Bay Area Lowball Bouldering

*DISCLAIMER: BOULDERING IS DONE AT YOUR OWN RISK.
When I'm teaching beginner and intermediate level climbers how to do basic "roped climbing"; set up top rope anchors, place protection and even do mock lead climbs in my guiding classes I always ask everyone if they do bouldering (bouldering is climbing without a rope near the ground). About half of my clients say no they don't boulder and this is odd to me because bouldering is how you learn and practice how to move over stone. If you can't move over stone and climb a 5-10ft tall boulder safely then roped climbing is going to be much harder and in turn, more dangerous. Too many people think bouldering is all about doing risky high boulders "highballs" with no rope obviously and taking big falls, but it is not only about that, bouldering can be done safely. I find it funny/sad how many of my friends and acquaintances do roped climbing (sport or trad) and do not boulder and even think bouldering is dangerous and kind of a thing for young folks or for daredevils when I think they are the crazy risk takers and basically ignorant to the reality of how dangerous roped climbing is. If something goes wrong roped climbing there is a huge chance you will die, if something goes wrong bouldering you might sprain an ankle or break a leg, which would you prefer? Of course no rock climbing is ever totally safe but neither is mountain biking or surfing or most sports. Hell, driving is usually more dangerous than the bouldering I do nowadays which is mostly "lowballs" over my 9 bouldering pads. Although I do a lot of first ascents which has its own risks involved, mainly breaking holds which has made me a master of pad placement to be prepared for a fall from anywhere on the problem since I've learned that even the most seemingly solid holds can break. Usually if a hold is going to break it is going to break the first time it is weighted on a first ascent, or soon thereafter, so I am kind of a crash test pilot/dummy lol.

It is possible to find and safely do boulders that are "lowballs" (lowballs are problems usually about head height up to about double the height of the person doing them) and usually have flat landings. With the use of pads/multiple pads placed in the correct places and moved by a spotter if needed, as well as using a spotter that knows how to spot and when to spot or get out of the way and not spot most lowballs can be done very safely and IMO are much safer than traditional climbing and even sport climbing and top roping. With roped climbing people feel safe but I feel it is a false sense of safety that leads to complacency - and complacency kills. With roped climbing if just one thing goes wrong; top anchor or lead protection gear failure, rope failure, harness failure, belayer failure, fall onto a ledge, pendulum fall, rockfall from above, broken holds, weather/rain or snow or hail storm, heat stroke, darkness etc.. if any one of those things goes wrong it could result in the need for a rescue, and/or a serious injury or death. Statistical probability simply adds into the equation and eventually your luck will run out or you will simply make a mistake and in roped climbing you usually have the ultimate risk of being paralyzed or very often certain death. In bouldering, especially near the car as many bouldering areas are, if pads and spotters are used properly and a lowball boulder problem is chosen wisely with a good/flat landing zone, and egos are kept in check and people are realistic about their abilities or lack of as well as their partners abilities or lack of, then most all of those risks that roped climbing has are minimized if not totally eliminated.

For me bouldering is the safest and most fun style of climbing and at the same time the most difficult and extreme - it is the most badass sport on Earth in my not so humble opinion - so go bouldering!! But if you get hurt don't blame me or usually anyone but yourself, it can be very dangerous, the most dangerous along with free soloing if not done realistically and safely. I have been bouldering up to V10 for 30 years with ~1000 first ascents under my belt and I have had nothing more than a few sprained ankles and wrists. If you do hurt yourself it is your own fault for not preparing properly and for not being ready for the problem you try and for not being real and honest with yourself - basically, you were unlucky and/or you were stupid and/or you suck :)

So, choose the location you want to boulder wisely, take the proper precautions and be truthful to yourself about your abilities and everything SHOULD be fine.

Check out V18 Rentals for bouldering pads if you don't own one or more.

And check out this video where Adam Ondra, the best all around climber in the world currently mentions that "bouldering is essential training for any kind of climbing, it is the base, everybody needs that" and for those of us that love just pure bouldering for the sake of bouldering it is a religion.
Adam Ondra - Road To Tokyo YOUTUBE

Here is a short list of some Bay Area/NorCal bouldering areas and boulder problems that are considered lowballs and/or considered less dangerous than most other problems in the area due to low height, flat or sandy landings and fairly easy top-outs and walk-offs or down-climbs:

Castle Rock has a few fun lowballs spread around Magoos and elsewhere from about VB-V10.

Indian Rock has some good lowballs on the roadside boulders and the slab across Indian Rock Ave ~VB-V6 with a few of my favorites being right over the sidewalk like "The Ape" V1-V3.

Mortar Rock has the classic lowball testpieces "Stans Traverse" V8 and "Marks Traverse" V11.

Turtle Rock has some lowball-ish problems and most of the traverse is very low to the ground and moderately hard ~VB-V6.

Stinson Beach has a lot of low to medium height problems with often flat sandy landings.

Goat Rock/Sunset Boulders have some good lowball problems in the front area ~VB-V6.

Super Slab has several lowballs in the V4-V8 range with "Super Slab" V6, "Abalone" V7, "Super Abalone" V8 and "Bulls on Parade" V8 being the main lowball classics. There are also a few good VB-V2 problems.

Sugarloaf Ridge has some good fun lowball problems in the VB-V6 range.

Vacaville/Nut Tree Boulders have some good lowball to medium height problems with flat landings.

Dos Rios has some good lowball problems in the VB-V8 range.