miker Posted March 15, 2002 Share Posted March 15, 2002 OK, I wanted to ask this under a new post as the other one is getting a wee bit long. So I am leaving tonight and will be at JTree Saturday thru Tuesday, but it is gonna be chilly and maybe even a little wet . Any suggestions as to what to climb in the cold? I know Indian Cove and the lower entrance are at lower altitudes and are a little warmer, but anything specific which will get the morning sun so I don't freeze off me fingers? I'll let everyone know how the trip went next week. Climb on. miker Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dru Posted March 15, 2002 Share Posted March 15, 2002 quote: Originally posted by miker: OK, I wanted to ask this under a new post as the other one is getting a wee bit long.So I am leaving tonight and will be at JTree Saturday thru Tuesday, but it is gonna be chilly and maybe even a little wet . Any suggestions as to what to climb in the cold? I know Indian Cove and the lower entrance are at lower altitudes and are a little warmer, but anything specific which will get the morning sun so I don't freeze off me fingers? I'll let everyone know how the trip went next week. Climb on. miker Indian Cove- Pixie Stick/Silent Scream area gets morning sun. OK Corral, Feudal wall etc get sun most of the day. Other stuff - basically anything SE facing. echo cove (stick to what, popes crack etc) is sheltered and sunny, as i recall. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
al Posted March 15, 2002 Share Posted March 15, 2002 Coming in from the town of Joshua Tree the first major set of rocks past Trashcan Dome (roadside) is Horse Bluffs (or something with a horse in it - I don't have my guidebook with me). You'll see it off to the right (west)from the road, with some nice crack systems and climbs that face east, getting early morning sun. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Peter_Puget Posted March 15, 2002 Share Posted March 15, 2002 If the weather really is bad, ask for directions to the artificial hwy routes in Palm Springs. They have some really long traverses and some "mirror" routes where your start in the middle and traverse right (or left) and then you start again and traverse the opposite direction. It is funny how different sides find the same move more difficult than the other. Anyway if the weather is really bad it's a fun way to spend and couple of hours. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kevin_page Posted March 15, 2002 Share Posted March 15, 2002 Try Echo Cove area, Effigy Too and Halfway To Paradise get early sun and are protected somewhat from the wind. In the same area I remember leading Touch and Go once while my buddies threw snowballs at me. Fortunately it was sunny that day. Tape up and do Fisticuffs in the Real Hidden Valley, that'll warm you up as will Bachar Cracker of the Desert near Cyclops. There is also a climbing area north of Yucca Valley that is described in SoCal rock or bouldering, only spied it from the road going north but it is much lowere elev. than JTree and reportedly better rock than Indian Cove. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kevin_page Posted March 15, 2002 Share Posted March 15, 2002 Ooh ooh I know, Coarse and Buggy. You can park close enough to it to use your car heater. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DPS Posted March 15, 2002 Share Posted March 15, 2002 I doubt it will be cold or rainy. I was there in January '95 and we climbed in T shirts. It rained for about an hour one evening and the event made the front page of the newspaper. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dru Posted March 15, 2002 Share Posted March 15, 2002 quote: Originally posted by danielpatricksmith: I doubt it will be cold or rainy. I was there in January '95 and we climbed in T shirts. It rained for about an hour one evening and the event made the front page of the newspaper. The first time I went there it rained for 3 days straight and a flash flood had my friends trapped on top of a picnic table for 2 hours and washed away their tent. meanwhile it was warm and sunny in the PNW Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
freeclimb9 Posted March 15, 2002 Share Posted March 15, 2002 quote: Originally posted by danielpatricksmith: I doubt it will be cold or rainy. I was there in January '95 and we climbed in T shirts. It rained for about an hour one evening and the event made the front page of the newspaper. Joshua Tree in March is notorious for having clear blue skies with winds blowing gravel across the campgrounds. These winds are common across the region and into Mexico. Recent weather in So. Cal. has featured 40 knot winds along the coast. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tasmith513 Posted March 15, 2002 Share Posted March 15, 2002 Joshua Tree=poor man's Patagonia I hear the wind dies down THERE at night too.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
miker Posted March 15, 2002 Author Share Posted March 15, 2002 Thnaks for the info guys and I know all about the fickle weather of JTREE. In the past two hours the online forecast has changed up by five degrees and the rain went away, so.... But all good places and some I haven't been to. Will let you know the results next week if I ain't blowed away. mikerp.s.-have a good St. Pats Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kevin_page Posted March 16, 2002 Share Posted March 16, 2002 quote: Originally posted by tasmith513: I hear the wind dies down THERE at night too.... In the winter you never know if you'll need your ice chest to keep things from freezing or to keep things cold but in March you'll probably just need to stake your tent down real good and then park your car on it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
todd Posted March 19, 2002 Share Posted March 19, 2002 i got "blowed away", how about you miker? even indian cove provided no shelter. i left saturday - hope things improved for you! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Terry Posted March 25, 2002 Share Posted March 25, 2002 We landed in San Diego after snow-related delays in Seattle on Saturday. We intended on climbing at Tahquitz but with snow level down around 3,000 feet opted for JT. We pulled in early Sunday morning and headed straight for Indian Cove. Spent the morning climbing in shorts and tee shirt. Then headed over to Hidden Valley in the afternoon and found numerous wind-scarred climbers dressed to the max. No more shorts and tee shirts. We did a couple routes with winds gusting to 40+ mph. The rope was bowed between pro. Had a great meal on St Paddys day, complete with Guiness at Crossroads Cafe then back to Indian Cove to our 'protected' campsite. In the interest of weight I brought along the Megamid and ended up eating sand all night. Next time I'll lug the floor along. I kept expecting the tent to fly away. The wind finally died down about 4 a.m., replaced by rain. We got up at 8 to snow flurries (Ranger Rick told us the day before that it hadn't snowed in 10 years). Climbing wasn't in the cards that day and we had meetings on Tuesday so it was a quick trip.Terry Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
goatboy Posted March 25, 2002 Share Posted March 25, 2002 I have seen snow in Joshua Tree every year for the past four -- usually flurries or such, but sometimes significant accumulation of several inches. It's glorious when the Joshua Trees are covered in snow, by the way. Ranger Rick has a short memory! - Steve Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
miker Posted March 25, 2002 Author Share Posted March 25, 2002 Oh yeah the snow was fun. Good climbing in Indian Cove though and the weather stayed calm enough so we did not get chilled. Going back in 2 weeks, it better be warmer this time!! Climbed on Pixie Rock, Fuedal Wall and King Otto's Castle. Fun 10s and a couple top roped 11s for us to work on. miker Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
genepires Posted March 26, 2002 Share Posted March 26, 2002 Steve's canyon is a good place to get away from the wind. It is near the hidden valley. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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