Integrity of bolts at Peshastin

[Jim]

On another note - I was told recently by a sport-climber type that"all" the bolts at Peshastin are now suspect because of the fire. I haven't been there for a couple of years - so what's the scoop?

[catbirdseat]

According to the WCC website , the fire didn't damage any of the rock or bolts. Although that isn't to say that all of the bolts are safe. They were talking about replacing some old ones.

[max]

My opinion is that the fire at peshastin did not significantly affect the interity of the bolts. Why?

 

It all comes down to heat and temperature. First and most importantly, the fuel loading (the total amount of carbon available for combustion) at Peshatin was (and is) tiny. We're talking hundereds of times less than, say, the Icicle. There's just less heat released there. Second, the fuel type at Peshastin is light and quick burning with little residence time. The heat at the surface of the rock would have had little time to penetrate. And finally, the open, less steep terrain at Peshatin would have disipated the heat more readily than he steeper,more chimneyed slopes of the Icicle.

 

I'd bet that just one year's worth of freeze/thaw weathering compromised the bolts at peshastin more than last year's fire.

[olyclimber]

According to the WCC website , the fire didn't damage any of the rock or bolts. Although that isn't to say that all of the bolts are safe. They were talking about replacing some old ones.

 

The statement and perhaps the posts on WCC are a bit confusing, but I wanted to make this clear:

 

The WCC is not a bolt maintainance organization. There are people who are WCC members who may do that work, but not in the name of the WCC. The WCC is about promoting and preserving access to climbing, not preserving bolts. Just nipping that bud and clearing up what could end up being a misconception.

[ketch]

I would agree with them not being suspect. I was over there before the fire and left an oval on a hanger. When I returned afterwards it was still there and showed no signs of damage. Freeze/thaw is probably much harder than the fire was.

[Geek_the_Greek]

That and the fact that all the rock there is shite.

 

Pechosstin, as John Millar used to call it.