Erratica Bouldering (Highway 88 near Kirkwood): A Granite Field Guide

Erratica is what you get when a glacier drops a few hundred golden granite blocks across a high slab and then leaves without a map. It sits off Highway 88 just west of Kirkwood, at about 7,250 feet, and it's a summer and fall area through and through. The rock is good, the problems run from casual moderates to double-digit testpieces, and the setting is pure high Sierra. The catch is that it's one of the most confusing boulder fields around Tahoe to find your way through, so you earn every problem twice: once on the walk, once on the rock. This guide is part of a bigger Lake Tahoe bouldering guide.

Where it is & how to get there

From South Lake Tahoe, take Highway 89 south over Luther Pass to Highway 88, then head west over Carson Pass toward Kirkwood. From the Kirkwood turnoff, continue west on Hwy 88 for 3.6 miles and turn right onto a dirt road. About 100 yards in, you'll see the Father's Day boulder on your left: a gold, triangle-shaped block sitting out in the open on a slab. That's your landmark, and it's about a minute from the car. 📍 Open the area in Google Maps (38.68526, -120.1225).

For the central boulders, there's a faint dirt road on the left blocked by logs. Park near it, not on it, and don't block it.

When it's in

At 7,000-plus feet next to a ski resort, Erratica spends winter and most of spring under snow. The real season is early summer through fall, roughly June into October, depending on how big the winter was. Highway 88 stays plowed, but that doesn't mean the slabs are dry. Fall is the pick: crisp temps, no bugs, and good friction. Early summer brings mosquitoes, so pack repellent along with the pads. Many of the blocks sit out in the open on slab and bake in the afternoon sun, so mornings and evenings climb better in July and August.

The lay of the land

Erratica is split into a few zones, and the guidebooks and apps don't all name them the same way, so go by landmarks:

• The Father's Day side (Erratica West on Mountain Project): starts right at the car with the Father's Day boulder. Walk about 50 yards southwest to the Boob Wall, just over a small dome, then stay high (don't drop into the gully) and follow the cairns southwest across benches for about 12 minutes to the Black Boulder, home of Vision Quest. Bump & Grind sits further on.
• Erratica Central: the Geeks (Boulder Geek and the Boing Dexterity lines), Gold as the Sky, and the Shade Grove boulder. From the Black Boulder, look southwest for a small dome with erratics on top, hike over it, then walk about 200 yards northwest to a second small dome to find Gold as the Sky. Figure about 20 minutes total from the car.

The rock is golden Sierra granite, mostly freestanding erratics perched on slab, with the odd diorite knob mixed in. Most of it is high quality, a little of it is choss, and the landings are generally flat. The area also burned in the 2021 Caldor Fire, so expect burn scars, less shade than the old photos suggest, and dead standing trees. Don't set up under a snag on a windy day. The fire also cooked some of the rock: locals report that a number of problems are gone or now fragile, so skip any boulder that shows obvious fire damage (flaking, spalled, or blackened holds) and don't trust a hold just because the app has it.

Because the layout is genuinely confusing, a guide earns its keep here more than almost anywhere else in Tahoe. Kaya has Erratica mapped with well over a hundred boulders, and Dave Hatchett's Bouldering Lake Tahoe: Outlying Areas is the print source.

Classic problems, V3 to V8

Here's a run through Erratica's most-logged and best-rated problems. Grades are current Kaya and community consensus where Kaya lists them, Mountain Project otherwise, so they'll feel stiff some days and soft others:

_{Links from Mountain Project and Kaya; coordinates from Mountain Project's per-boulder pages. Grades are current Kaya and community consensus where Kaya lists them, Mountain Project otherwise. Verify names, grades, and access before you go, and check conditions.}

What to bring

• Crash pads. Landings are mostly flat slab, but the hikes between blocks are real, so pack light enough to carry your pads across the field.
• A boar-bristle brush. Burned-over granite and a dusty slab mean holds collect grit, and a clean hold climbs a full grade better. (How to brush a hold without wrecking the rock.)
• Stiff, edgy shoes. Sierra granite is all crystals and edges.
• Dry, grippy chalk for sunny summer afternoons. (More on chalk here; Pow Day suits it.)
• A bucket that survives the walk in. The Bolder Chalk Bucket shrugs off granite grit and keeps a brush in reach while you climb.
• Bug spray, water, and a guide. Mosquitoes in early summer, not much shade since the fire, and a layout that rewards having the app or the book.

Erratica etiquette

Erratica is a quiet, high-elevation area that's still recovering from a major fire, which makes it worth being careful with:

• Park off the dirt road and don't block the log-gated spur.
• Stick to the cairned paths and existing trails across the slabs. Recovering burn areas don't need new social trails.
• Pad on rock and dirt, not on the regrowing plants.
• Pack out everything, including tape and fruit peels.
• Brush off your chalk and tick marks before you leave. Gold granite shows chalk from a long way off.

FAQ

Where is Erratica bouldering? Erratica is off Highway 88 in the high Sierra south of Lake Tahoe, just west of Kirkwood. From the Kirkwood turnoff, drive west on Hwy 88 for 3.6 miles, turn right onto a dirt road, and park after about 100 yards when you see the triangle-shaped Father's Day boulder on your left.

When is the best season for Erratica? Early summer through fall, roughly June into October. At about 7,250 feet it's snowbound in winter and most of spring. Fall has the best temps and no mosquitoes.

Is Erratica good for beginners? There are some moderates like Shelly's (V3), Pencil Necked Geek (V3), and Boulder Geek (V4), but most of the classics sit in the V5 to V8 range and the area is confusing to navigate. It's more rewarding once you already know your way around Sierra granite.

What are the best problems at Erratica? Gold as the Sky (V5) and Bump & Grind (V5) are the best-rated, Boing Dexterity (V7) and Vision Quest (V6) are the most-climbed, and Boing Dexter (V6) and Dr. Roof (V7) are local favorites.

Was Erratica affected by the Caldor Fire? Yes. The 2021 Caldor Fire burned through the area. The boulders are still there and still climbable, but expect less shade, burn scars, and dead standing trees, so be careful on windy days.

Do I need a rope at Erratica? No, it's bouldering. Bring crash pads, shoes, chalk, a brush, and a guide to find the boulders.

Erratica is the move when Tahoe's lower areas are baking and you want high-country granite to yourself. For the bigger picture, see the Lake Tahoe bouldering guide and the Christmas Valley guide on the way back toward South Lake, and read up on keeping the rock clean before you head out.

Header photo: Sesh crew on Gold as the Sky (V5).