At Ryan Mountain Trailhead
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East Face of Cave Corridor
Cave Corridor ♦ Entryway to Sheep Pass
Cave Corridor view from King Dome and Hall of Horrors
Trek dates: 2013 Feb 6 & Jul 11 ♦ 2015 Feb 5 ♦ 2016 Sep 3
On this Page
- Ryan Mountain Trailhead
- Cave Corridor
- Cavern Rock
- Grotto Rock
- Junk Clump
Cave Corridor, east side with resident caveman
Cave Corridor, west side
CAVE CORRIDOR AT JOSHUA TREE NATIONAL PARK has four rock-climbing groups, with 17 climbing routes on “Cave Corridor” itself, three more on “Cavern Rock,” one route on “Grotto Rock,” and six indicated for “Junk Clump.”
“Just down the road from Hall of Horrors and Saddle Rocks is this collection of gritty crags very near the Ryan Mountain trailhead. Lots of friction style routes as well as some cracks with a handful of routes being standouts,” explains the Mountainproject.com website that provides extensive research for the rock climbing community.
Park as for the Ryan Mountain trailhead, which is located just north of Hall of Horrors and Saddle Rocks. A short hike south from the large parking lot leads to the formations.
In order to confuse things proper, Cave Corridor is divided nine-eight (routes) into North Cave Rock and South Cave Rock. A rather big corridor, it is formed by the North and South Formation and lies just 100 yards from the spacious parking lot that serves the Ryan Mountain trailhead. The corridor runs pretty much north to south. It is populated by a few mid-sized pine trees along with the usual scrubby oaks and bushy junipers. Routes include (in no particular order): “Unwed Muddlers,” “Lust We Forget,” “Chocolate Chips,” “Shaggy Dog,” “The Sound of Grains Snapping,” “Peanut Brittle,” “Caramel Crunch,” “Banana Splits,” “Rocky Road,” and “Whipped Topping.”
At the northern end of the parking lot can be found Cavern Rock and Grotto Rock (left two shots above), they are one outcrop that has a narrow cavern splitting it in two. Climbs here include “Use a Gun, Go to Jail,” “Enter at Your Own Risk,” and “Wait Until Dark.”
On your right, toward Ryan Mountain and beside the well-maintained trail, is the fourth featurette in this area, unceremoniously titled Junk Clump (right two photos above). The main routes are on its sunny south wall overlooking the trail. After reading Mountainproject’s description, is it any wonder they gave it the junk label: “This rather large but uninteresting formation is home to a small collection of mostly uninspiring routes from 5.4 to 5.9 with Soma (5.8) perhaps the best of the bunch.”
Seems to me if someone dug up a wooden chest full of old but still bright and shiny $20 gold pieces minted in San Francisco buried at its base, all of a sudden-like there would be fewer disparaging words about Junk Clump!
2D Gallery
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North Side
Saddle Rocks in distance
West Side
East Side on Ryan Mtn. Trail
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I am mindful how the Sheep Pass area breathes new life into my conviction there are endless things to discover in Joshua Tree National Park within a few yards from where you park. Take a hour or two investigating Cave Corridor with its tall granite monoliths. You can’t lose. I find it enjoyable to wander about, sit under a pine tree or in the shade of some large overhanging rock and see what I can discover. Thanks to fellow 3D connoisseurs and photographers for your interest in visiting Joshua Tree 3D.
John Murbach
Posted 2016 Sep 20
Updated 2017 Nov 7
