Road Worthy

Life List: Yosemite, California
Little rocks in the big ditch - Carved by Ice Age glaciers, Yosemite Valley is about eight miles long and up to a mile deep, guarded by 1,000- to 3,000-foot monoliths that loom ominously overhead. As a consequence of its spectacular environment—thick pine tree forests, sheer granite cliffs that rise into outer space, and pristine boulders large enough to make you pee your technical Prana pants—this section of the Sierra represents one of the most infl uential and historic rock climbing destinations in the world.

Rocks: Skaha, British Columbia, Canada
The masses arrive in Skaha Bluffs Provincial Park around Easter every year from the wet coast and seeping mountains, seeking guaranteed warmth and dryness. Meanwhile, the locals have been pulling down here since February. Nearly 1,000 routes await, mainly sport with a touch of trad. Gneiss incuts on steep climbs, slabby climbs, and everything in between await your steely fingers. Very few routes get too crowded, and there are fantastic views out over Skaha Lake to calm your mind when your body is too pumped to function.

Rocks: The Dodge, Governor Dodge, Wisconsin
As you're planning your epic coast-tocoast climbing road trip, Governor Dodge State Park near Dodgeville, Wisconsin, may be the bouldering oasis you were looking for in an empty desert of flat. The Dodge, as it’s called by locals, boasts an impressive amount of sandstone boulders, with a variety of easy to hard problems, overhanging to slabby, and low ass-draggers to highballs. The overall quality of the sandstone is good, but extra care should be taken to not damage the rock, especially after heavy rains or snowmelt.

Rocks: The North Gym, Shelf Road, Colorado
Every weekend from September to May, climbers from all corners of the Rockies flock to the cinnamon walls of Shelf Road in search of balmy temps and sinker pockets. Now, thanks to a recent surge in development, this venerable destination has more to offer than ever before. The North Gym is hardly a new discovery— the first routes were installed during sport climbing’s infancy—but for whatever reason, these routes never made it into a guidebook. As a result, the crag was forgotten as development exploded nearby.

Rocks: Deep Creek, Spokane, Washington
Are you champing at the bit for long 5.11s that will make your forearms scream? Would you like to knock off 5.12 after 5.12 rising out of soft creek-bed sand? Or are you looking for your next ultra-proj and the fight against fetal-curling, psyche-meltdown syndrome? With more than 30 pumpo-rific projects in the 5.12 to 5.14b range and ample 5.11s, you’ll have plenty to pit your will against at Deep Creek.

Rocks: Super Shawangunks, New Paltz, New York
You've heard the hype: It’s climbed out, overcrowded, and talked to death. But if you jumped on the hype bandwagon and avoided the Gunks, you’d seriously be missing out. Once the hotbed of high-end route development in the U.S.—starting in the late 1930s—the Shawangunks, located 1.5 hours north of New York City, have developed into a much-loved center for classic North American climbing.

Rocks: Little Rock City, Chattanooga, Tennessee
As a popular tourist destination, Chatty, as it’s affectionately known, offers everything from mountain biking and hiking to fine art galleries and a world-renowned aquarium. Then there’s the climbing. With rock surrounding the whole town, it’s somehow not surprising that an ultra-classic boulderfield sits on a golf course. It’s now named Stone Fort, but most locals know the area as Little Rock City (LRC).

Life List: Indian Creek, Utah
Cracked out for life - Drink in the nostalgia of cowboys and Indians, Webster and Wiggins*, and the best damn crack climbing in the world: You’re in Indian Creek! As you point your rig westward on Highway 211, about 40 miles south of Moab, Utah, check your ego and make sure you’ve packed the essentials, because out here there ain’t no amenities like gimme grades and skin-friendly climbing. Borrow, beg, and steal any and all camming units you can get your soon-to-be-gobied paws on. You’re going to need them.

Rocks: Lost Cove, Boone, North Carolina
Like most boulderers, you dream of climbing on Swiss granite, but getting to Europe is expensive and time-consuming. Unless you’re from the Southeast, you may not realize that a $1,200 flight to Europe is unnecessary for finding some of the best bouldering in the world. The Southeast’s got it. Prime example: Lost Cove, 25 minutes from downtown Boone, North Carolina, has 40 to 50 of the best boulders anywhere, from V0 to V12, on Swiss-style rock.

Rocks: Table Mountain, Sonora, California
Two hours east of the Bay Area resides one of the most off-the-wall mining settlements in the United States. Sonora remains the only place in California where you can legally shop for a handgun and buy a beer on draft at the same establishment. And if you have it, you can pay for both with gold dust. The climbing community in Sonora is slim—maxing out at maybe 15 people—but the few dedicated locals have developed an amazing catalog of climbs to choose from.

Life List: Verdon Gorge, France
High off the deck - Like a fine French wine, the stone in the Verdon Gorge has been aged to perfection, offering a climbing style suitable for anyone’s palate. Whether you’re after balls-to-the-wall, sporty multi-pitch climbing or well-protected single-pitch cragging, this dizzying canyon up to 2,300 feet deep, in the south of France, can accommodate your wishes. The water-polished, blue-gray limestone has more hold types than any shaper could devise.

Rocks: Lander, Wyoming
Cowtown climbing - Over the past 25 years, Lander, Wyoming, has gone from out-of-the-way cowtown to out-of-the-way cowtown surrounded by great climbing. With hundreds of great cliffs and boulders, the Lander area boasts close to 2,000 rock climbs and many excellent boulder problems. Since around 2005, bouldering has really taken off in Lander. From granite highballs to limestone traverses to sandstone and quartzite problems, there’s a little something for every taste.

Rocks: Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Climberly love - It's midnight in downtown Philadelphia, and I want to climb. After a 10-minute bike ride along the Schyulkill River, I arrive at the Kelly Drive Boulder. This 25-foot outcrop provides everything I need for a late-night burn, including a wellplaced streetlight illuminating holds in the shiny mica schist. With routes from V0 to V7, there are options for everyone, even if you’ve already had a few beers.

Rocks: Santa Barbara, California
Paradise found - Santa Barbara has always been a destination—tourists come to lie on the beach, party, and shop on State Street, and movie stars buy homes in the secluded, ritzy neighborhoods. The city is as Mediterranean as any U.S. city can be—one of its nicknames is the American Riviera. There are film festivals, rock concerts, fine dining, wineries, hiking, and cycling. And climbing—lots of climbing. Though the area is known as a beach town, the rocky, tree-lined Santa Ynez Mountains contain nearly a dozen boulderfields and some top-notch sport and trad climbing.

100 Best Boulders in America
If I had to guess how many boulder problems exist in the U.S. alone, I’d probably put it somewhere around half a million. No lies. How many exist at Hueco or Bishop alone? So when we set out to choose only one hundred problems for this list, the sheer number of boulders was troublesome enough—much less actually ranking them in order from not quite the best to the best. All that to say, this process wasn’t easy, and there’s a high likelihood that you’re going to completely disagree with us, and that’s OK.

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