Congratulations!

 

Congratulations to Cindy Gray for being one of 20 Ambassadors chosen from a field of 150 by @rockclimbingwomen on Instagram!

 

Adopted from poverty and abuse into loving family, Cindy grew up in Ohio, making the choice to rise above her beginnings. She's been overcoming challenges ever since.

 

As a teen, Cindy joined her family on mission in Nicaragua, discovering the beauty of the jungle and native culture while working to improve the lives of the people they lived with.

 

After attending Eastern Mennonite College, Cindy became an EMT, was one of the first women certified as a firefighter and crash truck driver, and worked tirelessly for equality in that field.

 

Damage to her spine, complicated by degenerative disc disease, required two surgeries to install rods and screws.

 

That didn't stop her.

 

A copperhead snake bite hospitalized her and almost cost her a leg.

 

That didn't stop her or lessen her love of nature.

 

Cindy has been instrumental in organizing a dozen trail work and trash clean up events, and was a founder of the Friends of Smoke Hole, a local independent alliance of climbers giving back to the crags and the communities that surround them.

 

She encouraged me to launch the Smoke Hole Anchor Replacement/Upgrade Project and has spent days hauling gear and on belay to support that effort.

 

An aneurysm in 2015 and the 3.5 hour surgery that stretched the capabilities of modem medical technology did not prevent Cindy from returning to Colorado for a second year as a campground host and entrance booth staffer in Elevenmile Canyon, nor did it prevent her from completing another handful of first ascents and impressive hikes during our days off.

 

To date, Cindy and the Punisher have done 53 first ascents in Smoke Hole Canyon, Reeds Creek and Germany Valley in WV, in Flagstaff and Northern Devils Canyon in AZ, and in Elevenmile Canyon in the Pike National Forest in CO.

 

A proud mom and grandmother, Cindy is still working to encourage a new generation of climbers to reach further and rise above their own challenges while giving back to the places in which she has both given and received so much inspiration.

 

After a decade together, I'm still awed and humbled by her every single day, incredibly proud to be her husband and equally grateful for her friendship.

 

Above: Cindy with the Lindy, our home on wheels for two years, across thousands of miles and through a hundred adventures.

In The Beginning

March 2nd, 2007: The Punishers begin construction of the current high-speed trail to replace the eroded otter slide everyone was using to reach the cliffs of Franklin. 

At that point, the crag had existed for just over 17 years, about as long as another popular idea, the Access Fund, which, despite the grassroots, working-class image sold to the public, was actually a spin-off of the American Alpine Club, an international organization with a vast web of contacts and resources.

After years of reading press releases and watching as work seemed to go on at every other crag in the nation, two local climbers who were not members of the club had finally had enough.  Tools were gathered, food stores and supplies laid in, and two guys who actually are working class folks took time off from their carpentry jobs, stocked up on PowRBars and gels, tuna and pasta, then gave up a month of weekends to build trail for a climbing community comprised, for the most part, of Access Fund members who apparently hadn't noticed or cared to acknowledge the need for action.

Working from Friday nights through Monday mornings for most of the month of March, we laid in rails, stacked stone, and did what two people could to shore up a game trail and address the impact of hundreds of feet. 

We often climbed at night, by headlamp, so we could work during the day, although Fisher could crank off a hard line or three and then build trail all day, coffee by his side, before grabbing a snack and a nap and sending again in the twilight.

Mike Fisher takes a break from building trail to enjoy a rare moment of daylight climbing on Potential Energy.

The Master, in his element.

B.P.- Before the arrival of the Punishers, this is what the trail to "Raised by Sasquatch" looked like.

The base of Castaways, possibly the most popular and obviously the most impacted climb at Franklin.  Despite three different groups covering the adjacent area with mulch, side rails, plants, even marking tape, climbers have reduced the belay area and trail to this state once again...

Although we built in steps and rails, mulched and planted, there is almost no sign of our efforts today.

We did what we could: built the trails, made friends with the landowners, supported the little store at the end of the road, put up quality routes and replaced substandard gear.

Now, the torch passes to the next generation.

But this is how it was, in the beginning.