As reported on Climbing.com, Sonnie Trotter has climbed a new 5.14 that is a contender for one of the hardest trad lines in the world. The route is located at Lake Louise in Alberta and climbs 130 feet of overhanging seams and crimps up a quartzite face. It was an old sport route project that Trotter decided would and should go on gear (which he describes as good despite the potential for big falls). This trend seems to have taken hold among some top climbers, and it’s pretty inspiring to see these folks pushing the standards in this way. The video is up over at the Climbing Narc. The footage isn’t that great and it looks like a somewhat lame ad for Aliens, but it’s worth checking out. I mean how often do you get to see people climb 5.14 R? View it here.

Most folks have probably seen mention of this in other places, but I just listened to some episodes for the first time and really enjoyed it. The site is the Dirtbag Diaries, and they are “bringing you untold stories of climbing, skiing, mountain biking and the pursuit of happiness.” I think the whole dirt bag lifestyle thing gets way over exaggerated at times, but the episodes are well done and I enjoyed this show. You can visit the site and subscribe via RSS or get the podcast on your itunes. Enjoy!

It’s official, a second edition to the Western Sloper guidebook is in the works. While many folks will be interested in the new routes that have been done in Rifle, the book will also feature many of the local climbing spots that have been developed over the last couple of years, some of which are featured on this site. The guidebook will cover many previously undocumented crags, including areas that have never been published in print or online. Here’s the rough list of what will be included at this point:

Rifle Arch
Rifle Mountain Park
Main Elk Creek and Pup Tent
Fortress of Solitude
Windy Point
Puoux
No Name
Super Puoux
The Neighborhood
Mud Wall
Shoshone
Surgery Buttress
Redstone Boulders
The Narrows
Coal Creek
Raleigh World
The Skillet
Lime Creek
Dead Horse
Hagerman Pass

As part of this process, we are looking for high resolution photos to include in the book. Please send an email to bj@splitterchoss.com if you have any photos of people climbing at any of these climbing areas in a high resolution format. (300 dpi)

We would also welcome any new route info that you would like to see included. It’s going to be a full color guide in the high quality style that other titles from Wolverine Publishing have come to represent.

The Glenwood Post Independent has been running a series of articles about climbing at Rifle Mountain Park in the last couple of days. The articles focus on different aspects, from a general overview of the climbing, to one on a local climber who is obsessed with the place, one on a climber who lives there during the summer, the city’s take on having a world class area in their backyard, and of course one from a crusty guy who thinks it’s too crowded. It’s cool to see a local newspaper offer such in-depth coverage of a local crag.

Matt Samet wrote a great editorial in the latest issue of Climbing Magazine about climber’s and their impact on the environment. I’ve talked before about how climbers as a group are guilty of being all high and mighty about the environment while at the same time driving large SUV’s for hundreds of miles to Indian Creek every weekend to enjoy a sport that is a luxury much of the world can’t even fathom. Can you imagine talking to a bunch of refugees in a war torn area about rock climbing? You intentionally place your lives at risk…for fun???

Having just got back from the Outdoor Retailer trade show, there was a heavy focus on”being Green” and recycled this and recycled that. It all looks good from the outside, but if the whole bunch really wanted to be green, they’d host the conference virtually, something tech industries are already doing. But I digress…

I realize that folks aren’t going to stop road tripping any time soon, but Matt points out that he could have climbed locally instead of driving 300 miles the last weekend and much of the experience would have been the same, minus the crowds. Which brings me to the whole idea of “think globally, climb locally.” I’ve always felt fortunate to live in a spot with so much good climbing within an hour’s drive. In college we used to drive 3 hours each way to climb at the Gunks, but thought little of it, as gas was barely $1/gallon! With gas more expensive, the local options look better and better, and the adventures further afield are saved for longer trips to get the most out of the mileage.

While I don’t think most climbers are going to change their lifestyle any time soon, these issues are at least worth thinking about.