Intersection Rock & the Old Woman
Joshua Tree National Park · near Joshua Tree · California Desert
Rock Climbing
At a glance
- Skill level
- all-levels
- Grade range
- 5.3-5.11d
- Best season
- October-April (summer dangerously hot)
Permits and booking
- Permit
- Joshua Tree NP entrance fee (~$30/vehicle, 7 days); no climbing permit required for day climbing. Watch for seasonal raptor closures (typically Feb-June) on some formations - check the NPS Joshua Tree climbing page.
Worth knowing
- Good for a first timer
- Yes
Rock Climbing detail
- Climb types
- trad · top-rope · multi-pitch
- Rock type
- Quartz monzonite
- Route count
- 60+ routes
- Nickname
- Joshua Tree's Postcard
- Signature routes
- Upper Right Ski Track · North Overhang · Toe Jam
- Intl tip
- The iconic roadside formation - you park at its base and climb steps from the car. Upper Right Ski Track (5.3) is a superb beginner lead; the Old Woman next door has classic beginner cracks. Fall-spring only.
The guide
Intersection Rock is the postcard of Joshua Tree - the great roadside monolith standing at the crossroads of Park Boulevard and…
In the Guidebook
Everything above is yours for free. The written guide to Intersection Rock & the Old Woman — what it is actually like, and what we would tell a friend before they went — comes with the Guidebook.
Getting there
- Coordinates
- 34.01505, -116.16324