Yosemite Climbs: Free Climbs [Paperback]

Don Reid (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: January 1, 1994

The companion to Yosemite Climbs: Big Walls this book describes more than 2,000 free climbs.

Editorial Reviews

From the Back Cover

The timeless, natural beauty of Yosemite Valley National Park has inspired generations of climbers the world over, and its granite cracks and domes rank among the planet's best. In this volume, and in its companion guide, Yosemite Big Walls, Don Reid gives the rock climber the best, most thorought treatment of the region to date. Yosemite Free Climbs caters to climbers who want to deal more with the chalkbag that the haulbag. Free and mostly free routes are featured; however, long and difficult lines where big wall logistics intercede--as on Southern Bell</i> and <i>Karma</i> on Half Dome, and <i>Escape from Freedom</i> on Mt. Watkins--can be accessed within these pages as well. Detailed topos, cliff photos and accurate route descriptions establish <i>Yosemite Free Climbs</i> as the number one resource for free climbing in Yosemite. Park access, camping and concessions information, along with an illuminating analysis of climbing accidents by ranger John Dill, make this guide indispensible for all climbers venturing into the valley.

Product Details

• Paperback: 432 pages
• Publisher: Chockstone Press; 1st edition (January 1, 1994)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0934641595
• ISBN-13: 978-0934641593
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 6.1 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.5 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,282,873 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Accept No Imitations!, January 9, 2001

By 

"tinypueblo" (Joshua Tree, CA United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Yosemite Climbs: Free Climbs (Paperback)

The most important function of any climbing guide book (in my opinion) is getting you to your selected route. Great topos are vital, but if you can never find the route...what does it matter. Don Reid is a master at both getting you there and great topo beta. Even if it is your first time in the Valley, the book gives such great directions you would be hard pressed to get lost. And, as always, Don is a master topo "artist". Don't accept any cheap substitutes, this is the book to have.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Not much beta but covers almost every climb in the Valley, June 25, 2008

By 

S. Davis (Phoenix, AZ) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Yosemite Climbs: Free Climbs (Paperback)

The Falcon Guide to Yosemite Free Climbs covers an enormous number of climbs. And there are an enormous number of climbs in Yosemite Valley. But it doesn't cover any of them in very much detail. I had difficulty using this book to find my climbs, and I noticed that the Supertopo book gave much more detailed information. However, the Supertopo book was limited to the more popular climbs only.

But having already purchased the Falcon Guide on Amazon, I was stuck with it. I discovered that by using the free driving and hiking maps provided by the park service, I was able to fill in most of the missing gaps. It turns out this book will tell you, for example, which way to walk from the Church Bowl parking lot to the climbing wall, but it won't tell you where the parking lot is. Or in other words, it assumes you already know your way around the Valley.

That said, the climbing walls are so huge, and the park service maps good enough, that this book is adequate for a first timer, though not ideal. Once you have your bearings, the route-finding beta is pretty good. The photos of the walls are very useful. And although it seemed like the written directions were missing detail, they were accurate.

If you are coming from out-of-state to spend a week or two in Yosemite and plan to stay on the trade routes only (like we were), then you would probably be better served with the Supertopo guide. On the other hand, if you live near Yosemite or visit often enough to venture beyond the most popular climbs, then the Falcon Guide would be the better of the 2 books.