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bolting laws


scott

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you shouldnt bolt in a wilderness area!!!!!

 

"An area of wilderness is further defined to mean in this chapter an area of underdeveloped Federal land retaining its primeval character and influence, without permanent improvements or human habitation, which is protected and managed so as to preserve its natural conditions..."

 

Emphasis on "permanent improvements". dont get me wrong, I would love to see bomber 2 bolt belays in wilderness areas but it goes against the most basic ethic that created wildernesses in the first place. Have at thee CCcommers!

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No lecture here. Like the others have mentioned, you can bolt in wilderness, just no power drilling. It's supposed to be done by hand. There is a link from the Access Fund's webpage about the support of fixed anchors in wilderness, and that consideration for the use and placement of fixed protection should be done on an area-by-area basis.

http://www.accessfund.org/pdf/FA_letter_12-3-03.pdf

 

From talking with different land managers, it is an issue that has not been ultimately resolved. It's not a matter of can vs can't, it's just how they get placed for now.

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It wasn't quite that simple, Wazzu. There were certainly some in the Forest Service who DID have a problem with the bolts but the trail was at least as significant a concern and in a real way more so. Management plans do not allow for trailbuilding, but the rangers noted that trails are proliferating all over the place so that, for example, there is barely a lake anywhere that doesn't have a trail to it. The user built trail on nearby Mailbox Peak, too, was a big issue for them. In addition to the trail and the power tool issue, there was also the concern for the prospect that the climb might draw concentrated use by a new user group in a new area. Previously, that face had seen a handful of ascents in twenty years.

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Feel free to bolt in wilderness areas. Just no power drills. Must tap tap tap, turn turn turn. Repeat.

 

Something like that. I think there are more taps though. It takes 10 minutes to drill into granite with a 5/16 Hilte and an Eastman rock tool once you become proficient. I wonder who has blatantly broken the laws here in the Cascades? So far I only know of one climber who has passed into the grey area of power drilling.

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