The New River Gorge of West Virginia is one of the most dramatic canyons in the East. It’s famous for its whitewater rafting, the BASE-jumping extravaganza of “Bridge Day,” and, of course, its world-class rock climbing. New River Gorge climbing is a unique combination of excellent, historic trad and equally excellent, historic sport. Unlike its main “rival” crag, Kentucky’s Red River Gorge, the New holds equal lure for both trad and sport climbers. No surprise about the tradsters: the Nuttall Sandstone is harder than granite and riddled with excellent cracks. Fair enough, but the sport climbing is some of the best anywhere! The specialty of the house is technical climbing that will test your ingenuity, your footwork, and your finger strength, but there are plenty of massively overhanging sectors for those who just want to grab big holds and pull.
Volume 1 – The Main Gorge
This volume documents the heart of New River Gorge climbing, the crags of the main gorge. You’ll find all the beta for more than 1900 climbing routes on the immaculate sandstone walls of this beautiful river canyon. Popular crags include Kaymoor, Bubba City, Beauty Mountain, Junkyard, Bridge Buttress, Fern, and of course, the too-much-to-be-true Endless Wall. A bit off the beaten path, but with equally good beta, visit South Nuttall, Domino Point, Sunshine Buttress, Keeney’s Buttress, Ambassador Buttress, and Cotton Top. A lifetime’s worth of climbing!
- Entertaining route descriptions.
- Up-to-date beta.
- Detailed history.
- Camping and apres-climb stuff.
- Inspiring colour photos.
- Author: Mike Williams
Specifications
- Format: Paperback
- Dimensions: 460 pages,
- Published: 2019; 3rd edition
- Publisher: Wolverine Publishing
- Language: English
- item weight: 879 g
About the Author
Mike Williams learned to climb on the granite domes of North Carolina, but felt the pull of West Virginia’s Nuttall Sandstone after his first trips to the New in the late ’90s. He then toured around the US in a VW van looking for the best rock climbing before finally realizing it was back where he started, at the New River Gorge. He has since become an active route developer there. Mike has worked as a wilderness instructor, climbing guide, rigger, author, editor for Deadpoint Magazine, and guidebook project manager. He now runs Bridge Bound Campers, converting cargo vans into luxury road-trip machines. He lives in Fayetteville with his wife Elissa, children Hazel and Elliott, and crag dog Lilah. You can contact Mike at [email protected] or just stop by Bridge Bound Campers at 131 S Court Street to talk about his two passions — rock climbing and van dwelling.
