Bishop: climbing in California in the paradise of boulders and highballs

You say “Bishop” and every boulderer's eyes light up. Located halfway between Camp IV and Red Rock, it is definitely one of the most popular places to go bouldering to in winter, also due to the almost surreal beauty of the landscape and the perfection of its boulders. The California climate, often characterized by clear skies and extremely low humidity, makes it possible to climb here in the middle of winter without suffering too much from the cold. In a region with such a favorable climate, the main bouldering area, namely the Buttermilk area, could not but have a perfect exposure, being in full sun as early as 8 a.m.; an oddity for European climbers who have to deal with shaded exposures and such short days that we do just in time to warm up, do two good rounds and pick up the pads.

In Buttermilk Country too, we can find overhanging boulders with incredible shapes

Bishop – a name, many sectors

Bishop is actually the name of the colorful town that refers to the various sectors that this area encloses. Quiet, with great bars and patisseries, shops of all kinds and the inevitable Starbuck’s, it is the perfect base for climbing in the all the surrounding sectors. Local supermarkets and gas stations will allow you to stock up on all sorts of supplies before your days on the rock, giving you the right fuel with pumpkin muffins, chocolate chip cookies and wonderful apple pies. The many accommodation options, usually centrally located in the village, allow you to reach the Buttermilk area within a few minutes' drive, while staying a little further away than areas like Happy Boulder and Sad Boulder, which we recommend you visit anyway. 

Warm up in the sun, surrounded by an amazing landscape

Buttermilk Country: a classic!

Usually you choose to familarise with local climbing in the super classic area of Buttermilk Country, where the iconic highballs made famous by characters like Nina Williams, Timmy Kang and Kevin Jorgenson soar into a postcard landscape. Driving along the Buttermilk Road, you can already feel the immensity of some boulders and the infinite potential of this area.

From the main parking lot, indicated on the guide near the Roadside sector, you can see the GrandMa and GrandPa Peabodys, two impressive structures, where some of the most daring lines in all of Bishop are located: Evilution, Lucid Dreaming and Ambrosia are some of the passages that every boulderer has heard about at least once in his life!

The sectors are followed in a completely linear and homogeneous way, giving you the possibility to move from Grandpa to Mandala, from Iron Man, where we find the almost perfect cross of 6c+, much more in line with our climbing style at the mega launch of Fly Boy.

The hype to try everything is uncontrollable from the first moment you get out of the car: but in fact the style of climbing that we find on the rock of Buttermilk is not too familiar for European climbers who almost always come from gneiss and limestone areas, and it takes a few more days to get used to. Accustomed to climbing on crimps, or more athletic styles with good jugs, we could be traumatized by the impact with the smooth rock and the borderline heights of many of its boulders. 

The smooth patina that characterises this rock is due firstly to its geological history and secondly to the passage of climbers who have made Buttermilk their reference point since the 1940s. The climbing, often very technical and based on pure trust on tiny footholds, requires steel nerves, concentration and good finger strength: most of the lines are on vertical or slightly overhanging walls, sometimes following the more obvious edges of the boulders and giving life, in this case, to a compression style, with heelhooks and power movements. 

The boulders appear as if by magic on a plateau dotted with low vegetation and grassy meadows (greener in spring), where they find their ideal environment in low shrubs accustomed to scarce rainfall, such as sagebrush. These bushes, which look rather dry and arid in winter, deserve all our attention: their protection is essential to preserve the fragile environment in which we all have the privilege of climbing. It is therefore absolutely forbidden to walk off the marked paths, to place crash pads on the vegetation or to enter areas where access is forbidden.

The desert landscape of Volcanic Tableland, Bishop

Buttermilks Outlying areas: Secrets of the Beehive Area and Brown Wall 

If Buttermilk Main is a fairly busy area, but big enough for everyone to find a not too crowded project, the surrounding area hides even wilder and more remote sectors where you will hardly find a lot of boulderers. The Beehive area is one of these sunny and quiet wonders: the walk to the most interesting boulders - about twenty minutes - is enough to discourage climbers already excited by the endless climbing possibilities in the main sectors of Buttermilk, where access is practically nil.

Nevertheless, the area is magnificent and well worth a visit: the beauty of iconic highballs such as Too Big To Flail gives us a different insight into how bouldering can be experienced once you get past the 'no falling from this hold up' barrier. Luckily, there are plenty of other lines with more accessible heights, allowing everyone to spend a day having fun and breathing in the crazy atmosphere of total silence.

As well as simply perfect - and incredibly difficult - lines like the legendary The Swarm, there are many other boulders in this area that should be "easier" and with equally aesthetic moves. As with the rest of the Buttermilk Main area, it is always a good idea to check out the descents before attempting any of these lines.

If you are lucky enough, you might even catch a glimpse of some of the local wildlife, especially at sunset.

The unmistakable profile of the Grandpa Peabody at Buttermilk Main

Volcanic Tableland: Happy Boulder – overhangs and lots of fun!

From the open tableland of Buttermilk Country, where only the snow-capped peaks of the mountain ranges surrounding the area can be discerned on the horizon, we move on to a sector that we perceive as more ‘closed’, literally wedged inside a canyon with a clean cut and full of climbing possibilities. 

The boulders have been developed both on the rocks that have fallen inside the canyon and on the canyon walls themselves, which are almost always overhanging or slightly overhanging, with holes, cracks and dihedral that are a dream for anyone who likes a less ‘old-school’ style of climbing than that of Buttermilk. Both Happy and Sad Boulder are located along canyons of red and well featured rock that create roofs, edges, holes and some incredible slabs.

Fun is guaranteed here, and the number of lines is so great that everybody could spend the whole holiday there. The location of the canyon, which remains protected from the rain by the massifs of the White Mountains on one side and the Sierra Nevada Mountains on the other, means that this area is particularly dry throughout the year. We will therefore find a particularly rocky and arid landscape, devoid of vegetation, with sandy areas with a somewhat desert-like air. 

The canyon's north-facing orientation means you always have one side in the shade and the other in the sun, so you can choose your preferred exposure according to the day's conditions and temperatures. You will certainly find more climbers here than at Secret of the Beehive: the athletic style on overhangs with good holds, the traverses and the almost always more manageable boulder heights make it a popular destination for climbers of all levels.

However, here too we will easily find some highballs, with the added bonus that most of them are less difficult than in Buttermilks, allowing everyone to test themselves by stepping out of their 'comfort zone'. The famous slab of Heavenly Path, the bouldering symbol of the area, masterfully represents the beauty of these 'easy' lines.

The peculiarity of Happy Boulders is that, as you climb along the canyon walls, you have the possibility of toppling over the canyon itself, with the indescribable privilege of embracing with your gaze all the beauty of this enormous crack perfectly split in two.  The rock we find at Happy Boulders is a type of tuff: a type pf rock full of holes, one and two-finger pockets and some jugs.

The imposing and perfectly rounded structures of Buttermilk Main

Some tips!

The bouldering areas of both Buttermilk Country and the Outlying Areas are accessed via dirt roads and bumpy tracks, so it is advisable to hire a car that can cope with this type of terrain. As the leather goes fast on this rock, a day trip to Death Valley is a great way to spend a different day.

Pictures by Claudia Colonia