Want to go vertical? Let Rock Climbing the San Francisco Bay Area point you to the best ascents at twenty-four climbing areas within two hours' drive of the Bay. Scale the rock at Mount St. Helena and The Grotto, jam your way up the cracks at Mount Diablo and Consumnes River Gorge, and traverse the boulders at Mickey's Beach and Skyline Boulevard Slabs.Inside you find information on the best climbing routes and bouldering problems at each area, along with protection information and gear recommendations that will keep you heading to the top. You'll find: complete and up-to-date topos; detailed descriptions of more than 375 routes; descent information on multi-pitch routes; background and historical information on many of the crags; easy-to-follow driving and approach directions to climbing and bouldering destinations; tips on where to find the best coffee, grub and pint near each climbing locale. (6 x 9, 240 pages, b&w photos, maps, charts)

Tresa Black is a journalist, former PE teacher, and enthusiastic rock climber in the Bay Area. She lives in Mill Valley, California, with her pot-bellied pig, Giuseppe.