Towering Heights

Stand atop these spindly spires

In November 2010, I did my first desert tower in Utah: Ancient Art in the Fisher Towers. After holding my breath across the narrow sidewalk three pitches up and winding my way up the final sandstone corkscrew, I stood atop that bizarre summit at dusk, barely able to make out the Rectory across the valley. This was a defining and exhilarating moment in my climbing career: I, like many first-time tower climbers, wanted more.

It’s well known that the desert Southwest holds the majority of this country’s climbable towers, but here we’ve dug up seven classic routes, in no particular order, on spires that span the U.S., from Idaho to North Carolina, ranging in grade from 5.7 to 5.11c, from Wingate sandstone to granite, from 50 feet to 300. Moab climbers aren’t the only ones who can enjoy sitting on a tower summit.

The Mace
The Original Route (5.9+)
Cathedral Spires, Sedona, Arizona
Reason enough for anyone to travel to Sedona, the 300-foot Mace is adorned with seven routes, including the Original Route. You’ll find everything from chimneys to offwidth and hand cracks to a small roof on the soft, but reasonably protected, Schnebly Hill sandstone, and each belay on the four- to five-pitch route is bolted. Established in 1957 by Bob Kamps and party, the Original Route was the first technical spire climb in the area. The line begins on the northeast side of the spire in a band of gray limestone. The second pitch holds a 5.9 hand crack and chimney: “It’s a wild stemming pitch after pulling over a small roof on a hand jam,” says Arizona guide Alexis Finley. But the fun doesn’t end there. “You get tons of exposure on a step-across to gain a 5.8 chimney/offwidth” on the third pitch, says Finley. The fourth pitch bears the crux, a four-inch offwidth, before dumping you onto the lower summit. A somewhat-committing step-across move over a chasm gains the true top. If you’re bold, you can leap back to the lower summit, but beware: “The 15- foot jump across the spires has resulted in more than one broken ankle,” Finley says. A friend on the ground can snap a dramatic photo of the stem between the towers or the infamous leap across. Most climbers will rappel instead.

GUIDEBOOK: Rock Climbing Arizona, by Stewart Green; Castles in the Sand: A climber’s guide to Sedona and Oak Creek Canyon, by David Bloom

The Lost Arrow
Classic Route (5.7)
City of Rocks, Idaho
Named after its more famous Yosemite counterpart, this hard-to-miss spire in the City of Rocks boasts positive edges and pockets, but “the exposure may humble sport climbers used to much loftier grades,” guidebook author Dave Bingham says. The Classic Route, most likely established by Greg Lowe in the early 1960s, begins on the 100-foot tower’s north face, following a flake to an exciting ramp that’s protected by ancient pins and one bolt. There are no other fixed anchors, but an exposed notch at the end of the ramp provides a decent belay spot. There, climbers commit to a traverse that leads to an unprotected but easy pitch to the summit. “If the climb doesn’t prove enough pucker factor, the free-hanging rap certainly will,” Bingham says. There’s a newly installed top anchor for the descent, but “you still have to perform a mandatory beachedwhale move to get established over the lip.” This spire requires a longer-than-normal approach by City standards—30 to 40 minutes—and sees less traffic than the roadside sport crags, making for a perfect day of isolated climbing.

GUIDEBOOK: City of Rocks Idaho, by Dave Bingham