Love Shack Area

Short, steep wall in a bend in the river about 5 minutes' walk in past the Gateway area (on the trail toward The Sponge). Find it by NOT crossing the first, long wooden-plank bridge across the river, but walking straight for about 50 feet instead, and looking up on your left. The river runs up against the base of the routes as it turns hard right, the climbs take you right over the water. Bolted for stick-clipping first bolt, which you definitely want to do. A fall before clipping would drop you right into shallow, rocky water, and could result in serious injury. I'd also recommend bringing a tarp, 2-3 clamps, and an extra stick clip (or another long, straight pole to span the river), as you'll have to rig a method of keeping your rope out of the water when you pull it between burns. "Is it worth all that trouble?," you may ask. In my opinion, the answer is definitely YES, and then some. If you climb at the mid-5.12 level and like short, bouldery routes, these are some of the best in NM. Also, the natural surroundings are phenomenally beautiful.

Added bonus: The middle two 5.12 routes, Happy Entrails and Death Grip , can be climbed in fairly heavy rain as they are steep enough to stay dry. However, the river becomes a bit more of an issue, as it tends to swell when it rains hard.

For many years there were only 2 bolted routes, both 5.12: Happy Entrails and Death Grip. However, more recent development has added three 5.9s, a few 5.10s and two 5.12 routes.