The U.S. Forest Service is proposing national guidelines to establish recreational climbing as an appropriate use of its lands. The first-of-its-kind plan would also allow more fixed anchors in wilderness areas. Climbers often drill bolts into rock to install the anchors that attach to ropes for safety.
Congress ordered the agency to update its climbing policies in 2024.
“This proposed directive provides much-needed national policy for climbing activities and gives local decision-makers the ability to work with partners, tribes, climbing organizations,” wrote Forest Service Chief Tom Schultz in a press release.
Schultz says 30% of all outdoor climbing occurs on Forest Service lands. According to a 2022 report from the Outdoor Industry Association, out of the estimated 10.3 million U.S. climbers about 2.3 million participate in sport climbing or bouldering. Approximately 2.4 million people engage in traditional ice climbing or mountaineering. A public comment period for the proposal ends Aug. 14.
The proposal comes as the U.S. Department of the Interior considers its own guidelines for climbing on lands overseen by the Bureau of Land Management, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the National Park Service.
Conservationists, however, warn the plans could threaten natural aesthetics and increase traffic in wilderness areas.
“Wilderness designations are the most powerful tool we have to protect sensitive and ecologically important public lands,” wrote Kate Groetzinge, Communications Director at the Center for Western Priorities. “We’ll be watching closely for any attempt by the Trump administration to undercut existing or future protections for America’s wildlands.”
