Hidden Valley

Land Manager: CCC, Virginia Department of Game and Inland Fisheries (DGIF)

Guides and Info : 

Hidden Valley Climbing Management Plan

A guidebook is available, you can order it online 

What to Expect

Hidden Valley is a sandstone cliff band ranging up to about 70 feet high. The climbing is mostly face climbing, with some large roofs, corners and aretes thrown in for good measure. Most of the 200 or so routes are well bolted sport climbs with a handful of trad and mixed routes. Grades range from 5.5 to 5.13, with a large number of 5.10s, 5.11s and 5.12s.

Bolts/ Fixed Anchors

If you chose to climb at Hidden Valley, you likely will be choosing to trust your life to a bolt or fixed anchor. None of the bolts at Hidden Valley are guaranteed to be in good standing and a climber's use of bolts is 'at your own risk'. Bolts are not routinely inspected. It is the responsibility of the climber to assess whether or not they want to take the risk by trusting their lives to bolts or other fixed anchors.  CCC and volunteer partners have been working diligently since 2016 to upgrade the fixed anchors at Hidden Valley. CCC and volunteers have replaced over 1000 bolts here, but this work is in no way a guarantee that any bolts or other fixed anchors at Hidden Valley are in good standing. 

Directions

Hidden Valley is located just North of Abingdon, VA. From Abingdon, take 19 North for a few miles. Keep an eye out for signs for Hidden Valley Lake / Hidden Valley Wildlife Area on the right and take a right onto Hidden Valley Rd (state road 690). Drive up the paved road, hitting some steep switchbacks and then look for the gravel CCC parking lot with the kiosk on the right. A trail across the street will lead you to the left-hand side cliffs and one from the lot will take you to the right-hand side. This is the preferred approach, but you can also hike up the road and access the cliff that way from the Brumley Mountain trail in the DGIF (VA Dept. of Game and Inland Fisheries) parking lot. Walk that trail just a short distance towards the woods and then take a left on an obvious trail. Follow that to the cliff. If you pass the Brumley Mountain Trail sign, you missed the turn.

Parking

The new parking lot on our property is complete, open and should be the preferred lot for climbers at Hidden Valley. It's the large lot on the right at the top of the switchbacks, about 400 feet below the DGIF lot. Trails from here will lead you from the lot to the left-hand and right-hand side cliffs.

Please maximize the spaces in the lot and park in a way so that others can easily get in and out as well. Please do not camp in the parking lot.

Access notes

The DGIF-owned Low Gap lot at the top of the hill is closed to climber parking from October 1 through January 7th. Please respect this closure. This is not really an issue as we now have a lot for climber parking!

Much of the cliff line at Hidden Valley is owned and managed by the Virginia Department of Game and Inland Fisheries, climbers 17 and older should purchase an Access Permit ($4/day, $23/ year). If you have a VA hunting or fishing liscence, this pass is not needed. 

It is very important that visitors to Hidden Valley keep a low profile. The CCC owns the access to the cliff and the base of some of the cliff, but it is important to note that we do not own all of the base or all of the cliffs. Private land owners own some of the the cliff and access as well, including the land left of Meat Wall. These land owners are great neighbors and have given verbal permission to the CCC that they do not mind people walking on their property to access the cliffs. The land owners ask that noise be kept to an absolute minimum, especially during hunting season. BE QUIET AND RESPECTFUL AT ALL TIMES.

Dogs 

There are a number of dogs that live in the neighborhood around Hidden Valley and hunting dogs are sometime around as well. In addition, adjacent land owners hunt on their property and have asked that climbers do not bring dogs onto their property. In order to reduce the potential for conflicts, PLEASE DON'T BRING YOUR DOG TO HIDDEN VALLEY.