Climbing Forecast › Joshua Tree › Sheep Pass

JOSHUA TREE · QUARTZ MONZONITE · bird ban

Sheep Pass climbing conditions

Good — dry and climbable

Right now

Temp89°F
Wind10 mph
Gusts16 mph
Humidity21%
Rain 48hdry
Last rainNone recent

Assessment

No recent rain
Hot — quartz-monzonite slabs may feel greasy

7-day forecast

Scroll through each day — hourly detail is shown inline.

Today Wednesday 26 August
Good
Temp82°F
Raindry
Wind4 mph
Gusts16 mph
Humidity27%
No recent rain
  • Quartz monzonite gives bombproof friction when dry — coarse grain shreds fingertips, bring tape
Time °F Rain Wind (mph) Gust Hum
06:00 83° dry 6 — 31.9%
07:00 82° dry 5 — 31.5%
08:00 82° dry 4 — 30.7%
09:00 82° dry 4 — 29.8%
10:00 82° dry 4 — 29.2%
11:00 81° dry 4 — 28.7%
12:00 81° dry 4 — 28.9%
13:00 80° dry 4 — 29.4%
14:00 81° dry 4 — 28.5%
15:00 87° dry 5 — 21.9%
16:00 89° dry 5 — 20%
17:00 91° dry 5 — 18.4%
18:00 93° dry 7 — 17.1%
19:00 95° dry 11 — 16.3%
20:00 97° dry 14 — 15.2%
21:00 97° dry 15 — 14.5%
Thu Thursday 27 August
Good
Temp84°F
Raindry
Wind6 mph
Gusts—
Humidity22%
No recent rain
  • Hot — coarse crystals still bite but the rock heats up fast in the desert sun
  • Quartz monzonite gives bombproof friction when dry — coarse grain shreds fingertips, bring tape
Time °F Rain Wind (mph) Gust Hum
06:00 83° dry 6 — 27.4%
07:00 83° dry 5 — 26.2%
08:00 83° dry 5 — 25.6%
09:00 82° dry 6 — 25.3%
10:00 82° dry 6 — 24.4%
11:00 82° dry 6 — 23.5%
12:00 81° dry 6 — 23.3%
13:00 81° dry 6 — 23%
14:00 83° dry 6 — 22.2%
15:00 88° dry 6 — 17.7%
16:00 90° dry 4 — 16.4%
17:00 92° dry 5 — 15.3%
18:00 95° dry 9 — 13.8%
19:00 96° dry 11 — 13.2%
20:00 96° dry 14 — 14.5%
21:00 96° dry 14 — 14.5%
Fri Friday 28 August
Good
Temp84°F
Raindry
Wind4 mph
Gusts—
Humidity26%
No recent rain
  • Hot — coarse crystals still bite but the rock heats up fast in the desert sun
  • Quartz monzonite gives bombproof friction when dry — coarse grain shreds fingertips, bring tape
Time °F Rain Wind (mph) Gust Hum
06:00 84° dry 7 — 25.8%
07:00 83° dry 6 — 27.1%
08:00 83° dry 5 — 26.5%
09:00 83° dry 4 — 26%
10:00 83° dry 4 — 26.6%
11:00 82° dry 4 — 30.1%
12:00 82° dry 3 — 27.6%
13:00 81° dry 3 — 28.3%
14:00 82° dry 3 — 28.4%
15:00 87° dry 4 — 22.1%
16:00 90° dry 5 — 20.5%
17:00 92° dry 7 — 19.3%
18:00 93° dry 9 — 18.5%
Sat Saturday 29 August
Good
Temp79°F
Raindry
Wind1 mph
Gusts—
Humidity28%
No recent rain
  • Quartz monzonite gives bombproof friction when dry — coarse grain shreds fingertips, bring tape
Time °F Rain Wind (mph) Gust Hum
06:00 83° dry 2 — 27.5%
12:00 79° dry 1 — 28.3%
18:00 91° dry 5 — 17%
Sun Sunday 30 August
Good
Temp72°F
Raindry
Wind3 mph
Gusts—
Humidity39%
No recent rain
  • Quartz monzonite gives bombproof friction when dry — coarse grain shreds fingertips, bring tape
Time °F Rain Wind (mph) Gust Hum
06:00 79° dry 3 — 31.5%
12:00 72° dry 3 — 39.1%
18:00 86° dry 6 — 21%
Mon Monday 31 August
Good
Temp68°F
Raindry
Wind6 mph
Gusts—
Humidity17%
No recent rain
  • Quartz monzonite gives bombproof friction when dry — coarse grain shreds fingertips, bring tape
Time °F Rain Wind (mph) Gust Hum
06:00 74° dry 6 — 18.9%
12:00 68° dry 6 — 16.6%
18:00 84° dry 5 — 9.2%
Tue Tuesday 1 September
Good
Temp68°F
Raindry
Wind8 mph
Gusts—
Humidity23%
No recent rain
  • Quartz monzonite gives bombproof friction when dry — coarse grain shreds fingertips, bring tape
Time °F Rain Wind (mph) Gust Hum
06:00 71° dry 7 — 27.1%
12:00 68° dry 8 — 22.8%
18:00 81° dry 12 — 10.1%
Wed Wednesday 2 September
Good
Temp68°F
Raindry
Wind1 mph
Gusts—
Humidity17%
No recent rain
  • Quartz monzonite gives bombproof friction when dry — coarse grain shreds fingertips, bring tape
Time °F Rain Wind (mph) Gust Hum
06:00 72° dry 1 — 24.6%
12:00 69° dry 0 — 17.4%
18:00 82° dry 2 — 6.7%
Bird ban (02-17 to 06-07)
Prairie falcon nesting closure on specific routes: 'Fat Freddie's Cat', 'The Weenie', 'Pea Brain', 'The Red Obelisk', and 'Freak Brothers Dome'. Other Sheep Pass routes remain open. Check nps.gov/jotr/planyourvisit/no_climbing.htm for the current list — closures may extend if the nest is still active.

About Sheep Pass

Sheep Pass is a large area near the southeastern end of Lost Horse Valley, midway between Hidden Valley and Jumbo Rocks. The flagship is Saddle Rocks — a big formation high on the side of Ryan Mountain holding the classic moderate multi-pitch Walk on the Wild Side (5.8, 3 pitches) and Right On (5.6, 4 pitches). Headstone Rock at Ryan Campground is a striking freestanding pillar with SW Corner (5.6 sport) and Cryptic (5.8 sport). Freak Brothers Dome and the adjacent formations catch a prairie falcon closure most years from mid-February through early June — specific named routes only, other lines remain open.

Region
Joshua Tree
Rock type
Quartz monzonite
Aspect
mixed-facing
Altitude
4199 ft
Exposure
medium
Seepage
very-low

Other crags in this region

Cap RockEcho Rock / Echo CoveHidden Valley CampgroundIndian CoveJumbo RocksLost Horse WallQuail Springs (Trashcan Rock)Real Hidden ValleyRyan Campground (Headstone Rock)Split RocksWonderland of Rocks