Dark Side Dome
Dark Side Dome in California offers 12 climbing routes with mixed, sport, and trad styles.
- 12 routes
- 5.5 – 5.11c
- Trad · Mixed · Sport
Is Dark Side Dome open right now?
No closures listed
The National Park Service lists no closures for Yosemite National Park.
As of · Source: NPS · Yosemite National Park. Agencies don't list every closure — check before you go.
Best time to visit Dark Side Dome
Best months: June–September. 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.
Jan
41° / 13°
Feb
38° / 12°
Mar
42° / 15°
Apr
45° / 22°
May
54° / 27°
Jun
65° / 33°
Jul
71° / 38°
Aug
70° / 36°
Sep
65° / 32°
Oct
57° / 26°
Nov
47° / 20°
Dec
40° / 12°
Typical high / low (°F) and days with rain or snow, 1991–2020. Measured at Tuolumne Meadows Rs, CA, 4.8 mi away at 8,694 ft. This station doesn't record snowfall. Source: NOAA NCEI U.S. Climate Normals 1991–2020.
Dark Side Dome is a climbing area in Yosemite National Park, within the Yosemite Wilderness, on land managed by the National Park Service. It sits in the high country of the park, and a fee is charged for access. Summer is the most comfortable time to visit. Typical averages from a nearby weather station at Tuolumne Meadows show July highs around 71°F with lows near 38°F, while winter highs stay in the low 40s and lows drop to about 12°F. Several other climbing areas lie close by, including the Daff Area about 0.4 miles away and the Western Front at roughly 0.9 miles. The Whizz Domes and the North Face of the Lamb are each about a mile off. For a hike, the Tenaya Lake Trail starts about 1.1 miles away.
Routes (12)
Facts about this crag
Keep exploring — more climbs worth the drive
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Photo: Jarek Tuszyński, CC BY 4.0 (via Wikimedia Commons)Western Front
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5 trad climbing routes on North Face of the Lamb in California.
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Photo: Jarek Tuszyński, CC BY 4.0 (via Wikimedia Commons)South Flank
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Photo: jfdervin, CC BY-SA 2.0 (via Flickr)West Face
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Photo: jfdervin, CC BY-SA 2.0 (via Flickr)East Cottage Dome (aka Erratic Dome)
~2 min drive
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