California · Rock climbing · Santa Barbara

Gibraltar Rock

Gibraltar Rock in California has 23 climbing routes with 16 difficulty grades, offering mixed, sport, and trad styles.

Gibraltar RockPhoto: Mountain Mike Johans…, CC BY 3.0 (via Wikimedia Commons)
23 routes
5.6 – 5.12c
Sport · Mixed · Trad

Is Gibraltar Rock open right now?

Alert in the area

The Forest Service lists 2 alerts for Los Padres National Forest.

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

Best time to visit Gibraltar Rock

Best months: October–May. 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

    66° / 36°

    8 wet

  2. Feb

    67° / 36°

    9 wet

  3. Mar

    70° / 38°

    7 wet

  4. Apr

    76° / 41°

    4 wet

  5. May

    80° / 46°

    2 wet

  6. Jun

    88° / 49°

    0 wet

  7. Jul

    94° / 55°

    0 wet

  8. Aug

    96° / 54°

    0 wet

  9. Sep

    91° / 51°

    1 wet

  10. Oct

    83° / 45°

    2 wet

  11. Nov

    73° / 40°

    3 wet

  12. Dec

    64° / 34°

    6 wet

Typical high / low (°F) and days with rain or snow, 1991–2020. Measured at Gibraltar Dam #2, CA, 3.1 mi away at 1,558 ft. The station sits about 1,100 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.

Gibraltar Rock is a climbing area in Rattlesnake Canyon Park, within the Santa Barbara Ranger District of Los Padres National Forest in California. The land is managed as city land, and the park sits within the forest's boundaries. The area is a compact cluster of routes, with Lower Gibraltar and Toxic Waste Wall both about 0.1 mile away. The climbing here runs from trad and mixed styles to sport, with grades ranging from 5.6 up to 5.12c. The Shard, a sport route at 5.12c, and Scorpion Exile, a sport route at 5.10a, are among the named options. Spring and fall are the most comfortable times to visit. Typical averages from a nearby weather station show May highs around 80°F and October highs around 83°F, while July and August average in the mid-90s. That station sits about 1,000 feet lower than the park, so temperatures on the rock run cooler. The Rattlesnake Connector Trail and West Fork Cold Spring are both about 0.9 mile away. Upper Oso Campground is roughly 7 miles off, and Sage Hill offers saltwater fishing about 7.6 miles away.

Routes (23)

Pseudomania Area(1)

Pseudomania5.11-

Keep exploring — more climbs worth the drive

Lower GibraltarPhoto: Mountain Mike Johans…, CC BY 3.0 (via Wikimedia Commons)

Lower Gibraltar

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Cold Springs DomePhoto: Mountain Mike Johans…, CC BY 3.0 (via Wikimedia Commons)

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