In mid-September I had the honor of being invited on a friend’s climbing trip out to The Red River Gorge, KY. It was an easy yes just for the huge joy I get from spending many days laughing and building friendships with the people I love in my life. I was also really excited to check out this iconic climbing area known as a world-class destination for steep, overhung routes where you can climb in the rain and pro climbers attempt 5.14. It absolutely delivered on what I expected with very featured sandstone with rails, pockets, large hueco holes and deep features.
Welcome to The Red
Despite the strenuous reputation, I was immediately surprised at just how steep it was here, even in the 5.10 range. How feeble my moderate training attempts to build overhung strength at the gym were 😂. The upside is pretty much all the hand holds are mega-jugs, even in the 5.11 range. It’s hard to get something less my style of delicate granite slab and technical crack than these pumpy, overhung jug hauls. Everything felt very hard for that reason and I felt I could barely climb anything clean. However, maybe getting out with a bunch of 5.12 sport climbers who love this style and getting on more 5.11s than I normally do had something to do with it.
A big part of why the holds are so good is the rock quality is very high and the routes very cleaned up. The few X’s marked on holds would still be considered bomber in other areas and you learn to confidently throw to holds, including thin, deep edges with confidence. Stuff that would definitely break off in Red Rock (unless pure patina) or flexing granite flakes in the Sierra were yard-able here with confidence with no movement or noise even supporting my above-average climber weight.
This is a heavily trafficked and well managed sport climber area and it was very friendly (and recently) developed for stick-clipping. Nearly all the routes had mussies at the top and the bolting was very comfy. I even found a route with permadraws on a 5.11a climb (which is a kind gift from the developers). My only real comment is while the permanently chalked holds did help me get up routes and eliminate route-finding, the additional abundance of perma-tick-marks on the holds to call out the route’s sequence kinda felt like beta spraying gone too far. I should be able to climb my own climb without some prior climber calling out every move, the chalk is enough. Although, I recognize this is my onsight Yosemite climber bias showing through and caring more about repointing and fine-tuning a climb is more inline with the general aesthetic of the area for projecting sport climbs.
Climbing Around The Red
I spent most of my week at The Red at two areas:
- Muir Valley which is privately managed ($15/day fee) and even provides stick clips at the entrance.
- Pendergrass-Murray Recreational Preserve (PMRP) which had more impacted roads and a steep hill that is right on the edge of requiring 4wd but at least a crossover/SUV
The star ratings for routes were very high and also well deserved. A two star here might be a three star in other areas due to the abundance of large solid holds. I was surprised at how on many routes there were features large enough for a sit-down (or lie-down) for a full rest mid-route and this was a very aesthetic, fun aspect of the area.
I really wish I was able to get into the North Gorge trad areas as there seemed some fun corner cracks, but there wasn’t enough dry days for me to feel things would be dry since cracks can hold moisture.
Weather and Seasonality
I was told Roctoberfest in early October typically kicks off the season. Given we were there late-September, it was pretty quiet. During the week there was typically only one other party out climbing, but during the weekend there could be like 15 other people out on a Saturday at a popular area like Drive-By Crag. Its also worth noting it was a pretty rainy forecast when I went which probably contributed.
While it was still pretty hot this trip (low-80s and humid), the crags were often shaded. The humidity and heat meant that with my sweaty hangs I went through 1/3 a chalk bag in a week, as much as I use in a month in the desert! However, my friends came this same time three years prior and were in puffies the whole time.
Climbing in the rain, something that is antithetical to the Sierra Nevada’s granite domes and peaks was very unique. Normally I’d only be able to do this at 5.12 areas or have to pursue rain-day activities, but many parts of the gorge had lips above so you could still get on 5.11 routes and the guidebooks provide a lot of guidance on good crags. I’m guessing because of the frequent rain in this area, but I was surprised there was no guidance about not climbing in the rain since at Red Rock, it weakens the rock and you should stay off it for at least 24 hrs so you don’t break holds off.
Despite the wet weather, it wasn’t that buggy but having some bug suppression was nice for small bites on exposed skin. Only one climb did the rock feel moist where it was difficult to get feet friction, even though it appeared dry.
Trip Reflections
I am very happy to have experienced this iconic area. The climbing was very good for the style and aesthetic. I said I came without expectations due to the difference in character from what I typically climb, but after out-performing expectations all summer I did have days I was hard on myself. Recently, I’ve rarely gotten truly shut down on things and also rarely cannot cleanly climb something on follow / top rope. However, I normally don’t climb a lot of 11+ either.
I was happy to get out running more than expected this trip (3rd best half marathon time!), despite it being hard to find ten miles of continuous trail that didn’t end up being overgrown. The highlights, as always, were laughing with friends, playing cards and cooking together and being a part of their successes.
