The comprehensive guide to rock climbing in the western half of Joshua Tree National Park.

Best Climbs Joshua Tree National Park gives climbers a selection of more than 280 of the very best routes at one of the country's most popular climbing destinations. Full color photographs along with a contemporary design make this book as visually appealing as it is useful.

Joshua Tree National Park is the most popular rock climbing area in the world--and for good reason. When other climbing locales are buried in snow, Josh is basking in Southern California sunshine. Thousands of sport and traditional routes on park's distinctive domes offer climbers of all abilities endless variety, from classic, well-protected cracks to delicate friction faces and edgy vertical testpieces. Excellent bouldering abounds, and superb camping in the beautiful, high-desert environment encourages extended stays. Simply put, no climber's career is complete without at least one trip to Joshua Tree, and many people find themselves returning year after year. Rock Climbing Joshua Tree West is the first of two volumes that together replace Rock Climbing Joshua Tree, published in 1992 and 1986. Covering climbs in the western half of the park, completely revised and with thoroughly updated route information, and extensively illustrated, it's the climber's comprehensive and indispensable guide to the area.

Fast-paced history-cum-memoir about rock climbing in the wild-and-wooly ’80s Highlights ground-breaking achievements from the era Hangdog Days vividly chronicles the era when rock climbing exploded in popularity, attracting a new generation of talented climbers eager to reach new heights via harder routes and faster ascents. This contentious, often entertaining period gave rise to sport climbing, climbing gyms, and competitive climbing--indelibly transforming the sport. Jeff Smoot was one of those brash young climbers, and here he traces the development of traditional climbing “rules,” enforced first through peer pressure, then later through intimidation and sabotage. In the late ’70s, several climbers began introducing new tactics including “hangdogging,” hanging on gear to practice moves, that the old guard considered cheating. As more climbers broke ranks with traditional style, the new gymnastic approach pushed the limits of climbing from 5.12 to 5.13. When French climber Jean-Baptiste Tribout ascended To Bolt or Not to Be, 5.14a, at Smith Rock in 1986, he cracked a barrier many people had considered impenetrable. In his lively, fast-paced history enriched with insightful firsthand experience, Smoot focuses on the climbing achievements of three of the era’s superstars: John Bachar, Todd Skinner, and Alan Watts, while not neglecting the likes of Ray Jardine, Lynn Hill, Mark Hudon, Tony Yaniro, and Peter Croft. He deftly brings to life the characters and events of this raucous, revolutionary time in rock climbing, exploring, as he says, “what happened and why it mattered, not only to me but to the people involved and those who have followed.”