California · Rock climbing · Desert Hot Springs

Upper Freeway Wall

Upper Freeway Wall in California has 13 climbing routes across 10 grades, offering mixed, sport, and trad styles.

Photo: cifraser1, CC BY 2.0 (via Flickr)

13 routes

5.5 – 5.10c/d

Trad · Mixed · Sport

Is Upper Freeway Wall open right now?

Alert in the area

The National Park Service lists 3 alerts for Joshua Tree National Park.

Partial Trail Closure of West Side Loop
Park alert covering Joshua Tree National Park · NPS · Joshua Tree National Park
Inaccurate Third-Party Apps
Park alert covering Joshua Tree National Park · NPS · Joshua Tree National Park
Oasis of Mara Trail Partial Closure
Park alert covering Joshua Tree National Park · NPS · Joshua Tree National Park

As of Oct 24, 7:30 pm PDT · Source: NPS · Joshua Tree National Park. Agencies don't list every closure — check before you go.

Best time to visit Upper Freeway Wall

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.

Jan
58° / 38°
4 wet
Feb
61° / 39°
3 wet
Mar
67° / 40°
3 wet
Apr
73° / 46°
2 wet
May
82° / 52°
1 wet
Jun
91° / 59°
0 wet
Jul
96° / 66°
2 wet
Aug
96° / 68°
2 wet
Sep
89° / 60°
2 wet
Oct
80° / 50°
1 wet
Nov
66° / 41°
2 wet
Dec
58° / 34°
4 wet

Typical high / low (°F) and days with rain or snow, 1991–2020. Measured at Yucca Valley, CA, 14 mi away at 3,249 ft. The station sits about 900 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.

Upper Freeway Wall is a climbing area in Joshua Tree National Park in California, managed by the National Park Service. It sits among a cluster of other climbing spots, including Tiny Tots Rock, Copenhagen Wall and Hemingway Buttress, all about 0.1 mile away. The Quail Springs Historic Trail starts about 0.2 mile off, and the park charges a fee for entry. Spring and fall are the most comfortable times to climb. Typical averages from a nearby weather station in Yucca Valley show April highs around 73°F and October highs around 80°F, while July and August average about 96°F. The wall holds 13 routes, with trad climbing making up most of them. The hardest is The Talking Fish at 5.10c/d. Freeway, a trad route at 5.7, was first climbed by John Wolfe and Chris Gonzalez in 1974. MetroLink, a sport route at 5.10a, was done by Chris Miller in 1999. Nearby, Sheep Pass Group campground lies about 3.9 miles away.