Want to go rock climbing near Seattle but don’t want to have to have to spend the night? Here are the top five places (and a bonus 6th) for a rock climbing day trip from Seattle. You’ll find an overwhelming variety of options from mellow crags for a family day out to hard overhanging sport test-pieces, long trad sandbagged routes to moderate alpine summits — the variety of accessible climbing is part of what makes Seattle so special. The crags on the list are aimed at mere mortals who don’t want to drive more than 1.5 hours round trip.

So without further ado…

1. Exit 32 & 38 outside North Bend

For tons of easily accessible sport climbing and for super hard overhanging sport climbing

Only a 45 minute drive from Downtown Seattle are the Exit 32 & 38 Crags. The Exits are just a 7 minute drive apart on I-90 so it’s simple enough to start the day at Exit 32 and move to 38 in the afternoon or vice versa, although either spot has more than enough climbing to keep you engaged for an entire day. There’s a ton of climbing to be done here and options for the beginner climber all the way to the 5.14 sender. The climbing is mostly sport although the motivated trad climber will find some options. The popular areas will get crowded so plan accordingly on weekends or sunny-weather summer days.

2. Keechelus Ridge

Sport craging with an alpine flare, beautiful views, and cooler temperatures

Tucked away off Snoqualmie Pass Keechelus Ridge is my favorite craging spot outside Seattle. It’s a bit of a drive on a bumpy dirt road to get there but most vehicles with decent clearance should fare ok. It feels alpine, the temperature is consistently cooler, there’s fewer people, no road noise, and beautiful views out towards Mt.Rainier with even more beautiful sunsets. Hopefully writing this doesn’t change all those things for the worse — but even though it’s very clearly in the guidebooks, it does have the feel of a well kept secret.

Note: Some of these routes are rope stretchers. As always, tie knots in the end of your rope. Some of the routes are just too long to lower all the way down with a 60 or a 70 and you’ll need to rappel the route using an intermediate anchor, or lower to the intermediate anchor and rappel from there. Don’t do these routes if you don’t have the systems knowledge to accomplish that safely.

3. Index

For sandbagged trad climbs from hard to very hard in a gorgeous setting and a locals vibe

A little over an hour drive brings you up highway 2 to the small sleepy town of Index and the towering granite walls that hang above the town in the gorgeous Skykomish River Valley. This place is like a little Yosemite with easily accessed routes of solid beautiful granite with routes anywhere from 1 to 12 pitches in length. If it weren’t for the traffic on highway 2 and the hourly train that rolls by you might just feel like you were in the middle of nowhere. All the routes here are trad and many but not all have bolted anchors.

Best Routes for Beginners

You’re out of luck. Well, not entirely. There aren’t really any routes here that i’d recomend using to learn how to trad climb. But if you’re a solid 5.9+ leader or asolid 5.8 leader on sandbagged granite like yosemite, then consider Great Northern Slab (3 pitches 5.7) Senior Citizens in Space (5.7+) or Pisces (5.6).

Best Multipitches Routes for Everyone Else

• Ride the Lightning (4 pitches 5.10a)

• The Brett Thompson & Scott Fuller Memorial Route (5.10c 5 pitches)

• Davis-Holland Route (3 Pitches 5.10c)

• GM Route (5.9 3 Pitches)

4. The Tooth

Easy alpine trad & sport climbs in a mountaineering context

The Tooth is a classic Cascades climbing objective. 5-6 hours will get you from your car on Snoqualmie Pass to the summit and another few hours will see you back at the car. It’s pretty wild to be able to access an alpine climb of this quality only an hour from Seattle.

5. Mount Erie

1.5 hours north of Seattle are the beautiful crags of Mt. Erie on Fidalgo Island, high on a knoll above the Puget Sound with beautiful views of the Olympics. The position of the cliffs alone makes the trip worth it. Climbing here during sunset is not to be missed. Mt. Erie hosts the best balance of trad and sport routes of the area on this list. if you want to spend your day climbing sport and trad, this is the place to be.

6. Bonus Mt Garfield Infinite Bliss

Infinite Bliss is one of the longest sport climbs in North America. 23 pitches, 2600 ft, 17+ quickdraws, 2 60 meter ropes to rappel and a lot of endurance. If you want a massive day then this is your route. But don’t underestimate how long this route is or how long it will take — don’t forget that you have to rappel the route! Comfort with simul-climbing definitely speeds things up.

Seasons and Weather:

The Main Climbing Season for these areas is May through October. The Tooth will have a snowy approach through May and possibly June and you may not be able to drive up the road to Keechelus ridge until June. Exit 32 & 38 are often climbable from April through December, with rain being the primary factor to consider. If it is raining (almost never the case in Washington, ha!) you may be able to find some dry climbs at the world wall.

Guiding!

If you’d like a professional and trained guide to show you the best climbs, teach you everything you’d like to know (or don’t know you need to know), and keep the day safe and fun reach out. These areas are our back yard. You can book private days directly on our home page or send us an email if you want something more involved or have any questions. We’re always happy to help. We usually book up for the summer season in advance so be sure to call ahead… or call last minute and we’ll try to squeeze you in!