This overview covers climbing in Vedauwoo — the famous granite climbing area west of Cheyenne, Wyoming.
1. Where Vedauwoo is located
Vedauwoo Recreation Area is located in southeastern Wyoming, in Medicine Bow National Forest, between Cheyenne and Laramie. The area lies about 30 miles west of Cheyenne, directly off Interstate 80; take Exit 329, Vedauwoo Road. The central part of the area sits at an elevation of approximately 2,497 metres above sea level.
This is one of the most distinctive climbing areas in the American West. The formations are composed of Sherman Granite, approximately 1.4 billion years old. Erosion has shaped the granite into enormous rounded blocks, towers and domes split by cracks. Today, the area has more than a thousand climbing routes, ranging from easy 5.0 lines to extreme 5.14 climbs.
Vedauwoo is particularly famous as one of the world’s premier destinations for offwidth climbing — wide cracks that are too large for a fist jam but too narrow to fit the entire body.
2. Climate and the best season for climbing
Because of its elevation of almost 2,500 metres, Vedauwoo has a considerably cooler climate than you might expect from the Wyoming plains. The weather can change rapidly, and wind is a constant factor.
Local sources generally define the main season as running from mid-April to mid-October, although access roads may still be closed by snow in early spring. The U.S. Forest Service notes that the road can sometimes become snow-free as early as April, while the campground generally does not fully open until closer to June.
For a climbing trip, the most predictable period is June through September. Late summer and early autumn are particularly good: temperatures become more comfortable and the granite provides excellent friction. In summer, south-facing walls can become very hot in direct sunlight, so climbers often head out in the morning or later in the afternoon, or choose shaded aspects. Local guides consider summer and autumn the main climbing seasons, with mornings and evenings generally offering the most comfortable conditions.
Summer thunderstorms also need to be taken into account. Afternoon and evening thunderstorms with lightning and strong wind gusts are typical in southeastern Wyoming, especially when monsoonal moisture moves into the region. On exposed granite summits, this presents a significant hazard, so it is best to check the forecast on the morning of your climb.
The most practical choice: June, August and September. July is also suitable, although hot sun and thunderstorms are more common concerns. May and October can offer excellent conditions, but you can just as easily encounter snow, cold or strong winds.
3. What the climbing terrain is like
Vedauwoo is completely different from the limestone sport-climbing areas of Europe. This is primarily traditional climbing on coarse-grained granite.
Sherman Granite contains large crystals of quartz and feldspar. The surface is extremely rough and in places can literally tear your skin. That is why local climbers often use tape or specialised crack gloves.
The main features here are finger cracks, hand cracks and fist cracks, wide offwidths, chimneys, exposed granite slabs and crystal-covered faces, as well as numerous boulders for bouldering.
One of the area’s defining features is the large number of flaring, irregular and wide cracks. As a result, standard jamming techniques are often combined with arm-bars, chicken-wings, heel-toes, hand-stacks and other offwidth techniques.
Although wide cracks are what made Vedauwoo famous, it would be wrong to think of it exclusively as an offwidth area. There are excellent thin finger cracks, classic hand cracks, multi-pitch routes, slabs, sport routes and a large bouldering sector.
There is another important feature: local grades have a reputation for being fairly stiff. This is especially true of offwidths — a familiar grade can feel considerably harder if a climber does not have specialised wide-crack technique.
4. Main sectors and popular routes
The large Vedauwoo area is divided into Central Vedauwoo, the surrounding Outback Areas and the more distant Outlying Areas. For a first visit, some of the most interesting areas are Walt’s Wall, Nautilus, Coke Bottle, Fall Wall, Holdout, Blair and Reynolds.
- Walt’s Wall. One of the most accessible and historically well-known sectors. The main classic is Edward’s Crack, 5.7 (approximately French 5a), 2 pitches. It is one of the most popular routes in all of Vedauwoo: the lower section introduces climbers to offwidth technique, while higher up the route transitions into classic jamming. The easier Walt’s Wall, 5.4 is three pitches long and is a good introduction to local trad climbing.
- Nautilus. Probably the best-known formation in the area and a true collection of classic cracks. Routes here include Mother 1 — 5.7+, Middle Parallel Space — 5.9, Friday the 13th — 5.10a/b, 3 pitches, Flying Buttress — 5.10, Hesitation Blues — 5.11- and the famous finger crack Max Factor — 5.11c. Nautilus is particularly appealing because a single formation offers everything from moderate routes to very difficult climbing.
- Coke Bottle. One of the three major southern formations in Central Vedauwoo. For fans of wide cracks, Mainstreet — 5.10a is especially well known, offering sustained offwidth climbing. A more serious option is Horn’s Mother — 5.11a, a two-pitch route featuring difficult wide-crack climbing. For those who prefer face climbing, Space Oddity — 5.12a is a technical granite face route.
- Fall Wall. One of the most frequently visited sectors in Central Vedauwoo. Its southern exposure gets plenty of sun, the approach is short, and there is a wide range of routes, from moderate lines to difficult climbing. In addition to traditional cracks, there are bolted routes here; the namesake Fall Wall — 5.10a is a moderate sport route on a granite face.
- Holdout. Best known for Beefeater — 5.10b, 2 pitches, one of the popular routes in the mid-grade range. At the opposite end of the scale is North Shore — 5.13a/b, intended for very strong climbers.
- Lower Blair / Upper Blair. A more remote and considerably larger area. Among the moderate classics is the two-pitch Le Petit Arbre — 5.8, while Intimidation — 5.9+ combines a hand crack with Vedauwoo’s characteristic offwidth climbing. Upper Blair is home to Spectreman — around 5.11, one of the area’s better-known harder lines.
- Reynolds Hill. This area is home to the popular Climb and Punishment — 5.9+, as well as Pooh Corner — 5.10b: the first pitch is a good hand crack at around 5.9, followed by an overhanging offwidth.
- Poland Hill and Valley Massif. A good choice if you want to get away from the most popular walls. The classic at Poland Hill is Fantasia, 5.9/5.9+, while Valley Massif offers a large number of mostly single-pitch trad routes, including Screw — 5.7.
Overall, Vedauwoo offers routes across almost the entire grading spectrum — approximately YDS 5.0 to 5.14. Bouldering uses the American V-scale, and the area has more than a hundred recorded boulder problems.
5. What gear to bring
A standard sport-climbing rack is not enough for Vedauwoo: most of the classic routes involve trad climbing.
A basic rack should be built around a selection of nuts and cams. A local guide recommends, for most standard routes, a set ranging from small nuts/RPs to medium-sized protection, plus cams from micro sizes up to approximately the old Camalot #3.5. In terms of modern racks, this effectively means a full set of small and medium cams, with doubles in the most commonly used sizes being useful for hand cracks.
If you are planning to climb offwidths, the rack changes considerably: you will need #4, #5 and #6 Camalots or equivalent large cams, sometimes with multiple large pieces of the same size. Big Bros are used on some extremely wide routes. The specific rack should always be checked against the description of each route, as crack sizes vary greatly throughout Vedauwoo.
A 60-metre rope, a set of quickdraws and extended alpine draws, a helmet, harness, belay device and anchor-building materials will also be useful. Do not automatically assume that a single 60-metre rope is sufficient for every descent: some routes have walk-offs, others have fixed rappel anchors, while certain descents require two ropes.
For Vedauwoo, tape or crack gloves are particularly useful, along with long trousers and, for serious offwidth climbing, even elbow and knee protection: the coarse-grained granite is exceptionally abrasive.
In addition to climbing equipment, it is worth bringing a warm layer, a windproof and waterproof jacket, sun protection and plenty of water. At an elevation of around 2,500 metres, even in summer the weather can change quickly from sunshine to strong winds and thunderstorms.
For bouldering, of course, you will need crash pads — there are numerous boulders and dedicated bouldering areas around Vedauwoo.
6. How to get there
The easiest way to reach Vedauwoo from Cheyenne is by car. From the city, take Interstate 80 West toward Laramie and continue for approximately 30 miles to Exit 329 — Vedauwoo Road. The rock formations are clearly visible from I-80 on the north side of the highway.
If travelling from Laramie, take I-80 east for approximately 16 miles to the same Exit 329. According to Forest Service directions, after leaving the interstate, turn onto Vedauwoo Road; after approximately 1.2 miles you will reach the turnoff for the campground and Turtle Rock area, while continuing farther along the road leads to the picnic area and Box Canyon Trail.
Seasonal access is important to keep in mind. Forest access roads and gates are closed during winter, and the spring opening date depends on snow conditions. Before travelling in April–May or late autumn, it is therefore best to check the current road status with the Laramie Ranger District / U.S. Forest Service.
Vedauwoo in a nutshell:
Vedauwoo is a destination to choose not for long alpine walls, but for technical traditional crack climbing. It is the kind of place where you can start the day on a relaxed 5.7, move on to a perfect 5.9–5.10 hand crack, and finish by battling your way through one of Wyoming’s famous offwidths. Short approaches in the central area, an enormous variety of routes and highly distinctive granite make Vedauwoo one of the most unique climbing areas in the United States. At the same time, even relatively modest grades deserve respect here: Vedauwoo is known less for the numbers in the guidebook than for the specialised techniques those numbers do not always reflect.
Source: alp.org.ua