RRC Archives

The routes at FRC, much like many older routes are bolted pretty sporty. Like Funkidelic. If you skip the optional piece like most people, clip the last bolt, fall on it, and it goes, you are going a long, long way, probably to the ground. Just one example. Sporty is fine, but you are betting an an awful lot on one bolt, maybe more then you think. Next time you are out, start skipping bolts and see what it feels like to do that math.

Has rick invented a staple gun for his staples yet? we could use those........

I admit, I'm pretty damn torn over this issue. Power boats are allowed in the Boundary Lakes Wilderness areas, that's pretty damn mechanized. If USFS gets to use equipment to clean up the old shower stalls down there as an exemption, then trail maintenance (or route maintenance) should too. Or should it?

The impetus for the wilderness act involved respect for the land and the experience but it's been gutted a ton since 1964. You can hear cars from FRC. Pounding on hand drills for days and months to do it would probably be more of a disturbance to the "wilderness experience" than one weekend of power drills. How does that conundrum fall in line with the original act?

[quote]From Wilderness Watch......

Stepping Over the Line

— By Scott Stouder

It was an old pack trail. It didn’t appear on new Forest Service maps and hadn’t been maintained in years.
But as my hunting partner and I turned off the river trail and started up the mountain three days before Oregon’s 2001 first rifle elk season, I noticed fresh cut windfalls. The steep path gets little use anymore, but somebody had been up here recently.

“There’s been some trail clearing,â€

Wes wrote:The routes at FRC, much like many older routes are bolted pretty sporty. Like Funkidelic. If you skip the optional piece like most people, clip the last bolt, fall on it, and it goes, you are going a long, long way, probably to the ground. Just one example. Sporty is fine, but you are betting an an awful lot on one bolt, maybe more then you think. Next time you are out, start skipping bolts and see what it feels like to do that math.

yep you are right there. but again personal responsibility. last time i checked there is some inherent danger even sport climbing.

Fuckin' Hell! It's not like we are driving out 4 wheel drive Hilti adventure bulldozers to base and grid bolting the place.

Shut up and climb.

asdf

oh yeah...about hand drilling...if enough people showed up, i would guess that replacing almost all of the routes the lurkist mentions, would be entirely feasible. have a group of 2-3 working on one route, and the bolts could be replaced within a few hours.

Horatio Felacio wrote:an increased climbing population is going to produce more injuries. there is nothing anyone can do to stop this. sure, we should try to minimize what we can...so instead of freaking out and getting one of the best cliffs in the gorge closed to climbing, let's go fix it...legally. i really don't see what everyone is bitching about?

one of the best posts in a while. and couldn't agree more: it'd be a pain like nothing else to go out there with hand-drills.. but the alternatives are far worse. let's just suck it up and do it..

I'm w/ Ho on this too. Climbing is dangerous, deal with it. Your lacy panties are not required attire at FRC. There are plenty of other crags they may be "safer."

You want to fix FRC, fix it. Without USFS blessing it's either renegade drills, or handdrills. I'm not afraid of using a handtool. The Appalachian Trail Maintenance Clubs cannot use chainsaws (right or wrong) but they don't whine about the miles of trail maintenance they do every freakin spring. They sac up and do it.

well said, horatio and buster. you guys are real stars.