Walls aren’t for isolation. They are structures that invite people to gather and commune. The wall is a place for the climbing community to come together to test themselves, build trust, and strengthen bonds.
The North Face created a global brand program in 2018 called “Walls Are Meant for Climbing,” and it’s back August 24, 2019. The program aims to counter the divisions we’re witnessing globally by inviting people to find trust in community.
Building on the success of the last year, TNF has partnered with dozens of climbing gyms and facilities worldwide to celebrate Global Climbing Day (August 24, 2019) and will be offering free climbing opportunities in cities in the U.S., China, Canada, Europe, Nepal, Australia, Peru, Guatemala and more. The plan is to donate $1 for every person who climbs at one of the more than 150 participating gyms on August 24th- up to $100,000. Funds will go to Khumbu Climbing Center.
In the U.S. , TNF partnered with the Trust for Public Land to support the installation of public climbing walls in more communities, with a focus on underserved areas and making the sport more accessible to all. For example, the Montbello Open Space Park, near Denver. The 4.5 acre green park serves 40,000+ low-to moderate-income youth and families from the area. More public climbing boulders will be coming soon.
To celebrate the connections we make while climbing, The North Face is also releasing a limited series of “Walls are Meant for Climbing” products with designs in multiple languages to reflect the diverse communities participating in Global Climbing Day across the globe.
For more information on “Walls Are Meant for Climbing” and Global Climbing Day location events, visit thenorthface.com/walls.
Winterland honors the mountain towns that cultivated legends and forged a path for us to follow. Join Nick McNutt, Tim Durtschi, Griffin Post, Sage Cattabriga-Alosa, Ian McIntosh, Sam Smoothy, Angel Collinson, John Collinson, Todd Ligare, Colter Hinchliffe, Fabian Lentsch, Christina Lustenberger, Kai Jones, Elyse Saugstad, Hadley Hammer, Jeremy Jones, Sean Jordan, Clayton Vila, Cam Riley, Cody Townsend, Robin Van Gyn, Mark Carter, and Nicky Keefer as they make their own mark on these fabled locations.
There’s a stout little place called Ross Park in Idaho you climbers should know about. Sure, when people mention Pocatello it often conjures thoughts of some poh-dunk, hick town where residents eat potatoes, chew tobacco, ridicule non-white people and carry shotguns in their trucks. Well, Pa, it just ain’t true; except for the gun part. But this is the West.
Within Southeastern Idaho’s largest city is a top-rated university (ISU). A booming high-tech industry, hot springs, several clean, pet-friendly hotels and the West’s largest outdoor climbing gym, er, park have sprouted around it.
History of Ross Park
Ross Park, appropriately named after a pioneering mayor of Pocatello who later became Governor of Idaho, is the focal point of the city’s entire 34 Parks and Rec system. Ancient lava ledges of multi-faceted basalt separate the upper and lower green parks (Shady Side and Sunny Side) and make for ideal sport climbs.
The walls offer what is arguably the best outdoor bouldering and top roping within 50 paces of any city street. Drive up and park right in front of the crag. Walk across a sidewalk-sized patch of grass and meet the Shady Side- over 60 boulder problems of every degree of difficulty. A quick walk up a grassy knoll on the East end puts you right on top of that wall. Drop a rope from any one of 30 anchors for your toprope pleasure. The “Sunny Side” of Ross offers 60+ relatively-short (40’) traditional gear and bolted sport leads, but you can walk or drive up to the top of Sunny Side and throw down a toprope if you prefer.
Idaho State University Loves Climbing
The ISU Outdoor program began bolting the Sunny Side climbs in the late 90s. They started with the more difficult routes first; working their way towards bolting the easier ones over the following seasons so you can find lead routes for all levels.
Photo by Ryan Freitas
ISU has practically taken ownership of Ross Park. They run climbing programs, offer free downloads of the most comprehensive climbing and bouldering guides to the area written by their instructors and host one of the oldest and most entertaining climbing competitions in the Northwest, The Pocatello Pump.
When you tire of climbing, hang out with the native animals of Idaho at the Pocatello Zoo, located inside Ross Park. The park also features the Bannock County Historical Museum, the Fort Hall Replica detailing life as it was during the early pioneer days. Want more climbing? Drive less than an hour north to Massacre Rocks State Park. You’ll find another 500+ climbs.
Ross Park Specifics
Pocatello is 150 miles north of Salt Lake City, Utah, at the intersection of Highways I-15 and I-86. The climate stays sunny and dry almost year-round. Ross Park is at the south end of Pocatello at I-15 & 5th Ave (Exit 67). Go N on 5th. Turn L on Fredregill. Turn L on 2nd, continuing to the rocks on L. Contact the Pocatello Convention and Visitors Bureau, 208.233.7333. The Pocatello Pump occurs in September-208.236.3912.
Memorial Day weekend unofficially kicked off summer but it looks like it really will be an endless winter for skiers in the U.S. this year. With epic base depths surpassing 700″ and late season snowfall, coverage has reached all-time highs. And though while Park City and Deer Valley resorts in Utah incurred the wrath of locals for closing when the town was still covered in white, other ski areas tripped over each other to extend their seasons. Many lasted at least through April. Some, like Breckenridge, Colo., added an extra month to their calendar for late spring skiing and still others remain open.
It’s not over yet
Snowbird, Utah, plans to stay open weekends through at least July 4, 2019, and possibly longer. Those with a 2019/20 Snowbird Season Pass or Ikon Pass can ski free; and with the Mountain Collective or any other season pass, can ski for $50.
Mammoth Mountain just announced they will be open daily until August. This isn’t new for the California resort, both 1995 and 2017 saw extended seasons, but this year the area coverage seems to surpass those other years. Twenty-nine inches fell this month; breaking their May 2015 record for snowfall.
Photo by Ryan Freitas
Also in the Sierras, Squaw Valley stays open through July 7 and is running a “$5 Friday” special in June. You have to buy the tickets online or via Squaw’s app at least 48 hours in advance. All proceeds from those particular lift ticket sales go to support the Tahoe Fund’s goal of raising $35,000 for the “Bike Racks for Basin Businesses” campaign. Funds raised by this program will be matched up to $10,000 by Squaw Valley Alpine Meadows.
Speaking of basins, Arapahoe ‘A’ Basin closes out the longest season in Colorado on June 23. The 2018/19 season began October 19. Tickets are $54 online, possibly less if you have a season pass from another resort.
Oregon slopes tell a different story. There has always been glacier ski and race training in the summer at Mt Hood and Timberline so exactly how long one season lasts and when the next one starts is a blur. You will need to purchase a summer ski pass to ski through Labor Day weekend at Timberline. The area will close for a few weeks and then re-open for the 2019/20 season.
There will also be skiing up at Canada’s Blackcomb Resort. Whistler has closed to make way for their summer mountain biking season but the lifts over on Blackcomb keep spinning through July 14, 2019.
Of course, you can take your skiing elsewhere like Chile, Argentina, Australia and New Zealand but this just may be the year to table those plans, flash your Ikon or Mountain Collective and rip the runs a bit closer to home.
It’s hot; it’s summer, and you’re more than just a day guest to this vacation town of Park City, Utah. But can you really say you’re a “local”?
Have you hiked or biked the Mid-Mountain Trail? Have you attended the Park Silly Sunday Market or the Canyons Farmers Market? Or boogied on the grass at a Deer Valley Snow Park concert? Eaten breakfast at the Main Street Deli? Gotten hammered at the Fourth of July Parade? Until you express yourself in all things “Park City Summer”, we reserve the right to judge.
So as the summer begins, here are five cool things to add to your Park City Summer (hot) bucket list.
Rock Climb (or hike) in the Uintas
Hit up White Pine Touring for your beta, grab a guidebook, map, and personal supplies, and pack up the car for a day in the wilderness. Head to where the air is cool, clean and quiet; where there’s a lake for the pooch to splash in and where a trail for every fitness level exists- The Uintas.
About 45 minutes east through Kamas on the Mirror Lake Highway, rock climbers will find the Ruth Lake pullout. Hike northwest for less than a mile until a wall, and people scaling it, comes into view. The Lake itself is further along the trail, but for climbers, you can’t pick a better spot to cool off from the Salt Lake Valley heat. The area boasts about 100 sport routes striping the quartzite walls for climbing at all levels. About 1.3 miles north from the large pull out for Ruth Lake, lies the Stone Garden for you more advanced climbers.
Photo by Ryan Freitas
Paddle the Mighty Weber
Weber River by inner tube or sit-on-top kayak is brought to you by either two commercial outfitters or your own party group. You can also show up on Wednesday evenings for the weekly Utah Whitewater Club float. The Club usually has spare gear and room in rafts. Either way, don’t miss out on your shot at the only river worth paddling within an hour of Park City. Head out I-80 toward Cheyenne then go west on I-84 towards Ogden. The Henefer to Taggert section is about a class II+ – full of mild rapids and boulders to navigate, and nestled in the beautiful, wooded Ogden Canyon.
Mountain Bike Deer Valley
We would have said ride Canyons Resort but Vail Resorts put the kibosh on their bike park last year. The fun and games can still be had over at Deer Valley Resort. For the price of a ticket ($14-53 depending on when and how long you plan to ride), you can pedal on over six mountains, 3,000 vertical feet of elevation change, and nearly 70 miles of trails, including four flow trails designed by Gravity Logic. In addition, several of Deer Valley Resort’s mountain bike trails connect with Park City’s extensive 400-mile network of single track. Do your own thing, join a group lesson or hire your own private guide/instructor to tour you around.
Slide the Slopes
The Alpine Slide at Park City Mountain Resort is a guaranteed thrill ride. But it ain’t the safe Disneyland version. This summertime toboggan-on-wheels can be hazardous to your health not just from the jolt of adrenaline but many a hardy athlete has launched out of the track. After the aches, bruises and road rash subside, you’ll be anxiously drooling for your next visit. Looking for something safer? Try the Alpine Coaster, a gravity fed track that carries you down to the base at speeds up to 30 mph. Hint: double up. The heavier the car, the faster you go.
Fly High at the Utah Oly
Park
Adventure Courses at the Utah Olympic Park will bust through your fears, test your limits, and build skills that will carry on into the winter whether you weave through the ropes course, navigate a bobsled (on wheels), ride the world’s steepest zipline, or take a half-day freestyle clinic to learn to jump (into a pool). Or if your heart can take it, try Extreme Tubing. For $15-20, take an inflatable tube onto one of the Nordic Ski Jumps and launch.
