Chockstone Forum

      Sponsored By
      ROCK
   HARDWARE

Chockstone Photography

Australian Landscape Prints

Chockstone Forum - General Discussion

General Climbing Discussion

Topic Date User

Trad climb? (2) 20-May-2003 At 5:34:55 PM eddym

Message

Thanks for your input Donut King.

I certainly can understand your comment about removing obviously dubious gear.

I'm a little concerned with removing stuff from a big name route like Trojan that has a long and rich history behind it. I look at the gear and figure it shouldn't be there (whether it is safe or not) as you can quite comfortable place the gear yourself. But I don't feel I have enough knowledge on why the stuff is there. The last thing I want to do is kick up a stink for removing fixed wires or whatever when there are possibly legitimate reasons behind them being there that I haven't picked up on.

When in the past I have come across gear that has been left behind in the middle of some route I have removed it if I could. But this is not 'fixed gear' as such it's stuff that a second has been unable to remove. Some of the fixed gear in the harder trad routes I am guessing has been placed there in-lieu of a bolt. Hence my concern. I don't go around chopping bolts off Watchtower crack because I think they shouldn't be there and I'm also by the same argument not going to remove 'fixed gear' that may have a legitimate reason for being there.

Focusing on Trojan again for a moment (though I don't want this discusion to be solely about that route only) I would think that of the three fixed pieces in it (ignoring the bolt - I just don't want to go there) all or certainly at least two do not need to be there. They could be placed by a leader. Perhaps the crux fixed wire is impossible to place on lead - I don't know, I didn't get a good look at that one.

I don't know, it's a tough one... Hence my desire to open up the discusion.

Cheers...