56 may–jun 2020 http://www.climber.co.uk
GAME PLAN
Somewhere over the Atlantic during
down-time between the films John Wick 3
and The End Game (I know, what a
selection, right), I had dived headlong into
the guide to shortlist prospective crags
and routes. With hundreds of crags and
thousands of routes in The Red I felt like I
needed a plan. Unashamedly, I listed the
best routes at the best crags immediately
surrounding Lago Linda Hideaway, our
base for the trip. With so many routes to
go at our plan was to stick to on-sighting/
quick redpoints so my list covered 5.10a to
12d – roughly translated as F6a to F7c. The
list was, I can tell you, breathtakingly long.TRIPLE CROWN
Habitually abbreviated to The Red and,
therefore, implying a singular identity,
the full name for the area, the Red River
Gorge is, however, equally misleading.
Don’t come to The Red expecting to see
a Verdon-style gorge cut from bedrock as
though it had been sliced by a giant
scalpel wheeled by an equally giant
Adonis. The Red is sliced and diced every
which way there is into valleys,
subsidiary valleys and then even smaller
valleys and hence valleys off valleys,
however, this being America they are
called hollows; Sore Heel Hollow for
example, more of which later though.The area is split geographically by t
he Mountain Parkway, the main road
between Lexington in the northwest
and Campton in the southeast. The Red
River Gorge North area falls above the
Parkway whilst the southern area is
further split into the Red River Gorge
South and Miller Fork. Our trip and,
therefore, this text, majored on the
main honeypots in The South.NATURAL BRIDGE AREA
Just south of the Mountain Parkway is a
65ft high natural arch which give this area
its name. More importantly for climbers,
the world famous Miguel’s which provides
a base, a watering hole and a focus point
is located there. Of the nearby crags,
Emerald City, Roadside and the Zoo
provide an amazing selection of routes.
Somewhat unusually, the climbing at
Emerald City is mainly on vertical faces.
Facing south, it gets plenty of sun. No Place
Like Home (5.11c), is the must-do route of
the crag; a Jack-and-the-Beanstalk type
arête which juts far above the surrounding
trees. The quality climbing happens on
the upper arête which is both imposing
and engrossing. Once you’re on the arête
proper it doesn’t let up much and the
bolts – somewhat inconveniently – aren’t
always were you’d want them. It’s a mega
classic, however, and very different.
The mid-section of Emerald City offers
a cluster of routes giving crimpy and
technical climbing: Ruby Slippers (5.10d)
and Diamond in the Rough (5.10c) should
float your boat. Out right, the crag feels
a bit like a quarry for some reason but
don’t miss Yellow Brick Road (5.11b), it’s
a super steep slab again and although
only relatively short it’s thought-provok-
ing and thoroughly excellent.
Roadside Crag has a short walk-in and
offers something for everyone. Privately
owned, Roadside was closed in 2011 but
is now open again, albeit with an enforced
permit system. Understandably, most
climbers start their day by warming up at
the so-called 5.10 Wall, the convenience
and quality is just too high to walk
past. Left-to-right do A.W.O.L. (5.10a),
Dragonslayer (5.10d), Crazyfingers (5.10c)
and Pulling Pockets (5.10d) then sit down,
grab a coffee and reflect on what you just
did, a storming collection of pocketed
walls on excellent rock packed with
great moves. Grade wise there isn’t as
much as you’d think between them and
the two monos at the start of Dragonslay-
er will get you thinking.
The 5.12 Wall should be your next
objective, Ro Shampo (5.12a) is the
central and main route of the wall.
Massive jugs festoon most of the 20-
degree overhanging wall except for the
crucial middle section where a pretty stiffdestination
Amarillo Sunset (5.11b)
on North 40 is hidden
in plain sight at the end
of Sore Heel Hollow is
this uber classic with
amazing climbing up
the pocketed wall.