Since my last post, some important progress has been made regarding access to climbing near Boulder. Eldorado Canyon remains closed but I am optimistic this will change very soon. Many more trails are open on OSMP land including Fern Canyon and Shadow Canyon, though climbing is still closed. The lower Satellite Boulders, between the Second and Third Flatiron, are now open which is really the first significant reopening of bouldering in the Flatirons since the flood. The First and Third are open to roped climbing though the south side of the Third (and the Royal Arch area in general) is closed.
OSMP is having volunteer climbing surveyors go out into various sectors to assess damage and safety issues which I think will be very useful in getting many more areas open. I am participating in this process and will report on what I know and have heard. I have visited the Satellite Boulders twice in the past week and am struck by how little damage occurred outside the main gullies and washes below the Flatirons. My belief is this will be the case for most of the popular areas including Fern Canyon and Dinosaur Mountain. That said there is a rumor that Black Ice may be no more...
Really big news was the early reopening of Boulder Canyon. The NFS is maintaining a closure on the north side of the canyon but this leaves quite a lot open on the south, including most of the good bouldering, which is all still intact and accessible. Castle Rock, on Boulder County land, is now open as well. Opening 119 also radically lessens the approach time to Estes Park, allowing much-needed tourist traffic to get to the beleagured town.
That said the antics of the GOP's Tea Party wing are still afflicting the region as the National Park remains closed. Hopefully this will be resolved soon and things can begin to recover, especially once 36 re-opens which I am guessing will be sooner rather than later.
As I said before, areas to the north and further south have been open and attracting more than their usual quota of visitors, owing to the access issues around Boulder and RMNP. And of course area gyms have helped make up for the closures as well. But I think everyone will breathe a sigh of relief once things are a bit more back to normal. And of course for those whose homes have been devasteded by the flood, things may never be back to normal. Check out http://donateboulder.org/
or http://www.unitedwayfoothills.org/ for info on how you can help.
UPDATE: As of today, October 12, Rocky Mountain National Park has been temporarily reopened with state funding
ANOTHER UPDATE: The problem mentioned above, Black Ice, along the Fern CanyonTrail, is no more.
"As the federal government shutdown neared the end of its first business day, the House failed to pass a series of separate bills to restart funding for national parks, veterans' services and the city of Washington, D.C.
ReplyDeleteThe measures, designed to eliminate some of the most unpopular consequences of the ongoing shutdown, required a two-thirds majority vote under the House's rules.
Democrats remained mostly united against the funding bills, which they argued amounted to the GOP's "cherry-picking" of politically palatable federal spending while ignoring the problems of the larger government funding lapse."
Always good to get uninformed political opinion from climbing blogs.
After the House failed to pass a bill to fund the NPS, which requires a 2/3 majority:
ReplyDelete"Democrats remained mostly united against the funding bills, which they argued amounted to the GOP's "cherry-picking" of politically palatable federal spending while ignoring the problems of the larger government funding lapse."
(From NBC News)
And just as good to get uninformed comments on my blog. If you think it's legitimate governance to hold the country hostage to block a constitutionally enacted law, and then try to do an end run around that damage by cherry picking popular programs like the NPS (which Republicans have consistently voted to underfund) then you are probably even more uninformed than myself.
ReplyDeleteBesides, if you're getting your political opinions from climbing blogs, you're looking for the wrong thing, in the wrong place. Although, you could do worse #foxnews . . .
ReplyDeleteGood info, Peter!
Besides, if you're getting your political opinions from climbing blogs, you're looking for the wrong thing, in the wrong place. Although, you could do worse #foxnews . . .
ReplyDeleteGood info, Peter!