Sport climbing or pebble wrestling around Jackson/Teton Range?

[jmerrey]

Title kinda says it all. Last February I was in Jackson and was asking around at one of the gear shops and they knew of countless trad/alpine routes (surprise, surprise) but no one really had a definitive answer as to where to find good boulders or sport routes. The interwebs are pretty sparse on the subject too. Anyone have any input?

[PaDuKa]

Mountain Project and TetonClimbing.com have decent info. Otherwise I assume this is fairly comprehensive notwithstanding new development.

http://www.climbingwyoming.com/guide...e-pinedale-wy/

[mud]

There is not much of those two types of climbing near Jackson.
Blacktail Butte is about it for sport. Easy access and has some fun climbing on limestone and you can traverse the base for a good pump.

Bouldering is good near Jenny and String Lake, also there is a very cool city park at the base of Snow King that has some manmade boulders. You can find directions and beta for most of these climbs over on mountainproject.

[powdork]

rodeo wall near hoback junction is a good way to spend a day. has more soft to moderates than blacktail butte.

[jmerrey]

awesome, thanks for the help. it's a shame the climbing gym closed down. Kinda throws any training plans out the window for the winter months. Sans a home wall.

[Tye 1on]

awesome, thanks for the help. it's a shame the climbing gym closed down. Kinda throws any training plans out the window for the winter months. Sans a home wall.

Mountain Athlete may have a couple options.
They posted this on their wall a couple of months ago, not sure if it's still happening:

"JACKSON HOLE CLIMBERS:
If you're looking to maintain some climbing strength now that Enclosure is closed, you're welcome to train on our climbing wall and campus boards. We'll open it up to climbers Monday through Thursday from noon-4pm. No charge. Just be sure to park IN the parking lot or on the side of the building, not on the road. STARTS NEXT WEEK on MONDAY SEPTEMBER 8th. Questions? Email katie at mountainathlete.com"

They also have a six-week climbing specific conditioning course starting early Jan for $200, 4 days/week.

[jmerrey]

Good to know. The reason I'm asking is that I'm coming from the east coast and am about a 4 hour drive from phenomenal sport climbing and about the same distance to good bouldering. There's also a great gym near by for when conditions/life forces me indoors. I recently Skype interviewed for a job in Jackson and accessibility to good bouldering/sport climbing and a training facility has been weighing on my decision more than I'd like to admit.

[mud]

If you can score a job in Jackson you should take it despite the lack of sport climbing. Learn how to place gear and the Tetons open up a huge world of challenges that make sport climbing look like hitting the blue runs on ski blades.

If you must sport climb you have world class areas like Sinks Canyon, Ten Sleep Canyon, Rifle and Maple Canyon all within a days drive from Jackson.

[grubbers]

Take up trad climbing. Sure, the cragging close to Jackson leaves a bit to be desired (especially if you're coming from the northeast), but the alpine climbing more than makes up for it.

[powdork]

If you must sport climb you have world class areas like Sinks Canyon, Ten Sleep Canyon, Rifle and Maple Canyon all within a days drive from Jackson.

City of Rocks too

[hutash]

Sport climbing is neither. Learn to place pro and build anchors, and "climb the mountains and get their good tidings."

[HansJob]

If you take the job, ditch the sport and learn to trad. The place is filled with competent trad peeps. Start saving for a real rack.

[jmerrey]

I plug pieces already, just not exclusively. Variety is the spice of life... or something like that.

[hutash]

Thanks, but I'll stick with women.

[powdork]

Sport climbing is neither.

I hate that quote.

Sport Climbing is Neither
This is simply untrue on every level, logically, metaphorically, spiritually, etc. Sport climbing is a casual way to have fun on the cliffs. Much like surfing, there’s beauty in the simplicity. No excessive gear, no route finding issues, no worries about weather catching you with your pants down. Heck, sometimes we don’t even have to clip our own quickdraws (bonus!). Just roll to the cliff, and bust out some pitches. It can also be a very athletic endeavor, and feels more like a good workout in the gym. It really will get you stronger, as you push yourself to your personal limits, and you can then take these skills to other climbing disciplines. (Trad climbing feels comparatively easier when you get a bunch of no hands rests in between the hard bits!) This appeals more to some than others, but there’s no question that sport climbing, especially when pushing your limits, requires a high level of athleticism. So in fact, sport climbing is in many ways a very pure expression of the sport of climbing.

http://www.splitterchoss.com/2012/07...port-climbing/

[jmerrey]

Thanks, but I'll stick with women.

With almost 15,000 posts sounds like you don't stick to much more than the computer chair in mommy's basement. But that's none of my business...

[hutash]

[QUOTE=powdork;4385367]I hate that quote.

Lighten up Francis, it is a joke. It is like skiing vs snowboarding (but we all know tele sucks.)

Of course the bit you quoted is exactly way some people think less of sport climbing the trad, no route finding, no weather issues, too much like a gym workout, etc. There is a place for both.

[powdork]

Lighten up Francis, it is a joke. It is like skiing vs snowboarding (but we all know tele sucks.)

Of course the bit you quoted is exactly way some people think less of sport climbing the trad, no route finding, no weather issues, too much like a gym workout, etc. There is a place for both.

I kinda figured. The link goes into more reasons. The biggest part of sport climbing that can make it more difficult or more of a head game than trad is the fact that you can't just zipper it up whenever you get uncomfortable. You have to run it to the next bolt no matter how far away it is.

[hutash]

True, but you can also just lower off and go have a beer.

They are just different beasts. Both are fun and have their place. I tend to prefer trad mostly because it tends to be a mountain pursuit where sport can be on any rock, or cough, cough, in a gym.

[brice618]

I kinda figured. The link goes into more reasons. The biggest part of sport climbing that can make it more difficult or more of a head game than trad is the fact that you can't just zipper it up whenever you get uncomfortable. You have to run it to the next bolt no matter how far away it is.

Ah come on. The next bolt is never far in most modern sport routes. Especially if you're the hardcore pre-hung draw climber. The only head game involved in "sport" climbing is on slab routes, which are arguably closer to trad in both style and adventure than sport.

Don't get me wrong - sport is cool, but head games there are only about whether your leopard print spandex clad ass looks good to the pro-hoes below while you crank the next gaston.

[powdork]

True, but you can also just lower off and go have a beer.

They are just different beasts. Both are fun and have their place. I tend to prefer trad mostly because it tends to be a mountain pursuit where sport can be on any rock, or cough, cough, in a gym.

you can lower off a trad route too. it just costs more. i prefer trad too. mostly because it provides the opportunity to see a rock and go climb it regardless of whether someones been there to set things up for you. but saying it's not a sport is like saying the olympic downhill isn't a sport because someone set up the course.

Ah come on. The next bolt is never far in most modern sport routes. Especially if you're the hardcore pre-hung draw climber. The only head game involved in "sport" climbing is on slab routes, which are arguably closer to trad in both style and adventure than sport.

Don't get me wrong - sport is cool, but head games there are only about whether your leopard print spandex clad ass looks good to the pro-hoes below while you crank the next gaston.

the distance depends on who set the route and the area's tradition in most cases. rodeo wall for instance tends to be a bit further apart than most of the sport routes here in tahoe. even in areas with closely spaced bolts the first bolt can be a bit 'sporty' to reach. and i'm not a pre-hung draw type climber. at my level if i fall on a sport route it's gonna be a cheeses grater (yeah, i suck).