Last updated: February 19, 2025
Place
Hemingway
NPS / Emily Hassell
Quick Facts
Location:
Joshua Tree National Park
Amenities
9 listed
Information, Information Kiosk/Bulletin Board, Parking - Auto, Parking - Bus/RV, Recycling, Restroom, Restroom - Accessible, Scenic View/Photo Spot, Toilet - Vault/Composting
Hemingway is a popular location along Park Boulevard northwest of Hidden Valley. This pull-off contains many rock formations to explore, climbing routes for rock climbers, and scenic views of the surrounding mountains. Many large Joshua trees can also be found in this area. If you want to explore the area on foot, please use the existing climber access paths to minimize your impact.
Classic Lines
Nature has sculpted the "classic lines"—cracks and folds—in the rocks, like those found here at Hemingway Buttress. Joshua Tree National Park is a rock climber's paradise. THe rough textures of the granite rock and the warm, sunny conditions here make it a very climbable place. When other climbing hotspots are covered in snow, Joshua Tree draws climbers from far and wide. More than 5,000 climbing routes are described within the park and still more are being pioneered.
The climber's rock formed from molten magma miles below your feet. Squeezed and shaken by earthquakes for millions of years, the granite split and cracked. Mountain uplifting raised the granite close to the Earth's surface. While still underground, water and chemical weathering sculpted the angular granite blocks into their present forms. As the climate grew more arid, erosion exposed the jumbled boulders. Their fantastic shapes have attracted rock climbers from around the world since the 1940s.
Hemingway Buttress offers climbers fine-crack climbs and established descent paths for rappelling. Whimsical route names like Poodles are People too White Lightning, and The Importance of Being Ernest identify some of the more challenging and popular climbs here.