NEW Bishop Bouldering Guidebook

After 3 years in the making, James Lucas and @wolverinepublishing will be launching the NEW Bishop Bouldering Guidebook in May! 🥳

You can pre-order the book using this link or wait until May to snag a copy at Sage to Summit, Mammoth Mountaineering Supply, or Eastside Sports.

Wolverine has been financially supporting the BACC for years. They started by donating $0.25 per copy, and with the new guidebook, they will donate $1 for every copy sold! 🤩

Partnerships and donations like this help our small, grassroots climbing organizations give back to the local community by connecting local youth to the outdoors, hosting stewardship events, providing educational materials for visiting climbers, and helping to fund the Pine Creek toilets!

We would like to express our gratitude to James and Wolverine Publishing for their hard work on the guidebook and the continued support of the BACC

Winter and Spring Upcoming Events and Festivals!

We will continue to post on our social media for upcoming events throughout the year- be sure to follow us on Instagram and Facebook to stay up-to-date!

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Upcoming Events

Thursday, March 14th, March 22nd, 2024, No Mans Land Film Festival at the Bishop Twin Theater, hosted by ESIA. Join us for a memorable evening highlighting the stories of women in the outdoors. General admission is $15 pre-sale and will be $18 at the door. Doors open at 6:15 p.m. and showtime begins at 7 p.m. Films, friends, refreshments, and giveaways! All proceeds from the event will be given as a gift to the Bishop Climbing Ranger program. Get your BISHOP tickets today!

Friday, March 15th-17th, Flash Foxy Climbing Festival for women and genderqueer climbers. Visit their website for more information! Registration is open! We are also seeking women and queer-gender volunteers for tabling. Volunteer sign up here!

March 22nd, 2024, No Mans Land Film Festival at the Mammoth Lakes Welcome Center, hosted by ESIA. Join us for a memorable evening highlighting the stories of women in the outdoors. General admission is $15 pre-sale and will be $18 at the door. Doors open at 5:45 p.m. and showtime begins at 6:30 p.m. Films, friends, refreshments, and giveaways! All proceeds from the event will be given as a gift to the Bishop Climbing Ranger program. Get your MAMMOTH tickets today!

Eastern Sierra Avalanche Center will be hosting a variety of Avalanche educational events throughout the Eastern Sierra this year. Check out their website.

October 18th-20th, 2024 Bishop Craggin’ Classic! Has been moved from November to October. Visit the American Alpine Club’s (AAC) website for more information and to keep an eye out for when registration opens.

ACTION ALERT!

Your Comments are Needed to Preserve Safe Climbing on Public Lands!

Responsible climber hand drilling a bolt in the Inyo National Forest Wilderness.

The United States Forest Service (USFS) and National Park Service (NPS) want to limit the installation and maintenance of fixed anchors, bolts, pitons, and even slings on public land. Besides making climbing less fun and limiting new route development, this will cause an increase in climbing accidents, resource degradation, and use vital volunteer Search and Rescue (SAR) resources. We need you to tell the USFS why the proposed directive FSM 2355 is bad for climbers and the public at large.

This directive will impact favorite Sierra Nevada crags, such as the Incredible Hulk, Tuolumne Meadows, popular regions of Pine Creek, Rock Creek, Bear Crag, Cardinal Pinnacle, and many other other areas across the US!

This comment period is open until Friday, January 16th, 2024, at 11:59 Mountain Time.


BELOW ARE THE BISHOP AREA CLIMBER COALITION’S RECOMMENDED COMMENTS FOR USFS AND NPS.

PLEASE SUBMIT ANY COMMENTS YOU AGREE WITH, OR COPY AND PASTE ALL!

  • Amid increasing usage of wilderness climbing routes, prohibiting service and installation of pitons, bolts, slings, and other fixed hardware would create a worsening public safety issue.

    • Rappelling is the primary cause of death in climbing accidents.  When climbers rappel, they rely on a single anchor, and anchor failure during rappelling often results in death. 

    • Prohibiting the maintenance of anchors or placing bolted anchors increases the risk of anchor failure. 

    • Without the ability to leave behind equipment or modify existing slings or pitons, climbers will be encouraged to trust the existing gear left exposed to weather over the years.

    • The proposed directives FSM 2355 will exacerbate an already significant threat to the climbing public who use USFS wilderness to climb.

  • Aging hardware makes climbing routes and descents less safe, which causes more accidents.  This would increase demand on already overworked volunteer Search and Rescue (SAR) organizations.

    • The new directives will make existing routes more hazardous by discouraging maintenance of bolts and anchors.

    • Volunteer SAR organizations are overworked because of increasing usage of wilderness.  Proposed directives FSM 2355 would create even more demand on SAR.

    • Rappelling off of bolts or fixed anchors is often the only option for climbers to self-rescue before activating SAR resources. 

    • The proposed directives would prevent climbers from safely retreating from routes without SAR rescue, for example during inclement weather

  • The language in the new directives does not clarify whether volunteer SAR members would be permitted to place and determine the location of emergency rescue bolts.

    • Section 2355.03 paragraph 7 states that local government officials may determine if hardware is necessary for emergency purposes.  However, volunteers typically make this determination with SAR groups.  This language opens the possibility that SAR volunteers might be acting illegally while performing normal rescue operations.  Volunteer SAR operates the majority of rescue operations in the Sierra Nevada mountain range.

  • Bolts and fixed rappel stations prevent resource degradation in fragile alpine environments. 

    • Prohibiting fixed anchors encourages climbers to rappel off of trees and bushes, which can eventually kill cliffside vegetation.

    • Bolted anchors reduce trampling and social trail creation in delicate alpine environments by directing all climbers to a single location.

  • Proposed directive FSM 2355 will encourage the creation of dangerous new routes.

    • Discouraging bolt placements will make certain belays more dangerous.

    • On wilderness routes, bolts are already placed sparingly. In situations where no removable gear can be placed, bolts are placed to prevent catastrophic falls. Prohibiting these bolt placements will lead to more catastrophic falls in the wilderness and more SAR rescues.

  • FSM 2355 has no plan to support increased staffing to document all existing hardware and enforce these regulations.

  • Many routes require rappelling in some form.

    • Rappels typically require leaving behind some form of equipment

    • In the Wind River Range (Shoshone National Forest) climbers are encouraged to only leave behind gray, rock colored slings, and to clean-up any old slings left behind under boulders.

    • Even this hardly visible, self-regulated form of descent would be not permitted under the proposed directive.

Sky Pilot Scholarship Program 2022 Recap

The Sky Pilot Scholarship Program was started by former Vice President, Lauren DeLaunay-Miller, in 2021. The aim of this program was to give the opportunity to local high school students to have a chance at a guided trip up Mt. Whitney - the highest formation in the lower 48 - and to give them new skills and exposure to the great outdoors that exists right in their own backyard.

In 2022, the BACC received a grant from Patagonia and opted to support Sacred Rok, a nonprofit that already helps underrepresented youth get outside, carry out the Sky Pilot program for the year. Katie Lambert spearheaded this year’s Sky Pilot efforts, prepping two students over the course of the spring and the summer to gain the skills and fitness to ultimately attempt Mt. Whitney.

Below Katie shares her story of how this went, starting with their attempt at Whitney and reflecting on the rest of the summer:



Support the Climbing Ranger Program

The Bishop Climbing Ranger program is a grassroots land management partnership created to mitigate the increasing popularity and impacts of climbing in the Bishop area. We need your help to keep this program going!

STEWARDSHIP

  • Trail work

  • Clean up projects

EDUCATION

  • Weekly Climber Coffee

  • Gym to Crag events

PLANNING

  • Visitor use monitoring

  • Traffic and trail assessment

The Climbing Ranger program is a collaborative effort between the Bishop Area Climbers' Coalition, Eastern Sierra Interpretive Association, Friends of the Inyo, Bishop Area Chamber of Commerce, and L.A. Department of Water and Power.

Leave No Trace - Guidelines for Climbers in and around Bishop

PLAN AHEAD AND PREPARE - Look ahead, Think about it, then plan it out! Take into consideration what you want to accomplish throughout your stay in Bishop, gear you need to bring or get to achieve those goals, things you need to know (youtube can be good, but hiring a guide can be priceless!), options for night time accommodations, places to get groceries or eat out, ect. 



TRAVEL AND CAMP ON DURABLE SURFACES - Hike on designated trails, travel on roads or established paths, camp in designated camp spots (and don’t expand current spots to accommodate for more people and bigger rigs), most importantly, DON’T CRUSH THE BRUSH!



DISPOSE OF WASTE PROPERLY - Here in the high desert and well trafficked areas that we recreate on, it is NO LONGER OK to dig a hole to bury your human waste, or any waste for that matter. Make sure to pack all of your waste out, be that made or created by you, your human counterparts and other furry friends. 



LEAVE WHAT YOU FIND - Take only memories, leave only footprints. While cleaning up after yourself is a huge part to this, also be mindful of the areas you recreate in, in that you were probably not the first there, by centuries. Respect the native land, artifacts and dwellings you may come across. Gather experiences rather than souvenirs, take photos and make sure not to make your own impact on the areas you travel to. If you find trash, be courteous for the next recreationalist and leave the space better than you found it.


MINIMIZE CAMPFIRE IMPACT - Respect fire bans in place, only make fires in designated fire pits, when you do have a fire, make sure it is 100% exterminated with no signs of smoldering coals or ember. Humans are to blame for 87% of all fires that are started in the US. DON’T BE PART OF THAT STATISTIC!


RESPECT THE WILDLIFE - Do not feed the wildlife, no matter how cute they may look, this builds their dependence on humans and can be a greater risk on their livelihood. Do not approach wildlife, no matter how cool that photo opp might be, admire from a distance and respect all wildlife’s space to exist in their natural habitat. 



BE CONSIDERATE OF OTHER RECREATIONALIST - Leave your music at home or for your headphones, keep your animals contained and on a leash, be courteous of others experiences as well as your own. Be mindful of the land you are recreating on and do your research to acknowledge these spaces of the Indeginous people, while deepening your own personal understanding for the variety of land management that takes up the areas around Bishop. While some of these space are Public Lands, the Private lands we recreate on are equally as important to acknowledge and keep positive relationships with land owners.

Meet Our Newest Climbing Ranger - Savanna Deger

We are excited to introduce to the community, Savanna Deger, one of our newest Climbing Rangers. As a climbing ranger, Savanna’s love grows by combining two of her passions; connecting with fellow climbers and growing the connection we have to the land we recreate on. This job allows her to have the important conversations around how we can minimize our impact as climbers in the Eastern Sierra. 

Growing up in El Portal, at the mouth of Yosemite Valley, Savanna’s community placed a high value on understanding the intertwined relationship between outdoor recreation and environmental stewardship. As a child, Savanna’s dad would often bring her to the crag, although she didn’t truly connect as a climber until many years later. During her years attending Humboldt State University in pursuit of an Environmental Education degree, she joined the climbing team and acquired a job working at the school's climbing gym. Summers during college were spent working in Yosemite Valley ticking off mellow classics, while she gained the necessary skills to help people better understand the natural world and our relationship to it during the school year. Upon graduating, Savanna spent her first summer in the Eastern Sierra working for the Mono Lake Committee and growing her experience climbing on the Eastside. She developed a strong connection to the Eastern Sierra which continued to beckon her back for both work and play. Being on the Eastern Sierra created a deeper understanding of pushing grades, trying different styles of climbing, experiencing more alpine climbs, and challenging herself on long days in the mountains.



As the year moves forward, Savanna has been spearheading the program; Bishop Climbing : Know Before You Go, for the local Climbing Gyms around California, and has just hosted her first week of successful events in the Bay Area in early February. Mark your calendars for the next Gym to Crag events!! Savanna will be heading to the Reno/Tahoe area, hosting an event at Mesa Rim Reno - Tuesday, March 8th and South Lake Tahoe Blue Granite - Wednesday, March 9th. 

Huge shout out to the Companies and Brands who have helped make these events possible! Visit Bishop, Bishop Area Climbers Coalition, Arc’teryx, Fngr Jam, Black Diamond, Rocky Talky, Allez Outdoors, Black Sheep Coffee Roasters, Sage to Summit, Petzl, Edelrid, Pacific Hemp Provisions, Gnarly Nutrition, Sea and Summit, Patagonia and Rhino Skin. 


If you would like to donate directly to help support the Climbing Rangers and their mission, go to the Eastern Sierra Interpretive Association (ESIA) website and donate today!

A Highlight of Some of Our Most Recent Events

Community Event at Mountain Rambler Brewery

On October 14th, The Bishop Area Climber's Coalition hosted a community event on the patio at the Mountain Rambler Brewery. This was the BACC's first event since the start of the pandemic and it was a wonderful way to safely get the community together again. This event was a fundraiser where we sold Patagonia gear that was donated to us by Patagonia Pasadena. The BACC is extremely grateful for everyone who attended the event and purchased some Patagonia gear. The money raised from this event went towards our 2021 Sky Pilot Scholarship Program, and additional funds were donated to the local C5 Studios Community Arts Center. The BACC is looking forward to more opportunities to bring the community together throughout the winter.

BACC Movie Night

On November 4th, the eve of the American Alpine Club - Craggin’ Classic, The Bishop Area Climber’s Coalition hosted a movie night featuring the old school classic “Dosage Volume 1”. The event took place in the Las Palmas parking lot with the help of the Mountain Rambler Brewery. It was an awesome night to get together and be inspired by the epic (and sometimes cringe-worthy) footage of some classic climbing in our own backyard and beyond.

We were excited to be hosting events again after more than a year of holding off due to the pandemic. Keep an eye out here and on our social media accounts to attend more of our events in the future!

Economic Impact of Rock Climbing and Bouldering in Bishop, CA

The BACC partnered with the Access Fund and Dr. James Maples of Eastern Kentucky University to conduct an economic impact study of rock climbing in the Bishop Area. Dr. James Maples is an Associate Professor of Sociology and the Director of the Division of Regional Economic Assessment and Modeling (DREAM) at Eastern Kentucky University. More information on Dr. Maples' research and methodology can be found here.

The purpose of this study was to try and better understand how visiting climbers impact the local economy, so it can help inform decision-making around sustainable recreation and economic growth in the Bishop Area.

Data collection for this study kicked off in the end of 2019 and ran through the pandemic closures in May 2020. The results of this study were released to the public last summer. Surveying was conducted by BACC volunteers in person to capture data on climber expenditures, use patterns, and Leave-No-Trace (LNT) knowledge as it pertains to climbing impacts.


Some key findings from the study are listed below and summarized in this video by Dr. Maples.

  • Climbers visiting Bishop/Inyo County spend an estimated $15.6 million annually in Bishop and Inyo County in a typical year.

  • Climbers are an important contributor to the Bishop and Inyo County economy, spending an estimated $155 per person per trip not including lodging. Climbers reported spending around $83 per person per trip when staying in hotels, $20 when camping, and $71 when choosing rental cabins/homes.

  • Climber expenditures support $5.1 million in local wages and an estimated 127 total jobs in a typical year.

  • Due to COVID-19’s impacts on visitation, Bishop and Inyo County lost over $10 million in potential climber expenditures.

  • Climbers are aware of Leave No Trace knowledge which helps protect climbing areas from environmental impacts.

  • Climbers are well-educated, with 54% holding a bachelor degree and 24% holding advanced degrees.

  • Climbers possess high personal incomes, with nearly one in three having incomes over $75K annually.

The full report is available for download here!

Digital Benefit Event Series Summary

Last Tuesday, May 19, the Bishop Climbers Coalition concluded their first-ever Digital Benefit Series. The live online event series was organized as a fundraiser for Inyo-Mono Advocates for Community Action (IMACA) – and successfully raised more than $3000. The series hosted more than 150 attendees from across the country over three events since early May.

IMACA has continued to support our community in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic. According to Executive Director Bob Hughes, IMACA went from serving 300 households a month to over 1,200 during the pandemic. The increase of demand for their services has created a huge need for volunteers to support food distribution for families in need from Walker in northern Mono County, to Charleston View in southern Inyo. “Through their volunteering and donations, members of our local climbing community have been an important part of our ability to serve families in need throughout our region,” shared Mr. Hughes.

The Digital Benefit Series was hosted by the Bishop Climbers Coalition via the online platform, Zoom. The May 5 event featured local climber Eric Bissell sharing his story and the importance of mentorship in climbing and in life. On May 12, legacy-climber Mark Hudon and his younger energetic climbing partner, Jordan Cannon, shared their inspiration of climbing and maintaining friendship beyond the boundaries of age. The series concluded with Shelma Jun, founder of the annual Women’s Climbing Festival, sharing her journey through climbing, how she learned to be an ally, and how to respect the people and the places that we recreate.

The Coalition is extremely grateful to all those who supported the event. All three presentations are now available on our website and on YouTube. Click here to watch the shows!

Climbing Closures During COVID-19

As of March 31, the Coalition has been made aware of numerous climbing closures across the Eastern Sierra. Land management agencies are actively patrolling these areas, and violation of the closures could result in a $5,000 fine. Currently, the closed areas include: Happy Boulders, Sad Boulders, Alabama Hills, and Owens River Gorge. We are working on procuring more information from each land management agency and will post their official documentation here when it is available.

A Note from BACC about COVID-19

Across America, businesses - including ski resorts and climbing gyms - are closing or significantly scaling back on operations. Sporting events, festivals, meetings, and social gatherings are being postponed and cancelled. On Sunday, CA Governor Newsom advised the closure of bars, brewpubs, and distilleries and the scaling back of restaurants statewide. In the Eastern Sierra, we are also scaling back. Many events, including the Women’s Climbing Festival, have been cancelled in our region. The Mountain Rambler has closed until further notice. The Bishop Unified School District has closed schools. The Mammoth Mountain ski area has suspended operations and Bishop’s neighbor, Mono County, has declared a Local Health Emergency. All of these actions are aimed to help flatten the curve of the highly communicative COVID-19 virus. 

Before you decide to take a planned or impromptu trip to the Eastside, please take a moment to read the Center for Disease Control’s guidelines on travel and the latest guidance from the California Department of Public Health. In addition, please keep informed of local updates from Inyo County and Mono County. 

Use these guidelines to make sure that you are making the most responsible travel decisions for both your own health and for people who may be impacted in the communities you are visiting. If you do decide that a trip to the Eastern Sierra is unavoidable, please plan ahead and bring enough food, water, and sanitary supplies for your entire trip as the region has been in short supply of several items.

Bishop Gets Two New Climbing Rangers

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The BACC is thrilled to announce the hiring of two new seasonal climbing rangers. Thanks to an incredible partnership with Friends of the Inyo and the Eastern Sierra Interpretive Association (ESIA), we’re happy to welcome Jimmy & Alexa to Bishop. The climbing rangers will be working as ESIA employees on Bureau of Land Management, US Forest Service, and Los Angeles Department of Water & Power land— covering all our favorite climbing areas, from Pine Creek to the Tablelands to the Owens River Gorge. They will also be monitoring the Alabama Hills for climbing-related issues.

Alexa Flower comes to Bishop after years of experience working with the public in Yosemite National Park. She spent the summer of 2019 as a climbing ranger there following three years on the Search & Rescue team and one as a climber steward. Originally from Vail, Colorado, Alexa spent many winters working ski patrol. Her experience rappelling off the slabs of Half Dome while she and her crew picked up thousands of pounds of trash stuck with her, and she’s excited to learn and see how she can best apply her experience here on the Eastside.

Jimmy Capangpangan is no stranger to the Bishop area. Originally from Hawthorne, California, he’s been enjoying his winters here for the past eight years . Jimmy has spent the past three summers as a ranger in Devils Tower National Monument as a law enforcement climbing ranger. He’s worked in Yosemite and Joshua Tree, and a clean-up event in the Buttermilks years ago has kept him eager to give back to his Bishop community.

The team here at the BACC is so thankful to our many donors, both big and small, who are supporting this program. We’ll be posting the climbing rangers’ events on our “Happenings” page, and you can look out for them on our social media channels as well. They’ll be conducting climbing patrols all over the Eastside, so make sure to give them a warm welcome when you see them out at the crag!

Climbing Rangers Are Coming!

We are beyond excited to announce that applications are now being received for the seasonal climbing ranger position! This position was created in collaboration with Friends of the Inyo, the Eastern Sierra Interpretive Association, the Bureau of Land Management, and the US Forest Service. Climbing Rangers will support local land managers and NGO’s by performing a variety of tasks to preserve and maintain our cherished local climbing landscapes, specifically in Pine Creek, the Buttermilks, the Volcanic Tablelands, and the Owens River Gorge. Read a full description of the position here. Want to help? To donate to this position, visit Friends of the Inyo's fundraising page. Thinking of applying for this rad job? Visit Friends of the Inyo or ESIA to get the full scoop.

We're looking for a Community Director!

Want to join the BACC team? We’re seeking a driven self-starter to manage our events, fundraisers, and community gatherings. Read the full position description here. To apply. please send a one-page cover letter stating your interest, past applicable experience (if any), and what your goals for the 2-year term would be to info@bishopclimbers.org by March 1, 2019.