Climbing Forecast › Zion › Cerberus Gendarme

ZION · DESERT SANDSTONE · bird ban

Cerberus Gendarme climbing conditions

Good — dry and climbable

Right now

Temp83°F
Wind3 mph
Gusts5 mph
Humidity31.1%
Rain 48hdry
Last rainNone recent

Assessment

No recent rain

7-day forecast

Scroll through each day — hourly detail is shown inline.

Today Wednesday 26 August
Good
Temp70°F
Raindry
Wind6 mph
Gusts5 mph
Humidity49%
No recent rain
  • Check the sand at the base is powder-dry before climbing — if it clumps together, the rock is still wet inside
Time °F Rain Wind (mph) Gust Hum
06:00 66° dry 6 — 62.9%
07:00 66° dry 7 — 57.9%
08:00 66° dry 6 — 53.9%
09:00 65° dry 6 — 55.6%
10:00 64° dry 6 — 57.6%
11:00 63° dry 6 — 59.6%
12:00 62° dry 6 — 61.3%
13:00 62° dry 6 — 60.8%
14:00 68° dry 6 — 49.5%
15:00 82° dry 5 — 31.3%
16:00 88° dry 4 — 21.7%
17:00 91° dry 6 — 19.1%
18:00 93° dry 7 — 17.8%
19:00 95° dry 7 — 16.8%
20:00 96° dry 9 — 16.1%
21:00 96° dry 11 — 15.8%
Thu Thursday 27 August
Good
Temp72°F
Raindry
Wind6 mph
Gusts—
Humidity42%
No recent rain
  • Check the sand at the base is powder-dry before climbing — if it clumps together, the rock is still wet inside
Time °F Rain Wind (mph) Gust Hum
06:00 67° dry 6 — 51%
07:00 65° dry 6 — 56.9%
08:00 65° dry 7 — 56.9%
09:00 65° dry 7 — 50.5%
10:00 65° dry 7 — 48.7%
11:00 65° dry 7 — 49.7%
12:00 64° dry 7 — 50.4%
13:00 63° dry 7 — 52.2%
14:00 69° dry 7 — 43.2%
15:00 83° dry 6 — 27.8%
16:00 89° dry 4 — 20.5%
17:00 92° dry 6 — 17.3%
18:00 94° dry 8 — 15.2%
19:00 96° dry 10 — 14.3%
20:00 97° dry 11 — 13.9%
21:00 97° dry 11 — 14.4%
Fri Friday 28 August
Good
Temp72°F
Rain0.00 in
Wind6 mph
Gusts—
Humidity40%
No recent rain
  • Check the sand at the base is powder-dry before climbing — if it clumps together, the rock is still wet inside
Time °F Rain Wind (mph) Gust Hum
06:00 71° dry 4 — 37.4%
07:00 67° dry 5 — 43.3%
08:00 66° dry 5 — 45.1%
09:00 65° dry 6 — 46.3%
10:00 64° dry 6 — 48.6%
11:00 64° dry 6 — 49.2%
12:00 64° dry 6 — 48.9%
13:00 64° dry 6 — 49%
14:00 69° dry 6 — 40.5%
15:00 82° dry 5 — 25.7%
16:00 88° dry 6 — 19.5%
17:00 91° dry 10 — 18%
18:00 93° dry 13 — 17.4%
Sat Saturday 29 August
Good
Temp68°F
Raindry
Wind4 mph
Gusts—
Humidity43%
No recent rain
  • Check the sand at the base is powder-dry before climbing — if it clumps together, the rock is still wet inside
  • Good friction temperature range for desert sandstone
Time °F Rain Wind (mph) Gust Hum
06:00 74° dry 2 — 34.9%
12:00 68° dry 4 — 43.4%
18:00 90° dry 10 — 20.2%
Sun Sunday 30 August
Poor
Temp63°F
Rain0.01 in
Wind5 mph
Gusts—
Humidity96%
0.3mm rain forecastDo not climb wet desert sandstone — holds break and cams pullHumidity 96% — potential fog
  • Do not climb — wet desert sandstone is severely weakened, cams can pull and holds break, permanently damaging the route
  • Good friction temperature range for desert sandstone
  • Elevated humidity for a desert crag — subsurface drying will be slower than expected
Time °F Rain Wind (mph) Gust Hum
06:00 69° 0.01 in 5 — 51.9%
12:00 62° dry 5 — 95.8%
18:00 84° 0.01 in 7 — 36.8%
Mon Monday 31 August
Poor
Temp59°F
Rain0.03 in
Wind4 mph
Gusts—
Humidity94%
0.7mm rain forecastDo not climb wet desert sandstone — holds break and cams pullHumidity 94% — potential fog
  • Do not climb — wet desert sandstone is severely weakened, cams can pull and holds break, permanently damaging the route
  • Good friction temperature range for desert sandstone
  • Elevated humidity for a desert crag — subsurface drying will be slower than expected
Time °F Rain Wind (mph) Gust Hum
06:00 67° 0.02 in 4 — 72.5%
12:00 58° dry 4 — 93.7%
18:00 79° dry 9 — 37.5%
Tue Tuesday 1 September
Poor
Temp59°F
Raindry
Wind3 mph
Gusts—
Humidity75%
Should be dryOnly 30h since rain — desert sandstone 48h minimum wait
  • Check the sand at the base is powder-dry before climbing — if it clumps together, the rock is still wet inside
  • Good friction temperature range for desert sandstone
  • Elevated humidity for a desert crag — subsurface drying will be slower than expected
Time °F Rain Wind (mph) Gust Hum
06:00 66° dry 2 — 45.3%
12:00 58° dry 3 — 75.1%
18:00 81° dry 9 — 20.7%
Wed Wednesday 2 September
Caution
Temp48°F
Raindry
Wind4 mph
Gusts—
Humidity50%
Should be dryDesert sandstone — check base sand is powder-dry before climbing
  • Check the sand at the base is powder-dry before climbing — if it clumps together, the rock is still wet inside
  • Good friction temperature range for desert sandstone
Time °F Rain Wind (mph) Gust Hum
06:00 55° dry 4 — 40%
12:00 48° dry 4 — 49.7%
18:00 83° dry 4 — 8.3%
Bird ban (03-01 to 07-31)
Zion peregrine / condor closures — check nps.gov/zion PDF for current status.

About Cerberus Gendarme

Cerberus Gendarme sits directly across the Virgin River from Moonlight Buttress on the east side of Zion Canyon — a west-facing formation reached in a 5-minute approach from the Big Bend shuttle stop. The signature climb is Touchstone Wall (IV 5.9 C2, 8 pitches), Zion's most-climbed introductory big wall and a rite of passage for aspiring aid climbers. Same NPS 48h wet-Navajo-sandstone rule.

Region
Zion
Rock type
Desert sandstone
Aspect
west-facing
Altitude
4816 ft
Exposure
medium
Seepage
low

Other crags in this region

Moonlight ButtressKolob Canyons