Welcome to Taylor Canyon

City:	Gunnison	State:	US-Colorado
Size:	Years	Style:	Mixed
Season:	Spring-Fall	Difficulty:	Intermediate

Overview

Another rock in Taylor Canyon

Taylor Canyon (known by the locals as Harmels, for the ranch near the First Buttress) is a favorite in and around Crested Butte. The climbing is mostly traditional. Routes are usually under three pitches, but there are a lot of them of that length as well as single pitch. The rock is high quality granite in most places. There is a Kyak/Raft/Climbing guide shop also right next to the the First Buttress. A number of the climbs are runout and the grades are known to be pretty stiff (some might say sand-bagged). Consider that Ottos route on Independance Monument is a "5.8" and it has chopped steps, while Left Hand Crack is a "5.8+" and I defy anyone to get such an awkward move on the first try.

How to get there

From Gunnison, go north on highway 135 for about 10 miles. At the small town of Almont, turn right and head up toward Taylor resevoir. After another ten miles or so, you will come to Harmels Ranch. Immediatly after this will be a climbing/kyaking guiding outfit. The First Buttress is obvious (very). Park on your left just after the Kayak outfit. Note, you will cross the Taylor river once, if you pass Harmels ranch and then cross the river again, you have gone too far...

Map of Taylor Canyon