Spokane Climbing

[NewToWA]

I just moved up here from Texas and I had promised that I would take my cousins climbing. I was wondering what people thought of the climbing around Spokane or if there was somewhere else where I could easily set up a top rope. And also I heard that the Top rope near Spokane needed tons of webbing - does anyone have info on how long the webbing needs to be.

 

Thanks

[AlpineK]

I used to climb at Minihaha in the 80's. It's close to town. The place used to be a shithole, but I hear it's been cleaned up.

 

I remember setting up topropes, but I have no idea how much webbing we used.

[catbirdseat]

Retired climbing ropes are great for setting up top rope anchors when there are trees and boulders set well back from the lip. There was a recent post about Spokane area climbing. I'll see if I can find it.

 

By the way, it isn't necessary to post in two different forums. You'll get plenty of responses.

Edited June 23, 2003 by catbirdseat

[NYC007]

Go down to Mountain Goat outfitters and they have a guide for all the local spots, there are alot in and around spokane, I just moved here recently to and have been happy with the close climbing areas

[catbirdseat]

I've got a job opportunity in Spokane. I'm wondering if a four hour drive to climb would make a big difference compared to a two hour drive. Certainly the drive to ice climbing spots would be less, so that would be a plus.

[Paul_K]

catbirdseat said:

I've got a job opportunity in Spokane. I'm wondering if a four hour drive to climb would make a big difference compared to a two hour drive. Certainly the drive to ice climbing spots would be less, so that would be a plus.

 

No, don't do it. I was born and raised in Spokane - refuse to be seduced by eastside!

 

Besides, who will rope gun for me at Exit 38?

[gapertimmy]

spokane is

[AlpineK]

Ya know, when I was going to school in Moscow ID we used to get the Spokesman Review. At least once a month they would have some crap on the main page talking about how Spokane was so much superior to Seattle.

 

Napoleon complex.

[gapertimmy]

[troll]

my dad grew up in spovegas, fist graduating class from Shadle Park HS

 

Spokenites are constantly bringing up stupid shit like Ryne Sandberg and John STockton to prove that pit is capable of producing good.

 

Perhaps I was jaded early on in my life by having to visit Spokane at least once a year, but it is a scary place.

 

Take yer bloomsday and shove it up yer

 

only worse is the spokane native that goes to wazzu, talk about some serious issues, sorry dad

 

[/troll]

[Szyjakowski]

gapertimmy said:

spokane is

[kurthicks]

1 word -- Spokompton!

[Megawanker]

There are tons of good places to set a TR. Minehaha, Post Falls, Rocks of Sharon, and Dishman are all in town and have a good variety of routes. They will all be less crowded than anything on the west end of the state. Have fun.

[cluck]

There's good top-roping and sport leads at Post Falls (forget the name of the park, but it's right by the dam/reservoir). Not too far from Spo-Compton. The book Inland Northwest Rockclimbs has good route beta.

[Megawanker]

The Post Falls crag is in Quemlin Park, which is just off Spokane Street. Turn right into the park, just after the viaduct.

[pindude]

Ha! Fun read. I like the trolls. Timmy, you sure do have some serious issues from your childhood you need to deal with! Thanks for mentioning Spokaloo being a scary place, because we sure don't want any more whacked-out west-siders moving over here, let alone climbing.

 

Seriously, in years past I think some Spokanites have had an inferiority complex when comparing our town to Seattle, but thankfully that's changed for the few I knew it was an issue for, including maybe someone with the Spokesman-Review (superiority shown 1x/mo?, hmm). While lot of us don’t mind visiting the west side too often, most of us are glad to be on the dry side. Whatever, you can make the most of where you live, and I realized upon moving to Spokane from Seattle that this town has at least as much to offer as Seattle albeit in different ways, especially for a climber or anyone who likes the outdoors. Hey west-siders, you‘re welcome to climb here whenever you want—I and others are glad to show you around, hang from some problems, and bend elbows over beers.

 

Bottom line, NewToWA, your best bet for TR’ing beginners (which I assume your cousins are) is first Minnehaha Rocks (10’ from downtown Spokane), and second Post Falls/Q'emlin Park (30’ away). Most climbs don’t need long webbing, but bring a couple 25-footers for those non-90-degree, stepped edges that exist at many crags and for some routes at Minne, like Main Crack or Diagonal.

 

To give the climbing scoop on Spokane:

 

While the great Cascades may be in the Sound's backyard, Spokane has that range to choose from and much more. Yeah, we do have to drive a little farther for weekend alpine trips including to the Cascades, but it's all worth it: we’re closer to ice in SE BC and Banff/Jasper/Yoho, north Idaho, West Montana and Hyalite-Bozeman; alpine climbs throughout the Canadian Rockies from the Icefields Parkway to the Bugs and interior ranges of BC, further south from the North Idaho Selkirks (stellar granite on 3-pitch Chimney Rock 4 hours away, plus a few FAs waiting to be done) to big peaks throughout Idaho and Western Montana on down to Wyoming and the Tetons; cragging trips to Banks Lk (1.5 hrs), Skaha, Vantage, Koocanusa, Blodgett Canyon, much more that is not in guidebooks, from granite to basalt to limestone. Smith is about 7 hrs away normally, and I've done the Valley in 13. In winter, skiing's world-class if you know where to go (especially in the backcountry), and the snow's lighter than in the Cascades. I only got out about 20x this past year, but at least 12 of those days were good powder days, with some at least 2-feet deep.

 

Oh yeah, the original question was about local cragging. Sure glad we have more than an artificial rock at one of the local universities and an exit or two off the freeway...

 

Minnehaha Rocks (10' from downtown) is very much the urban crag, and it does have its city-oriented problems, but is the place if you're in town and you're looking to set up some TR-climbs or want to get some good bouldering in. Problems: Loud (right across Spokane River from Felts Airfield and the local police shooting range), sometimes stinky (rendering plant, which is slated to eventually go away), broken glass which still shows up (use a rope tarp and don't go barefoot, but glass is continually being cleaned up). Positives: We did massive cleanup there over the past 2 summer seasons, picking up garbage and blasting off all the graffiti. Minne has more than 250 routes from boulders to 80' climbs, from 5.0 to 5.13 on sound, tip-friendly granite. The Verm calls the bouldering the best in the state. This little crag is exactly what the Seattle area is missing. And if you like to mountain bike, Beacon Hill, just above the rocks of Minne, has lots of great riding from fairly easy to hard-core technical with steep drops (lots of awesome mtn biking around Spokane, as I know there is around the Sound).

 

Other noteworthy crags are Dishman Rocks (15' from downtown) which has good granite south on the other side of the river from Minne, and is for intermediate-to-advanced climbers as almost all routes are in the 5.10 to 5.13 range. Some dirtier granite but in more of an alpine setting are the Rocks of Sharon behind Krell Hill (aka Tower Mountain, 30' drive + a 15’ hike). Other cragging is on Deep Creek's basalt (20'), Post Falls, Idaho granite (30' from Spokane), Tum Tum's granite (30'), Metaline Falls’ (90') and Marcus’ and China Bend’s (2 hrs) limestone, Banks Lake’s chossy granite (90+ '), and LaClede, Idaho’s granite, (90'). A few others, too, which are either just being developed or are too small to mention, including several in town.

 

Best overall guide for the area is Bland's [/i] INW Rockclimbs[/i], but if you're going to climb at Minne buy for $3 the old Loomis guide—[/i]Guide to Rockclimbing in the Spokane area[/i]—at Mountain Gear for ease of finding routes and to know the history. Best shops are Mountain Gear (the big locally-owned shop)and Mountain Goat Outfitters (the little locally-owned shop), and there's a good REI. The local gym is excellent: Wild Walls located downtown. Bottom line, if you’re a climber, Spokane

 

--Steve Reynolds

 

[pindude]

Just found the same question posted in the Newbies forum. Dane, who knows Minne and Spokane climbing at least as well as I (Dane, ya gotta see Minne now without all the paint! ) answered it more succinctly than I:

 

"Dishman Rocks, Cliffs of Sharron, LaClede near Sandpoint, ID, and Chimney Rock and the Selkirks out of Sandpoint can give you some of the best short crag climbing in WA State.

 

"Vantage has some decent climbing but nothing in comparison to the variety of what is closer to Spokane.

 

"While Chimney Rock is a decent walk and a fair drive, with no top ropes, you would be hard pressed to find better alpine granite.

 

"Takes very little to hang a top rope @ Dishman or Minni. A few dbl size slings will easy do it. Most have multiple bolt anchors on the top which you and your dog can easy walk to at either area. Both areas are more than worth the effort. Try Minni first as the routes are generally easier and more varied. Good stuff for beginners can easily be set up. If that gets boring drive 15 minutes across the valley and try Dishman. "