Rat Rock

Rat Rock is a boulder protruding from the Central Park bedrock in Manhattan. It is named after the rats that used to swarm there at night but it is also known as Umpire Rock.citation|url=http://www.nytimes.com/2007/10/07/nyregion/thecity/07boul.html?partner=USERLAND&pagewanted=all|title=The Zen of the Rock|date=October 7, 2007|author=Jennifer Bleyer|publisher=New York Times] It is near the southwest corner of the park, north of the Heckscher Ballfields on the lines of 61st Street and 7th Avenue. The boulder is roughly circular, about convert|150|ft|m wide and convert|25|ft|m tall.

A community of boulderers congregates there - as many as fifty per day. Bouldering is the sport of climbing such large rocks. [citation|url=http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9B02E3D61230F932A25750C0A96E958260
title=The Thrill of Bouldering: It Doesn't Have to Be High to Be Hairy|author=Joe Glickman|date=March 11, 1998|publisher=New York Times] Some are regulars such as Yukihiko Ikumori, a gardener from the West Village who is known as the "spiritual godfather" of the rock. Others are just passing through, such as tourists and visitors who learn about the climbing spot from the Internet and word of mouth. Experienced climbers such as Mr Ikumori often show neophytes good routes and techniques.

Rat Rock has east, west and north faces that each present different climbing problems.

Gallery

References

External links

* [http://www.centralpark.com/pages/sports/bouldering.html Bouldering in Central Park]
* [http://www.climbnyc.com/boulder/ratrock.html RatRock @ ClimbNYC.com]