee
Trad climber
Golden, CO
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I'm going down to Poway for XMas this year and will get out to Woodson at least once (first time in several years). If anyone (old pals or otherwise) is interested in getting together, I would love to hear from you.
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mooser
Trad climber
seattle
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Have fun, Greg.
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Mungeclimber
Trad climber
one pass away from the big ditch
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Which is crucible again?
Also, anyone have a pick of Lizard King out at Menifee area?
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eeyonkee
Trad climber
Golden, CO
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The crucible is on a high boulder at the top of the mountain - down just a bit from the big telecomm dishes. It's on the same boulder at Test Tube. Do a search for it in MountainProject.com.
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eeyonkee
Trad climber
Golden, CO
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Wow, great picture. Don't believe the bit about Test Tube being unpleasant...it's a fun, interesting problem.
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Tahoe climber
climber
Texas to Tahoe
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Topic Author's Reply - Dec 7, 2006 - 07:34pm PT
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Definitely moving to SD at the end of the month.
Can't wait!
Climbing at Vertical hold for after work/dark sessions.
I think Tahoe rock is better, but the season is so f#cking short! I need more year-round action.
Oh well. Maybe I can try and get strong in SD.
-Aaron
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bvb
Social climber
flagstaff arizona
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hey munge -- are you talking about lizard king over by hemet, just west of town, hemet, right next to the lizard king dihedral? old kerwin klein routes? if so, yeah, i got pics of those highballs.
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Trashman
Trad climber
SLC
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Dec 11, 2006 - 11:12am PT
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back at the desk now, unfortunately i spaced the camera, so no photo evidence.
had a great trip, found 3 out of four and actually climbed 2 of them. robbins was as picture perfect as i had hoped, while lie detector handled me pretty well(didn't even get to the lock above the offset). baby and jaws were jaw dropping. due to limited time, i never went to the top of the hill to find the cruicible, and i didn't find train until the way out, so i didn't even shoe up to try it.
over all i was blown away by the quality of the stone there, and started planning a return trip before i even got my shoes on. super friendly locals too, helped me find everything i was looking for, even if i couldn't climb it.
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mooser
Trad climber
seattle
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Feb 28, 2007 - 01:50pm PT
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Bump.
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| Messages 1 - 65 of total 65 in this topic |
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