Nodos en Watertower

Easy access to dozens of stunning boulders. Most of them with good landings.

The Watertower side of Lukenya is not owned by the Mountain Club of Kenya, so please respect any instructions given by the landowners. So far bouldering has been well accepted there, but you're more likely to encounter rubbish and maybe a spectator or two. Can get hot in the afternoons as it doesn't benefit from the shade offered by the Lukenya cliffs.

GPS location of the entrance to Watertower area

Entrance

Larger boulder opposite Power Cube, with an undercut bottom and slabby top.

Stand-start compressing the left-hand arete of the boulder, with feet low underneath. Go left and up on decent holds to establish on the slab and easy to the top.

Lowball boulder close to the watertower, with a couple of powerful problems.

Sit-start on the left of the boulder, with hands matched in a low decent diagonal crack. Couple of powerful moves up a jug above and top out.

Sit-start on the right of the boulder, with hands matched in the good low horizontal crack. Powerful moves to reach the arete and top out.

The Watertower side of Lukenya is not owned by the Mountain Club of Kenya, so please respect any instructions given by the landowners. So far bouldering has been well accepted there.

Stand-start on the obvious lowest usable holds. Go straight up, using face or arete holds as you like.

On the left side of the boulder from Baby Slap. Stand-start on good feet and and handholds. Up jugs to the top.

The Watertower side of Lukenya is not owned by the Mountain Club of Kenya, so please respect any instructions given by the landowners. So far bouldering has been well accepted there.

#crimpy #juggy

Stand-start just behind the small tree, which can be padded so you don't fall into it. Left hand starts on a small left-hand crimp (couple of fingers) and a right-hand pinchy crimp. Straight up from there, with a fun big move to the finishing jug. One for Moonboard aficionados.

To the right of Crème Brûlée. Sit-start on lowest holds. First move is hardest, straight up to the finishing jugs. Short but sweet.

Squat-start in the cave on two decent holds, move up and then left to big underclings, keeping tension to join the end of Sugar Rush. Crux is maybe avoiding dabbing the rock behind you!

Stand-start on decent hold in the horizontal crack. Move up using the arete and hold on the face to the jugs above. With 2 or 3 pads the landing is better than it looks - fun easy climb.

Imposing boulder on the lower slope of the first outcrop from where you park your car, with a big diagonal crack running through it.

Highball. Up the diagonal crack splitting the boulder. Stand-start at the base of the crack, then move up it, breaking out left onto jugs towards the top.

Small boulder directly below 2 Min Crack.

Deceptively difficult and techy problem. Sit-start with left hand in lowest horizontal crack and right in a good low undercling. Make your way to a standing position via okay crimps, then up and right via weight shifts and tenuous body positions to top out on the right edge of the boulder on good holds.

Stand-start to the right of the crack in the middle of the boulder. Move up staying right of the crack.

Sit-start with hands matched in a good horizontal crack. Slightly strenuous first move up to a good hold, then good feet and handholds from there.

Sit-start on the far left of the boulder where the shallow crack ends. Start with hands in the crack - hard first couple of moves to get stood up, straight up from there. Climb always stays left of holds of 21 seconds.

The Watertower side of Lukenya is not owned by the Mountain Club of Kenya, so please respect any instructions given by the landowners. So far bouldering has been well accepted there.

Sit-start in the concave section of the boulder, with right hand on a good incut side-pull and left hand on the left arete. Work your up out and up the boulder, avoiding the rock to the right of the crack once out of the cave.

Sit-start with right hand on the undercling next to the corner and left hand out compressing on the arete at about the same height (same start as Marco). Instead of going left as for Marco, go right through some fun moves onto the prow, finishing up this.

Great compression boulder. Sit-start with left hand on a good hold on the lefthand side of the arete, and right in a pocket, feet low underneath. Hug your way up the prow to juggy holds higher up.

SIt-start around the right side of the prow, with hands matched in the low slanting rail and feet underneath. Work your way up the right side of the arete - a few options available for holds.

The Watertower side of Lukenya is not owned by the Mountain Club of Kenya, so please respect any instructions given by the landowners. So far bouldering has been well accepted there.

Stand-start matched on a good hold on the left hand-side of the boulder. The perpendicular boulder to your left is off, and you should establish also full off the sloping rock below. Go straight up via decent holds and sidepulls.

Stand-start on the arete and the hollow flake, established off the slanting rock below. Straight up the arete from there - good to have a few pads and a spotter as the landing is not great.

The Watertower side of Lukenya is not owned by the Mountain Club of Kenya, so please respect any instructions given by the landowners. So far bouldering has been well accepted there.

Nice. Don't use the boulders on right and on left. #bad_dropzone #juggy

Stand-start with left hand just around the arete and right hand on the arete. Pull a couple spicy moves and then your top out of choice.

A steep boulder with a long prow.

Start on two small crimpers above the rock. Traverse left and finish as for act of blasphemy. #SD #traverse #crimpy

Start with your feet all the way at the bottom of the cave, on the boulder. Hard move to start. Then hard moves. #SD #crimpy

Sit-start with right hand on same start as act of blasphemy and left hand further left, in a wide t the large rail. Straight up trending left from there.

The Watertower side of Lukenya is not owned by the Mountain Club of Kenya, so please respect any instructions given by the landowners. So far bouldering has been well accepted there.

Sit-start on the arete to the left of the crack, with right hand on the arete and left low on the face. Compress up the arete to good holds at the top, maybe with a sneaky toe-hook?

As the name suggests, up the crack on the left of the big face. Stand-start and jam or layback up to the big horizontal crack below the block above. Traverse right along this to finish.

Stand-start in the middle of the face. Straight up via good horizontal and diagonal cracks.

Stand-start on the right-hand arete of the face, with hands in the big low horizontal ledge. Straight up.

The Watertower side of Lukenya is not owned by the Mountain Club of Kenya, so please respect any instructions given by the landowners. So far bouldering has been well accepted there.

Pumpy traverse on the juggy handholds going above the cave, with a slightly tricky finish.

Very crimpy low end 7c put up by a visiting climber in 2016, and the hardest problem at Lukenya as at 2020. Start in the cave on decent handhold, big reach out to a bad crimp on the lip then hard tension move with heelhook to get a good left handhold. Easy from there to top. Beta video: https://vimeo.com/178325970

Stand-start, delicate moves up the face, then easily over the top block.

Up the arete left of Sniffing Glue. Stand-start on two decent flat holds and work up the arete with power and precision to top out either straight up or left.

The Watertower side of Lukenya is not owned by the Mountain Club of Kenya, so please respect any instructions given by the landowners. So far bouldering has been well accepted there.

Fun boulder at the grade. Stand-start holding both sides, and work your way up with good compression holds and trickier feet. At the top can use a good footbold on the right of the arete.

Very tall boulder with a few problems.

Crimpy highball up the left side of the boulder, on the face.

Up the highball on good holds on the right.

Up the left-hand arete, bailing left before the overhanging top.

Up the vertical crack on the right.

Large and easily recognisable boulder sat alone in the plain, with an arched boulder perched on top of a much bigger, oblong rock. Problems ranging from V0 to V4, from lowball to highball and everything in between, make this a great option for groups of varying levels. Go-go Gadget Arms is probably one of the best V4s in Lukenya.

Sit-start at the left end of the boulder, near the scramble up and down. Start with left and right hands in two great underclings under the bulge, with not great feet. First move is hardest, to a decent hold above the bulge, then up on better holds from there.

Sit-start to the right of "Sit-start warm-up", with hands matched on the obvious lowest good holds. First move is the hardest, without fantastic feet, moving up to okay holds. Stay on the white streak to the right of the crack. Moves stay interesting at the top, still have to think about your feet and find the right holds - a nice V1.

SIt-start on the lowest rail on the slabby black rock to the right of Sit-start warm-up and Mojave. First move hardest, but still easy enough, then up jugs to the top.

On the right side of the mountain-facing side of the lower boulder, just left of the very tall face and Slipper Feet and Osoit. Stand-start on obvious big holds and go up on more good holds from there. A bit high but always on solid holds.

To the right of Moja Maker, up the face. Stand-stat with hands matched in a good diagonal crack but with poor feet. Find your way up the face on more decent holds and more poor feet before reaching jugs for both.

Right of Slippery Feet. Stand-start using a diagonal crack and move up using holds on the face and arete.

Quite tall but on good holds the whole way. On the rock to the right of the big crack and much taller face, on the side of the lower boulder facing the hillside. Stand-start on crimps, with feet up off the lower boulder on not great feet. First move is hardest, then easier to the top.

Highball up the face on the lower boulder below Go-Go Gadget Arms, etc., on the side facing Mombasa Road, in between two fig trees. Stand-start on the holds you can reach. Work through some deceptively tricky moves to reach better holds above and top out on jugs, making sure each one is solid before pulling.

Highball. Start as for Warm-high-uup, but branch out right onto slightly harder ground after the first few moves, via a crimp and slanting hold in the black section of rock.

Stand-start on two small crimps a few metres to the right of Warm high up. Work your way up on small but decent crimps and feet to join the middle holds on I'm warm, can I come down now, and finish as for that climb.

Just left of Sit-Start Pull Cross. Sit-start matched on a small rounded crimp (right and up from a more crumbly hold), with feet low. Slightly powerful first move up and right to a good sloping hold, then straight up through interesting moves.

Not the most inspiring name but a fun boulder. Good to have a spotter as the landing is a bit slanted. On the first part of the perched boulder you approach from the left-side scramble up to the top. Sit-start matched on a blocky hold, then sort out feet to reach a cool tufa-like hold out left. Straight up from there.

Up the easiest ground on the left of the perched boulder, left of Gogo. Crouch-start on obvious good holds and up and left.

Aka something related to mental and disease. Up the face to the left of the cave perched boulder, on the side facing Mombasa Road. Sit-start on the lowest reachable holds then work up and slightly right before a heady top-out.

On the perched bnoulder itself. Get in the cave and dig. Stand-start matched on the good blocky hold on the outside of the cave, facing Mombasa Road. From there chimney up to holds which enable you to come out of the cave and onto jugs on the face.

Stand-start from two crimps to the right of the cave of Digging for gold. Up and slightly left on decent holds to a juggy topout. Take care as some holds might be hollow.

On the mountain-facing side of the perched boulder. Sit-start, matched on a big jug on the left of the cave. From there traverse low along the boulder until you reach the cave, and go up before getting into it.

The Watertower side of Lukenya is not owned by the Mountain Club of Kenya, so please respect any instructions given by the landowners. So far bouldering has been well accepted there.

Stand-start just to the right of a small tree. Go up and slightly right to a topout on good holds.

Sit-start to the left o the crack, on crimps. Get up to better holds in the crack and up this to a good topout.

Sit-down start to the right of Straight Up on the little jug past the arrete. Go left round the arete and up the crack.

The Watertower side of Lukenya is not owned by the Mountain Club of Kenya, so please respect any instructions given by the landowners. So far bouldering has been well accepted there.

Sit-start on the low rail. Move up through a couple of tensiony moves on crimps to better holds above. Finish on jugs.

Sit-start on a low right-hand crimp and left hand sidepull. Stand up to a marginal crimp before good holds on the arete and crack and moving up to a fun top-out.

A bit of an eliminate but very nice moves. Sit-start on a low rail at the base of the arete on the left of the boulder. Hard first move up to a right crimp, before crossing going up and left and then crossing to a good hold above that. Easier to finish. Stay on the arete and avoid the holds to the right of the diagonal crack, on Stripe.

Sit-start on the lowest good usable holds, and go up on more decent holds above.

Located within a clutch of boulders a bit of a walk away from the water tower - you need to cross a broken fence and big ditch to find this very overgrown block! Bring a panga.

The Watertower side of Lukenya is not owned by the Mountain Club of Kenya, so please respect any instructions given by the landowners. So far bouldering has been well accepted there.

Face left for salty, and right for sweet. Stand-start for both with hands on the lower boulder.

Lovely tall climb. Stand-start with hands matched in lowest obvious hold. Go straight up, using the right side of the arete if needed but staying left of the crack and boulder on the right.

Boulder which looks like a clam, with long rising traverse from right to left, and a couple of nice overhanging lines.

Sit-start with hands on the low block and adjacent small chickenhead. From here either jump to the jug above or deadpoint to diagonal right crimp, then mantle and finish.

Stand-start with both hands on the lip of the boulder on the far right. Traverse left along the lip on decent holds and heel hooks and top out at the highest point of the boulder, where there is a prominent chicken head. Landing gets worse as you go, so pad and spot carefully.

Stand-start with both hands just either side of the v-shaped block in the middle of the right side of the boulder. Couple of tricky moves to get up to the lip and then mantle. Short but sweet.

Striking boulder with two rising traverses. You can't miss it.

Very aesthetic line. Sit-start matched low on the left-hand arete. Work your way up the arete until you reach the big white jugs at the top and top out. Tricky start and need to stay calm and efficient for the top.

Stand-start on a good white hold as far right as the bush allows. Heel hook and work your way across to the big jugs in the middle.

The Watertower side of Lukenya is not owned by the Mountain Club of Kenya, so please respect any instructions given by the landowners. So far bouldering has been well accepted there.

Sit-start in the big crack on the left of the boulder. Follow the arete round to the right, topping out to the left of Chainsaw. Ledge underneath is off - best rock on the boulder and high-quality moves.

Sit-start in the same low jugs as for Axe. Go left and up on juggy holds to top out at the hight point of the boulder. Take care with some holds, as they sound slightly hollow.

Sit-start on obvious low crack. Straight up on good crimps.

Sit-start matched on corner of low blocky flake. Straight up via crimps and nice tensiony moves.

Sit-start to the right of Teeth, with hand matched in low crack. Hard first move up to jug on the arete, then jugs up this to top.

The Watertower side of Lukenya is not owned by the Mountain Club of Kenya, so please respect any instructions given by the landowners. So far bouldering has been well accepted there.