What When How to Train | Bouldering at Hueco Tanks

Hueco Tanks, just outside of El Paso, Texas, is one of the world’s premier bouldering destinations, and for good reason. An oasis (literally) in the middle of the desert, Hueco houses every type of boulder you can imagine. You’ll find classic boulders of every style, from techy slab to featured roof, and enough “party trick” boulders to keep you busy for damned near ever.

This episode could have been 5 hours long - there are just too many boulders to discuss that are classic, must do, or just plain so much fun that they must be discussed.

Because Hueco is so diverse, style wise, a successful trip will depend on having a goal before you go, whether that goal is doing all of the boulders you see or focusing on one specific life list project. However, there are a couple of things that are present in nearly all Hueco trips that we should consider when preparing.

Number one, tension. Yes, all climbing requires it, but the slippery feet on the Hueco classics, combined with the steep nature of much of the park (huge horizontal roofs are common) demands that your tension is top notch. It’s more than just core strength or endurance. If you can’t apply it to the rock, it’ll do no good. Our ebook Applied Body Tension is specifically designed to pair with any training plan or climbing practice to help you learn to apply tension to your climbing.

Next, your knees - and legs in general - will take a beating in all of the leg dependent roofs if you aren’t prepared. The featured nature of the rock allows you to be crafty with toe hooks, bicycles, knee bars, and other lower body techniques. Come prepared so that you aren’t hobbling out.

Marina Inoue

In 1998, Texas State Parks instituted the Public Use Plan, regulating the number of visitors who could enter the park and where they could recreate. While climbers cried foul, as we so often do when we feel entitled to visit a place unrestricted, the regulations have turned out to be a good thing for this fragile environment. There’s very little doubt that the hoards of visiting climbers would have been responsible enough to not trample the desert vegetation, disturb the wildlife, or all but erase the signs of the indigenous people who inhabited Hueco Tanks long before climbers arrived.

Listen to the episode to hear Nate and I discuss our favorite Hueco boulders, overlooked classics, the best things to do on rest days, and more. You can find us anywhere you consume pods.