Fast Food Joint
Overall:
Fast Food Joint is located right next to the road with a small creek between the crag and the road. Its not well known so there is almost never anyone there. Its a great place to take beginners or kids if you don’t want to fight for a spot at the School Room. There aren’t any hard routes, the most difficult being a 5.10b.
This area is after Box Canyon but before the Frontera and is NOT in the guidebook. It is on private property, like Box Canyon, so please be courteous in keeping the area clean for the owners. Doug, who owns that land, has been really kind to climbers over years and cares a lot about the area.
Routes:
There are 16 Sport routes in this area. However, all are pretty easy so this is a great place to take kids of all ages and beginners.
The routes range from 5.5 in difficulty to 5.10b with four 5.6’s. Once the 5.6 known as ‘Roadside Coulior’ is top-ropped, going up the middle of the coulior is a great easy 5.4 or 5.3 for really little kids to give a try on. That route uses Glue-in bolts because it may have seasonal water. In that case, you will not want to climb that route. We were just there (May 2018 and August 2018) and it was completely dry. For the younger kids or first time kid climbers, we suggest using a piece of webbing or rope attached to the back of the harness, see Tips for Ages Under 4.
Our 6 year old, 5 year old and 4 year old all topped out on the 5.6 Roadside Coulier and our other kids wen up the easier scrambling start of it. Those kids also topped out on the 5.5 to its left. Then our 4 year old was the only one to make it up the 5.7 Bacon, Bacon, Bacon. We were proud of her for doing it but it was a boring belay… she stopped every two moves to yell ‘Chalk Power’ and chalk up her hands more, then howl for wolf power and demand that the belayer howl, demand that other people knowledge her progress, giggle and shake her booty and then proceed….
These routes can be found at…
This area is NOT included in the Maple Canyon guidebook.
Approach:
Zero approach since its right off the road. You will have to pass a small creek which you can just step over (very small) but may need to hold your toddlers hand to help them cross.
Landing:
The landing here is flat but it is not large and open. Its a small area located between the creek and the crag so you will not want to fit a lot of people in the area. It could be an issue for a young baby just learning to walk but a play pen would fit in certain spots of the area.
Traffic:
It is not well known and not in the guidebook so there are good chances its open!
Extra Kid Fun:
In the heat of the summer, the shade and the creek are tons of fun for kids. Make sure you keep an eye on your kiddos and are ok with them getting wet.
Potential Dangers:
The creek, the road, and rock fall are the potential dangers. The creek basically mitigates the road risk but can be a risk itself depending on the age of your kiddos. Kids can drown in almost no water. If you set boundaries and have un-roped attentive adult, it should be a fun safe area.
Maple Canyon is conglomerate rock and so you will have to decide how you want to mitigate the risk of loose rock fall.