Staunton State Park: Climbing Accessibility and more

In August, I had the opportunity to attend Adaptive Recreation Days put on by Staunton State Park (more on that later), which gave me a great excuse to finally climb the many crags in the area. For those who are unfamiliar, Staunton State Park is located about 45 min west of Denver and is leading the way for our Colorado State Park’s system in adaptive opportunities. (I spoke about their track chair program and accessible trails in a previous blog.) I was so excited to explore the park more myself, and really focus on the accessibility of their climbing crags. I took my husband and my dog along for the ride.

(Photo Credit Jordan Williams)

We had never climbed at Staunton before and chose Staunton Rocks, specifically the Pooka, as it was a shorter approach and has many moderate level routes. For a Sunday morning, it was quite busy so I would recommend getting their earlier and also bringing some earplugs to dampen the sound if you have noise sensitivity. Because of the area’s popularity, be prepared for waiting on the weekends for popular routes. That being said, there are a LOT of climbing routes here so we were able to find a spot a little away from everyone still in my climbing level that had some shade. Perfection.

For those of you interested in climbing outside but not knowing where to start, I am going to explain the research I do before going to the park to make sure I am on a safe route. It is important to limit your risk when climbing, therefore I always look up specific information prior to leaving the house including directions to the crag, trail information (length, width, incline, potential obstacles), level of routes, equipment needed (number of quickdraws, trad equipment, anchor types), sun exposure, and quality of the belay area (seen in pictures usually). There are two ways to do this for Staunton State Park. My go to app is Mountain Project, a free forum that includes all of this essential information and more beta (climbing slang for tips/tricks). I love to start at the map view to get an idea of the climbing in the area before I do a deep dive into each section. There is also a Staunton State Park guidebook created by Dave and Lisa Montgomery for purchase that provides more detailed information with pictures that can help decipher routes on the walls. I know this can all be intimidating at first, and I encourage you to reach out to a friend with more experience to take you outside at the start. I have found so much joy exploring the outdoors in this way and I hope you all get the chance to as well.

(Photo credit: Jordan Williams)

I discovered that Staunton Rocks climbing area is not very accessible with a steep incline, rocky and uneven trail, and many obstacles to maneuver around to access the belay area. To use the ski system to measure this route, I would give it a BLACK (advanced) rating. However, I had spoken with Kristin Waltz, Track Chair Manager for Staunton State Park, and she had mentioned that they worked on a more accessible climbing spot called Campground Rock. This is not on Mountain Project as they use it more as an event space for adaptive climbing groups. You will take Staunton Ranch Trail for about 0.25 miles from the Meadow Parking Lot on a wide trail with a gentler grade and significantly less obstacles (rocks, tree roots). Kristin mentioned that they have used their Track Chairs with adaptive climbing groups on this trail so that everyone can enjoy climbing outside. There are anchors to set up a few top ropes if you hike a bit up on the back side of the rock, however you cannot reach that area in a wheelchair. I especially appreciated the benches that are set up at the belay spot with some shade. I think this would be a great spot for a beginner, but the routes are quite short, so they may not be as challenging for some climbers.

(Photo credit: Jordan Williams) View from the top of Campground Rock

Staunton State Park is committed to expanding their accessible recreation opportunities, and I know options will increase. I would like to repeat that not every trail HAS to be wheelchair friendly. Accessible trails can look very different for each person. Ranger Mike LeFever provided some advanced options in the park where a Track Chair could make it partway up the trail reducing the overall effort needed including the Pooka/Kings Landing (where I was climbing), The Whistle Pig, and Hemingway Wall at the Staunton Rocks area or The Raven off the Mason Creek Trail. The rangers at the park are very accommodating, and encourage the community to reach out to them so that they can work with you to access crags - whether that be using a Track Chair or getting special road access.

When it comes to trail access, I support a ski model of rating trails where there are clear standards for each rating based on specific trail characteristics. These standards should be free and easy to access for everyone, as I feel like I personally have to hunt down this information most of the time. I would love to see CPW commit funding and resources to developing some more interesting and accessible climbing options, and I believe Staunton State Park is a great place to start. I hope you get out and climb/explore the park before it gets too cold!