West Virginia · Rock climbing · Ames

Zealous Area

Zealous Area in West Virginia has 8 traditional climbing routes across 7 grades.

Zealous AreaPhoto: Jarek Tuszyński, CC BY-SA 3.0 (via Wikimedia Commons)
8 routes
5.7 – 5.10d
Trad

Is Zealous Area 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 Zealous Area

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, 3.2 mi away at 1,296 ft. This station doesn't record snowfall. Source: NOAA NCEI U.S. Climate Normals 1991–2020.

Zealous Area is a climbing area in New River Gorge National Park and Preserve in West Virginia, managed by the National Park Service. It sits within the park's network of climbing spots, and Junkyard Cave and Junkyard Wall are both about 0.1 mile away, making this a compact cluster of crags. The area is known for its trad routes, with eight listed in total. The grades run from 5.7 to 5.10d, and the hardest of them is Zealous, a 5.10d first ascended by Cal Swoager and Bruce McClellan in 1984. Other routes include Chasing Spiders at 5.7 and Faith Crack at 5.10c. For timing, late spring and early fall are the most comfortable. 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. The Junkyard Area Trail and the Hawks Nest Connector Trail are both within a third of a mile, and the Burnwood Trail Stop 8: Decomposition is about half a mile away. Paddlers can find Manns Creek roughly 9 miles off.

Routes (8)

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