I read this morning on the Access Fun website that they have launched a multi million dollar campaign aimed at providing loans to local climbing organizations as well as assistance negotiating with land managers to help preserve, maintain, and obtain climbing areas. This is a great program and I am proud to be a supporter of the Access Fund. Take time to read about it on their site: Land Conservation Campaign. Read the rest of this entry »

I learned this morning that the Bush administration’s plan to clear cut old growth forests in Oregon has now been overturned by the Obama administration. It’s great to see things happening that are promoting conservation and preservation of the wilderness that we have left and the resources that we have left. (Now for Alaska!) Here is a quote from a press release on the issue: Read the rest of this entry »

The Access Fund is the national advocacy organization that keeps U.S. climbing areas open and conserves the climbing environment. Founded in 1990, the Access Fund supports and represents over 1.6 million climbers nationwide in all forms of climbing: rock, ice, mountaineering, and bouldering.

There have been numerous times while out climbing that I have seen a common mistake being made by new (and sometimes not so new!) lead climbers. Often, when trad climbing, the leader’s focus is only on where they can get good protection in so they can be safe, and they forget that they need to keep their second’s (the person belaying / following) safety in mind as well. Read the rest of this entry »