Climbers Have No Respect – WTF?

Recently a friend and I were having a conversation about climbers and the general selfishness and lack of respect that seems to be so prevalent in the climbing community today. We got on the topic after reading an article in a recent issue of Climbing magazine about a wall at the Red River Gorge that was recently closed because climber’s couldn’t follow the rules. The landowners ran a bed and breakfast type operation, with guiding at the cliffs, and set a few simple rules to keep guest/climber interactions good for both parties: keep dogs on a leash, no swearing, please use the outhouse. So simple a five year old could follow them, but apparently, not a bunch of climbers. After repeated offenses, the owners had no choice but to close the cliff. The topic of dogs at the crags is a whole other problem, but how freakin complicated is it to keep the damn thing on a leash? And urinating in plain view of the trail? Come on!

Another place climbers have clashed with the landowner in a similar fashion is Indian Creek. After repeated incidents with dogs chasing cattle, rude climber/cowboy interactions and more, why the Dugout Ranch has continued to allow climbers on their land is beyond me. Maybe when Super Crack and Battle of the Bulge are off limits climbers will finally wake up…

Closer to home, I was reading the sign in log for a local crag, which was peppered with comments like “for a good time call…” and “i saw a lizard and killed it”. Is this what you want land managers to read? They probably wont find it quite as funny and next time they are considering access issues, you can bet something like this will stick in their minds.

Another local example is some recent development in a canyon to the west of here. The private property line was very clear, and yet climbers just had to bolt that one route right on (and apparently over) the private property line. They could have just focused on the abundance of rock to the left, but no, they had to sneak in that one route right at the limit. Everybody makes mistakes when land ownership is unclear, but something this blatant is just uncalled for.

Some are quick to blame the younger “gym” generation, saying they have no respect for outdoor ethics, but there are plenty of crusty old climbers out there too who don’t like being told what to do and rules be damned.

Put all these pieces together and you get a picture of a group of individuals that think they are better than others and that rules don’t apply to them. Climbing used to be counter culture, but give it up folks, it’s mainstream now and our actions are being scrutinized, and we are being judged. If we can’t get it together, we will continue to lose access to the places we hold so dear.

Maybe the Access Fund should work on changing climbers’ attitudes and then they wouldn’t be so busy cleaning up our messes.