Climbing Forecast › Black Canyon › Black Canyon of the Gunnison

BLACK CANYON · GNEISS · bird ban

Black Canyon of the Gunnison climbing conditions

Good — dry and climbable

Right now

Temp57°F
Wind7 mph
Gusts11 mph
Humidity20.2%
Rain 48hdry
Last rainNone recent

Assessment

No recent rain
North American monsoon — afternoon thunderstorm risk
Good friction temperature range for gneiss
Pegmatite bands cutting the gneiss are shattered and flaky in places — test suspect blocks and beware of pulled crystals on the pink bands
North American monsoon — afternoon thunderstorms likely on high peaks; start early and be off summits before noon

7-day forecast

Scroll through each day — hourly detail is shown inline.

Today Thursday 10 September
Good
Temp59°F
Raindry
Wind6 mph
Gusts11 mph
Humidity19%
No recent rainNorth American monsoon — afternoon thunderstorm risk
  • Good conditions for gneiss
  • Gneiss climbs well when dry; foliation planes can hold moisture on shaded aspects
Time °F Rain Wind (mph) Gust Hum
09:00 57° dry 7 — 20.2%
10:00 56° dry 7 — 20.8%
11:00 55° dry 7 — 21.3%
12:00 54° dry 6 — 21.8%
13:00 53° dry 6 — 22.4%
14:00 58° dry 6 — 19.3%
15:00 65° dry 3 — 14.4%
16:00 69° dry 4 — 13.4%
17:00 72° dry 6 — 12.1%
18:00 75° dry 8 — 10%
19:00 77° dry 8 — 8%
20:00 78° dry 9 — 6.4%
21:00 79° dry 9 — 5.6%
Fri Friday 11 September
Good
Temp59°F
Raindry
Wind7 mph
Gusts—
Humidity16%
No recent rainNorth American monsoon — afternoon thunderstorm risk
  • Good conditions for gneiss
  • Gneiss climbs well when dry; foliation planes can hold moisture on shaded aspects
Time °F Rain Wind (mph) Gust Hum
06:00 59° dry 6 — 12.9%
07:00 59° dry 6 — 12.8%
08:00 58° dry 7 — 13.2%
09:00 56° dry 8 — 14.6%
10:00 54° dry 8 — 15.8%
11:00 53° dry 7 — 16.8%
12:00 52° dry 6 — 18.4%
13:00 50° dry 6 — 20.2%
14:00 58° dry 9 — 17.5%
15:00 69° dry 6 — 14.3%
16:00 74° dry 7 — 10.9%
17:00 77° dry 9 — 10.3%
18:00 79° dry 12 — 10.2%
19:00 78° dry 12 — 11.3%
20:00 80° dry 13 — 12.3%
21:00 82° dry 12 — 12.5%
Sat Saturday 12 September
Good
Temp61°F
Raindry
Wind6 mph
Gusts—
Humidity44%
No recent rainNorth American monsoon — afternoon thunderstorm risk
  • Good conditions for gneiss
  • Gneiss climbs well when dry; foliation planes can hold moisture on shaded aspects
Time °F Rain Wind (mph) Gust Hum
06:00 62° dry 9 — 39.6%
07:00 61° dry 9 — 40.9%
08:00 59° dry 9 — 43.7%
09:00 58° dry 8 — 46.6%
10:00 58° dry 7 — 47.2%
11:00 57° dry 6 — 49.3%
12:00 57° dry 7 — 50.2%
13:00 55° dry 7 — 53.4%
14:00 61° dry 7 — 44.7%
15:00 69° dry 5 — 34.4%
16:00 72° dry 4 — 31.6%
17:00 74° dry 6 — 27.5%
18:00 76° dry 8 — 24.8%
19:00 77° dry 9 — 23.6%
20:00 79° dry 9 — 20.9%
21:00 80° dry 8 — 20.2%
Sun Sunday 13 September
Good
Temp61°F
Rain0.00 in
Wind8 mph
Gusts—
Humidity49%
No recent rainNorth American monsoon — afternoon thunderstorm risk
  • Good conditions for gneiss
  • Gneiss climbs well when dry; foliation planes can hold moisture on shaded aspects
Time °F Rain Wind (mph) Gust Hum
06:00 64° dry 7 — 40.5%
12:00 62° dry 8 — 49.4%
18:00 75° dry 14 — 32.2%
Mon Monday 14 September
Good
Temp57°F
Rain0.01 in
Wind5 mph
Gusts—
Humidity63%
No recent rainNorth American monsoon — afternoon thunderstorm risk
  • Good conditions for gneiss
  • Gneiss climbs well when dry; foliation planes can hold moisture on shaded aspects
Time °F Rain Wind (mph) Gust Hum
06:00 64° dry 6 — 45%
12:00 57° dry 5 — 63.3%
18:00 71° 0.00 in 8 — 35.5%
Tue Tuesday 15 September
Good
Temp52°F
Rain0.00 in
Wind7 mph
Gusts—
Humidity80%
No recent rainNorth American monsoon — afternoon thunderstorm risk
  • Good conditions for gneiss
  • Gneiss climbs well when dry; foliation planes can hold moisture on shaded aspects
Time °F Rain Wind (mph) Gust Hum
06:00 58° dry 6 — 56%
12:00 51° dry 7 — 80.1%
18:00 72° dry 8 — 32.1%
Wed Wednesday 16 September
Poor
Temp52°F
Rain0.01 in
Wind10 mph
Gusts—
Humidity80%
0.3mm rain forecast
  • Good conditions for gneiss
  • Gneiss climbs well when dry; foliation planes can hold moisture on shaded aspects
Time °F Rain Wind (mph) Gust Hum
06:00 62° dry 6 — 41%
12:00 51° dry 10 — 79.7%
18:00 71° 0.01 in 9 — 37.1%
Thu Thursday 17 September
Good
Temp50°F
Raindry
Wind4 mph
Gusts—
Humidity75%
No recent rain
  • Good conditions for gneiss
  • Gneiss climbs well when dry; foliation planes can hold moisture on shaded aspects
Time °F Rain Wind (mph) Gust Hum
06:00 58° dry 6 — 55.7%
12:00 50° dry 4 — 74.8%
18:00 75° dry 6 — 25.9%
Bird ban (03-15 to 07-15)
NPS peregrine falcon closure — North + South Chasm View Walls and adjacent routes closed to climbing March 15 through July 15 annually; hard block, verify current NPS map for specific route status

About Black Canyon of the Gunnison

Black Canyon of the Gunnison is one of Colorado's most serious big-wall trad venues — 1.7-1.8 billion-year-old Precambrian gneiss and schist walls up to 2250ft tall (the Painted Wall is the third-largest vertical cliff in the contiguous US), sliced by pink pegmatite dikes that give the Painted Wall its name. Wilderness permit required for every climb (free at the ranger station). The Scenic Cruise (5.10d, 13p) is the canyon's calling card. Peak seasons are mid-April to early June and mid-September to early November — summer brings dangerous afternoon thunderstorms (North American monsoon) and heat that makes the sunny walls unclimbable; winter closes South Rim road access. Peregrine falcon closures on the main North and South Chasm View Walls run March 15 through July 15 every year — this is a hard NPS block, not a partial one; verify the current park map for exactly which routes are affected. The pegmatite bands, while striking, are described as 'shattered and flaky' — test blocks and pin knife-blades cautiously.

Region
Black Canyon
Rock type
Gneiss
Aspect
mixed-facing
Altitude
5673 ft
Exposure
high
Seepage
medium