The Wild Granites. A remote, rugged, and little-known granite area tucked on the south flank of Toiyabe Range in rural central Nevada. The granite itself is unusual for Nevada: large expanses of clean, pale stone rising abruptly out of a desert landscape. The Wild Granites are a true adventure multi-pitch paradise. There are whispers that there are dozens of routes out here, but information on existing lines is sparse, and most of the documented climbs are adventurous multi-pitch trad routes ranging from 5.10 to 5.12c. Sparse information has helped keep the crowds away.
In early 2026, Alex Honnold and Tommy Caldwell explored the Wild Granites. The duo established a first ascent on Toiyabe Fitzroy. Their trip was featured in the
Get a Little Out There with Alex Honnold episode “Wild Wild Granites.” The episode captures the rugged nature of the region and also follows Honnold scaling a vertical bus, wandering through massive sand dunes, and exploring Goldfield.
Link to episode.
I knew about the area before this episode aired, but now I had to go. The sense of adventure was obvious: huge unclimbed walls, total remoteness, and almost no information.
In May 2026 I put up a post on Mountain Project looking for partners for Calaveras Dome in the Tahoe area. I got a few bites and managed to do a couple of climbs on the dome, but then the weather started to get hot. Ira O’Meara-Costello had messaged me about Calaveras but was open to other options, so I threw out the idea of the Wild Granites. He was in.
Not long after Ira and I arrived at the Wild Granites camping area, we met Chris Martinez and his pup Rigsby. Chris has created a nice landscaped camping area complete with solar and Wi-Fi, and is a sort of self-appointed area host and a pretty cool dude. He shared a bunch of beta with us about routes that are not yet published online. I will honor his request to share nothing that is not already on Mountain Project.
Ira and I climbed for three days. On the first day, we climbed
La Roca Más Fina (5.12a, 5p) on Toiyabe Fitzroy, probably the most popular route in the area (since it is well documented on Mountain Project, and also because it is superb). On the second day, inspired to get to the summit of Toiyabe Fitzroy we climbed a link-up of features on the east face of Toiyabe Fitzroy. which I will call
The East Face (5.10 C1 or 5.11, 11p), topping out on both summits; it was indeed an adventure. The third day, we climbed a few short routes at the south end; the rock was pretty gritty and the climbing was not nearly the quality of that experienced on Toiyabe Fitzroy, but it was pretty low stress cragging with a nice setting.
Update: I returned to the Wild Granites a few months later in
August 2026 for a few more routes.
On this page I give a full overlay and pitch-by-pitch photo spread for
La Roca Más Fina (5.12a, 5p). I give a little less info for the other routes we did, just to keep the adventure alive.
