Climbing Forecast › Grandfather › Ship Rock (Blue Ridge Parkway MP 303)

GRANDFATHER · QUARTZITE

Ship Rock (Blue Ridge Parkway MP 303) climbing conditions

Poor — wet, too windy or closed

Right now

Temp67°F
Wind9 mph
Gusts13 mph
Humidity87.6%
Rain 48h0.06 in
Last rain1h ago

Assessment

9.6mm rain forecast
High humidity (87.6%) — quartzite friction compromised, particularly for bouldering
Humidity 87.6% — potential fog/cloud, rock may be damp from condensation

Drying Time

8% dry · 5-10h to dry

7-day forecast

Scroll through each day — hourly detail is shown inline.

Today Friday 21 August
Poor
Temp66°F
Rain0.4 in
Wind9 mph
Gusts13 mph
Humidity88%
9.6mm rain forecast
  • Wet quartzite is slippery but not damaged by climbing
Time °F Rain Wind (mph) Gust Hum
18:00 67° 0.05 in 9 — 87.6%
19:00 67° 0.01 in 7 — 92.6%
20:00 71° 0.03 in 4 — 82.2%
21:00 69° 0.2 in 6 — 81.4%
Sat Saturday 22 August
Poor
Temp63°F
Rain0.02 in
Wind7 mph
Gusts—
Humidity90%
0.5mm rain forecastHumidity 90% — potential fog
  • Quartzite holds friction well when dry
Time °F Rain Wind (mph) Gust Hum
06:00 58° dry 4 — 99.8%
07:00 57° dry 4 — 99.8%
08:00 57° dry 5 — 99.2%
09:00 58° dry 7 — 99.6%
10:00 58° dry 8 — 100%
11:00 59° dry 8 — 99.6%
12:00 61° dry 8 — 98.5%
13:00 63° dry 7 — 96.5%
14:00 65° dry 8 — 90.4%
15:00 68° dry 7 — 78.6%
16:00 71° dry 7 — 67.2%
17:00 73° 0.00 in 8 — 58.4%
18:00 74° 0.01 in 8 — 57.7%
19:00 73° 0.01 in 8 — 58.9%
20:00 73° dry 8 — 58.2%
21:00 73° dry 8 — 56.8%
Sun Sunday 23 August
Poor
Temp61°F
Rain0.02 in
Wind7 mph
Gusts—
Humidity83%
0.5mm rain forecast
  • Quartzite holds friction well when dry
Time °F Rain Wind (mph) Gust Hum
06:00 60° dry 10 — 90.5%
07:00 59° dry 10 — 90%
08:00 59° dry 10 — 89.4%
09:00 58° dry 8 — 93.2%
10:00 58° dry 6 — 94.8%
11:00 58° dry 6 — 97.1%
12:00 60° 0.00 in 8 — 91.7%
13:00 61° dry 8 — 86.5%
14:00 63° dry 8 — 79.1%
15:00 65° dry 8 — 71.4%
16:00 66° dry 9 — 63.5%
17:00 68° dry 10 — 56.1%
18:00 69° dry 10 — 52.2%
19:00 69° dry 10 — 50.3%
20:00 69° dry 10 — 51.3%
21:00 68° dry 9 — 51.5%
Mon Monday 24 August
Good
Temp55°F
Raindry
Wind2 mph
Gusts—
Humidity78%
Should be dry
  • Quartzite holds friction well when dry
Time °F Rain Wind (mph) Gust Hum
06:00 56° dry 8 — 73.6%
12:00 56° dry 2 — 77.8%
18:00 72° dry 4 — 44.5%
Tue Tuesday 25 August
Good
Temp59°F
Raindry
Wind2 mph
Gusts—
Humidity76%
Should be dry
  • Quartzite holds friction well when dry
Time °F Rain Wind (mph) Gust Hum
06:00 56° dry 1 — 74.5%
12:00 59° dry 2 — 75.5%
18:00 73° dry 4 — 48.1%
Wed Wednesday 26 August
Poor
Temp63°F
Rain0.08 in
Wind1 mph
Gusts—
Humidity79%
2mm rain forecast
  • Wet quartzite is slippery but not damaged by climbing
Time °F Rain Wind (mph) Gust Hum
06:00 62° 0.00 in 2 — 73.2%
12:00 63° 0.01 in 1 — 78.6%
18:00 73° 0.06 in 3 — 67.5%
Thu Thursday 27 August
Poor
Temp61°F
Rain0.06 in
Wind4 mph
Gusts—
Humidity95%
1.6mm rain forecastHumidity 95% — likely fog/cloud
  • Wet quartzite is slippery but not damaged by climbing
Time °F Rain Wind (mph) Gust Hum
06:00 60° dry 2 — 90.3%
12:00 61° 0.03 in 4 — 94.9%
18:00 65° 0.04 in 4 — 93.5%
Fri Friday 28 August
Poor
Temp61°F
Rain0.02 in
Wind4 mph
Gusts—
Humidity98%
0.5mm rain forecastHumidity 98% — likely fog/cloud
  • Quartzite holds friction well when dry
Time °F Rain Wind (mph) Gust Hum
06:00 59° dry 1 — 94.7%
12:00 61° dry 4 — 97.6%
18:00 69° 0.01 in 2 — 82.3%
Access
Approach from the Rough Ridge parking area

About Ship Rock (Blue Ridge Parkway MP 303)

Ship Rock is a metamorphic quartzite crag on the Blue Ridge Parkway at Milepost 303, near Grandfather Mountain NC — 4,394 ft elevation with awesome horizontal breaks making great holds. Four zones (Better Late Than Never Wall, Lower Tier, Main Tier, Upper Tier) with 46 total routes 5.7 to 5.12-. Northwestern exposure keeps it climbable in fall, spring and summer (late-day sun); winter is cold and often snow-shut when the Parkway closes. (Parkway ~0.5 miles north of Ship); walk south down the parkway ~1/3 mile past a bridge and roadcut, look right for the trail. Access can be limited by Parkway repaving projects — check NPS status. Quartzite dries fast.

Region
Grandfather
Rock type
Quartzite
Aspect
northwest-facing
Altitude
4393 ft
Exposure
high
Seepage
low