Bear Den Cliff

Matt, Rich and I went up to the Bear Den Cliff above Kid's Campus at Whiteface today. I looked longingly at that cliff all winter from the bottom of the gondola, wishing I was climbing it and not working a stupid ski lift. Today, that dream came true.

The hike up is pretty funny. There are a bunch of mountain biking trails up that way, so the approach is like, walk 523

feet and turn left, then walk another 247 feet and turn right and so on. Eventually you turn up on a "herd path," which is more or less non-existent, and then wander up to the cliff. We got on Berry Good (5.10a), which is a Mike and Diana Leblanc route. They done good.

The cliff itself is a steep slab, and the second pitch has some really cool knobs. We actually climbed the first pitch of Bear Necessities, which also had really cool holds. Great climbing, great situation, great exposure. We were in high gear due to time restraints, and we totally raced up the cliff. We climbed it in good style for sure.