I"M PISSED OFF!!!!!!

all right i have been holding back on putting this post up but after this morning i have to. i have lived in evergreen for the past three years and have also been climbing at three sister that long i love the area , i think the rock is good , the temps are great in the summer, and its a blast to climb there. now with all the great climbs that have been added to mountain project three sisters is getting a lot more traffic,which is good , the rock is alot cleaner and now there are trails to get to all the problem, but i also have never seen the place so trashed. i just filled up a backpack walking around gilligans island, with water bottles, soda cans,dog water bowls, and climbing tape. what the fuck if you pack it in pack it out or i am sure they will close three sisters to climbing. just remember your mom is not a climber pick up your shit.

Maybe if you post this over at the Alderfer/Three Sisters Park area on Mountain Project this may help by noting the conditions, from what I have seen in and around crags is that climbers are usually not the problem and most are like you and pick up garbage that they come across. I have helped haul away sofa's from climbing areas but they were always from partying kids and it was always the climbers that hauled the junk away.

this was not hiker or biker trash, the hikers and bikers stay on the trails, plus i have never seen a hiker or biker use climbing tape.

You might want to use all CAPS and fix the spelling.

Not to dissuade our vigilance at keeping our crags clean, certainly a good point.

This area in particular does see use from multiple types of user groups. While climbers are not viewed in a very particularly good light here because of our perceived visual impact; there is also nothing wrong with our participation & in keeping leave no trace principals intact and helping out to clean the area & help keep it clean if we can. In regarding discussing this area and any impact we may have, maybe a better title for this topic can have a more constructive result?

I can certainly do my part and clean up stuff if I see items laying about from time to time; what can help further is probably some type of a get together for the boulderers and just sweep the areas of concern. I've yet to see much an impact around the larger crags other than the occasional spat on fixed pro.

Interesting. I spend quite a bit of time at Alderfer and I always felt that it was a fairly clean park. The only garbage I ever see are broken beer bottles by the native bored high school kids.

It may be rhetorical to ask if crag traffic will continue to grow worldwide, so instead I will offer insight from a flat lander. In Iowa we have only a couple of crags to choose from. Those crags see heavy traffic from hunters and fishers as well and we have had to fight local and state legislation to allow us to continue our leisurely ascents. In our defense, the Iowa Climbers Coalition had maintained the trails, belay pads, bolts, and signage. This created a safe and sustainable place for people to recreate. This did take some effort, but the fruits of our labor are priceless. You may never be able to reach every climber, but being organized is the first step to reaching most of us. So when you see that tape dropping gumby, invite them to boulder with you and show them the ropes.

Forest has a good point.

A good way to support your local crag is to take it to the next level and join the Access Fund then participate in crag cleanups and join with others in your area that care about the Park and want to keep the crag in good shape. But like I said before the climbers are rarely the problem at least that is what I have seen in a lot of years of climbing.

Regardless of whose at fault, if a climbing area gets trashed it could affect the climbing there. Climbers may be required to get/keep it clean in order to keep it open for climbing. Like it was stated earlier, it takes vigilance to keep our crags clean.

Many thanks to those unnamed souls who clean up all the stuff that I don't ever have to see!!! :) :) :)

Forest has a good point. A good way to support your local crag is to take it to the next level and join the Access Fund then participate in crag cleanups and join with others in your area that care about the Park and want to keep the crag in good shape. quote>

You can also join us in the Denver Climbers' Coalition. We are a young Access Fund local affiliate, and we have several events tentively planned for the fall for local clean-ups. Our membership is growing steadily and we could possibly help you get a clean-up event organized if it is something you want to see happen. Especially if you are willing to take the lead in getting it going. Groups like this are going to be more and more important in educating new climbers and working together to keep our areas open.

denverclimberscoalition.blo…

Forestvonsinkafinger wrote: In Iowa we have only a couple of crags to choose from. Those crags see heavy traffic from hunters and fishers as well and we have had to fight local and state legislation to allow us to continue our leisurely ascents. In our defense, the Iowa Climbers Coalition had maintained the trails, belay pads, bolts, and signage. This created a safe and sustainable place for people to recreate. This did take some effort, but the fruits of our labor are priceless. You may never be able to reach every climber, but being organized is the first step to reaching most of us. So when you see that tape dropping gumby, invite them to boulder with you and show them the ropes.

God Bless the ICC. That once a year cleanup at one crag and complete bungling of access/bolt replacement issues (pissing off the state instead of engaging the county who had a management agreement) was truly priceless.

Well, you should be consoled in the fact that at least 99% of the backcountry users in Evergreen smile and nod to you, even those outlaw bikers...

tsk, tsk. Condescension doesn't become you. See you in the morning.

I won't expect a "Hi."

Richard Radcliffe wrote:Well, you should be consoled in the fact that at least 99% of the backcountry users in Evergreen smile and nod to you, even those outlaw bikers...

Such a funny guy. When is the last time you have been hiking up here anyways? My statistic was 90% BTW...at least get your facts straight.

I'd also mention that that is based on daily hiking with my son for his nap at 3 Sisters which is 5 minutes from my house, over the course of two years.

I'm glad this topic has been brought up. During my last adventure (see other recent post) I found myself picking up trash on several occasions in an area only accessed by climbers. It seems I do this almost every time I go climbing; even in areas only accessed by climbers. I don't feel, however, that the litter is intentional for the most part. Most of the trash I pick up is power bar wrappers that have probably fell out of somebody's pocket and sunglasses that were dropped.
Joining an organization that targets this problem will greatly reduce it. But we can all help on an individual level as well by just pocketing a few of these discarded items and disposing of them properly. I know most of you do this already, just keep up the good work and set an example for others to follow.

Kevin Stricker wrote: Such a funny guy. When is the last time you have been hiking up here anyways? My statistic was 90% BTW...at least get your facts straight.

I beg to differ...

Kevin Stricker wrote: Try the same thing here in Evergreen and 99% of the people (even bikers whizzing by) will not only nod but most will also smile back. Not saying everyone in Boulder are jerks, but it's a micro-cultural thing...in Boulder many people will just ignore your existence and think nothing of it.

Just funnin' ya. My point being that while generalizations USUALLY have at least a grain of underlying truth, they don't always and sometimes, the truth is strictly in the eye of the beholder.

As to trash and unfriendliness (or overfriendliness) on the trail or crag, I've spent many, many hours hiking and climbing around Boulder and many other places as well and I've never noticed -- in general -- that it's more prominent in one place vs. another. In fact, just this morning I took an informal survey while hiking and climbing at Chautauqua with one notable Colorado State Senator and I found that nearly 100% of the hikers we ran into were quite friendly. Eh, Senator?

So what does that all mean? Squat.

There I went exaggerating again....Glad to hear you guys had a good time at Chataqua. You don't think it had anything to do with the fact that you were both naked do you?

Back to the original post. It's best not to talk about all the climbing trash you find as it ends up being a paper trail back to climbers as a user group, if that makes any sense. Just clean it up.

Now if you catch climbers littering that is another thing. I've found that bouldering pads make great straight jackets. Make sure to smear their faces with honey and leave them near a fire ant nest for full effect.

Kevin Stricker wrote:Glad to hear you guys had a good time at Chataqua. You don't think it had anything to do with the fact that you were both naked do you?

That's libelous. We were wearing harnesses.

Richard Radcliffe wrote:I found that nearly 100% of the hikers we ran into were quite friendly. Eh, Senator?

Not the hottie in the sports bra that looked right past us without a word. People from Boulder are so cold.

OK it could be due to the fact the average hiker in Evergreen is a middle aged empty nester, while I think I have seen the whole CU chearleading squad at Chuataqua at one point or another.

Truth is I'm bitter that the hotties in Boulder ignore me, therefore everyone in Boulder is stuck up.

Thanks for picking up the trash.

well i see that this post like all the others on mountainproject has gone way off the point, so i will just shutup and pick up trash.