Quincy Quarries, Quincy
11/7/02
Landowner: Metropolitan District Commission 617-698-1802
R.Doucette
Granite from the Quincy Quarries can be found throughout the US, as it was prized as a building and monument stone for
over a century. Sometimes called the “Birthplace of the Granite Industry”, Quincy was also one of the first places in the US
where crag climbing was used for mountaineering practice, sometimes in still-working quarries. Robert Underhill’s
unpublished 1926 Rock Climbs Around Boston found “One course of 150 feet, worth roping for. One face climb, 120 feet,
difficult and exposed.” Today the longest climb is 50 ft. and most of the water is gone. The abandoned quarries are known
for their sometimes-blank face climbs requiring good footwork and lots of shoe rubber. The grades are tough, ½ to a full
number grade below what you might expect.
The routes listed here are found in two quarry holes that once made up Granite Railway Quarry. This is now the Quincy
Quarries Reservation (www.state.ma.us/mdc/quincyq.htm), part of the Blue Hills Reservation. Immediately to the east is
Swingle’s Quarry, and the remnants of Badgers Quarry are east of that. Short cliffs and small quarries are found throughout
the region. The rock is dark gray granite and can be quite hot in the summer and pleasantly warm in the winter. The area
dries out very quickly. The popular routes have glue-in toprope anchors, others require medium to long slings. Most of the
cliffs are designated by letters, from left to right as you walk in from Ricciuti Drive (A Wall, B Wall, C Wall…).
DIRECTIONS Take Rte. 93/3 to exit 8 in Quincy. Follow signs for Quarry Hills Recreation Complex. It’s a quick right
going south, but a bit roundabout going north. Take a right on Ricciuti Drive between the Mr. Tux and “Quarry Hills”
signs. Go ¼ mile to a small parking lot on the right, or 0.4 miles to a larger one set up and back from the road by the soccer
fields. Via Public Transportation: Take the Red Line to Quincy Center, take MBTA bus #215 to Copeland and Willard
Streets, walk left on Willard St., cross under the Expressway and take the first right onto Ricciuti Drive. Walking into the
site from Ricciuti Drive, the tall ship’s prow-shaped formation is J and K Walls. A smaller quarry hole (with A-F Walls) is
found further to the left. Walking down from the larger parking area at the soccer field/microwave tower, you meet the top
of A and B Walls.
A Wall
This has two climbable faces, partially obscured by trees.
1. Bulges 5.2 Just right of the descent route.
2. Snark 5.6 Go up, then right. Cross above the drill holes and go up again.
3. Dill’s Pickle 5.8 Eight ft. right of Snark. Climb up center of the block with the drill holes.
4. Hairlip 5.6 Eight ft. right of Dill’s Pickle. Pass the overhang on either side.
Gap to next route
5. Backbone 5.6 Finger jam, right of another descent route.
6. Ribs 5.4 Variant right finish to Backbone.
7. Short Man’s Sorrow 5.10 Reachy.
8. Blow Up 5.9 Go over the overhang at the drill holes.
9. Fat Man’s Folly 5.8 Start up Blow Up, move right then finish straight up.
B Wall
This is also known as “Pink Face”, and is good for beginners and for practicing rappelling.
1. Left 5.2 The ramp is off route.
2. Center 5.6 You can make it harder by avoiding the large horizontal cracks.
3. Right 5.3 Stay just left of the outside corner.
C Wall
This is where many of the popular routes are found. It faces south and is sheltered from the wind. The traditional descent
route is found at the far left end of C Wall.
1. Grey Spot 5.5. The variation Grey Spot Direct is a 5.7+.
2. Blood Streaks 5.9* Follow the red paint streak…that is if you can get off the ground. An “over 40” start can be found
on the left by the little ledge.
3. Constant Absurdity 5.8
4. Ceaseless Turmoil 5.8* The obvious vertical crack. It’s very hard on your first few tries, for a 5.7.
5. Satisfaction 5.6-5.7
6. Double Overhang 5.6* A few variations at the start, all feeling harder than 5.6.
7. Rubin’s Cube 5.10 rarely done.
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Sour Grapes 5.9-5.10* Gain a flake-like feature via tiny edges. At the top and don’t cheat to the left.
Ripple 5.10
Split Pea 5.8 Start just left of the ledge
Sticky Fingers 5.8
Thin Spot 5.7 Follow the seams/cracks just left of a large flake-like feature.
Yellow Spot 5.4-5.5 Follow the steps up and right to a highpoint. Finish via a shallow yellowish scoop.
Flake Direct 5.6 Straight up the middle of the flake-like structure, formed by the steps on both sides.
Mingled Measure 5.8 Start on the right side of the flake, then up.
Palm 5.7 Find the signature “palm” move.
Brown Sugar 5.9 Start on Leap or Albatross, then stay left of Leap above the flake.
Leap 5.8+ Climb the center of the Albatross Flake, then up.
Albatross 5.8 Climb the obvious flake, then up.
Starlight 5.4 Climb the slab to an overhang.
Small Ceiling 5.4 Finishes between two faint drill holes.
Fingertrip 5.8 Girdle Traverse, generally done right to left.
D Wall [formerly D&E walls]
This blocky formation can be found 15 ft. up and 20 ft. right of C wall. A 3 rd class descent trail is up and right of here.
1. Fingers 5.7 Up and left of an overhand, the finish by the two drill holes.
2. Meat Cleaver 5.4 Start 5 ft. right of Fingers on C Wall.
3. Upshot 5.6 Avoid the generic ledges on Meat Cleaver.
4. Drill Holes 5.6 Links up the lower 3 drill holes with the upper two. Well named. One Variation of Drill Holes
eliminates the large “K-Tel” ledge 12 ft. up, as well as the “Ronco” and “Acme” holds. Another variation of Drill
Holes uses the right two lower drill holes as the start.
5. Extensor 5.8 Three ft. right of lower right drill hole. Pass the sloping overhang on the left, then join Condenser.
6. Condenser 5.6 Go up under the sloping overhang. Move left under it, then weave up and right of the upper overhang.
E Wall [formerly F wall]
Also called Savage Wall, this is just right of a steep descent trail. The lower half of the wall is slabby, but the upper half has
several good (though short) routes. Beware, particularly in springtime, the upper part of this wall has experienced recent
rockfall.
1. Savage Place 5.4
2. Savage Direct 5.9* Avoid the 2 inch outside corner. You might need to lunge.
3. Walk on the Wild Side. 5.10
4. Sigma 5.8 Thin and steep. Climb left of the inside corner.
5. Double Traverse 5.4 Traverse left to an inside corner.
6. Barbara 5.8
7. Double Traverse Straight Up 5.6 Five ft. right of Double Traverse.
8. Luna 5.7+
9. Apollo 5.7*
F Wall [formerly G wall]
This is longer and slabbier than any other face at the Quarries. You may need a long rope to belay from below.
1. Long Face 5.3 (5.6 if you eliminate the large holds)
2. Traffic Jam 5.3 Jam the right-leaning crack, then up the slabs.
3. Friction Pitch 5.2-5.3 The longest route at the Quarries. The flake at the top makes an interesting finish (5.4 variation).
G Wall [formerly F]
This includes the blocky arete that makes up the right hand end of the amphitheater formation known as Little Railway
Quarry.
1. Fallout 5.6 The bottomless chimney.
2. Shark’s Tooth 5.4
3. Blocks 5.8-5.9
4. The Cave 5.5 Follow the left-curving crack into a cave. Climb the overhang.
5. Little Inch 5.4 Follow the crack straight up, right of the cave.
6. Slingshot 5.5 Climb the face between two vertical cracks.
7. Boardwalk 5.3 Climb the crack system near the end of the buttress.
H Wall [formerly J Wall]
This the only big roof at the Quarries. Descend at the right end. Beware, particularly in springtime, the overhangs
experienced rockfall in the 1990s. That’s what overhangs do.
1. Under the Big Top 5.10* The biggest roof at the Quarries. Several variations and all are scary. The last 12 ft. fell off in
the 90s and made it harder.
2. East of Eden 5.12- Climb up and right over a short corner. Move up into the back of a small alcove. Climb straight left
out a difficult horizontal crack to a stance at an undercling. Move up and right for 15 feet up shallow corners/flakes,
then back slightly left. Finish directly up a short steep headwall. First led by Barry Rugo in July, 1984 and soloed by
same in October, 1991.
3. Slice of Lime 5.6 There is a steep slab down and right of the big overhangs, with a small overhang 2/3 of the way up.
Climb the far left side of the face, past the left side of a down-facing flake, then through an overhang.
4. Fruit of the Loom 5.10 Up the blank middle of the slab, through the down-facing flake and the same overhang as Slice
of Lime.
5. Orange Peel Easy 5.7 Climb up to the right hand end of a ledge at 1/3 height. Go straight up and join the standard
Orange Peel at an overhang several feet right of the aforementioned overhang.
6. Orange Peel 5.8 From the bottom right of the slab, climb near the right-side arete. Then pull the Orange Peel overhang
at some good holds.
7. Canada Dry 5.8 A poorly-defined climb between J and K Walls.
I Wall [formerly K Wall]
This is found down and further right of the big roof, and includes a couple of smearing rounded slab routes of note.
Descend at the right end.
1. Hyperbola 5.10 Climb Parabola but don’t move right, continue straight up to the top.
2. Parabola 5.10* Climb the slab through a small sloping shelf. Move right and join Paraboloid near the top.
3. Paraboloid 5.10-5.11 Climb the nearly impossible sweeping slab, just to the left of the inside corner.
4. Willie’s Walk 5.9* Climb the awkward inside corner. Named for Will Crowther.
5. Twisting by the Pool 5.11
6. Torque 5.8 Climb straight up the drill holes to the right of the Willie’s Walk corner. Well-named, you will understand
once you climb it. The left exit is harder than straight up the drill holes, and makes a good variation.
7. Piranha Frogs 5.9
8. Insignificant 5.11
J Wall [formerly L Wall]
There us a 50 ft. tall ship’s prow-shaped formation (sometimes known as “The Tower of Power”, visible as one enters from
Ricciuti Drive. This Wall is the left side of the prow.
1. Transfusion 5.9 Climb the strenuous left-leaning undercling/layback, then exit up and left Its easier to go right and
finish on Teepee, which most people do.
2. Teepee 5.8+* Start the undercling/layback, but after one move go straight up to a good-sized ledge. Follow the crack to
the top.
3. Teepee variation 5.7* Avoid the undercling/layback altogether. Clamber right to start in a shallow alcove, climb up
then make an awkward move left and up to the Teepee ledge. Finish up.
4. Teepee Erect 5.10+ Start with the 5.7 variation but do not gain the security of the ledge on your left. Finish straight up.
5. Lurch 5.7* Enter the long shallow groove from the blocky alcove on the left.
6. Lurch Direct 5.10* Do not start up and left in the alcove, but at the very bottom of the face under the blue paint streak.
Climb up several ft., move right around the corner onto the Ladder Line Face, make a tricky move on fingernail holds,
then weave your way up the shallow groove to the top.
7. Ladder Line 5.10* Some say the best route at the Quarries. It has two boulder-move cruxes, one high and one low.
8. Layback 5.6* Climb the obvious layback dihedral.
9. Outside Chance 5.10 Climb the outside corner right of Layback. Wicked hard and rarely done.
10. Manic Depressive 5.8
11. Balance 5.4 Find the easiest way up the blocky buttress, to the top.
12. Graffiti 5.9 Finish on More.
13. More 5.9
K Wall [formerly M Wall]
This wall makes up the right side of the prow formation. It has some of the Quarries’ best routes.
1. Outside Corner 5.8 Start up one of the leftmost cracks and continue to the top as close to the arête as possible.
2. The Power of Positive Thinking 5.10 First 10 ft. of Pins, diagonal up left in a crack, then up a thin crack/seam.
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Pins 5.9* Follow the thin crack to the top. Finish up right and its called Puns 5.10-.
Needles 5.10 Face climb between Pins and Tensile Strength.
Tensile Strength 5.9+* Steep and varied climbing, with cracks and flakes and edges. There are a few different finishes,
but most people diagonal left half way up and finish on Pins.
Bombay 5.10+ Start in the wide crack, then climb the very difficult thin cracks above. Formerly Ironmonger A2.
Thunderstorm 5.10 Up the flaring dihedral on the right side of the face.
Static Cling 5.10- just right of the Thunderstorm dihedral. Climb the wide flaring corner with a smearing layback.
L Wall
Immediately to the right of the prominent dihedral is a 15 ft. high,120 degree overhang. Right of that is a 3 rd class trail to
the top and a steeper wall to the right. A few routes, named and unnamed, can be found here. Until 1999, this quarry was
over 200 ft. deep and full of water. As a result, a few routes were attempted via lowering off, from boats, or from the ice in
winter. Since the filling operation was completed in 2001, there has been much new route activity. It is likely that all of the
easier routes were done long ago, way before you were born. But the overhanging routes might be new.
1. The aretes and V notches on the left are possible boulder problems.
2. Flying Dutchman A3 This old aid route, no longer done, follows the seam in the overhang.
3rd class scramble route to the top of the cliff.
3. The cliff turns out right and grows to vertical 16 ft. The blunt arete on the left has been done at V4ish.
M Wall
The wall turns back left and becomes a 16 to 20 ft. slabby section. Easy topropes for children or motivated dogs can be had
here. The cliff then turns out right slightly and this forms the left side of a 70 ft. long 23 ft. high blocky section. It is full of
cracks and small roofs. Above you will find 3 sets of toprope anchors and some trees.
1. Left unrated Various not too hard toprope routes from the left side of the buttress.
2. Center unrated A few harder routes, including a sharp hand crack.
3. Right unrated A bit easier.
N Wall
The wall turns back left again and shortens. Access to the top can be gained from the right side.
1. There is a nice bouldering traverse here, before the cliff disappears in the ground.
O Wall
The cliff rises out of the ground and culminates in a 15 ft. arete with good holds. The rock then becomes very short and
blocky and forms the boundary between Granite Railway Quarry and Swingles Quarry. Swingles Quarry has an interesting
3-sided amphitheater formation facing away from you.
1. Left unrated Good but not-too-hard bouldering can be found there and on the face to its left.
2. O Right unrated A vertical 15 ft. tall wall is then encountered, with numerous good boulder problems.
P Wall
The cliff turns back right out and shortens. A scramble route to the top can be seen up the blocky section, and good
traverses can be had here as well. The cliff rises as you go right, and culminates in a 40 ft. 100 degree overhang.
1. Unnamed unrated Good bouldering traverse on the short section of the cliff.
2. Unnamed unrated Various undefined routes can be done up the block midsection.
3. Unnamed unraated. The face just left of the blank overhang has a good steep route with positive holds.
4. Unnamed 5.12 The steepest and longest section was first led by Zeb Engberg in the summer of 2002.
The cliff then turns away from you and drops down to the ground, turns away again and becomes a painted slab.
Q Wall [formerly P]
This is a short slabby wall with a steep upper section. Some fine short friction climbs can be found here.
1. Float Like a Butterfly 5.7 Climb up to and past the green paint. Variations up to 5.9.
2. 100 in the Shade 5.7 Climb the slab, then go left of small inside corner. First ascent likely done in summer?
3. Reverberation 5.5 Climb the slab, then stay immediately right of the previously mentioned inside corner.
4. Cloudburst 5.6 Climb the shallow gray scoop. Circumflex finish off route.
5. Circumflex 5.6 Climb the big inside corner.
6. Seagull 5.3 Start up Circumflex, then make easier moves out right, and join Circumflex again.
7. Bench 5.6 Climb the zigzag crack on the right hand wall, then move right around the corner and finish up. Don’t go
around the corner, finishing up straight, and it’s 5.9
R Wall [formerly N]
Also known as Knight’s wall, this is nearest the road, seen to the right as one walks in from the Ricciuti Drive. Descend via
the steps on the left side.
1. Double Retable 5.7* Classic mantle problem.
2. Knight Line 5.11
3. Yellow Knight 5.10
4. White Knight 5.5 Climb the obvious flake to the top.
5. Big Biner Direct 5.9* Stays just left of Big Biner all the way. Avoid the nice ledge. Wide stem can be painful.
6. Big Biner 5.8* Climb near the corner but don’t touch it. Find a good 2-inch deep ledge 12 ft. up, then move up and left
to a smearing layback.
7. Black Knight 5.5-5.6 Inside corner on the right side of the face. Surmount the small roof.
Other Nearby Quarries:
Just east Granite Railway Quarry is Swingle’s Quarry, separated by a narrow rock wall. A few long scary routes (loose
rock) were done there before it was filled in the late 1990s. Now a few reasonable routes are likely to be established. Next
to that (adjacent to route 93) is what’s left of Badgers Quarry. A few unrecorded routes likely exist there as well. Bunker
Hill Quarry is located about ½ mile southeast from Granite Railway Quarry, through the woods. You can also get there by
driving down Ricciuti Drive, take a right on Willard St., bear right towards the Blue Hills Reservation and take a right onto
Bunker Hill Lane just before the park boundary. The quarry is off the end of the street, hidden up and left in the woods. See
the locus map for its location. This is where the granite for the Bunker Hill Monument came from, and was the start of one
of the first railroads in America. No route information is known, but it has been climbed.
___________________________
Topos: Most of the BR topos are fine except:
Update letters on plan views
Pins/Tensile Strength are confusing
Slice of Lime and Fruit of the Loom start lower and to the right and share one overhang
The 2 Orange Peels share an overhang, to the right of the aforementioned overhang
Update condition of Trees and C Wall boulder
To Do: update bouldering info and topos.