The Pass: A Climber's Guide to Independence Pass and Monitor Rock

About The Pass

The Pass – Independence Pass – offers the finest high-country cragging in the Colorado Rockies. Even though climbing has been documented here since the 1950s, this is the area’s first full-color guidebook. The highly featured granitic rock of the Pass offers almost 1000 routes, from bolted 5.4 slabs, to 5.14 roof cracks, to hundreds of fun-in-the-sun mid-grade climbs. Technical and vertical, overhanging and pumpy, sport, splitter cracks, multi-pitch — all styles are there for you, set in a beautiful subalpine forest below snow-covered peaks.

The main concentration of climbing is near the popular Grottos area 10 miles east of Aspen, but all the nearby climbing is documented, too. The newly opened Gold Butte area just outside of town offers a fun cold-weather option on unique sandstone. On the other side of the Pass, Monitor Rock and the Twin Lakes crags get the full treatment, with lots of never-before-published climbs, including the new long, bolted, multi-pitch journeys that are getting rave reviews. When you’re not climbing there’s great camping and swimming, and mountains to climb. For a more urban experience, you can hit the glitzy bars or tour the art galleries of the legendary town of Aspen, right down the road.

Included

• Up-to-date info on all the popular areas, with over 80 crags and nearly 1000 routes

• Many never-before-published routes and crags

• Gold Butte sandstone (winter rock climbing in Aspen?!)

• Monitor Rock – MANY new routes, and now you can actually find them!

• Full-color beta photos (of course), plus inspiring action photography

• Essays by Lou Dawson, Henry Barber, Molly Bruce, Josh Wharton, Mark Anderson, and more

• Climbing history – meet the star-studded cast that has touched rock here!

• Camping beta, weather tips, and rest-day options to help you get the most out of your visit

About the authors

Jason Brown is a Detroit native and longtime Roaring Fork Valley resident who has spent countless days climbing and new-routing on the Pass. His experience on the testpieces of all styles shines through in the route descriptions.

Mike Schneiter, another Midwest native and longtime Roaring Fork Valley resident, has also tested himself on the steep Pass granite and established new climbs in the area. As founder of Glenwood Climbing Guides he also has guided extensively in the area, logging valuable hours on all the area’s moderate multi-pitch climbs. You’ll appreciate the firsthand descriptions and updated descent beta.

Both authors have young kids, so if you’re visiting the Pass with family, they can relate!