Critic's Choice
Critic's Choice in Utah has 38 climbing routes across 13 grades, offering sport and trad options.
- 38 routes
- 5.9 – 5.13a
- Trad · Sport
Best time to visit Critic's Choice
Best months: March–May and September–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.
Jan
42° / 17°
4 wet · 2 snow
Feb
49° / 23°
4 wet · 1 snow
Mar
59° / 30°
5 wet · 1 snow
Apr
67° / 36°
5 wet
May
77° / 46°
4 wet
Jun
89° / 56°
3 wet
Jul
95° / 63°
5 wet
Aug
92° / 61°
6 wet
Sep
84° / 51°
5 wet
Oct
70° / 38°
5 wet
Nov
55° / 26°
4 wet · 1 snow
Dec
42° / 18°
4 wet · 2 snow
Typical high / low (°F) and days with rain or snow, 1991–2020. Measured at Canyonlands-The Needles, UT, 12.7 mi away at 4,906 ft. The station sits about 1,100 ft lower than this place, so expect it a little cooler here. Source: NOAA NCEI U.S. Climate Normals 1991–2020.
Critic's Choice is a climbing area in Utah on Bureau of Land Management land within the Monticello Field Office. It sits among several other climbing areas, with Sparks Wall about 1.3 miles away and Sabbatical Wall about 1.6 miles away. The area has 39 routes, mostly trad with one sport route. The grades run from 5.9- up to 5.13-, with the median around 5.10+. Among the named routes are Short and Stout (5.9-), Ed's World (5.10-), and Mr. Bad News (5.13-). Spring and fall are the most comfortable times to go. Typical averages from a nearby weather station show May highs around 77°F and October highs around 70°F, while July averages about 95°F. That station sits roughly 1,100 feet lower than the area, so temperatures here run cooler.
Routes (38)
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