Carcass Crag
Guidebook: Vermont Rock, by Travis Peckham
Mountain Project: Carcass Crag
The Climbing: The Carcass Crag is just a short hike from the Quarry. Climbing here is cool and shady, making it an excellent summer or early fall destination for 5.11 and 5.12 climbers.
Don’t Miss: Progress (5.11a),Worthless Stud (5.11d), Alternative Power (5.12a), Who’s Your Daddy (5.12c).
Access Story: In 2010, CRAG-VT purchased the Carcass Crag, one of Bolton’s steepest and best sport climbing cliffs. This acquisition expanded the Bolton Quarry property by three acres, thereby including the Carcass Crag in the existing Quarry conservation easement and ensuring permanent access for climbing and recreation.
Thank You to Our Partners: A big thank you to The Access Fund for their generous grant in support of this project. CRAG-VT would also like to thank Dr. Richard Katzman whose level head and tireless diplomacy were essential to the success of this project; to Seth Maciejowski for writing yet another successful grant; and to Pam Moreau for her legal services and patience. And last, but not least, the great folks in our climbing community that volunteered, donated, and supported CRAG-VT in this effort!
History: As with many local cliffs on private land, the Carcass was a guarded secret for over a decade before the acquisition. Derek Doucet was possibly the first to envision potential on this imposing cliff when he discovered it by accident in the winter of 1998. Doucet had been climbing ice in the Bolton Quarry and was preparing to leave when he noticed his Black Lab, Auggie, was missing. A prolonged search turned up Auggie with his head and shoulders buried in a rotting deer carcass, tail wagging ecstatically. Doucet looked up, and there was the cliff – a place whose name will forever memorialize the hapless deer.
