Bee activity

Is there much bee activity around Toms Thumb at McDowell Mountain??

I have no beta, but +1 on staying informed.
-Mackley
P.S. They tend to be less aggressive as temperatures moderate. I still choose to avoid the situation FWIW.

matt snider wrote:Is there much bee activity around Toms Thumb at McDowell Mountain??

Hi Matt,
There are no active Africanized bees nesting on Tom's Thumb itself as of the last week or so that I know so you should be good on that rock formation. However, there are other established and known Africanized bee hives in the McDowells. For example, Mouse Tracks and One for the Road above Sven Slab each have aggressive hives in the vicinity. The East formation of Rock Knob (aka Knob Hill) has a large hive. There are also hives near Sven Towers III (climbers left of major routes) and Sven Towers I (on the ascent gully - avoid by rapping and/or bottom approach).
If you want updated route photos of the lesser known McDowell crags please PM me with an email and I'll send them to you.
Erik

Any idea about Jack's Canyon? I'm heading up there this weekend and it'd be good to know if bees are going to be an issue.

In my experience at Jacks, bees have never been an issue.

I have not been back there since before the fire last year, but I doubt it's changed much.