Climbing Roger's Rock Cove Boulders in Rogers Rock Campgroung

 I have been haunting the Cove Boulders at Roger's Rock campground since my first attempt in 1994 to set lines over projects by way of what I now call The Descent Route (V-Easy) on the mothership campground boulder (the descent being from an ascent of the easiest clear line on the north side I knicknamed the Camper Trap (V-Easy) as you'll be amazed how many campers attempt it in cuttoff's and flip-flops). 

I may clean up the MP page to follow a better taxonomy and be right-placed as a sub-area of Roger's Rock, but have removed most of my photos as they do not show named routes (all boulders have at least a single V-Easy line to the summit).

This area is a great place to spend the day or burn it off after the slab or with a change of plans. There is a ton to explore, though there are rumors of a number of named lines in the Adirondack Bouldering guidebook and a lot of recent evidence of activity (although I have not seen a copy of the book myself). 

For the sake of cartography and mapping the blocks other than the mothership, I have always named the blocks alphabetically moving from the cove toward the campground. Over the years I have scrambled each and taken a shot at some of the more obvious difficult lines with some success and try to keep the landings clear. If you are planning an exploration, the photos below should give you a good preview; bring a brush and go for it!

THE COVE BOULDER (AKA The Campground Boulder / House Boulder).

I prefer to call it The Mothership.

ROGER'S ROCK COVE BOULDERS, ALPHA BLOCK, SOUTH AND WEST

ROGER'S ROCK COVE BOULDERS, BRAVO BLOCK

ROGER'S ROCK COVE BOULDERS, CHARLIE BLOCK (this is The Toddler's Block and a favorite top-rop for my 2 and 4 year old daughters although the back side has a really nice crack!)

ROGER'S ROCK COVE BOULDERS, DELTA BLOCK

ROGER'S ROCK COVE BOULDERS, ECHO BLOCK

ROGER'S ROCK COVE BOULDERS, FOXTROT BLOCK

ROGER'S ROCK COVE BOULDERS, GOLF BLOCK

ROGER'S ROCK COVE BOULDERS, HOTEL BLOCK

ROGER'S ROCK COVE BOULDERS, INDIA BLOCK

ROGER'S ROCK COVE BOULDERS, J BLOCKS (BROKEN SISTERS)

ROGER'S ROCK COVE BOULDERS, PAVOLDI'S HOLE (AKA THE P CAVE, don't dare pee in it again please whoever you are... Start in the cave, stem up easily and exit right using high hands on the left)

There are some other easy and moderate lines I have set up in The Cove, on the Greek Wall (Timgor Overlook), and the developer of the top rope lines behand the campsites' trail has had names and grades of what I was calling The Secret Bolt Garden published in Adirondack Rock as the Mohican Wall (I had my wife belay my lead for the first time using these new bolts on a birthday overnight before details were published, I probably would have backed off all of them if I saw the grades first, definitely worth a look!). 

Bouldering the Warren County Bikeway; French Mountain Rock / Ice Climbing in Lake George

There are a few climbing opportunities near enough to Lake George Village that you don't need to drive... 

While bouldering on Prospect Mountain can be accessed by bicycle and is a nice diversion for anyone's vacation based in Lake George Village, there is nothing else that I know of that is as accessible, by foot, bike, or skateboard for that matter, than the graffiti boulder at the trailhead of French Mountain. 

My personal knickname for this block has always been "The French Mountain Canvas" due to the "art" on it, but for the sake of cartography I will refer to it as the "Warren County Bikeway Boulder".  You can access this by parking near the Ephram Williams memorial on route 9 just north of the outlets, or by biking up from the beach. In the off season, I will park off Bloody Pond road near the Magic Forest and bike a short ways in from there.

"French Steps (winter) 5.3"

French Steps 5.3

James and Nefeli Pavoldi on the French Steps, 5.3:

Map to the Warren County Bikeway Boulder (aka "The French Mountain Canvas") here:

There are 3 sides of this block, all with easy access to the summit and a variety of terrain that makes it an ideal top rope spot for kids. 

The arete separating the trail facing wall and the flag wall is one of the cleaner steep lines on the block. The crux is low and fast making it boulder'able despite it's height of ~24 feet. The thin fingers behind don't seem to pose too much risk of removing the block any time soon. 

I  have been calling this one "French Quarner 5.6"

On the south facing wall the the prominent flag graffiti, there are two clear lines. 

A bit of a traverse with an escape route up and right if boulder'd, "Norway to Russia, 5.3"

"Yellow Rurpes (5.unknown)" is a little trickier. The absurdly marked holds seem to fall into the 5.8+, 5.9 range, but I shot to find the line straight up from there and have been rejected numerous times. The fact that someone painted the holds yellow like a gym route is literally mind-blowing. There is also a rurp that's been almost reclaimed with lichen just to the right but I wouldn't trust it on lead.

  

On the north side of the block are a number of opportunities, most striking is the "Bulgarian Right Wing, 5.7".  I found this on my last run as a mix between the face on the right, the crack, the blade of the pillar, and a high and dirty wet (frozen) crux. There may be a completely seperate "Bulgarian Left Wing" on the left side of the pillar. 

This area is one of my most goal-oriented access opportunities. If you can make it to the village, you can have seasons of adventure here with no gear investment. If you can get 75' of rope, 60 feet of webbing, a harness and 3 locking carabiners, this will become your proving ground. Don't hesitate to reach out to me if you are new to the sport or looking for an introduction; I am happy to help.

Here's a pic of the Russian RURP: 

Enjoying some time with the kids

The morning shade keeps this so cold in winter that the holds can be cleaned all winter with just a brush.

There is a lot to explore in this area, access may be a little delicate in some of the more obvious places. Perhaps at some point I will be able to publicize the higher altitude projects like "Daniel San", "Miagi's Chopsticks", "Skeleton Long Johns", "Sweep the Leg" and others (Locals will understand the theme haha).