RRC Archives

MeetVA:

LOL. I wasn't sure which area was controlled by whom. Thanks for the clarification. Anyway, would that be an accurate way to determine in part who has been at the Gorge? Most people wouldn't fill out a waiver if they didn't intend on coming to climb.

What about number of guidebooks purchased?

nobody fills out waivers... do they?

sure people fill out waivers.
check out the muir site with where people have come from to go climbing.
surprising (or not) a lot of climbers are respectful of landowner wishes.

i'm sure some one has counted or enumerated the number of climbers in the gorge before. wasn't there someone who did a study on how much money climbers contribute to tourism in that region? maybe Kelso, you should hunt down that thread and ask that researcher.

in the end, enumerations will only be guesswork and dependent on the research modeling should be done with a low and high estimate.

meetVA wrote: in the end, enumerations will only be guesswork and dependent on the research modeling should be done with a low and high estimate.

yep - educated guesses - it is possible though.

Most times I come in from Looserville and maybe spend some money at Miguel's or just at the Shell. Many days I drive in and then drive back out and I'll bet that's even more true of Lexington climbers. I would suggest monitoring a selection of crags for an entire summer and then extrapolating your numbers from those observations. You do have a budget and a crew of observers, right?

The great Swami Static predicts that, with a new guidebook & the recent cover article in Urban Climbing mag, all previous estimates of climbing visitors to the Gorge can be thrown out the window and 2006 will see record setting droves waiting in line at Miguel's for pizza.

thanks for that warning..one more reason to stay away from that swamp.

ElectricDisciple wrote:MeetVA:

LOL. I wasn't sure which area was controlled by whom. Thanks for the clarification. Anyway, would that be an accurate way to determine in part who has been at the Gorge? Most people wouldn't fill out a waiver if they didn't intend on coming to climb.

What about number of guidebooks purchased?

it's still an estimate, though a more accurate way of getting one.

i filled out a waiver for Muir when they first became available in case i went there on a trip. i think my first time climbing at Muir versus when i turned in a waiver differed by at least half a year.

counting waivers that the Webers and RRGCC have will have overlap. i've filled out waivers for both; you probably don't want to count me twice.

and then there are all the areas in the Red that need no waiver. Natural Region, Gray's Branch, etc.


not everyone owns their own copy of the guidebook, let alone the more recent edition.

Alan Evil wrote:I would suggest monitoring a selection of crags for an entire summer and then extrapolating your numbers from those observations. You do have a budget and a crew of observers, right?

that sounds like your best bet.

pigsteak wrote:thanks for that warning..one more reason to stay away from that swamp.

dang it! i was looking forward to a new menu item on miguel's list.

piggie stew

This isn't really that difficult. If you are omniscient or know someone who is...as I do, the numbers are easily accessible.
First, access the NSA' satellite surveillance network, bypass the security codes, and then review the digital surveillance video over the last few years.
I have done this and discovered there are exactly 27,322.4 climbers visiting the Red annually.
Next question?