The following was sent to me by a friend, but don't hold that against him; Steve's also a former West Virginia teacher, Harper's Ferry activist and trail-building Smoke Hole climber, who lead the FA of Native Sons at the Ninja Walls.
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Dear Rock and Ice Magazine,
I am writing in regards to your November 2018 article on Smoke Hole Canyon, West Virginia. The pictures of this beloved area were outstanding, and certainly made this former West Virginia resident of 30 years yearn for winding country roads, the smell of fresh cut red oak firewood in the fall, and conversations with the locals surrounding the canyon. However wonderful the pictures may be, the purpose of this letter is to outline a number of aspects wrong with the article (numbered and in bold), as well as ask you to amend them for your readers. As great as pictures are to the magazine glancing eye, getting the correct information out there is even greater. This is especially true when it comes to parking issues, local points of contact, guidebook information, and trail maintenance opportunities.
#1 Smoke Hole and surrounding crags have great parking. There are 3-5 spots at Smoke Hole for cars. There are a number of spots at a pull-off at Reed’s Creek, too. If those spots are filled up, people just start parking along the road. No big deal, right? More often than not, vehicles aren’t all the way off the road, clogging already narrow paths. Additionally, long before climbing, these areas were (and continue to be) storied fishing spots and peaceful escapes for the people who live in the area. Consider the other users of the canyon and the people who choose to call this place home.
Because of the proximity to a number of metropolitan areas, Smoke Hole is the first taste many city-goers have at clipping bolts outdoors. Also, it has become increasingly popular with the crowd who doesn’t want to tack on additional hours to drive to New River Gorge. Before venturing out to the crags, coordinate carpooling. If schedules don’t mesh up, drop off cars at a number of locations in the town of Franklin. Better yet, frequent the Smoke Hole Canyon Facebook page to get into contact with other climbers who frequent the area.
*By not providing this key information about the crags, it’s setting the area up for future conflicts with residents.
#2 The headlining photo is a classic! True, that 5.9 is quite a route. It is on private property and has no trespassing signs posted. While this area previously allowed climbing, it would be in everyone’s best interest to respect the “No” in “No Trespassing” means “NO”. Yes, the Mid-Atlantic Climbers webpage says the crag is de facto open; that is not an excuse to encroach on someone’s private property when there are other crags in the area that are open.
#3 Smoke Hole Canyon magically has trails and rock steps leading to belay areas. Trail maintenance is an ongoing project for the area. When you walk up the stone steps at Reed’s Creek or take the switchback up to the Guide Walls, one must comprehend the countless hours of work by volunteers to make our approaches easier, safer, and above all, least damaging to the environment. Stay on the trails that are already there. You can also go on Smoke Hole Canyon’s Facebook page and see updates of trail progress or important notes about problem areas.
Also, you can have a positive impact on the climbing areas you frequent by attending one of the local climbers’ stewardship events called, Trail Daze. Local climber and crag steward, Mike Gray, has been instrumental in organizing these clean-up and trail building efforts for years, while Tyrel Johnson has come on the scene in recent years. Mike’s even coordinated with the Syracuse University Outing Club periodically to make a cornerstone experience for many outdoor club members- a weekend of crag stewardship and climbing. If you’re on the fence about attending, just go. I made the choice years ago to attend Trail Daze and was rewarded with meaningful friendships and Mike’s homemade breakfast burritos.
Also of note: If you see an Adopt-a-Highway sign that says Friends of Smoke Hole, you can thank Mike and his wife, Cindy, for cleaning the road into the canyon. They do it for free and have sacrificed many perfectly good climbing days for proactive stewardship.
*By not mentioning the good things happening because of locals, you are not supporting their cause nor giving your readers access to that information.
#4 When did all the new, shiny bolts start appearing? If you have ever been to Smoke Hole, Reed’s Creek, or Franklin, there is a 99% chance you have climbed a route bolted by Mike Gray. Most times, we don’t think about the time/effort/money involved with equipping the routes we climb. We just clip the bolts and move on to the next one. We’ll even complain of the spinners or the rusted ones, or question why the bolter drilled in a certain location. Mike has been equipping and retro bolting climbs out of his own pocket for years. With a couple hundred routes now in the area open to climbing, Mike and Tyrel have dedicated a chunk of their time to taking care of reequipping routes in need. A GoFundMe page was created to help the cause and the experience is transparent—frequent updates to which routes have been bolted and what materials were purchased. If you clip bolts at Smoke Hole, consider donating to the bolting campaign. At the very least purchase the Rakkup guides!
*This is a critical piece to any crag write-up.
#5 Is there a town close by? Franklin, WV is close to all the climbing. It has local restaurants, accommodations, grocery shopping, etc. Don’t forget Shreve’s Store on your way into the canyon. Not many places like Shreve’s exist in today’s world. Do yourself a favor and put some money into the local economy.
#6 I see a lot of out-of-towners in the climbing photos in the article. Are there any regulars? Mike and his wife, Cindy are regulars. If you haven’t met them by now while climbing, you either a) live under a rock or b) haven’t researched the area you’re climbing. A little bit about Cindy- she started climbing in her 40s, has MS, and continues to outpace many volunteers at Trail Daze events. She is a no-nonsense, tell it like it is person who has a heart of gold. If you haven’t introduced yourself to her, you’re doing yourself a disservice and probably only care about the day’s tick list.
Tyrel Johnson is a frequent flyer from the Beltway. He travels the 3+ hours to crush AND give back to the crags. He has been an important figure in trail maintenance and retro bolting. Rather than spending entire weekends knocking off more routes, Tyrel balances climbing with giving back—including helping to digitize the climbing guidebooks so many of us use in the area.
Last but not least, there is Mike Gray (the one little photo of the gray-bearded man in the article). Mike has been a presence in the area for decades. More often than not, he and Cindy are the ones taking care of the crags, maintaining relationships with locals, and giving local climbing any positive image it has. Much like his wife, Mike is no nonsense and heartfelt. He is a true West Virginian (even if he spent his childhood years in Virginia), who leads by example and does not sit idle when things need to get done. He is a patient belayer, encouraging climbing partner, and an open book to all things Smoke Hole.
*These people are the reason the trails aren’t falling apart and new bolts are going in on old classics. It would have been nice to read more about them.
In closing, I hope you consider the above points and amend the Smoke Hole article in the next issue. Key points like parking, how to give back, contact info, local beta, are at the very least, beneficial when publishing a multi-page spread on the crag. Explaining to your readers the headliner photo of Blood, Sweat, and Chalk is on private property and does not allow climbing is a necessity. Otherwise, Smoke Hole will suffer a similar fate that much of our state faced with coal and natural gas extraction—giving up our natural resources to outsiders for little in return.
Best,
Steve Emswiler
Salt Lake City resident (but always a West Virginian)
From: Francis Sanzaro <fsanzaro@bigstonepub.com>
Date: Fri, Oct 26, 2018, 10:20 AM
Subject: Re: Smoke Hole article
To: Steven Emswiler <kemswiler18@gmail.com>
Date: Fri, Oct 26, 2018, 10:20 AM
Subject: Re: Smoke Hole article
To: Steven Emswiler <kemswiler18@gmail.com>
Hi Steven,
Thanks very much for taking the time to write. We do our best to make sure our writers are invested in an area and give proper credit and information when possible. Area profiles are always difficult because there are a lot of variables. It seems a few things were left out, however. Should we publish this article online, we will weave in some of this information for sure.
Thanks for writing and we always appreciate the feedback.
Best,
Francis
Francis Sanzaro, Ph.D.
Editor, Rock and Ice | Ascent | Gym Climber
1101 Village Road
UL-4B
Carbondale, CO 81623
Editor, Rock and Ice | Ascent | Gym Climber
1101 Village Road
UL-4B
Carbondale, CO 81623
Footnote: Yeah, that's a non-answer if ever there was one. Standard format disclaimer complaint response from a lowest-echelon editor.
Small wonder that every bookseller we contacted had sent back their previous month's delivery of R&I and stopped carrying the magazine.
Sad that an author who stayed in my house and ate my wife's cooking, spent time working on trails with us, camping and climbing, taking pictures of bolt replacement and putting up new routes with us, said so little and showed us nothing at all about stewardship or access issues.
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mg
