DONATE TO TAWKROC

Vince Hempsall mid-way through bolting "Leggo My Ego" at Tulip Wall, Arrow Lakes, 2012

In the past two years over 150 new routes have been developed in the West Kootenay region of British Columbia. If each climb has an average of six bolts and two anchors, this means route setters have paid over $7,500 out-of-pocket just in hardware costs alone. This doesn’t take into consideration the amount of time and energy they’ve spent cleaning crags and building trails so that we all have places to play.

The Association of West Kootenay Rock Climbers, the group dedicated to building new outdoor routes and improving crag access, is calling for donations from the general climbing community to help supplement the cost of route building. The group is also developing a plan for retro-bolting a number of older routes around Castlegar to improve rock climber’s safety in the region and funds will go towards that, as well as new route development.

If you’ve enjoyed a weekend at Waterline or have jumped on a route at Pub Wall lately (the average cost of developing just one route there was $65 in hardware) then please consider donating to TAWKROC. Any amount would be appreciated. Please make cheques payable to TAWKROC and mail them to 119 High St., Nelson, BC, V1L 3Z5. Alternatively, contact TAWKROC board member Shaun King (info at mountainsense.ca) to donate in person. For more information about TAWKROC go to www.tawkroc.org.