Photo courtesy of John Cassidy.

The popular Craggin’ Classic climbing festival is going grassroots with smaller festivals in more locations across the U.S. The fest is coming to YOUR AREA, in Truckee, CA, August 27-29, 2010. Mark your calendar! More details will be posted here when we have them.

Fri 8/27: Free camping on Donner Pass (Sugar Bowl Academy and Bela Vadasz’s adjacent property– walking distance from the crags and Saturday evening party)

• Campfire, beer and wine
• Camping space is limited. Reserve by email to drichardson@americanalpineclub.org

Sat 8/28:  Climbing on your own at Donner Summit

• Free morning and afternoon skills clinics with Alpine Skills International
• 6pm Beer and wine, food and live music at Sugar Bowl Judah Lodge
• AAC/Patagonia Raffle.
• 8:30pm Tommy Caldwell Slide show
• Free Donner Pass Camping (Sugar Bowl Academy and Bela Vadasz’s adjacent property)

Sun 8/29: Community breakfast at the campsite
Morning conservation/service project (breakfast is free if you volunteer!)

Generously sponsored by Patagonia.

THE BOND: AAC members Kate Rutherford and Madaleine Sorkin hang on Zion's Moonlight Buttress during the first ascent by a female team. Photo by Mikey Schaefer.

Are you a loyal reader of Climbing Magazine? Over the next few months, watch for new AAC photos in each issue that depict some of the things climbers care about most. We chose the first five, but for the next five, we want you, the members of the club, to have a chance to speak about what matters—what keeps you climbing and drives you to push through pain, fear, skepticism or even simply long days in the office just to get out there again. Now through August 15, post your photo that shows why you climb to the AAC Facebook Page wall (don’t forget your caption, see details below) and vote on the other ones up there. We need five, but prizes will go to the top 20, so get your entry in there!

All the fine print and details:

• Submit a photo that captures what you love about climbing.
• Before you submit a photo, make sure you have the high-res version. For Facebook, just upload a small version. We’ll ask for the high-res image later. Not sure what that means? Ask Emily.
• Post the photo on the AAC wall at www.facebook.com/americanalpineclub, or email it in to ekreis [at] americanalpineclub [dot] org. We’ll drop them into an album here (http://www.facebook.com/AmericanAlpineClub?ref=ts#!/album.php?aid=181537&id=48530203934&ref=mf) so that everyone can vote.
• Voting on a photo is simple: just use the “like” button (don’t see it? Make sure you “like” the AAC page, and then it will appear).
• At the end of the voting period, each of 5 top photos selected by YOU, the voters, will be used in a half-page ad in CLIMBING MAGAZINE. Get your photo credit spread to thousands of Climbing readers.
• Please caption your photo with WHY it shows what you love about climbing. Just 2-3 lines; don’t stress about it.
• Vote! You can “like” as many photos as you want, so go ahead and vote for any of them that resonate with what you love about climbing.
• You can submit up to five photos for consideration
• Vote through August 31; we’ll announce the winners September 1. The deadline for submissions is August 15.
• The top 20 photos will get a limited edition AAC Trango knife (photo in the album), and the top 5 will become featured ads in the upcoming months of Climbing.
• Questions? Email Emily at ekreis [at] americanalpineclub [dot] org.

We can all use a little climbing inspiration to get through the Friday workday and onto the weekend, right?  Today, a flashback to February but a preview for the September 16 premiere of the 2010 REEL ROCK Tour (the AAC is a sponsor). This clip shows Daniel Woods on The Game (v16), courtesy of Cedar Wright, but the full send will be part of the tour this fall. Enjoy, and happy weekend sending…

The Game, World’s Hardest Boulder Problem? from Cedar Wright on Vimeo.

Just about every day I stumble upon a new climbing blog or expedition report, or some other venue online where climbers are doing major things and reporting in on their progress. Many of the ones that come through the AAC office are from grant winners,  attempting big routes with AAC funding, but many others are from ordinary teams of climbers pursuing dream grabs, pushing the standards of climbing ever higher, and often using their trips toward humanitarian or environmental goals.

Basically, it’s time to start spreading these around, so that we can track and support fellow climbers and get excited about and inspired by what they’re doing. Today is the kickoff of what I hope is a regular thing– a weekly roundup of a few selected climber/trip blogs worth reading. Have one, or know one worth sharing? Let me know here.

For this week, two that will set the bar high:

1. http://cirqueladies.wordpress.com/

Madaleine Sorkin, Emily Stifler and Lorna Illingworth received a Copp-Dash Inspire Award to attempt a free climb of the entire Original Route (VI 5.9+ A3) on the Southeast face of Mount Proboscis. This 2000′ wall is in the Cirque of the Unclimbables, Logan Mountains, Canada. The girls also received funding from a Lyman-Spitzer Grant for this trip, on which they’ll be taking off in a few weeks. Check out their blog for the full trip plans, tracking of their training progress, a sweet vid of the team training on El Cap, and Madaleine’s main man/van, Dudley.

Ladies of Lurking Fear from Emily Stifler on Vimeo.

2. http://www.foursistersfilm.com/

Four Sisters Productions will start shooting Elevation, a feature-length documentary in the Sichuan Province of China this fall. The film will feature Lyman-Spitzer Grant winners Dylan Johnson and Josh Wharton, along with world-class climbers Chad Kellogg, Jesse Huey and Toby Grohne, as they attempt a first ascent in the Four Sisters region. Elevation was inspired by Dylan and Chad Kellogg’s 2008 climb of Mt. Siguniang, an epic climb riddled with loss, survival and the care of the Ma family in Rilong. This fall, the team of climbers will travel to China to begin the Elevation Project, which “connects storytelling, education, and community support to elevate communities on a global scale.” Follow their blog for updates on the project including the documentary, school and training for the climbers.

“I had an accident and am returning home.”

As everyone gets back to work after a holiday and starts wading through email, there are always a few that stand out and grab attention. This morning one of those few was from John Harlin, who to all of my knowledge was in Switzerland on an attempt to hike, climb and paddle around its borders. John, who edits the beloved American Alpine Journal (check out latest stories posted online here), took a 50-60 foot fall and ended up breaking several bones in his foot. He’s on his way home now to recuperate, but still plans to finish the trip partially in September and then fully next summer.

The evac was captured on video (above), which John sent over, and the rest of the site around his whole trip (live updates and photos) is pretty sweet as well, so check it out if you get a chance. You’ll find Google Earth tracking of his endeavor, the progress, daily updates/images, and even play-by-play of the fall and rescue (videos included). Here’s the link: http://www.swissinfo.ch/eng/Specials/Around_the_borders/Index.html?cid=8968970. Be sure to check out all the tabs for all the information on John and the entire project, which he calls “Border Stories.”

Get well, John, and we’ll be excited to track progress again once you’re back on Swiss ground.

A few additions: you can follow the Border Stories project on Facebook and Twitter, and follow John’s live updates when he’s up and running again.

The America’s Great Outdoors Initiative was established by Presidential Memorandum, and represents a huge push to reconnect the American people to the outdoors alongside community-level undertakings to restore and conserve outdoor areas. As climbers who use these outdoor spaces, it’s important that we get involved in and pay attention to what the AGO is doing.

Around the country, the Department of Agriculture, the Department of Interior, the Environmental Protection Agency, and the White House Council on Environmental Quality will be soliciting public input from communities on how the government can better serve conservation interests. These groups will submit a summary report of their findings to the White House in November.

The OIA (Outdoor Industry Association) got involved to host a series of “listening sessions,” open to the public, in which leaders from the active outdoor recreation community can dialogue with these agencies. We encourage all of our members to take part in these sessions on behalf of climbers, and can help connect you with the OIA if interested (reach out to us via comment, below). The federal agencies, in the listening sessions, are focusing on the following questions (from the OIA website):

I. Challenges – What obstacles exist to achieving your goals for conservation, recreation, or reconnecting people to the outdoors?

II. What Works- Please share your thoughts and ideas on effective strategies for conservation, recreation and reconnecting people to the outdoors.

III. Federal Government Role – How can the federal government be a more effective partner in helping to achieve conservation, recreation or reconnecting people to the outdoors?

IV. Tools – What additional tools and resources would help your efforts be even more successful?

The links above will allow you to submit your online input at the Department of Interior AGO website. In addition, (and this is the important part), check out the listing of listening sessions, and plan to attend one near you. The next events are July 7, 8 and 15, with grassroots sessions on the 15th, 22nd, and numerous TBD dates. Check early and be sure to register.

If you operate a company in the outdoor industry (or know a local guide service or gear shop owner who does) and would like to get involved in a listening session, contact Alex Boian or David Weinstein at the Outdoor Industry Association. Please also send in suggestions for additional meeting locations!

The OIA website is a fantastic resource for all information on the AGO, including background information, the most current event listings, suggestions for the November report, the latest AGO news, and links to the AGO Facebook page and IdeaJam website.

RJ Fleming and Ang Kami with seven of the children they support through EON.

Back in 2001, AAC member Dr. RJ Fleming saw a need in Nepal. Running a guide service out of Europe and Asia, RJ and his business partner, Ang Kami, saw many guiding companies addressing the environmental issues in Nepal, but did not know of any addressing the needs of the more than 980,000 orphans. The two partners knew they couldn’t continue to do business there without addressing this situation, even in a small way.

Enter Education for Orphans of Nepal, a charity registered in Nepal. Fleming and Kami, running MatterhornNepal-GuideSource Treks and Expeditions, committed to using their own personal funds and profits from their company to support as many orphans as they could, sending them to boarding schools in Kathmandu and covering all bills until the students graduate around age 16. Currently, they support 11 students’ living and educational expenses (about 750 Euro per year), and take the students into their own homes during holidays and breaks. Upon graduation, the student has an accredited education and the opportunity to break out of the cycle of poverty.

RJ Fleming and Ang Kami on one of their expeditions to raise awareness for EON.

This spring, Fleming and Kami summited Ice Land Peak (6,189m) and attempted Ama Dablam (6,859m) in the Solu Khumbu region of the Himalayan range to raise awareness for the situation of orphans in Nepal, and hopefully gather more climbers on board to help care for these children (until now, they have been providing support all on their own). The photo at right shows the two on one of these expeditions, while the photo above is of them with seven of they children they support.

For more info, read RJ’s letter about their mission after the jump. To find out how you can help or donate, contact Dr. RJ Fleming directly at info@guidesource.com or send an email to the EON email address at eonepal2001@gmail.com.

Another cool write up about what they are doing is here.
Read the rest of this entry »

Recently, Steve House submitted a letter of thanks to Global Rescue after his fall off of Mt. Temple this past Spring. With GR’s permission, we wanted to reprint it for you here. The Global Rescue service is one of the important benefits our pooled dues help support, and it brings climbers like Steve safely home after a fall. More details on GR here.

“After my eighty foot fall high on the north face of Mount Temple in Banff National park my partner dialed 911. Two hours later Parks Canada wardens executed the brave long-line rescue which undoubtedly saved my life. I was in a major trauma hospital in Calgary just hours after my fall.

On my second morning in the critical care ward at Calgary’s Foothills Medical Center we called Global Rescue and that same night a Global Rescue paramedic arrived and immediately began helping us make sense of the complicated diagnosis of my extensive injuries: two pelvic fractures, seven fractured vertebrae, nine fractured ribs (3 were pulverized) and a collapsed lung. I was reliant on the Global Rescue medic’s help, as I could do little clear thinking with all the pain and exhaustion that comes with such injuries.

As my healing progressed, Global Rescue’s medic was already thinking ahead, working out the best way to get me home to Oregon. The simple solution would be for me to stay in Calgary until I was able to walk out of the hospital, but that would force me to make a very long, and very painful car-ride home. Recognizing this Global Rescue arranged a medically equipped lear jet staffed by a paramedic and a flight nurse. At noon on my seventh day in the hospital, Global Rescue had worked out the intra-hospital paperwork and I was wheeled out to the waiting jet. Two quick hours later I was in my home hospital in Oregon, where my parents, friends, and the rest of my family awaited me. After a comfortable four more days in the hospital I hobbled out with my walker, largely under my own power.

Global Rescue not only got me home as efficiently as possible, they repeatedly made the best decisions for me as a patient. For that I am forever grateful.”

Steve House

The Yosemite Valley. Image courtesy of Accessfund.org

Below is an important message from Linda McMillan, committee chair for the AAC’s Yosemite Committee as well as a representative for the AAC on the UIAA’s Protection Commission.

AAC Members,

In February, we helped submit comments during the scoping period for Yosemite’s Merced Wild and Scenic River Plan. There will be a series of public presentations on the Draft 2010 ORV (Outstanding and Remarkable Values) Report for the Merced Wild and Scenic River from the Yosemite Planning team at several locations and dates. At these events we will be able to discuss issues on this Draft ORV Report with Yosemite subject matter experts and user capacity experts. Our perspective is that climbing is an important and historic ORV in the Merced River corridor, and so deserves protection in future plans for the Merced River. Climbers need to let the Park planners know their opinions on this, and to tell them how climbing access should be preserved in the river corridor.

Based on the scoping period, climbing in the park is in a good position, as an update from the Access Fund (who has been heavily involved in the project) indicates: “The park recently announced in its “Outstanding Remarkable Value” report that it recognizes the recreational significance of Yosemite Valley, and specifically acknowledges climbing as an active pursuit that draws people from around the world. This is important because climbing as an activity is now more likely to be “protected and enhanced” rather than restricted” (Jason Smith, Accessfund.org).

Even with this piece of encouraging news, we (as the climbing community) need to attend these meetings and offer input wherever we can. If you’re nearby, check the schedule and plan to be there.

You can download this ORV Draft Report from this link: http://www.nps.gov/yose/parkmgmt/mrp.htm

Here is the schedule from the Yosemite National Park site: http://www.nps.gov/yose/parkmgmt/mrp_meetings.htm

Most of these presentations are in the Yosemite region, but here is the info on the only BAY AREA location of these workshops:

June 28th, 5-8pm, San Ramon City Council Chamber
2228 Camino Ramon, San Ramon, CA (925) 973-2500

- Linda McMillan

We’d love to point you over to a film project in the works by Oakley Anderson-Moore, “The Last Wild Mountain: Portrait of the American Climber.” Oakley and her team have spent the last three years traveling around the country interviewing climbers– young, old, big name and everyday– to gather the stories of the climbing life, what drives the pursuit and what (or maybe more who) has shaped the sport. The AAC has been supporting the project and many of our members are in the film: Jim Donini, Lynn Hill, Robb Pizem, Jim McCarthy, and others.

Last week, Oakley was kind enough to send the above clip our way as “thanks” to the Club. To return the favor, check out more about the project at the film’s website: http://www.rockadventuremovie.com/home.html. You’ll find a sweet trailer and tons more info on the project, as well as links to follow their progress via Facebook and many other ways. Can’t wait to see the film when it’s done!