Bouldering at Hueco Tanks State Park

Hueco Tanks is comprised of 3 mountains and 1 spur (a lateral offshoot of a mountain). North Mountain has the most dense bouldering but access requires a reservation. East and West Mountain also offer amazing climbing, but you are required to have a guide to gain entrance to those mountains.

The park is enormous and can offer an endless variety of climbing, whether you're staying for one weekend or several weeks. Equipped with a guidebook of the park, you will easily be able to find phenomenal climbs of all levels. It's easy to find beginner's problems right next expert-level problems, so that your whole group can enjoy a climbing trip at Hueco. The best place to start is the warm up boulders near the parking lot on North Mountain (see map).

Only 70 people are allowed access to North Mountain per day and to gain access you must call Texas State Parks and Wildlife Department in advance. If you plan on climbing in late fall-winter, campsites will fill up very quickly and spots for the North Mountain become available 3 months in advance, so make sure to plan ahead and keep in mind that you can only book 3 days in a row. There are also 10 first-come-first-served spots available for North Mountain each day. If you plan on coming to the park without a reservation on a busy day, be sure to get there very early to wait in line.

To access East Mountain, West Mountain, or East Spur, you must have a certified guide. You can call the park, visit the Hueco Rock Ranch, or go online to find a guiding service. Guides typically run about $25/day/person.

For camping, you must call Texas State Parks and Wildlife Department in advance. If you have a Texas State Parks Pass (which runs $70/annually), your whole car will get into the park for free, and you can get a discount on camping. Just outside of the park is the Hueco Rock Ranch, run by the American Alpine Club, which offers camping with showers, bathrooms, wi-fi, fire pits and slacklines.

For a family-friendly hike, check out the nature trail.