Recently the amount of chalk scratched into the boulders on the Eastside is getting crazy Volcanic Tablelands (Happy/Sad Boulders)

Are tick marks really necessary, or just a sign of folks that are trying too hard?

tick marks don't really meld with my ideal of climbing. i don't care if people use them, or think any less of them for it, but it would be nice if they brushed them off after leaving the rock. they're sort of ugly.

Lets see. Beautiful, pristine environments. Rocks rich in color form grey to red to black. Then, intentionally splat some white on it so you can remember where to place you mit 5 seconds later. Her dee der!

tick marks are for thsoe that don't want to think. Put the road map in place. Just grab here! Then you can dumb it down for everone that follows just like the rest of America.

Good. After all it is a "climbing area", not just a staring at the rock area.

Tick marks/chalk marks you can complain about all you want, but they aren't going away because it's the nature of bouldering and sport climbing. The Happies/Sads hold chalk more than most areas so moaning about seeing chalk, or tick marks on boulders at those areas with the amount of traffic that they see every year is pointless. I'm in no means advocating tick marks, but I've never walked away from an area because of tick marks, or too much chalk. In fact I find it pretty hilarious when people get so worked up over tick marks. I saw an older guy start cussing about tick marks on a sport route one time. "Some damn sportclimbing gym rat SOB put tick marks all over the crux of this route." The funny thing is it could have been anyone that put those tick marks up there young, or old. It seriously ruined his day. My day gets ruined when I forget my gear, hike in a couple miles with no water, or come back to a car that's been broken in, not about some tick marks.

I tried putting a tick mark on ice once, everybody just laughed at me....why?

I think we all know the answer to this one.

Tick marks mean you mighty have Lyme disease. Not good, imho.

They don't bother me that much, as they are amusing to see holds everyone keeps trying to use that are the wrong ones. Ha ha.

• edit-wish I'd known about this earlier. Does anyone know whats going on with this?

I don't have an inherent problem with tics, but I think they're overused, unsightly, and should be cleaned off.

Its kind of like bringing anything into the wilderness...it's only a problem if you leave it there.

Now, I definetly think that chalk buildup at popular spots is a bigger problem that tic a hold. We have to remember we are not the only user group in most places we climb. Sure the areas we chalk up at "climbing areas" but they're not "climber only areas."

Cheers

If we're not careful un cleaned chalk spots will piss someone powerful off and they'll ban everything but Eco Balls.

I think Eco balls are great it just limits your options...until everyone starts working on their own formula. ok it's not such an awful thing. I'm with you John haha.

I see SO many tick's up on flagstaff everytime I'm there. Why tick a problem that was done over 30 years ago. They figured it out way back then, why cant you get creative with your style. and these aren't insane v14 problems with all the chalked ticks, people do these problems regularly without ticks. Its a selfish mentality that contradicts us going outside to be fully immersed in nature. Don't dumb down nature, just go to the Spot to get that kind of fix! Down with ticks!

the only time i can see "needing" to put a tick mark on a rock is for a blind throw, in a situation where you cannot see the hold but even then clean them off after... when you are ever in the wood's climbing or doing anything leave no trace is the best option, so please try to clean the routes you are workin to the best of your abilities when you are done..

So basically, besides all the ranting and raving, people are saying if you use tick marks, you should scrub them off when you're done, and if you find others in an area that offend you, scrub them off too. Right? Sounds pretty reasonable!
A brush, even a toothbrush sized one, is a pretty lightweight investment that can do a lot for a climbing area.

Use ticks if you want (I often use them on granite and dacite problems where footholds are hard to see, especially since my eyesight isn't great), just use a good brush and a bit of water to get rid of them when you're done so others can have the experience of working out the beta or onsighting. Simple as that.