Climbing Accident at Lower West Bolton
By now news has spread of the incident that occurred Saturday, September 16th at Lower West Bolton. On Saturday afternoon, Rebecca Ryan, a student at UVM, suffered a fatal fall while lowering from the top of the cliff. As ambassadors of Vermont climbing and landowners of Lower West, CRAG-VT felt it necessary to respond to this tragic incident that has shaken our community. Accidents are thankfully rare, but as climbers we understand the inherent risks involved in our sport. However, when an accident like this does occur, the community can only react in mourning and reflection. We ask you to join us in sending our our deepest condolences to family and friends who are most impacted by this somber news in this time of loss.– CRAG Vermont Board of Directors
CRAG-VT October Meeting – 10/3/2017
Vermont Land Trust, Richmond Vermont at 6:30pm
Join us for our monthly board meeting at the offices of the Vermont Land Trust on bridge st. in Richmond, Vt. Please park at the town office lot across the street, not at the VLT parking lot. We have a lot going on these days so stop on by!
CRAG-VT September Meeting – 9/5/2017 Vermont Land Trust, Richmond Vermont
Join us for our monthly board meeting at the offices of the Vermont Land Trust on bridge st. in Richmond, Vt. Please park at the town office lot across the street, not at the VLT parking lot.
Double Upper Now Open to Climbing
CRAG-VT June Climbing Meetup – 6/6/2017 The Quarry, Bolton Vermont
Please join us for CRAG-VT Climbing Meetups every Tuesday in June!
We’re excited to get the community climbing together. Meet new climbers, learn more about the Quarry and surrounding crags, share beta, and jump on some new routes!
Meet in the Bolton Quarry off of Green Mountain Drive (https://www.mountainproject.com/v/bolton-quarry/106731452) at 5:30pm. Groups may stay in the Quarry or head up to the Carcass Crag or 82 Crag. Climbing is mostly sport climbing with some opportunity for top-roping.
This climbing meetup is NOT A GUIDED EVENT. Climbers should have their own climbing equipment and be proficient with outdoor climbing basics. A representative from CRAG-VT will be present at the kick-off meetup on June 6, and representatives may or may not be present at the remaining Tuesday meetups.
In the case of incelement weather, the outdoor meetup will be cancelled and will be updated on this event page. Petra Cliffs Climbing Center & Mountaineering School has offered 50% off Day Passes with mention of the CRAG-VT Meetup.
CRAG-VT May Meeting – 5/2/2017 Upper West Bolton Cliff, Bolton Vermont
Join us May 2 at Upper West Bolton to hang with the CRAG-VT board, do a little climbing and talk about cliff stewardship and CRAG-VT business! We will be gathering in the “Paradox” area at Upper West starting around 5-5:30. We’ll climb for a few hours and then have a short meeting afterward. If rain is in the forecast, we will meet at our normal location of Vermont Land Trust in Richmond, VT at 6:30.
UPDATE : Due to forecast rain, the meeting will be at the Vermont Land Trust in Richmond at 6:30
Quarry Driveway Update
Due to the warm weather, the quarry driveway has dried up and is now open for business! Please take care on the trails at all of the CRAG-VT properties as they remain muddy in spots and use good judgement when using them.
Peregrine Update
Falcon Closures: Here’s what we know so far…
Upper Upper West – Falcons are back and signs are up.
Marshfield – Falcons present but we are not sure where they will nest yet. We hope to figure that out before the end of the month so signs can get adjusted. Climbers should go with last year’s closure area until further notice.
Smuggs – Unknown at this time
Mt Horrid & Rattlesnake – Closure in effect until the end of nesting season.
Bone Mt – Falcons present, assume last year’s closure area unless we learn they have moved to a new site on the cliff.
Update 04-26-2017 : Eagle Hollow in Vershire is off limits for Peregrines.
CRAG-VT Spring Climbing Kickoff! Gear Exchange Burlington VT
Come check out some cool presentations on the local climbing scene at 7:45PM on Thursday April 6 at the Outdoor Gear Exchange in Burlington, VT! Admission is free, beverages will be served and presentations will feature local Vermont climbers getting you psyched for spring!
CRAG-VT April Meeting – 4/4/2017 Vermont Land Trust, Richmond Vermont
The monthly CRAG-VT meeting will be held at the Vermont Land Trust office in Richmond, VT on April 4th at 6:30. Please stop in if you want to learn more about CRAG-VT! Email info@cragvt.org for more information! See you there!
Do you climb on Camel’s Hump State Forest?
Then consider dropping by CRAG-VT’s February board meeting. We will be discussing FP&R’s long term management plan for Camel’s Hump State Forest and we need your input! Where exactly do you climb on the state forest and how frequently? If you can’t make the meeting, feel free to shoot us an email at info@cragvt.org with your input. Everything you provide will help to make the management plan as agreeable as possible to climbers!
CRAG-VT February Meeting – 2/21/2017 Vermont Land Trust, Richmond Vermont
The CRAG-VT board meeting has been delayed two weeks to 2/21/2016.
CRAG-VT Elects New Board for 2017
On December 20th, CRAG-VT held its annual meeting. Board members and officers were elected for 2017. We’d like to thank Danny Kuzio and Dick Katzman for many years of service to CRAG-VT as they depart the board for 2017.
For 2017 the CRAG-VT board is comprised of Andrea Charest, Steve Charest, Kris Fiore, Rob Fleming, Travis Peckham, Kel Rossiter, John Casari, Tim Farr and Seth Maciejowski.
Officers Elected for 2017 :
Seth Maciejowski – President
Kris Fiore – Vice President
Andrea Charest – Treasurer
Rob Fleming – Secretary
CRAG-VT December Meeting and Board Elections- 12/20/2016 Vermont Land Trust, Richmond Vermont
Would you like to help out CRAG-VT beyond becoming a member? Consider coming to our board meeting on December 20 where you can join the board and take your dedication to Vermont climbing to the next level!
The meeting will be held on Tuesday the 20th at 6:30 at the Vermont Land Trust office in Richmond, VT. Please park in the Richmond town offices parking lot on the east side of bridge street if you are coming and cross the street to get the the Land Trust office. If you have any questions, email info@cragvt.org.
CRAG-VT Trail Day POSTPONED to October 30
NOTE: Due to pending poor weather on Sunday October 23rd, CRAG-VT is postponing trail day to Sunday October 30th, same time, same place.
Come join CRAG-VT on Sunday, October 30th for a day of trail work and cragging! We will gather at the Bolton Quarry at 9am for coffee, bagels, and trail work assignments. Depending on numbers, we will divide and conquer projects at the quarry, on the approach to the 82 crag, and at Upper West. Tools have been generously loaned to us by the Vermont Youth Conservation Corps, so you need not bring your own. Do bring your rope and harness, however, and enjoy some afternoon cragging. We’ll throw some burgers and dogs on the grill, too!
CRAG-VT Announces Agreement with Vermont Agency of Natural Resources
CRAG-VT is pleased to announce that we have signed an agreement with the state of Vermont to become the climbing representative for the state of Vermont. This means we can assist the state in managing climbing on state lands and help protect unique natural communities in the climbing areas that we all love. See the full announcement here:
Spring 2016 CRAG-Rag Now available!
Check it out here : CRAG-RAG spring 2016
Thanks to Kris Fiore for compiling all of these great articles!
Do you have what it takes?
On April 1st, 2016 Petra Cliffs Climbing Gym and CRAG-VT are proud to host “The Foolish F-Eight”!. Join us for a night of silly climber tricks and a comp where your body AND mind will be put to the test…..
Pisgah Cliffs Rescue Cache Completed
The board members of CRAG-VT have been very busy working on projects this fall and winter and we’ve now seen 2 of those projects come to fruition, our Anchor Replacement initiative and the Lake Willoughby rescue cache.
Today the rescue cache that was destroyed in ice-fall over a year ago was re-established on the hillside between the climbs Zephyr and Left Tablets on the South end of The Lake.
A HUGE THANK YOU to all of the parties involved that helped make this possible!
Anchor Campaign Update
Hey Vermont climbers! It’s hard to think about rock climbing with this amazing winter, but we’re keeping one eye on the approaching Spring season and the on-going hardware replacement efforts. We’ve now received delivery of the bulk lot of hardware we acquired with the help of the joint American Alpine Club – Access Fund Anchor Replacement Grant and your generous contributions! We received 125 more bolts, 10 pairs of lower-off carabiners, 15 pairs of rap rings, 10 pairs of pig-tail lower-offs, 30 pairs of safety shackles and 3 meters of chain! Be on the lookout for new hardware coming to our local cliffs this coming season and stay up to date on replacememt efforts by visiting http://vari.gregkuchyt.net. Thanks to Jim Titt at Bolt Products for the discount on the hardware!
Join us for Jeff Lowe’s “Metanoia” : 7-10 pm February 11, Main Street Landing Burlington, VT
Come on down to the Main Street Landing and check out Jeff Lowe’s “Metanoia”. Gear Exchange is putting on the show and Crag-VT is the beneficiary. Tickets are $12. Check it out here:
Campaign to Replace the Pisgah Cliffs Rescue Cache
What would YOU do if the worst happened while ice climbing at Lake Willoughby? CRAG-VT is pleased to announce a new campaign to replace the rescue cache at the south end of the Pisgah cliffs. The Appalachian Mountain Club (AMC) has partnered with CRAG-VT and is matching every dollar we can raise up to $400.00 to replace the recently destroyed cache below “The Tablets”. The new cache will feature a backboard and first aid materials to be used by climbers in an emergency. Donate online through our paypal account or join us this weekend at the Smuggler’s Notch ice bash if you would like to contribute. If you want to directly help with the fabrication of the cache, please contact us at info@cragvt.org.
CRAG-VT Announces Anchor Replacement Campaign
UPDATE DEC 19 – WE MADE IT! Thanks to everyone for your contributions. With your help, we will be able to double the number of routes that will be rebolted in the next year. Look to new anchors and bolts coming up in the spring on some of your favorite routes. Thanks again!
UPDATE : DEC 17 – $885 in. Whose going to put us over the top?!?
UPDATE : DEC 13 – In only 3 days we’ve taken in $285 toward our goal! Let’s take it to the top!
Have you ever considered the quality of those bolts you just clipped? Do they looked rusted or fatigued? CRAG-VT was the recent recipient of a $500.00 grant from the Access Fund to support ongoing anchor replacement efforts in Bolton. To magnify the impact of the grant money, CRAG-VT wants your help! We are hoping to raise $500 to match the funds provided by
the Access Fund. These funds will be exclusively used to support anchor replacement efforts in Northern Vermont. If you want to donate, please use our paypal system and specify “anchor replacement campaign” in the note field of your donation. As a guideline, it costs approximately $50 to rebolt a typical route in Bolton, $25 to properly upgrade an anchor setup, and $10 to improve an anchor to a proper lower off. If you would like to get more involved with this effort beyond simply donating money and keep up to date on the efforts, check out Greg Kuchyt’s website.
This project was supported by the joint Access Fund-
American Alpine Club Anchor Replacement Fund.
CRAG-VT Elects 2016 Board
At the CRAG-VT December board meeting new board members were elected for 2016.
Joining the board for 2016 is Kris Fiore and Robert Fleming. Reelected for 2016 are Travis Peckham, Andrea Charest, Steve Charest, Dick Katzman, John Casari, Danny Kuzio, Kel Rossiter, Jay Plantillas, Seth Maciejowski, and Tim Farr. Thanks to all the board members for signing on for 2016!
Derrek Anderson left the board for 2016. Thanks for your service Derrek!
For 2016, CRAG-VT elected Seth Maciejowski as President for another term, while Kris Fiore was elected Vice President, Danny Kuzio was elected Secretary and Andrea Charest was elected for another term as Treasurer.
Board Meeting and Elections
Join us on Tuesday December 1st at 6:30 the Vermont Land Trust in Richmond Vt. for our board meeting and yearly elections. If you are psyched about Vermont rock climbing and can spare one Tuesday evening a month, maybe you might consider joining the board. We have a lot of great project prospects coming together for 2016 and you could become part of Vermont’s storied climbing history! See you there!
To find the meeting :
Vermont Land Trust is located at 207 Bridge Street in Richmond Vermont (yellow house on the west side of the road). If you plan to attend, please park at the post office and library across Bridge Street and walk over to the VLT. Do not park at the yellow house. GPS : 44.402733, -72.996017
Trail Day – A Big Win!
TRAIL DAY 2015 A RESOUNDING SUCCESS!
Thanks to the many volunteers who showed up on a cold Sunday, we were able to get the 82 preferred approach improved and cleaned up. New water bars were added and the trail was raked to the duff. The Carcass Crag Trail was cleaned out to the dirt and should be easy to follow now. Thank you everyone for coming and to our sponsors :
KCs Bagels in Waterbury
Green Mountain Coffee in Waterbury
PetraCliffs in Burlington
Vermont Rock Press in Underhill
Mammut in Williston
Vermont Youth Conservation Corps
CRAG-VT Announces Modifications to Member Benefits
Check out the membership page for information on updates to the CRAG-VT membership benefits. Thanks to all of our generous corporate sponsors!
CRAG-VT is pleased to announce a new corporate partner for 2015 : MetroRock Burlington.
Check out the membership page for details on this exciting new benefit.
Successful Trail Day!
On October 19 volunteers braved wet woods, mud and rain to complete improvements on the Lower West Bolton and Upper West Bolton trail networks. Thanks to all who came out and special thanks to KC bagels (http://www.kcbagelcafewaterburyvt.com/) in Waterbury for providing breakfast, the Vermont Youth Conservation Corps (www.vycc.org) for providing tools and Steve and Andrea Charest for providing a lawn and a garage to stay dry in. Thanks again to all who came out and participated! We’ll see you at the crags!
New stone steps installed at Lower West courtesy of CRAG-VT volunteers:
Five Reasons to Join CRAG-VT Today
CRAG-VT is a nonprofit organization that relies on donations and membership dues from climbers like you to fund our work. Since our board of volunteers runs the organization and we don’t have an office space to rent, 100% of your donation or cost of membership is spent on protecting the crags you love.
We’ve secured 6 crags in Bolton that are enjoyed by so many climbers around Vermont and are continually working to connect the community with the areas they love. In case you still need to be convinced to join, here are five — out of countless— reasons.
- You love it; we protect it. Are you a weekend warrior that can’t wait to get out of the office and onto the cliff? Our organizational mission is to protect access to these places so you can get out there and enjoy them.
- More hands can accomplish more work. We help organize the climbing community to lend a hand. We organize crag clean up events and attend events raising awareness of access concerns and issues in the state.
- You’re busy and we make it easy to protect the places you play. Don’t have time to make it to these crag conservation days? Can’t voice your concerns to officials about climbing access? We can do it for you.
- We have experience. Our board members come from various backgrounds and represent decades of climbing in the state. We know these crags like the back of our hands and know who to approach and how to approach them, to ensure that access remains open.
- We represent a unified voice. CRAG-VT works for all of the climbers in the state who want access to the cliffs they love. By joining or donating you’re not only supporting your passion but you’re helping your climbing partner, your neighbor, and your climber friend as well.
Now that we’ve outlined some of the reasons to support our organization, we hope you’ll join us in our mission to preserve access and conservation of Vermont’s climbing resources. Joining costs only $25 for the year and is as simple as making a payment on this page. Your support will help all of us climbers in the state.
