West Virginia · Rock climbing · Lansing

Ames Wall

Ames Wall in West Virginia has 22 climbing routes across 13 grades, offering sport and trad climbing.

22 routes
5.6 – 5.13a
Sport · Trad

Is Ames Wall open right now?

No closures listed

The National Park Service lists no closures for New River Gorge National Park and Preserve.

As of · Source: NPS · New River Gorge National Park and Preserve. Agencies don't list every closure — check before you go.

Best time to visit Ames Wall

Best months: April–November. 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° / 23°

  2. Feb

    46° / 25°

  3. Mar

    55° / 31°

  4. Apr

    68° / 40°

  5. May

    75° / 49°

  6. Jun

    81° / 58°

  7. Jul

    84° / 62°

  8. Aug

    83° / 61°

  9. Sep

    78° / 54°

  10. Oct

    68° / 43°

  11. Nov

    56° / 33°

  12. Dec

    46° / 27°

Typical high / low (°F) and days with rain or snow, 1991–2020. Measured at Anstead Hawks Nest Sp, WV, 2.4 mi away at 1,296 ft. This station doesn't record snowfall. Source: NOAA NCEI U.S. Climate Normals 1991–2020.

Ames Wall is a climbing area in New River Gorge National Park and Preserve in West Virginia, managed by the National Park Service. It sits among a cluster of other climbing areas, with Rainbow Ledge Area, Head Wall and Central Bubba all about 0.2 miles away. The area has 22 routes, mostly sport climbing with a few trad options. Grades run from 5.6 up to 5.13a, with the hardest route, A Pocket Leaps Now, at 5.13a. Prickly Bubba is a trad route at 5.6, and Chicks in the woods is a sport route at 5.11a. For comfortable weather, late spring and early fall are the best bets. Typical averages from a nearby weather station show May highs around 75°F and September highs around 78°F, with lows in the 40s and 50s. Hikers can find the Junkyard Area Trail and Hawks Nest Connector Trail about a mile away. Paddlers will find Manns Creek roughly 10 miles off.

Keep exploring — more climbs worth the drive

Rainbow Ledge AreaPhoto: Jarek Tuszyński, CC BY-SA 3.0 (via Wikimedia Commons)

Rainbow Ledge Area

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Central BubbaPhoto: Jarek Tuszyński, CC BY-SA 3.0 (via Wikimedia Commons)

Central Bubba

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Bubba ButtressPhoto: Jarek Tuszyński, CC BY-SA 3.0 (via Wikimedia Commons)

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Beer WallPhoto: Jarek Tuszyński, CC BY-SA 3.0 (via Wikimedia Commons)

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Zealous AreaPhoto: Jarek Tuszyński, CC BY-SA 3.0 (via Wikimedia Commons)

Zealous Area

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Moe AreaPhoto: sbennett1298, CC BY 2.0 (via Flickr)

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Interp BouldersPhoto: sbennett1298, CC BY 2.0 (via Flickr)

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Ronski FeintPhoto: Jarek Tuszyński, CC BY-SA 3.0 (via Wikimedia Commons)

Ronski Feint

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Tuggin' ShackPhoto: sbennett1298, CC BY 2.0 (via Flickr)

Tuggin' Shack

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[Redacted]

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Redacted in West Virginia has 5 climbing routes across 4 grades.