New Mexico · Rock climbing · Carson

Vista Verde Crag

Vista Verde Crag in New Mexico has 7 climbing routes across 6 grades, offering sport and trad styles.

7 routes
5.9 – 5.12
Sport · Trad

Best time to visit Vista Verde Crag

Best months: May–June and August–October. 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

    42° / 12°

    3 wet

  2. Feb

    46° / 19°

    3 wet

  3. Mar

    55° / 25°

    4 wet

  4. Apr

    63° / 31°

    4 wet

  5. May

    73° / 37°

    5 wet

  6. Jun

    84° / 47°

    5 wet

  7. Jul

    87° / 53°

    8 wet

  8. Aug

    84° / 51°

    10 wet

  9. Sep

    78° / 45°

    6 wet

  10. Oct

    67° / 32°

    5 wet

  11. Nov

    53° / 22°

    4 wet

  12. Dec

    42° / 14°

    4 wet

Typical high / low (°F) and days with rain or snow, 1991–2020. Measured at Taos, NM, 9 mi away at 6,965 ft. This station doesn't record snowfall. Source: NOAA NCEI U.S. Climate Normals 1991–2020.

Vista Verde Crag is a climbing area on Bureau of Land Management land within the Taos Field Office in New Mexico, about 9 miles from the Taos weather station. It sits among several other climbing spots and trails, including Gold Rush Wall, Bat Cave and Wayne Manor, all about 0.3 miles away, and the Vista Verde Trail, so it pairs easily with a longer outing. The climbing here is a mix of sport and trad routes, with sport routes making up the bulk of the offerings. There are seven routes in total, graded from 5.9 to 5.12 on the YDS scale. A few stand out: Home by 5 is a trad route at 5.9, Sage Warrior is a trad route at 5.10, and Aggravated Basalt is a sport route at 5.12. For timing, late spring and early fall are the most comfortable windows. Typical averages from the nearby Taos weather station run to highs around 73°F in May and 78°F in September, with summer highs reaching the mid-80s. Winter is much colder, with January lows near 12°F.