ACT NOW: Bitterroot National Forest Bans New Bolts

ryanb wrote: I live walking distance from Mill Creek and my wife child and I are up there hiking,  frequently trail running and skiing etc.  The sport crag has very little impact especially compared to the heavy traffic the area sees from all other user groups. It also effects only a tiny fraction of the cliff side habitat in mill creek.

And i'm saying this as a staunch environmentalist.

We don't climb up there (or haven't in 5+ years) because there is so much other good climbing on the forest*. And thats the biggest problem with this order. It covers a massive area including several other major/popular/well know areas including the thousand foot big wall free routes of Blodgett Canyon and the numerous boulders and crags of Lost Horse Creek. And endless other undocumented crags and alpine and backcountry granite peaks, wall and domes like these:
http://publications.americanalpineclub.org/articles/13201212661/Mystery-Dome-Southwest-Arte
http://www.alpinist.com/doc/web19s/newswire-super-ultra-mega

So this ban is equivalent to the Forest Service taking one small crag that a couple of NIMBY locals complained about and banning all new routes in an area bigger then the Enchantments or Tetons.

I support good climbing management and will eagerly cooperate with closures to protect raptors, reduce erosion etc but this is ridiculous. And the national outcry over this is going to put the Bitterroot on more climbers radar and actually increase climber traffic. And I guess i'm for that if it means the area gets the recognition it needs to preserve access.

* We mostly Boulder in Lost Horse Creek Canyon (guide at http://bitterrootbeta.org) and do some ground up trad FAs on small domes.

Hi Ryan - thanks for the first hand account. That’s super helpful and thoughtful perspective!

Realized people aren't going to believe me when i say this area is bigger then the Tetons or Enchantments or realize quite how ridiculous this ban is without some some photos...

Mill Creek 
Lets start with mill creek. Here is a photo of the north rim:

The sport climbing is in that first little set of alcoves at the formation. The prow and the walls beyond have mostly very bold trad climbs.

Here is a pick looking back canyon:
And this is looking back out the canyon from a few miles back:

There is apparently an excellent 5.10+ handcrack multipitch 5 miles back there. Heres a  aaj links from 1975:
http://publications.americanalpineclub.org/articles/12197513303/North-America-United-States-Montana-Mill-Creek-Canyon-Bitterroot-Range

A its mentioned in this 2001 one:
http://publications.americanalpineclub.org/articles/12200119300/North-America-United-States-Wyoming-Bitterroot-Mountains-Various-Activity


Blodgett Canyon 
Blodgett Canyon is the Next Canyon South:

Those are the main domes in the first 3 or so miles of canyon and have a ton of classic multipitch routes and some hard aid all with minimal bolts. Free climbing on going.

But the canyon goes back much further.

This has a 20 pitch IV 5.10 on it. (Caesers's Palace see link from above: http://publications.americanalpineclub.org/articles/12200119300/North-America-United-States-Wyoming-Bitterroot-Mountains-Various-Activity ... note the aaj got the state wrong. Thats obscure!)

And here is Blodgett Peak at the head of the canyon 10+ miles back. Beautiful white granite:
 
Canyon Creek
Next Canyon holds the creatively named canyon lake/peak. Here's the classic north ridge route:


Lost Horse Creek
Skipping over Sawtooth Creek and Roaring Line (which do hold a couple of classic 5.10s and 11s on big buttresses see: publications.americanalpine… ) we get to Lost Horse which is notable because it has a road up it 20 miles back into the wilderness make for a ton of accessible bouldering and trad cragging on excellent if occasionally block stone:

(I linked the bouldering guide I wrote above but i have a volume 2 of equal length in the work and notes a ton more)

Hike a few miles up the abanonded trail up the south fork and you'll find a 2000 foot granite apron with a few very sparsley bolted routes like "Poodles on a String" on it.

Trapper Creek
I could go on. There are 20+ glacially cut granite / granitc mylonite canyons branching off the west side of the valley. And scattered grainy older granite domes on the other side i haven't even got into.

But lets skip ahead to trapper creek canyon/trapper peak which is the highest peak in the range. This is one of Alex Lowe's old stomping grounds. The trail has mostly been abanonded byt the forest service and you can pull into the parking lot and have the area to yourself:

Forgive the smoke but here is the view looking north from trapper peak back into the drainage (and up at some of the others mentioned) :

Now there are a handful of alpine routes documented on trapper itself in "Select Alpine Climbs to Montana" by Ron Brunckhorst and a few more in the AAJ ( publications.americanalpine… ). But lots, maybe all of those buttresses you see have also been climbed. Dig around for old posts on cascadeclimbers by user "Bug" and others but people have been going up there since the 70s and doing routes without much record and never quite knowing if its a first ascent or not unless they find old gear.

Since this ban bans all new routes across the whole forest and all the old routes aren't well documented its going to make it really hard to be sure you are legally climbing in lots of these places.

This place truly is a world class area. Especially a alpine free climbing has progressed to rely less on continuous crack systems it has the potential is vast. And i've barely even touched on all the scattered smaller crags and boulders ... I have notes on 30+ distinct, mostly unpublished areas.

The Bitterroot really is amazing and has so much potential. It's worth mentioning that when the ban says new routes, that includes trad routes. Utterly ludicrous. Has there ever been a ban on trad routes before in a NF?

This is the most aroused I've been all morning.  So... Anyone want to head out there in the spring?  DM me ;)

Ryan, are you planning on publishing all that?  Or keeping it #localsonly? (I think Spokane counts as local for what it's worth, and you can trust my unbiased opinion)

Did you miss what I said above Rico? The ban includes all new route development, INCLUDING trad routes. 

Dallin Carey wrote: The Bitterroot really is amazing and has so much potential. It's worth mentioning that when the ban says new routes, that includes trad routes. Utterly ludicrous. Has there ever been a ban on trad routes before in a NF?

How do you even enforce that? Like there is no evidence of a trad route most of the time. I honestly wouldn't care if they made it illegal. No way they can prove its a "new route".

There is no way they can enforce it. But if climbers in Western Montana want to be trusted by the FS, then it would be better to comply with the ban instead of disobeying it just because they'll never know.

Dallin Carey wrote: There is no way they can enforce it. But if climbers in Western Montana want to be trusted by the FS, then it would be better to comply with the ban instead of disobeying it just because they'll never know.

How do you obey that? Ask the FS what version of the guide book is canon?

Who knows. All the more reason to get the ban lifted. 

Ok, to all of you who are cheering the ban and babble about how one can still climb trad, do you ever see the utility of fixed pro on trad routes? Virtually all hard trad, especially multi-pitch, will have fixed pro somewhere on the route, whether it is for anchors when there are no other options or to link blank sections. 

The order is here: https://www.fs.usda.gov/Internet/FSE_DOCUMENTS/fseprd701760.pdf?fbclid=IwAR1zHFL6_phYtadAiERadhtQJ_vOvNF10_ufKRmAvEqnCY6d-G5IAEKoj74

The wording is super broad:

"The USDA Forest Service reminds all Forest visitors that development of new climbing routes or trails on the Bitterroot National Forest, including areas with existing climbing routes, is prohibited.
...
If an individual or group is developing new routes with any type of permanent hardware or apparatus to include bolts, glue, manufactures hand holds; or modifying route through chipping, cleaning, hammering, or drilling new or existing holds they will be subject to criminal prosecution."

Thats could be applied to any new route. Like what if i go do a new top rope with my 5 year old and let her name it? Or friends and i head up a random buttress with a rope a rack and the shirts on our back...

Even climbing an existing route and brushingi some pine needles off a hold or pulling off a loose block could get you in trouble.

Hopefully this is a mistake due to poor understanding of climbing but i'm surprised it hasn't been clarified yet.

Re: publishing, lots of locals do talk a bout a guide and this could be the thing that pushes someone to finally finish one. If we can only legally climb in established areas then we'll need to cover our selves by documenting where those are. I don't think "back woods" , the friends of the bitterroot (local NIMBY org who support the current ban) or even the new rangers quite grasp the extent  or long history of the climbing in the bitterroot. (AAJ articles from 1975 at least, recorded technical ascents of Trapper in 1965) We're talking thousands of routes spread through every drainage on both sides of the valley.

It would be ironic if the an increased climber visits but having seem similar situations effects on spots like Index, WA  I think thats the likely outcome.

I think the Montana no publish ethic is a bit over sold. A lot of us do enjoy the sense of adventure of discovering something new and few have the time to do page layouts but info is pretty readily shared. For any road trippers if you want info, Rick Torre has written a few guides he'll zerox for you and info on tons more. He's posted his phone number in some of the area pages on this site or ping me for it.

Here are a couple more pics:

Ryan, such a boss. Thanks so much for taking so many words out of my mouth. Lets meet up and talk. I want to write an Op ed on this. You would be an awesome wealth of knowledge and perspective. Thanks again dude!!

get it right!the same wmtcc members causing the problems now use fake-news to cover thier butts!broot ban is for new bolts;read the document!and read bolting the best in the ravalli republic to learn about the excess fun's representatives awarness of local ethics[even if they profess ethics!].

Rick Torrewrote:

get it right!the same wmtcc members causing the problems now use fake-news to cover thier butts!broot ban is for new bolts;read the document!and read bolting the best in the ravalli republic to learn about the excess fun's representatives awarness of local ethics[even if they profess ethics!].

What?

bolt ban,not a first ascent ban.

Naturally we climbers are our own worst enimies and  most dangerous are the Zellots who think they are on some sort of  holy anti sport climbing crusade. they bitch to the govt about bolts and the next thing you know we lose access. 

Nick Goldsmithwrote:

Naturally we climbers are our own worst enimies and  most dangerous are the Zellots who think they are on some sort of  holy anti sport climbing crusade. they bitch to the govt about bolts and the next thing you know we lose access. 

Right on nick

is there any update on this?  

Ryan and Kirsten,

As far as I know the CMP is still in some state of limbo. But I'm not the most informed on the issue

I’ll answer to the best of my knowledge but if anyone else knows more, feel free to chime in.

There was a draft released by the BNF after years (literal years) of round table discussion, mostly over Zoom, that involved climbers and the community. Despite input from climbers, the draft was not going to fairly manage or allow for development, as well as leaving more questions than answers for future management between the FS and WMTCC.

For info on what has been documented so far in the process: https://storymaps.arcgis.com/stories/65704c90837548be9be0e5385720b848

As for what comes next, I heard there is a national USFS CMP in the works (no idea on timeline for that), that will be used as a baseline for implementation of CMP’s in areas like the Bitterroots. This is to ensure individual CMP’s don’t have national implications, such as other FS agencies following suit in bans or restrictions vs management practices.

Again, best of my knowledge here, but hope that helps a bit.