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madam
Jul 1, 2014, 8:08 AM
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Hello ladies and gentlemen,
...the time has come. Me and my friend(s?) are going to US for a month of sport-climbing. There has been plenty said on the best sport climbing crags in US, so we have a rough idea. "The problem" is we don't want to rent a car. Flying from Europe.
Where: Smith Rocks, Red Rock(s), New River Gorge, Ten Sleep Canyon, Red River Gorge (is it mostly overhaning? We would like to have some variety, because I am weak - slabs/vertical/overhang)
When: October/November
Grades: 5.10 - 5.12
Which one might be the best without a car? Any other places come to your mind? Do you need some more information from me?
Your answers are much appreciated. Thank you very much and see you there:)
Adam
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kennoyce
Jul 1, 2014, 3:40 PM
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madam wrote: Hello ladies and gentlemen, ...the time has come. Me and my friend(s?) are going to US for a month of sport-climbing. There has been plenty said on the best sport climbing crags in US, so we have a rough idea. "The problem" is we don't want to rent a car. Flying from Europe. Where: Smith Rocks, Red Rock(s), New River Gorge, Ten Sleep Canyon, Red River Gorge (is it mostly overhaning? We would like to have some variety, because I am weak - slabs/vertical/overhang) When: October/November Grades: 5.10 - 5.12 Which one might be the best without a car? Any other places come to your mind? Do you need some more information from me? Your answers are much appreciated. Thank you very much and see you there:) Adam
I may be wrong as I haven't been to all of the locations on your list, but I think the only one that could possibly work without a car would be Red Rock. The reason I say this is that it is the only location on your list near a major airport. Any of the other areas are going to require a minimum of a couple hours of driving to get to from an international airport. That being said, even Red Rock would be much easier with a car since it's a couple of miles from the camping to the nearest climbing, though you could probably bum rides off of other climbers. Good luck and have fun!
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madam
Jul 1, 2014, 3:57 PM
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Hi kennoyce,
thanks for your opinion. Well, after some more internet-digging I have found out that New Rover Gorge is close to Charleston which has airport (btw:return ticket from Prague-Charleston is apprx. 800$ which is not that bad) and I have found some train/bus which should take us to NRG. Then we would probably camp on the free camping near "some" dam. If anyone can "approve" this idea, it would be helpful. We are not decided yet, this is just one possibility.
Thanks anyway for the Red Rocks elaboration:)
adam
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madam
Jul 1, 2014, 3:58 PM
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Hi nrockclimber.
thanks for the idea. I was already thinking to post it there but I give it a go at first here:)
adam
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sungam
Jul 1, 2014, 4:18 PM
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kennoyce wrote: I may be wrong as I haven't been to all of the locations on your list, but I think the only one that could possibly work without a car would be Red Rock.
The majority of the crags at the Red are steep but there are a few 5 star crags that aren't, as well.
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granite_grrl
Jul 1, 2014, 5:08 PM
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sungam wrote: kennoyce wrote: I may be wrong as I haven't been to all of the locations on your list, but I think the only one that could possibly work without a car would be Red Rock. Hey Ken! I knw that the red river gorge would work perfectly as well (having done it). Just make some friends at Miquel's and hitch rides to the crags with them! The majority of the crags at the Red are steep but there are a few 5 star crags that aren't, as well.
I think the number of people in the group will make a difference too. One is easy to cram into a car, two extra is usually doable, three extra people with their gear will be much harder to catch a ride anywhere.
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marc801
Jul 1, 2014, 5:21 PM
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You'll also need to consider how far you may need to travel to replenish food/beer/etc. and what you might want to do on rest days. For some of the areas you've listed there's also the possibility of extended bad weather - eg: I've spent a week of constant rain at the New.
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sungam
Jul 1, 2014, 5:22 PM
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Good point, though they could always split up 
Hopefully they don't run into any wild HB-stealing, face-shooting Canadians whilst they are there, though.
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madam
Jul 1, 2014, 5:42 PM
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ok, guys, we will stay far from any Canadian faces then:)) Canada is on the list next year anyway...
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madam
Jul 1, 2014, 5:43 PM
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...good point...there will be probably two of us...
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madam
Jul 1, 2014, 5:52 PM
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Yep, the beer supply is taken into account, we will have some extra bag for that:)
I see what you mean with weather and rest days. On the other hand to rent a car for a month for two people would add I guess roughly 1200$ which is really significant amount of money...
adam
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kennoyce
Jul 1, 2014, 6:58 PM
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sungam wrote: kennoyce wrote: I may be wrong as I haven't been to all of the locations on your list, but I think the only one that could possibly work without a car would be Red Rock. Hey Ken! I knw that the red river gorge would work perfectly as well (having done it). Just make some friends at Miquel's and hitch rides to the crags with them! The majority of the crags at the Red are steep but there are a few 5 star crags that aren't, as well.
Very nice Magnus! Just out of curiosity since I haven't been there yet, how did you get to miguels? From what I've heard it's a good ways away from anything. Did you hitch a ride with other climbers?
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sungam
Jul 1, 2014, 7:13 PM
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kennoyce wrote: sungam wrote: kennoyce wrote: I may be wrong as I haven't been to all of the locations on your list, but I think the only one that could possibly work without a car would be Red Rock. Hey Ken! I knw that the red river gorge would work perfectly as well (having done it). Just make some friends at Miquel's and hitch rides to the crags with them! The majority of the crags at the Red are steep but there are a few 5 star crags that aren't, as well. Very nice Magnus! Just out of curiosity since I haven't been there yet, how did you get to miguels? From what I've heard it's a good ways away from anything. Did you hitch a ride with other climbers?
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marc801
Jul 1, 2014, 7:36 PM
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madam wrote: On the other hand to rent a car for a month for two people would add I guess roughly 1200$ which is really significant amount of money...
Toyota Corolla or similar (considered mid-size) is just under $900 for the month of October. You could save further by:
* choosing a compact instead of mid-size
* renting off-airport - the concession fees and airport taxes can easily add 25% to the cost.
For example, the Toyota I quoted above is actually $635.84/Month, but the added fees are:
Airport Transport Fee: 45.00
Vehicle License Fee: 30.30
NV Clark Cnty Tax 2% 13.62
NV Gov Svc 10%: 68.08
LAS Concession 8% 50.87
NV Tax LAS 8.1% 55.15
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marc801
Jul 1, 2014, 7:39 PM
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sungam wrote: ...because there were lots of college kids there it would mean there was public transport, forgetting that freakin' everyone has a car in the USA.
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madam
Jul 1, 2014, 7:47 PM
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thanks for that Marc...
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satch
Jul 2, 2014, 2:39 AM
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You might consider the New River Gorge. Fayetteville, WV is a cool little town and you can walk or bike to most of the climbing in the Gorge. You would fly into Charlestown, WV, then take a bus, I suppose, to Fayetteville. Or for the Euro experience, you could take the Amtrack train from Charleston to Thurmond, WV, then a taxi to Fayetteville. The American Alpine Club campground is a few minutes walk from three of the climbing areas (Bridge, Junkyard and Bubba City), or you could rent a place in town.
In total there are close to 3000 routes now if you include the New, Meadow and Gauley rivers.
There is a climbing shop and several good places to eat, including a Thai restaurant near the campground. And there's a brewery (OK it's not Czech beer). You can even walk to the theater in Fayetteville. Kind of like a redneck version of Europe.
It can rain, but October is one of the driest months. There are some rainy day routes, but not nearly as many as at the Red. How about October at the New and November at the Red?
(This post was edited by satch on Jul 2, 2014, 2:58 AM)
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satch
Jul 2, 2014, 2:44 AM
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madam wrote: Hi kennoyce, thanks for your opinion. Well, after some more internet-digging I have found out that New Rover Gorge is close to Charleston which has airport (btw:return ticket from Prague-Charleston is apprx. 800$ which is not that bad) and I have found some train/bus which should take us to NRG. Then we would probably camp on the free camping near "some" dam. If anyone can "approve" this idea, it would be helpful. We are not decided yet, this is just one possibility. Thanks anyway for the Red Rocks elaboration:) adam
A couple of Czech climbers stayed there two years ago, but they had access to a car. There is only one crag near that campgound (below the Summersville lake dam on the Gauley river). The Gauley crag - 22 routes.
Better to stay at the AAC campground - it's centrally located on the New River.
(This post was edited by satch on Jul 2, 2014, 2:54 AM)
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madam
Jul 2, 2014, 6:52 AM
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Hey Satch,
thanks a lot for all your information (in both your posts).
adam
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sungam
Jul 2, 2014, 10:04 AM
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What's going on with the NRG closures, by the way? I saw some stuff about a big fire, were any of the routes damaged or is it all pretty much good to go?
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satch
Jul 2, 2014, 12:59 PM
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Its good to go.
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marc801
Jul 2, 2014, 5:50 PM
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satch wrote: Or for the Euro experience, you could take the Amtrack train from Charleston to Thurmond, WV, then a taxi to Fayetteville.
Amtrack wrote: No Checked Baggage Service Checked baggage service is not offered on this train. Make sure to read the guidelines for carry-on baggage when making travel plans. Due to limited space onboard trains we ask that passengers follow the Amtrak Carry-On Baggage policy listed below. Baggage that goes over the restrictions may not be accepted onboard. carry-on baggage 2 Bags — 50 lbs. — 28" x 22" x 14" Each Pacific Surfliner — 28" x 22" x 11" |
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rsmillbern
Jul 3, 2014, 11:29 AM
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sungam wrote: kennoyce wrote: sungam wrote: kennoyce wrote: I may be wrong as I haven't been to all of the locations on your list, but I think the only one that could possibly work without a car would be Red Rock. Hey Ken! I knw that the red river gorge would work perfectly as well (having done it). Just make some friends at Miquel's and hitch rides to the crags with them! The majority of the crags at the Red are steep but there are a few 5 star crags that aren't, as well. Very nice Magnus! Just out of curiosity since I haven't been there yet, how did you get to miguels? From what I've heard it's a good ways away from anything. Did you hitch a ride with other climbers? I hitch hiked with a climber I met at Pilot Mountain in NC. "getting there" could actually be a bit difficult, though I haven't looked into the public transport there. I had kinda assumed in my memory that because there were lots of college kids there it would mean there was public transport, forgetting that freakin' everyone has a car in the USA.
Hitched a ride from Raleigh to Pilot to the Red to... ;-)
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rsmillbern
Jul 3, 2014, 11:35 AM
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Looks like you have some interest in the Red or the New.
I would second the idea of rethinking the car. Getting about in the US is a lot more difficult than in Europe. Catching rides with others is OK, but always hit and miss. A month can go quick.
The New and the Red are close enough that you could hit both in a month, with a car and very basic camping gear (assuming you don't need a hotel all of the time)
Sorry if I missed it, but what time frame are you looking at. August can be a bit on the warm side...
If not for the sport climbing specification I'd recommend NC... )
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