At Live Oak Picnic Area
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(2D images first. 3D Galleries further down the page will require red–cyan glasses to see the full 3D effect. Click Photos to Enlarge.)
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- Live Oak Picnic Area and the Pope’s Hat
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- Rare hybrid live oak, early spring greening
On this page
- Pope’s Hat
- Climbing Formations, West Side
- Climbing Formations, South Side
- Hilltop Scenery
See also
See Elliot Koeppel’s Live Oak and Ivanpah Tanks page (he will be most tankful).
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- Pope’s Hat, west side routes
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- Pope’s Hat, south side routes
The Pope’s Acura
Trek dates: 2013 Apr 1 and 2015 Sep 16
THE POPE’S HAT CAN BE FOUND across Park Boulevard from The Wedge area and about a mile east of the entrance to Jumbo Rocks Campground. (See The Wedge 3D Gallery HERE.)
There are over 30 named rock climbs on this large inselberg and surrounding boulders situated at Live Oak Picnic Area. The major climbs face west and south. The iconic Pope’s Hat includes “Pope’s Hat,” “Nincompope,” “Pope on a Rope,” “Desert Storm,” “Pope and Circumstances,” and “Is the Pope Catholic?”
Inquisition Rock, detail
The Pope’s Cape is a block/formation just north of the Pope’s Hat and includes the popular “The Popemobile” and “Papal Smear.” Close by these are The Pope Boulders, including The Slammer, Tidy Bowl, Papal Pleaser, and Oh God! Lastly, on this side, a large, low-angled, north-facing rock south of The Pope’s Hat known as Inquisition Rock. It hosts two relatively easy climbs “Westward Ho!” and “Funky Gunkies.”
On the east side, scattered throughout the picnic area and southward are Abbey Rock, Perjury Rock, and the tall Whispering Wall. This latter is a wide, south-facing wall indicated on the second illustration above that can be found immediately east of the Pope’s Hat. Climbs on The Whispering Wall include “Stemski,” “Jeepers Leepers,” “My 3 Friends,” “Indian Garden,” “More Crazy Than Lazy,” “Mother Board Breakdown” (a popular climb apparently by the 3-star rating) and finally “Charlotte’s Web.”
Below, we illustrate Creeper Rocks, 500 yards from of The Whispering Wall group and easily accessible from the east side parking circle and picnic tables. It includes “Finger Locking Good,” “Irie Heights,” “Cadillac Desert,” “Sunday Afternoon,” and “Route Canal.” According to the author of the http://www.mountainproject.com website, “The Creeper Rocks offer a small number of mostly mediocre routes with the exception being Irie Heights (5.10d) and Cadillac Desert (5.11b).”
Creeper Rocks
LIVE OAK PICNIC AREA & THE POPE’S HAT FROM PARK BLVD.
THE WEDGE AREA FROM LIVE OAK
THE HEN HOUSE FROM POPE’S HAT
The Hen House, back left
THE POPE’S MANY HATS ♦ HERE ARE A FEW
2D Pope’s Hat West Face
Click images to enlarge. 1080p resolution. Or Windows users, right-click and choose SAVE LINK AS. 3D Anaglyph Slideshow follows.
2D South and East Side
- Use glasses to view 3D Anaglyphs
- Click to Enlarge Photos
3D Anaglyph Gallery
Enjoy these and download as many of the 3D Anaglyph or 3D Half Side-by-Side photographs as you wish. Note: 3D H-SBS images should only be saved if you have access to a 3D TV.
3D Half Side-by-Side Gallery
Suitable for 3D TV viewing. Half Side-by-Sides avoid the minor Anaglyph anomalies that can occur. Click images to enlarge. 1080p resolution. Or Windows users, right-click and choose SAVE LINK AS.
Pope, Junior’s hat
Jeeper’s creepers this was a fantastic area within Joshua Tree National Park to take 3D photos. So many interesting angles. Endless balanced- or strange-shaped rocks. Strategically placed yuccas or small Joshua trees which can be used for framing. Close-ups; long distant panoramas; a bit of everything which makes it all worthwhile. I hope that you enjoyed visiting the Pope’s Hat, and that you will tip your hat to me.
John Murbach
Temple City, California
Posted 2016 Mar 18
Updated 2017 Nov 4
