11/14/2016
Climb Like a Local: The Homestead
Categories: Climb Like a Local
Tucked in the Arizona desert, The Homestead offers some of the best winter limestone sport climbing in the country, with an honest-to-god tufa wall.
Photo: The Homestead, AZ | © Joe Sambataro
Top Ten Classic Climbs at The Homestead
- Milk Bone, 5.8
- 3 Blind Mice, 5.10
- Wish Bone, 5.11
- Speedy Gonzales, 5.11
- Tufa-one, 5.11
- Morning Mate, 5.11
- Great Northern, 5.11
- One with Everything, 5.11
- Micro Bust, 5.12
- Send Train Suffer, 5.12
The Homestead Atmosphere:
The desert rats you’ll find kicking around this canyon are a different breed—they crave solitude, self-reliance, and hard sends. And they mostly keep to themselves. Come ready to climb hard and maintain the peace of the canyon.
Avoid the Crowds at the Atmosphere: What crowds? This place is a relative secret (for now) but it’s destined to be the next big thing in winter limestone sport climbing. If you love solitude, go now before the word is out.
Local Pet Peeve: Barking dogs and climbers screaming beta. The canyon walks echo and even normal conversation levels can be heard on the other side.
The Homestead Risks!: Nature is prickly at the The Homestead. Africanized bees and rattlesnakes make their homes at the base of the cliffs and inside larger pockets. Even the plants have gnarly thorns and spins.
Homestead Pro Tip: The beautifully streaked limestone walls face east and west allowing you to climb in the shade all day. Places like Rough Rider Wall provide reprieve from the morning sun, while Tufa City comes into the shade mid afternoon. And, the North Buttress gets shade all day and year, making it an ideal place to climb at during the cooler months. ~Rob Pizem
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