Sinks Canyon and Wild Iris Climbing: One Thanksgiving Trip

Sinks Canyon and Wild Iris Climbing 2022-present

Route:

various

Region: Wyoming
Elev: Sinks Canyon: ~6,500 ft; Wild Iris: ~8,700 ft
Rock type: Sinks Canyon: Limestone, Sandstone, Granite; Wild Iris: Limestone
Type: 
Date(s): November 2022(x2 days)
Partner(s): Nate Arganbright

Sinks Canyon is a premier climbing destination near Lander, Wyoming. Within a few miles, the rock changes from sandstone to limestone, and then to granite as you get closer to The Wind River Range. There are fantastic trad climbs on the sandstone and granite and superb sport climbing on the limestone. The rock quality is generally excellent, and the climbing ranges from 5.6-5.14. You can climb at Sinks year-round, seeking shade in the summer and south-facing walls in the winter.

The nearby Wild Iris is one of the most sublime sport climbing areas in the United States. It is a couple of thousand feet higher elevation than Sinks Canyon, so less of a winter climbing spot (but still can be quite warm on a cold sunny day). The rock here is limestone. The climbs are mostly short and steep, occasionally sharp, and with great movement. There are plenty of routes from 5.9 on up to 5.14.

The first time I climbed at both Sinks Canyon and Wild Iris was over Thanksgiving Weekend 2022. I had never been there before (Nate had climbed at Wild Iris only one day about 16 years previous, and never at Sinks) and it sounded like a great place to climb in the sun on superb rock and avoid the Thanksgiving crowds elsewhere. We stayed at a cozy airbnb near Lander. Unfortunately chilly temperatures and lack of sun caused us to shorten our trip by a day but it was still a great trip. We will be back!

On this page, I give photos from our Thanksgiving trip to Sinks Canyon and Wild Iris. At the bottom of the page, I keep a list of the climbs I've done in these areas.

Photos (Sinks Canyon)

SOME RANDOM PHOTOS FROM  CRAGGING AT SINKS CANYON


More climbing fun!
Date: November 24, 2022 (Thu)
Partner: Nate Arganbright
Climbed at: Sandstone Buttress, Main Wall
First trip to Sinks Canyon: Thanksgiving 2022
For Thanksgiving 2022 weekend, it can be a challenge to find a climbing area that is comfortable, has great climbing, and is not crowded. Nate and I pondered our options and decided that Sinks Canyon near Lander, Wyoming sounded like a good plan. Neither one of us had been there, so we were excited to check it out. When Nate found an affordable airbnb located just a couple of miles outside of Lander and about 7 minutes from Sinks Canyon State Park, it sealed the deal.

We left Boulder/Estes Park on Wednesday after work to drive to Lander (5.5 hours from Boulder). We had booked the airbnb for four nights (Wed-Thu-Fri-Sat) and planned to climb for three days (Thu-Fri-Sat) before driving home on Sunday. The weather looked great for the first two days of our trip but looked pretty darn cold and cloudy for the weekend. So we decided the best plan was to get in as many pitches as we could on Thursday and Friday, and hope for the best for Saturday.

On Thanksgiving Day, we climbed 12 pitches in Sinks Canyon, climbing both on sandstone (at Sandstone Buttress) and limestone (at Main Wall). The high was in the low 40's but we were comfortable in t-shirts. We quite enjoyed the climbing and ambiance. A great day of climbing in the sun. After 12 challenging pitches (11 of the led by Nate-the-climbing-machine), we felt we earned our Thanksgiving dinner!

Below are some photos from the Sinks Canyon day of our Thanksgiving 2022 climbing trip to Sinks Canyon and Wild Iris.

Photos (Wild Iris)

SOME RANDOM PHOTOS FROM  CRAGGING AT WILD IRIS


More climbing fun!
Date: November 25, 2022 (Fri)
Partner: Nate Arganbright
Climbed at: Main Wall
First trip to Wild Iris: Thanksgiving 2022
Fon Friday of our Thanksgiving 2022 trip to Sinks Canyon and Wild Iris, we checked out Wild Iris, where we climbed 8 pitches of excellent limestone at the Main Wall. Again, thought that the climbing and ambiance was superb, and we relished having the place to ourselves on a perfect t-shirt day. Eight pitches of excellent limestone cragging, all led by Nate-the-climbing-machine. We found the rock a bit sharper here than at Sinks, so our fingertips were feeling a bit raw by the end of the day.

On Saturday, we woke up to forecasted cold and cloudy skies (28°F, 74% humidity, cloudy, and a tad breezy...brr...) with a threat of snow in the air. Upon checking the forecast and seeing it would be sunny on Sunday in Estes Park, we decided to drive back home and get in a day of climbing locally. It was disappointing to cut our trip to Sinks/Wild Iris short, but it was still a great couple of days of climbing and hanging out at the cozy airbnb.

Below are some photos from the Wild Iris day of our Thanksgiving 2022 climbing trip to Sinks Canyon and Wild Iris.

List of Climbs I've done at Sinks Canyon & Wild Iris

LIST MAINLY FOR PERSONAL RECORD-KEEPING | DATES I'VE CLIMBED THERE ON SECOND TAB



Previous and Next Adventures

(November 2022: First trip to Sinks Canyon and Wild Iris)

Comments Pertaining to this Page / Trip Report

Useful beta. Updated route information. Corrections. Historical notes. Interesting facts. No fluff please.
Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *