LOOK CLOSER: PHILOSOPHY FOR THE GREEN CLIMBER by Patrick L Welsh
Global winds shift and send a moisture rich rush of air from the Pacific all the way to
the dry, grass covered hills and arid deserts of Utah and Nevada, where the moisture gets sucked from the air. The air vacuums up moisture again from the great Salt Lake, and dumps it in the form of rain or snow on the Wasatch Mountains.
Water has created much of the life and landscape in this area. It gives life to growing things, feeds the wildlife around it, and finds its way into depressions and cracks. That's where it starts the altering processes that create the beloved features of our local climbing areas.
At first glance this may seem like a mundane occurrence that happens all the time. It does actually; but that is what makes it so amazing.
When we look at the ordinary we will discover the extraordinary. If we look a bit closer we would see the many interconnected environmental loops beneath our feet and surrounding us; connections that maintain the precarious balance of life that is planet Earth. The water that makes it’s way from the mountains eventually finds its way into our homes through
creeks and rivers, beginning a circular system. The plants that absorb that water provide oxygen and absorb carbon. That process gives us breathable air and a livable global temperature. The oxygen that earth creatures breathe is exhaled as carbon, and the loop is complete; the plants absorb the carbon and give us back oxygen. The process is called photosynthesis.
That is only one part of the loop. There are also an unfathomable amount of insects housed in trees and underbrush whose eventual decomposition provides the food for new growth.
Even smaller than those are bacteria and fungi, which create the decomposition that provides new beginnings.
We are connected with everything around us, even if we do not see or feel it with
our senses. All our actions are connected to everything around us.
In this complex mix of interactions, the modern climber has an increasingly important role of stewardship and conservation. Climbers, by nature and tradition, are a very conscious and often tenacious demographic when it comes to environmental issues. Whether we recognize it or not, the future of our sport and way of life are linked to how we act in these
amazing and delicate locales. Having the ability to reach these seldom-visited nooks of the planet puts climbers in a unique position to speak about the protection of these wild
ecosystems. In the face of increasing commercialization, urbanization, and an ethnocentric (believing the Earth and it’s resources are here solely for human needs) viewpoint, we must learn to tread lightly and help influence to think about stewardship, rather than use.
Here are some tips to help you along the way:
-If you want to go grassroots here at home, become educated on wilderness and conservation issues locally. Donate some well needed volunteer time or cash to any one of the many local eco-minded organizations. As you become active and involved you will truly realize that the power to save natural places or see an eco-minded bill pass is in the
hands of the community of users, and if no one speaks up, nothing will be done. A few of the many local organizations are the Utah Society for Environmental Education (USEE), the Salt Lake Climbers Alliance, Utah Rivers Council, The Wasatch Mountain Club, The Access Fund, Southern Utah Wilderness Alliance (SUWA), The Cottonwood Canyons Foundation, Save Our Canyons, and Alta Community Enrichment (ACE).
-There are some climbing gear companies that are particularly eco-minded in their approach to production of products that merit your purchase over others. Often these companies (such as Black Diamond, Patagonia, Mad Rock, Prana, and others) will offset energy consumption through wind or solar power, produce their gear through processes that produce less waste and harmful exhaust, educate the public about environmental concerns, collect and make gear from recycled products, and donate money and volunteer time to environmental causes.
-If you drive up the canyons frequently, I am sure you’ve often smelled the odor of brakes that have been ridden the whole way down the canyon. Try to car pool as much as possible when going into the mountains by meeting before or at the mouth of the canyons. Pick up hitchhikers. Hitchike up yourself. Rethink longer climbing trips that eat up gas in exchange
for any of the vastly overlooked closer options surrounding the Wasatch. The exhaust and noise from motorized vehicles are also an interruption to quietude and a stress on local plants and wildlife.
-The crags and other backcountry areas are accessed by trails that are either popular trade routes or seldom used footpaths forged by wildlife. On these approaches stay on marked trails and do not cut your own switchback (which tramples delicate plants and undergrowth needlessly), keep all trash together and pack everything out (and even discarded trash you didn't bring). Animals eating human food or trash can lead to habitualization and the eventual decrease of a wild population. Lastly, be courteous to other trail users. Climbers are representatives of our sport, and our actions can often lead to positive or negative ideas about our community as a whole.
-The rocky, alpine environments of cliffs and crags are a very rare and delicate landscape that houses insects, mosses, lichens, plants, flowers, animals, and birds, many of whom are only found in these specific areas. As we plop our gear down and climb the rock we must keep aware of this by not trampling over the plant life at the base (which in turn weakens the slope and speeds up erosion), by not disturbing wildlife that sometimes live in or near the rock, by packing out all trash, avoiding brushing rock that is covered in lichen or moss, or driving in unnecessary protection into the rock that will forever scar it.
-Often the places we climb are not just day-trip destinations and we camp for multiple days in remote and pristine backcountry areas. The above observations apply to these areas and are joined by some good old Leave No Trace tactics to boot. Leave No Trace is a set of 7 guidelines for all outdoor recreationists to sustainably and respectfully be in the wild (for more info check out Leave No Trace books and web sites).
- Some extra pointers for the backcountry are to camp, cook, and use the bathroom at least 200 ft from all trail and water sources. We humans bring a lot of weird stuff in our food and waste that is never found in the wilderness and is harmful to both other humans and wildlife. On top of being 200 ft away, for solid waste either use a homemade poop tube (on big wall
climbs or in delicate landscapes), or dig a cat hole that is at least 20 inches deep and 8 inches wide that you fill in with the dirt you removed. Always dispose of or pack out any toilet paper, or use a good old non-irritating leaf if you feel rustic.
-When pitching a tent make sure you either pitch it in an established spot (if it is there) or pitch on sand, rock slab, dirt, short grass or other resilient ground that will not leave your mark after you are gone. If people start to visit a pristine spot and start thoughtlessly camping all over the place, soon the area will be marked with tent spots where vegetation is trampled or killed, be spotted with toilet paper flowers and trash, and trails will criss-cross the once untouched area.
As we educate yourself, we enrich your outdoor experience. We begin to understand and gain natural knowledge which is fast disappearing in our age of technology and instant gratification. The human tragedy is one of the saddest on the planet, because it is looking like the earth would be a better place without our presence here. Strive to make this statement untrue, at least for your brief stay in the great web. In the midst of a silent and wild void, if you have to strain to hear the messages of what the earth is saying, you are not listening to the silence. Stop trying to hear and just be. It will come to you.
-Patrick Welsh, 26, is a born native of the Wasatch and has climbed and explored all over the country. He works at Black Diamond Equipment in the summer and Alta Ski Lifts in winter; drop in at either for expert advice about anything wilderness.