The Grotto 

I Climbed Mystic River and Garden of Expectations with a few friends today and were approached by a group of concerned park rangers. Apparently, these routes cut through one of the world's 3 remaining populations of a critically endangered succulent. After the rangers identified the plant for us it was obvious that activity by climbers has destroyed much of this population. They mentioned that Echo was almost closed years ago in an effort to protect this specific plant. We convinced them that the climbing community is not only passionate about preserving the environment, but respectful towards rules, especially when access was contingent on them.

Please help the park service to preserve this species by not only discontinuing climbing in the northwest of the grotto, but making sure that other climbers know that the routes in the area run through critical habitat. As continuing to climb this route will likely lead to closure of the whole area, it is better to climb routes that do not promise to cause the extinction of a species.

The Park Service has closed all routes of the south side of the Grotto. Signs have been posted and bolts/anchors removed from the five affected routes. This was done to protect endangered plants. (although nothing was stated about threatened or endangered plants existing in the Grotto during the discussions of 2002).
Climbers have been largely ignored, but due to an increase in litter, tissue/feces, dogs at the base of the cliff, and camping, rangers will be monitoring climber's activities more closely. Rangers have expressed concern that climbers have been inaffective at self-policing regarding these impacts at the cliff.

Was it really necessary to remove the route descriptions of the affected climbs? While they may be currently closed, they will hopefully be available to climb next year.

Those climbs will never be open for climbing- ever! They were all erased!

Those routes were on north-facing cliffs- precisely where Dudleyas prefer to grow. There are a lot of different Dudleya species at Echo. If I remember correctly, the ranger said the endangered one was D. moreliana, named for its tendency to hold onto its dead leaves.

This web site has a long list of Dudleya species.

www.crassulaceae.net/index.php?option=com_content&view=artic>>>

The routes at the grotto were not very good either way, (no offense to the guys who bolted them.) there is plenty of great moderate climbing at the Left Flank, and the Far Side.