Arizona · Rock climbing · Cochise · Near Whetstone

Whale Dome

8 routes
5.7+ – 5.11-
Trad · Mixed
Oct–Apr
best months

Is Whale Dome open right now?

Alert in the area

The Forest Service lists 3 alerts for Coronado National Forest.

As of · Source: USFS · Coronado National Forest. Agencies don't list every closure — check before you go.

Whale Dome is a climbing area in Arizona's Coronado National Forest, within the Douglas Ranger District. The Forest Service manages the land, and the area sits among a cluster of other climbing spots, with Westworld Dome about 0.3 miles away and Paleface Slab and The Boulder and Main Wall each about 0.4 miles off. Spring and fall are the most comfortable times to visit. Typical averages from the Tombstone weather station, about 16 miles away and roughly 1,600 feet below the dome, show April highs near 79°F and October highs near 81°F, while June averages climb to about 96°F and July and August bring the most wet days, around 10 each month. The dome's routes run from trad in the low 5.7s up to the 5.11- of Call Me Ishmael. Seven of the eight routes are trad, and Blood Brother, at 5.10b/c, is one of the harder options. South Face, the oldest route, was first climbed by Kipp Metzger and Eileen Keller in 1987. Nearby, Cochise Stronghold offers camping about 2 miles away, as does Shaw House. The Sky Islands Traverse hike and the Wasteland Approach Trail are also about 2 miles off.

Around this trail

Add any of these when you start a trip
  • Sleep close

    Shaw House

    Campground

    The next 8 weekends are full on Recreation.gov
  • Eat after

    Wendy's

    Fast food

    Open after 6
  • If it rains

    O.K. Corral

    Museum

    Museum · 16 mi from Whetstone

    Livery and horse corral in Tombstone, Arizona (1879-1888)

Places © OpenStreetMap contributors

More in Whetstone
  • Best time to go · Oct–Apr

    Best time to visit Whale Dome

    Best months: October–April. Best months have typical highs of 55–85 °F, lows of 30 °F or warmer (32 °F where the station doesn't record snow), at most one snowy day and no more than 12 wet days.

    1. Jan

      62° / 38°

      4 wet

    2. Feb

      64° / 40°

      4 wet

    3. Mar

      71° / 44°

      3 wet

    4. Apr

      79° / 49°

      1 wet

    5. May

      87° / 57°

      1 wet

    6. Jun

      96° / 66°

      3 wet

    7. Jul

      94° / 68°

      10 wet

    8. Aug

      92° / 67°

      10 wet

    9. Sep

      89° / 64°

      6 wet

    10. Oct

      81° / 54°

      3 wet

    11. Nov

      70° / 45°

      3 wet

    12. Dec

      61° / 38°

      4 wet

    Typical high / low (°F) and days with rain or snow, 1991–2020. Measured at Tombstone, AZ, 16.3 mi away at 4,659 ft. The station sits about 1,600 ft lower than this place, so expect it a little cooler here. This station doesn't record snowfall. Source: NOAA NCEI U.S. Climate Normals 1991–2020.

Routes (8)

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The Boulder and Main WallPhoto: StellarD, CC BY-SA 4.0 (via Wikimedia Commons)

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