The Rainbow Wall is the location of most of the big wall routes in Red Rocks.
The Original Route, which
climbs the huge corner in the center of the wall, is one of the most sought-after routes of Red Rocks. The route boasts clean rock; sustained, technical climbing; corner after steep corner of stems, locks, and intricate face sequences; generally good gear; and an incredible position and view. The route goes free at 5.12a. To add to the appeal and amenability of the route, it can be climbed with a light rack and a single rope, has bolted belays, and the cruxes are short and well-protected. The wall is relatively north-facing, so
The Original Route is most comfortable during a stretch of warm weather. The wall is also guarded by a bit of a hike, adding to the serene nature of the climb.
The Rainbow Wall occupies a historical niche. When Joe Herbst and Larry Hamilton climbed the wall in 1973, as an impressive free ascent, it was before almost every other serious route in the area. In fact, it was before most of the small routes too. In the ensuing years, the route saw many free attempts, but it was well into the next decade before anyone was successful. Due to its difficulty as a free route, the route became a popular aid route. During the free ascent in the mid '90's, 40-some-odd bolts were added to the climb. Shortly thereafter all the bolts were chopped. Since then a handful of protection bolts have been replaced as well as bolted belays. The many patched and unpatched bolt holes, old relic bolts, and pin scars on the route betray its history. However, were it not for the scars from bashing pins, the route probably wouldn't go free at all.
The Original Route on Rainbow Wall had long been on my to-climb list. In Spring 2025, I found myself on an impromptu climbing road trip with my friend Nate Beckwith. [Funny story: I had left my home in Estes Park on what I planned to just be three days in the Creek before returning home. It ended up being a six week climbing road trip involving sandstone splitters in
Indian Creek, the uber-classic
Moonlight Buttress in Zion; the steep limestone of
Lime Kiln Canyon; the renowned overhanging limestone at
Clear Light Cave; big routes in Red Rocks like Rainbow Wall (this page) and
Resolution Arete and
Texas Hold'Em as well as
several days of sport climbing in Calico Hills and Calico Basin; and then passed back through Zion to wade/hike
The Narrows and climb
Shune's Buttress.] Nate's plan for the spring was to get strong by hitting various sport climbing areas. My plan was to climb big routes. So we worked out a deal - I would join him sport climbing as long as we threw a big route into the schedule on occasion. When we found ourselves in Red Rocks, naturally
The Original Route on Rainbow Wall popped into mind as our next big route option. Nate had climbed it once before (in 2013 or so, onsight including leading the crux pitches), and was willing to climb it again.
We had a blast. Nate led the first 11 pitches, and I led the final two to the top. We climbed in fix-and-follow method. We hauled a small haul bag with our food, water, and a belay puffy (which we used a couple of times because it was there, but could have done without, somewhat unusual for a Rainbow Wall ascent, since the wall is known to be a bit chilly even on hot days). For the most part we freed the route, except for an occasional hard move here and there. I was impressed with the quality of the rock and the engaging technical quality of the climbing. Thanks Nate for climbing this route again!
The following page gives a route overlay, time stats, and photos from our climb.
