In November, the Access Fund announced that it had secured permanent access to Jailhouse Rock http://www.accessfund.org/site/apps/nlnet/content2.aspx?c=tmL5KhNWLrH&b=5000939&ct=8884107 , near Sonora California, through the Access Fund Land Conservation Campaign. However the current parking lot and approach trail still cross private land, which is up for sale. The Access Fund needs your help to raise $40k in the next 12 months to build a new parking area and trailhead and build a stewardship fund to protect Jailhouse for years to come.
Now through February 15th, Planet Granite Climbing Yoga & Fitness http://www.planetgranite.com/ is matching every contribution made to the Unlock Jailhouse Fund, dollar for dollar, up to $10,000! Jailhouse Rock is a local crag for many Planet Granite members, and the San Francisco Bay Area gym wants to give back. Take advantage of their generosity and double your donation today http://www.accessfund.org/jailhouse !
You can help protect access to one of the best sport climbing destinations in the country! Please give to the Unlock Jailhouse fund and double your donation today!
http://www.accessfund.org/jailhouse>
Thanks for your support,
Your Friends at the Access Fund & Planet Granite
Saturday, February 5, 2011
Friday, January 14, 2011
CRAGS general membership meeting on Wednesday January 26, 2011 at 7:00 at Pipeworks.
There will be a CRAGS general membership meeting on Wednesday January 26, 2011 at 7:00 at Pipeworks. CRAGS members will have an opportunity to elect/reelect members of the Board of Directors. Next week, Brian will send out another email notifying members of who has been nominated. Hope to see you there!
Wednesday, December 29, 2010
CRAGS Helps AF Unlock Jailhouse!
CRAGS recently worked with the AF to help ensure access to one of NorCals premiere sport climbing areas for now and in the future.
See: http://www.accessfund.org/site/apps/nlnet/content2.aspx?c=tmL5KhNWLrH&b=5000939&ct=8884107
See: http://www.accessfund.org/site/apps/nlnet/content2.aspx?c=tmL5KhNWLrH&b=5000939&ct=8884107
Wednesday, October 20, 2010
Wednesday, October 13, 2010
Access Fund Conference - West Virginia New River Gorge
To kick off October, Brian and I (Renee) flew out to West Virginia for the year’s second Access Fund conference. Excited to check out the New River Gorge, we were not disappointed.
I arrived late Thursday night and drove down from Charleston to Fayetteville Friday morning. There I set out to climb with Amy, Joe, and Patrick from the Access Fund, as well as Jonah from Seattle and Tom from San Diego. The new guidebook for the Gorge is incredible, and we easily followed the well-marked trail to some ladders down to an area called Endless Wall for good reason. Tons of great climbs, trad and sport, all levels. I also enjoyed the way Amy would exclaim, “We’re winning!” each time we checked the trail against the map and were on track.
Friday night we all gathered at a nearby campsite and had amazing pizza from a local restaurant courtesy of the NRAC (New River) group. We introduced ourselves and talked about our local climbing areas. It was obvious how proud of the area the NRAC climbers were, and how excited they were to share their rock with us.
Saturday morning we began the conference in the Visitor’s Center across the street from the campsite. They were generous to share their theater room with us, and we stayed much warmer than at the last conference! Saturday began with the ever-enthusiastic Thomson Ling talking about how to get people involved. I then talked about 501(c)(3) tax status and processes, followed by Patrick and Joe discussing more details of property rights and conservation strategies. Patrick had great info about how to get information about land and property boundaries, and both he and Joe showed what incredible sources of knowledge they are for any questions in this area.
After lunch, Anthony talked about the acquisition process, and Jonah showed an example of public/private partnerships by focusing on his work at Index near Seattle. Following this, we all split off in the mid-afternoon to experience a bit more local climbing. I followed local climber Jay to a new area that isn’t even in the guidebooks yet. My little rental Prius barely survived the rugged gravel road (and my passengers had to get out because it was bottoming out too much!). The climbing area was right off this, though, and I enjoyed how so much great climbing had easy access. (In California, I feel I’m often doing an hour’s rugged hike before I get to climb!)
Saturday night we checked out Gene’s outdoor store and then walked down the block to eat. The restaurant donated 10% of our bill and the waiters donated 25% (!) of their tips to the Access Fund that night. How generous!
Sunday we met up again and discussed fundraising, easements, and had a panel discussion on risk management and private land ownership issues. After lunch, Pete presented his doctoral study on the impacts of climbing on overhanging cliffs (though unfortunately we have to wait for his results). The photos and detail were fascinating. At this point, I had to head out to catch my flight home, but I believe Amy talked about land management and stewardship, and Patrick talked about the conservation toolbox he’s been working on.
In sum, it was another excellent weekend filled with some of the most motivated climbers around from all sides of the country. I learn so much and make great new friends and contacts that will be working through the same issues as CRAGS and will offer support whenever we need it. What a great network of people!
I arrived late Thursday night and drove down from Charleston to Fayetteville Friday morning. There I set out to climb with Amy, Joe, and Patrick from the Access Fund, as well as Jonah from Seattle and Tom from San Diego. The new guidebook for the Gorge is incredible, and we easily followed the well-marked trail to some ladders down to an area called Endless Wall for good reason. Tons of great climbs, trad and sport, all levels. I also enjoyed the way Amy would exclaim, “We’re winning!” each time we checked the trail against the map and were on track.
Friday night we all gathered at a nearby campsite and had amazing pizza from a local restaurant courtesy of the NRAC (New River) group. We introduced ourselves and talked about our local climbing areas. It was obvious how proud of the area the NRAC climbers were, and how excited they were to share their rock with us.
Saturday morning we began the conference in the Visitor’s Center across the street from the campsite. They were generous to share their theater room with us, and we stayed much warmer than at the last conference! Saturday began with the ever-enthusiastic Thomson Ling talking about how to get people involved. I then talked about 501(c)(3) tax status and processes, followed by Patrick and Joe discussing more details of property rights and conservation strategies. Patrick had great info about how to get information about land and property boundaries, and both he and Joe showed what incredible sources of knowledge they are for any questions in this area.
After lunch, Anthony talked about the acquisition process, and Jonah showed an example of public/private partnerships by focusing on his work at Index near Seattle. Following this, we all split off in the mid-afternoon to experience a bit more local climbing. I followed local climber Jay to a new area that isn’t even in the guidebooks yet. My little rental Prius barely survived the rugged gravel road (and my passengers had to get out because it was bottoming out too much!). The climbing area was right off this, though, and I enjoyed how so much great climbing had easy access. (In California, I feel I’m often doing an hour’s rugged hike before I get to climb!)
Saturday night we checked out Gene’s outdoor store and then walked down the block to eat. The restaurant donated 10% of our bill and the waiters donated 25% (!) of their tips to the Access Fund that night. How generous!
Sunday we met up again and discussed fundraising, easements, and had a panel discussion on risk management and private land ownership issues. After lunch, Pete presented his doctoral study on the impacts of climbing on overhanging cliffs (though unfortunately we have to wait for his results). The photos and detail were fascinating. At this point, I had to head out to catch my flight home, but I believe Amy talked about land management and stewardship, and Patrick talked about the conservation toolbox he’s been working on.
In sum, it was another excellent weekend filled with some of the most motivated climbers around from all sides of the country. I learn so much and make great new friends and contacts that will be working through the same issues as CRAGS and will offer support whenever we need it. What a great network of people!
Monday, September 20, 2010
Wednesday, June 9, 2010
June 5 Adopt-a-Crag at Lovers Leap - A Great Success!
On a sunny Saturday morning, several carloads of climbers drove up from Sacramento to Lovers Leap. A great crowd of more enthusiastic climbers met us there, as many had chosen to spend the night at the campground to get in some more climbing.
The park rangers arrived exactly on time and were full of ideas and supplies! We split into groups and began preparing the campsites and some approach areas for the upcoming season.
While we moved from site to site, someone commented how it felt like we were providing room service to the campers. It did feel like that! The campers left their belongings at the sites while they went out to climb or hike, and we came through during the day in a flurry of housekeeping activities, leaving the sites sparkling clean for their returns.
All the picnic tables were scraped of old paint and repainted (mostly by our youngest helpers, who ended up wearing a lot of paint themselves). Apologies to the parents (who were wonderful at supervising and exceptionally patient with the extra paint!). :-) We also had teams of volunteers raking and sweeping all the trails through the campground as well as within the sites. It was incredible how much fresher the sites looked after their careful work!
Fire pits were emptied, and loads of new firewood (from fallen trees) was chopped and stacked. I wish I could have seen the looks on campers’ faces who returned to find a stack of new nice wood waiting in their sites. Our wood choppers did a lot of hard labor and made huge progress in just a few hours.
Another group headed up near the main wall to rebuild a retaining wall. One of those volunteers remarked that he’d been wanting to fix it for ages. With a good team of motivated people, the job was quickly accomplished.
Around 1 PM, the sites looked ready, wood was chopped, steps were built, and everyone was hungry! Our injured leader Brian, eager to participate where he could, manned the grill despite crutches, and everyone enjoyed lunch together while sharing what they had been off working on. Several groups hiked off after this to squeeze in a few climbs before sunset.
The Leap is one of the most spectacular climbing areas in northern California, and CRAGS was excited to partner with local park services in this adopt-a-crag event in order to show our support and bring people together in the climbing community. Special thanks to all the new faces that came! We are excited to meet you and look forward to seeing you at more events.
Photos coming soon!
~Renee
The park rangers arrived exactly on time and were full of ideas and supplies! We split into groups and began preparing the campsites and some approach areas for the upcoming season.
While we moved from site to site, someone commented how it felt like we were providing room service to the campers. It did feel like that! The campers left their belongings at the sites while they went out to climb or hike, and we came through during the day in a flurry of housekeeping activities, leaving the sites sparkling clean for their returns.
All the picnic tables were scraped of old paint and repainted (mostly by our youngest helpers, who ended up wearing a lot of paint themselves). Apologies to the parents (who were wonderful at supervising and exceptionally patient with the extra paint!). :-) We also had teams of volunteers raking and sweeping all the trails through the campground as well as within the sites. It was incredible how much fresher the sites looked after their careful work!
Fire pits were emptied, and loads of new firewood (from fallen trees) was chopped and stacked. I wish I could have seen the looks on campers’ faces who returned to find a stack of new nice wood waiting in their sites. Our wood choppers did a lot of hard labor and made huge progress in just a few hours.
Another group headed up near the main wall to rebuild a retaining wall. One of those volunteers remarked that he’d been wanting to fix it for ages. With a good team of motivated people, the job was quickly accomplished.
Around 1 PM, the sites looked ready, wood was chopped, steps were built, and everyone was hungry! Our injured leader Brian, eager to participate where he could, manned the grill despite crutches, and everyone enjoyed lunch together while sharing what they had been off working on. Several groups hiked off after this to squeeze in a few climbs before sunset.
The Leap is one of the most spectacular climbing areas in northern California, and CRAGS was excited to partner with local park services in this adopt-a-crag event in order to show our support and bring people together in the climbing community. Special thanks to all the new faces that came! We are excited to meet you and look forward to seeing you at more events.
Photos coming soon!
~Renee
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