Weekend Rock: Arizona : Trad and Sport Routes from 5. 0 To 5. 10a

* More than 230 trad and sport climbs in Arizona from 5.0 to 5.10a

* Destination chart lists climbing season, climbing type, drive time, and approach times

* Topo maps or photos with route overlays for most routes

* Climbs indexed by star rating, difficulty, and more



Whether you are an Arizona climber who wants to get out for the weekend or a visiting climber seeking winter sun, this guide will help you make the most of your time on the rock. Most approaches are short, drive times from Flagstaff, Phoenix, and Tucson are noted, and climbs range from a few minutes to a full day. Even better, these routes have been selected for quality of experience, rated on a three-star system.



Ten major destinations are covered: Dragoon Mountains, Oak Creek Overlook, Granite Mountain, Pinnacle Peak, Jacks Canyon, Queen Creek, McDowell Mountains, Sedona, Mount Lemmon, and Thumb Butte .



Multi-pitch granite cracks and slabs, pocketed sport climbs on welded tuff and limestone, hand-friendly basalt cracks and corners, and soaring sandstone spires provide trad and sport climbers with all the variety the sport has to offer. Climbing destinations at elevations as low as 3000 feet and as high as 7000 feet provide escape from winter chill and sanctuary from summer heat. This fantastic climbing unfolds at locations easily accessible from urban areas, yet a world away from the rat race. And it's all enjoyed in a landscape as diverse as it is beautiful: serene pine forests, flower-studded oak woodlands, and saguaro-strewn deserts.

Veteran rock climber LON ABBOTT is a geology professor at Prescott College. His studies in geology have taken him from the remote mountain peaks of Papua New Guinea to the bottom of a 15,000-foot oceanic trench near Costa Rica. Lon's twin passions for teaching and outdoor activities led to this current faculty position as a member of the Environmental Studies program. He teaches a full range of geology courses, most of which include hiking or backpacking trips to examine the geologic wonders of the Southwest and the Rockies. Lon's research has been published in a variety of scientific journals, including Nature, Tectonics, and Journal of Sedimentary Research, and he has written an article about the geology of rock climbing holds for Rock & Ice.