Durfee Hill Management Area Routes

Directions
Directions are from Providence and points east so if coming from the south or west your directions will vary. Take Route 44 west. Take a left on Route 94 (Reynolds Road). Go for about a mile and a half. Pass the brown sign and parking lot for the Durfee Hill Management Area. There are three parking options. The parking area for Hemlock Ledge is the largest parking area. There are pullouts at the Roadside Crag and the South Crag that will accomodate a couple of cars.

Routes
The rock is granite and has routes on slabs and vertical and diagonal cracks. Practicing trad leading on easy routes is possible in many of the cracks. This was mostly a top-rope area for years but has seen a number of bolted routes put up by an area local. First Ascent (FA) nformation is what is known. Sport routes were put up recently, so this route information is known. All first ascents refer to a route that has been led ground-up no falls or takes unless otherwise noted as a top-rope (TR) ascent. There are four cliffs that I have arbitrarily named by their location with the exception of Hemlock Ledge which is identified as such on USGS topographic maps. Some of the cliffs are a way in the woods and hard to find, especially when there are leaves on the trees.

Park at the pull-off on the left (east). Walk diagonally left (south) crossing the road. You will see a well-defined path on right (west) side of the road at the end of the guardrail.. Follow it to the crag which is only a hundred feet or so from the road. This is the first cliff you come to. Very short approach.

Roadside Crag Durfee Dangler 11a FA Ward Smith 1985
Dangler Direct 11c FA Ward Smith 1985

Roadside Crag (west end)
Keep following the cliff band from the first cliff. There are multiple cracks here that have been led trad over the years.

Backbreaker Arete. 5.8. Dirty Deeds 5.9. Big Tree Route 5.8

Roadside Crag (west end)
Backbreaker Arete. 5.8. FA Jeff Sargeant July 2023. Climb starts on the ground..Not from the top of the flake. Although the first bolt can be clipped while standing on the flake.
Dirty Deeds 5.9. FA Jeff Sargeant July 2023. Thin, crimpy start, then follow bolts up and slightly, right passing horizontal cracks, to 2-bolt anchor.
Big Tree Route 5.8 FA Jeff Sargeant, July 2023. Mxed. Gear to 3 inches, 3 bolts. Climb the face to right of the large tree on pockets and horizontals. Clip first bolt then mantle onto large ledge. Climb vertical face above following thin seam past three bolts. After 3rd bolt, you can place gear and sling a small tree on your way to 2-bolt anchor.

Just past the Roadside crag. From the Roadside Crags, continue along the trail a couple of minutes to a 4-way junction. Turn left. In a short distance the trail goes downhill and curves to the right. The slab will be visible on your right soon after you turn the corner. Time: 5 minutes from Roadside crags. Take a left at the trail junction and look for it on the right.

Far Left 5.7 Slab Left 5.8. Easier Around the Middle 5.10 Flexi-Flakes 5.9+. Triple Decker 5.4

Coyote Crag
Far Left 5.7, FA Jeff Sargeant, Aug 2025. Four bolts to anchor.
Slab Left 5.8, FA Jeff Sargeant, May 2025. Four bolts to anchor.
Easier Around the Middle 5.10, FA Jeff Sargeant, May 2025. Five bolts to anchor.
Flexi-Flakes 5.9+ FA Jeff Sargeant, May 2025. Five bolts to anchor.
Triple Decker 5.4.

West Crag
This is a bushwhack off the trail. It is marked with a small cairn. Follow the cliff band on a rocky hillside.

Yellow bolts-Shade Tree Mechanics 5.9. Red bolts-Overlaps 5.9+. Red-Rattletrap 5.6. Green-Unamed arete 5.9

West Crag
Shade Tree Mechanics 5.9. Shared first bolt with Overlaps. FA Jeff Sargeant, August 2025
Overlaps 5.9+ ** FA Jeff Sargeant, October 2024. Climb steep rock past four small overlaps. From the fourth bolt, climb easier rock past two more bolts to the anchors.
Rattletrap 5.6 FA Jeff Sargeant, October 2024. Trad. Climb the large and sometimes loose left-facing corner to its top. From the large ledge at its top, climb the short face and left-facing corner above to the trees.
Unamed arete to the left of overlaps. Climb overlaps to the top.

Parking: Heading south on Route 94 from the intersection with Route 44, you’ll pass a RI DEM Check Station on your left. Go downhill past the station and turn right into the next parking area This dirt lot is popular with hunters during hunting season. Be sure to wear blaze orange if visiting during hunting season.

Approach: From the lot, follow the wide trail uphill for 0.25 miles (~ 5 minutes) At the top of the hill, there is a T junction, with a trail entering from the left. At this intersection, turn right and follow the trail uphill (north) for about ten minutes. The trail is rocky in places and passes through three muddy areas. A short distance past the third muddy area, turn left onto a trail entering from the left. Small cairn marks the junction. The trail heads downhill. Near the bottom of the hill, approximately two minutes from the junction, there is a large tree stump on the right, with a small cairn on top. Turn right into the woods here and follow a faint trail 100 feet to the base of the crag. Total approach time is ~20 minutes.

The South Cliff is about 100 feet farther down the road from the Roadside Crag. Park either on the left (west) side (more room) or a pullout on the right (east).