Beacon Rock

Beacon Rock Canyoneering Canyoning Caving

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‌	Difficulty:‌POI 4A I (v4a1 I) Raps:‌1, max ↨800ft Metric Overall: 2h  ⟷1mi Approach:  ↑650ft No Red Tape:‌ Shuttle:‌ Vehicle:Passenger
Location:	45.6289, -122.0215
Condition Reports:
Weather:
Best season:	All year winter spring summer fall Dec Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov
Regions:	North America United States Pacific Northwest  Oregon Washington Columbia River Gorge  Washington Side

http://www.mountainproject.com/v/beacon-rock/105789001,http://summitpost.org/southeast-face/158766,http://cascadeclimbers.com/forum/ubbthreads.php?ubb=showflat&Number=1113351,http://cascadeclimbers.com/forum/ubbthreads.php?ubb=showflat&Number=1115593,http://www.washingtonclimbers.org/Climbing/beacon.htm,http://www.portlandhikersfieldguide.org/wiki/Beacon_Rock_Hike,http://www.parks.wa.gov/474/Beacon-Rock

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Welcome! Canyons in the Pacific Northwest can be different from those you might be used to. Be ready for unlinked bolts, retrievable traverse lines, and challenging aquatic environments. For more on local practices, and the best way to get started in the region, check out the WCC Safety page. Unlinked Bolts - groups should be comfortable rigging unlinked bolts, either temporarily linking them for all but the last person, or using a passive redundancy method. Most importantly, if you find two bolts side by side that are unlinked, do not add webbing to them. Linking bolts designed to be unlinked will likely cause damage during seasonal floods. Traverse Lines - many canyons are rigged to allow traverse line access to an exposed anchor station. This should be done using self-belay or team belay techniques. Do not leave fixed lines in the canyons. Challenging Environments - the highly aquatic nature of PNW canyons can surprise many. Cold temperatures, slippery rocks, loud waterfalls, and strong currents all lead to unexpected problems. Do not underestimate the need for strong team work and technical proficiency. Belays are frequently not possible. Unattended gear will sink or float away. Sliding and jumping is the cause of most major injuries, so it's critical to effectively communicating water depth & submerged hazards.

Introduction

Basaltic rock dome near the Columbia River. This is a very popular rock climbing site, with routes that go from the base all the way to the top. There is also an easy 1 mile hiking trail that uses multiple stairs, ledges and bridges to climb to the top of the rock. Going here just to rappel is a bit goofy.

Approach

Park at the turnout near the bathrooms at the base of the dome. From here several hiking trails extend around and up the Beacon rock. Canyoneers will want to hike to the top of the rock and rappel down from there. Rock climbers will want to climb to the top and then use the trail to come back down. Hikers can enjoy the easy but spectacular hike up to the top.

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Descent

There are multiple anchors installed on established rock climbing routes, their locations are documented on rock climbing books and some rock climbing websites (see beta section). A detailed Rock Climbing Routes Map can be purchased for $5 from http://www.portlandrockclimbs.com/.

Some basic safety tips for this descent:

• Set rappel as single strand with releasable block to give more rope if needed (see Figure_8_block)
• Slowly creep the rope as people are rappeling to avoid focal abrasion from rock edges (basalt rocks are sharp)
• For first man down, tie a big knot at the end of rope to avoid risk of rappeling off the end
• First man down should be ready to ascend if he missed an established anchor or reached the end of your rope
• Once first man down finds the next anchor, he should tie the end of the rope to the anchor to secure the rappel for rest of team

The descent is basically a multistage 650ft-800ft rappel, depending on what face you choose:

• NorthEast face: almost completely vertical, likely to require cams, pitons or bolts.
• NorthWest face: mostly vertical but with some ledges and trees suitable for natural anchors.
• SouthWest face: mostly sloped with abundance of trees and rock platforms for natural anchors.

Location Map

North face of Beacon Rock as seen from Little Beacon Rock

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  NorthEast face
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  NorthWest face
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  SouthWest face

Exit

Once down at the bottom just walk back to the car.

Red tape

An $10/day or $30/year Adventure Pass is required to park in the area.

State Park rules dictate to use "earth colored" webbing for any permanent anchors and to request a special permit if you are going to install bolts.

As of October 2014, it seems the NorthEast face of Beacon Rock may be closed to rock climbing but the SouthWest and NorthWest sides are open.

Beta sites

• Rock Climbing Routes
• SummitPost.org  :
• SouthEast Face: Jill Thrill Variation
• SouthEast Face: Right Gull Vulcan's Variation
• Washington Climbers
• Portland Hiker's Field Guide
• State Park Website

Background

On July 24 2011 Nathan Turner died while rappeling down Jill's Thrill route. He was a very experienced climber. More information at:

• American Alpine Club
• Columbian News