1
UIAA POLICY ON THE PRESERVATION OF NATURAL ROCK
FOR ADVENTURE CLIMBING
Last updated: 11 July 2012
The reasons for this document
In May 2000 the UIAA Council approved a policy, embodied in the document ‘To Bolt Or
Not To Be’, on the use of fixed equipment – notably bolts and stanchions – on mountain
crags and cliffs. It set out what was assumed by Robert Renzler then President of the
Mountaineering Commission, and his team of advisors to be “an acceptable compromise”
between the preservation of some rock in its natural state suitable for traditional climbing
and the bolting of cliffs for sport climbing and the securing of mountain routes.
∗
This was a brave step forward, however the results have not been to everyone’s satisfaction.
In some mountain areas the drill has continued to be used so indiscriminately as to still
virtually overwhelm the possibility of climbing traditionally with an adventurous spirit. In
some countries, such as Hungary, all available rock for climbing has been drilled and bolted
into sport climbs.
Twelve years on, it is clear that the May 2000 policy on bolting needs reiterating and further
guidance issued to assist Climbing Federations in deciding the balance between the
preservation of rock in its natural state and its taming with bolts and other fixed equipment.
Countries that are only now developing their rock climbing are particularly interested in
receiving guidelines on drilling and traditional climbing from the UIAA.
There is no doubt that a small group of climbers armed with cordless drills can have an
influence out of all proportion to their numbers completely changing the character of a crag
all in one weekend of bolting. Changes made too fast leave the past behind since the local
consensus has no chance to act in time to stem the tide of change.
Definitions –
Adventure Climbing, Traditional Climbing or Trad Climbing is the style that was adopted
in the early days of rock climbing in which the leader places all the equipment necessary to
prevent a long fall; this equipment is then removed by subsequent members of the party.
Protection has changed over the years from country to country. In Britain the first
protection was simply putting a sling on a spike or around a chock stone inserted into a
crack. In other countries pegs were used and later just about everywhere chocks and springloaded camming devices are used. The exception to chocks and cams being used is on the
soft, Bohemian sandstone where the mobile protection there is jammed knots. The common
feature was and is that the “traditional” climbing team leaves no trace of their passage
∗∗∗ The policy document ‘To Bolt Or Not To Be’ appears as an appendix to this paper. (The
title comes from the name of a sport route established by J.B.Tribout in 1986 at Smith Rock,
the first 5.14 in the United states and up a seemingly blank wall.)2
and is thus considered environmentally friendly. The problem with the word “traditional
climbing” is that in some countries the tradition was to rig the mountain with ropes attached
to stanchions as on the Dent de Geant and Matterhorn.
Other labels for this style of climbing are “minimum impact climbing”, “natural climbing”
or just “climbing”. Currently the preferred option is “adventure climbing” which 30 years
ago referred to virtually all climbing.
Sport Climbing is rock climbing characterised by permanently fixed, generally bomb-proof
anchor points which are typically a bracket and bolt inserted into a drilled hole and usually
glued into place. Since the climber no longer has to worry about protecting his or her own
life the climber can concentrate more on the actual climbing moves with the opportunity to
reach a higher standard. In some countries where climbing is in embryo the bolts are not
always inserted properly and all bolts, especially those in sea cliffs should not be taken
entirely for granted.
Bouldering is mentioned for completeness. It is a style of rock climbing usually less than
five metres without rope and with just climbing shoes, a chalk bag and a mattress-like crash
mat. This style of climbing can be very dynamic requiring power, strength to make short
sequences of moves.
The importance of this document is to help to avoid conflict by prompting climbers to
organise and make provision for all styles of climbing rather than leaving it to other
agencies to sort out disagreements. There have been so called “bolt wars” on many crags
throughout the climbing world. In most instances a settlement was brokered through the
national federations such as the BMC in the UK or the NZAC in New Zealand. In other
cases agreement could only be reached after the intervention and pressure from National
Parks, Conservation Lobbies, Mountain Rescue Groups, Health and Safety, Town Councils,
even Law Enforcement Agencies.
Striking a balance between those climbers who prefer, on the one hand, mainly bolted rock,
and those who prefer only to climb on rock that has been left in its completely natural state
is more feasible when the diverse attitudes are known to the decision makers.
Climbing is a broad church– the value and significance given to climbing varies a great deal
from one person to another. This may be reflected in the importance given to climbing, and
particularly rock climbing, by the president and committee members of the various
federations. It is recognised that not all federations elect active climbers to run their
organisations as does the BMC and the American Alpine Club. It may be that in some
federations those receiving this information will be mountain walkers and not sport
climbers or adventure climbers. Nevertheless the UIAA hopes that after considering all the
information given Federation leaders and administrators will grasp the importance of this
document and disseminate the information to all relevant members of their climbing
Federation. To this end the UIAA office will assist wherever possible with identifying
suitable recipients of this document and help with distribution.3
There are those who slot in a few hours climbing at the local indoor climbing wall or easily
accessible crag between work and home, or at weekends between other sporting and leisure
activities. Such climbers may have little knowledge of the traditions of climbing and its
development nor of the debate that takes place between sport and ‘trad’.
At the other end of the spectrum there are those who organise their whole life around
climbing, domestically, socially and in their choice of job. These climbers care passionately
about the direction their climbing takes since they eat, sleep and drink climbing.
It may well be that there is a silent majority of climbers around the world who favour
preserving rock for adventure climbing and will be encouraged by this document. Pat
Littlejohn, director of the International School of Mountaineering, notes that many climbers
have “been cowed into silence by a rapacious and rather aggressive bolting fraternity who
tell them their views are outdated and reactionary.”
It is obvious that there is still great concern in the climbing world about the use of the bolt as
evidenced by recent activity on Cerro Torre. If climbers spoke out against the indiscriminate
use of the drill on their local crags as vociferously as they did when a film crew left bolts on
Cerro Torre then there would be far more rock for adventure climbing.
The attraction of sport climbing
1. Opportunity to improve climbing standards and techniques is more likely on a climb
with fixed protection since the climber concentrates fully on the climbing moves,
unburdened by a rack of gear and without the worry of having to fit it into place he
can concentrate and revel in facing up to absolute difficulty and pure movement.
2. Sport climbing is more likely to enable the climber to experience the pure fun of
climbing, free of the fear of falling.
3. Sport climbing enables young climbers starting out indoors to take the first step out
onto rock in complete safety. The young climber can then go on to widen his
climbing experience by learning all about adventure climbing, providing there is
rock left in its natural state for this purpose.
4. The popularity of sport climbing brings employment to mountain areas. Those who
mainly benefit financially are Hut Wardens and Guides but also everyone that
normally benefits from mountain tourism.
5. Various organisations find sport climbing a help in achieving their aims, such as
mountain rescue groups, educationalists and others using climbing as an antidote to
anti-social behaviour, the fight against obesity etc.
The benefits of adventure climbing – where the climber has to protect his own life it is
claimed that favourable conditions exist for:
1. development of a sense of responsibility especially for young people. “Rock
climbing routes with little protection require an especially measure of
accountability by the climber for his own safety and that of his partner.” (page 5,
To Bolt Or Not To Be)
2. derive personal satisfaction from such climbs since there is a greater demand on
the resourcefulness of the climber and in the exercise of his imagination in the 4
use of those limited resources since every act of self-protection is different from
the last.
3. the gentle art of self-protection brings the climber into a more intimate
relationship with the rock since out of necessity he becomes more creatively
engaged with the rock medium. For the leader to have to fix his own protection,
as the American John Long wrote is a “ more testing of the spirit … it also offers
greater rewards in terms of intensity and lasting memories. Climbers who limit
themselves strictly to clip – and – go routes deprive themselves of the finest that
climbing can offer”.
4. There are those who consider pioneering new routes in traditional style to be an
art form. This is what Duncan Ferguson, a well-known Coloradan climber, was
moved to write on hearing that bolts had been placed alongside a classic ice
climb: “it is the nature of the climbing community worldwide that the vision and
art of the first to ascend is respected and celebrated, because it is a tangible
reflection of the potential of that human at that moment in time. It is up to us to
live up to that or put it aside as a wondrous point of inspiration or a mirror for
humanity – most often both at the same time.”
5. Those with a sense of history will appreciate climbing a classic route only if it
remains untouched by the bolt, not devalued for financial gain or dumbed down
by those who could not climb up to meet the challenge taken on by the
courageous pioneers such as Mummery, Cassin, Bonatti, Andre Roche, Max
Niedermann, Alex Huber whose routes shine like a beacon because of their
originality of line and purity of style.
Co-existence
Readers of this document should know that everyone involved in producing it climbs on
sport climbs as well as on adventure climbs. The authors share the hope expressed by
leading British rock climber Dave MacLeod in his blog on the Torello Mountain Festival in
November 2007 “…we agreed that sport climbing has a place in the whole sport that should
grow along side, rather than at the expense of the other climbing disciplines.”
The Way Forward
With the advent of the drill and bolt and the surge of interest in sport climbing there is less
rock left in its natural state that is suitable for adventure climbing. It is accepted that not all
rock is suitable for leader-placed protection; it was for this reason that rock such as mica
schist and blank walls of limestone first became bolted sport climbs. We are concerned here
with the preservation of sufficient rock that will take leader-placed protection so that, in the
interests of diversity, climbers still have the choice to climb either sport climbs or adventure
climbs. It may be that the only way forward in some countries is to preserve suitable crags in
their unsullied natural state where traditional climbing can still be experienced as it was
practised by the pioneers of yesterday and will be practised by young climbers in the future.
As it was stated in The Tyrol Declaration (2002) “without danger and uncertainty climbing
loses its defining element – adventure”.5
The UIAA, mainly through the Mountaineering Commission (MC) but also through the
Youth and Access Commissions is exploring all possible ways of reviving interest and
knowledge of traditional adventure climbing particularly for developing countries. It has
therefore embarked upon a number of initiatives -
1. The provision of expertise and encouragement through the Training Standards Panel
(formerly TSWG) of the MC is seen as a good way forward, especially for those
Federations who consider adventure climbing dangerous and are therefore reluctant
to support it. Guidelines will be produced where necessary to help assist route
setters whether that be in the trad/adventure realm or in areas where only sport
climbing can exist. Climbers who climb globally report back that in several countries
the standard of bolting is neither safe nor ethical and it would seem could benefit
from expert advice.
2. The UIAA is prepared to commission DVD films and literature about adventure
climbing suitable for developing countries and young people.
3. The UIAA will offer support for climbers to attend international adventure (trad)
climbing meets. Support and encouragement will also be given by way of
instruction at youth camps in areas of need, mainly through the Youth Commission.
4. The UIAA will actively look at ways and means of enabling developing countries to
obtain self-protection/trad equipment direct from manufacturers. It will also source
funding to reduce the cost wherever possible.
5. It would be helpful if each federation identified those climbers who have an interest
in adventure climbing to get behind this initiative by forming a separate committee.
Such a group would benefit from the inclusion of the local rock climbing guidebook
editors. If well-known older traditional climbers were encouraged to join then that
would help too. Such a committee could then easily liaise with the UIAA through the
MC on all the above initiatives.
6. The UIAA considers it advantageous to connect with initiatives already underway to
tackle the problem of keeping rock unbolted such as the Mountain Wilderness
supported ‘Keep Wild Climbs’ of Switzerland www.mountainwilderness.org and
the French ‘Terra Aventure’. The UIAA will endeavour to make their activities more
widely known.
7. The dissemination of information is vital. Had the ‘Bolt Or Not To Be’ document
reached more active climbers, particularly of those federations just developing
climbing, then there would be a greater opportunity to experience all styles of
climbing. The UIAA will do all it can to distribute this revised document widely to
ensure there is still choice and diversity in climbing. There are many famous names
in climbing backing this latest initiative who intend to support the widespread use of
this revised document once they have read and approved it.
8. The policy statements received from the climbing federations that have them are on
the UIAA website, www.theuiaa.org. A summary accompanies each one of them to
enable Federation committee members to more easily check them out for
consideration. It is hoped that this opportunity will not be missed, especially by
those countries only now preparing policies on drilling and trad climbing, to see
what others have done. The BMC in particular but also the New Zealand Alpine 6
Club and FASA of Argentina, have produced very useful documents towards
ensuring diversity as well as respect for the rock medium and the environment in
general.
9. Federations are encouraged to produce a brief inventory of their rock environments
under the categories ‘natural’ or ‘bolted’ – so the current state of play is known more
accurately. A debate could then take place as to which rock should be left natural
and what rock is suitable to bolt. This is something that could be of interest to
national park authorities, environmentalists, conservation bodies as well as climbers.
Some climbing federations have decided that ultimately the only solution to
preserving natural rock is to extend a preservation order to the whole crag or even
mountain range. Where this is envisaged by climbing committees an inventory of
climbable rock would be a useful guide.
10. Many federations have created a bolt fund to ensure that worn out corroded bolts are
replaced. It would be helpful if the bolt fund was seen to be working both ways – not
only in ensuring good bolt placements but also to remove bolts that in the opinion of
the local consensus have been inappropriately put in.
11. The UIAA at each General Assembly will present ‘The Bill Putnam Golden Stopper
Award’ to the Federation that has been most successful in setting aside suitable rock
for adventure climbing. There are funds connected to this award that have been
donated by UIAA Patron Bill Putnam.
Contributors
Those that have contributed to this revision are:
Anne Arran (Youth Commission, Member Traditional Values Working Group [TVWG]),
Clare Bond (Access Commission), Peter Farkas, (Executive Board), Pierre Humblet
(President Mountaineering Commission), Steve Long (Training Standards Panel), Doug
Scott (Management Committee, Chairman TVWG), Phil Wickens (Mountaineering
Commission, Secretary TVWG),
John Arran, Nick Colton, Steve Goodwin, Pat Littlejohn, Roger Payne, Ken Wilson
Other contributors – t.b.a.
Afterthought
There is, in man, an essential paradox. On the one hand he seeks all ways and means to
make his life more comfortable, safe and certain while, on the other, he knows intuitively
that only by taking risks and facing up to uncertainty is he going to stretch himself, go
beyond himself, arrive at a moment of truth when he sees into more of the unknown around
him.
Instincts for adventure, so deeply rooted over the past millennia as man evolved in the
unpredictable, natural environment, now lie largely dormant. They are only given
expression by chance or by design in an artificial way. The rock face is such a medium
where the climber concentrates his attention, creates for himself heightened sensibilities and
an awareness verging on the extraordinary, summoning up areas of his being which are
normally hidden. These are times when a little light is let into our lives and we remember
those climbs so illuminated. So profound are these moments, even if they last only for a few 7
seconds, they are savoured with reverence. This is why every committed climber prefers to
lead rather than follow. These experiences are the essence of traditional adventure climbing
around the world.
A further appendix will be added of comments and opinion from concerned climbers.8
APPENDIX: Comments from concerned climbers
Below are comments received on 8 May 2012, from Sir Chris Bonington endorsing this
document.
“The fundamental difference between “Adventure climbing and Sport climbing”, quite
apart from the removal of risk which is the very essence of the game we play, is that in the
former we accept the crag as it is, use our skill and judgment to find a way up it placing our
protection in the cracks and crannies that are there and we leave the crag almost in the state
that we found it, apart from a few chalk marks and the loss of a bit of grass or lichen. The
climber is attuned to the environment, working with it. The Sport climber, on the other
hand, is imposing his will on the environment, picking his line of choice, drilling the holes
for the bolts, choosing just where they go and of course leaving a permanent man-made
fixture.
“As has already been expressed, practically all of us have indulged in both forms of activity
and there are arguments in favour of both. The challenge is to find a way for both styles to
co-exist in a way that enables us all to continue to share the joy of climbing. We desperately
need agreement between the Sport and the Adventure climbers as to which crags should be
left in their pristine state – bolt free. It is alarming how many crags, particularly on the
continent, have already been completely bolted up.
“In many ways, it is a metaphor for what mankind is doing throughout our planet, and
whether it’s the survival of a way of climbing or of mankind itself, we have to find a
reasonable balance between all these issues. This is why I strongly endorse this report.”9
Below are comments received in May 2012, from Alexander Huber endorsing this
document.
Climbing and Mountaineering is a more and more popular outdoor sport with high values
fort he human being as it involves nature, adventure and even exploring. But due to
growing commercialism these values are in danger. Tourism and industry try to create a
„safe“ sport out there in the wild nature and along this process the respect for the wild
nature of the mountains and the rocks is getting lost. Basically alpinism and climbing is a
sport with a long tradition, strong ethics and high ideals – people went out there to explore
the wild nature as the high mountains of the Alps are one of the last refugiums of pure
nature. But the radical plaisir-bolting of the last two decades put the long tradition in danger
and today, in the most popular destinations climbing became already a bolted highway,
which is of the same safety standards like on Indoor Walls.
Alexander Huber 10
Below are extracts from letters sent, April 2012, by Pat Littlejohn OBE, ex-VP BMC,
requested during the preparation of this document.
I was very heartened last year when climbers at a BMC meeting in the south west voted by
an overwhelming majority that Cornish sea cliffs should be free of fixed equipment. It may
be that the majority of climbers and mountaineers around the world hold similar
opinions, but they have been cowed into silence by a rapacious and rather aggressive
bolting fraternity who tell them that their views are outdated and reactionary.
My position is that minimum impact climbing should be the norm and that bolting should
be limited to certain areas/cliffs. The climbing fraternity simply doesn’t have the right to
impact on the natural rock environment in this way. Makes one ashamed to be part of it. A
sports crag to me is about as sterile as a golf course, and about as natural. The crucial
question is whether rock climbing should continue to be an adventure sport or not – if not
then it loses its link to mountaineering and to its great heritage. Adventurous young people
will turn to other outdoor sports like canoeing, surfing, diving, mountain walking (!) – all of
which are more adventurous than sport climbing and a lot more careful not to impact on the
environment.
When I learnt to scuba dive in the late 1970s every diver carried a knife for prizing things
off the seabed, collecting samples etc. Nowadays knives have been virtually outlawed and
even diving gloves are discouraged, so that people are discouraged from touching any
marine life or corals. Caving is another outdoor sport that has cleaned up its act. I did quite
a bit in the 60s when we used smoky carbide lamps, dumped spent carbide everywhere and
went anywhere we liked in the cave. Even in the late 70s when I had another spell of caving
in S Wales there were people blasting underground to extend caves and trampling wherever
they fancied. Nowadays cavers have a ‘minimum impact’ ethic where nothing is damaged,
nothing is left behind and people follow specific routes through large chambers to minimise
disturbance to the cave floor. Climbing seems to have moved in the opposite direction and
this is something that no climber can be proud of. From the ‘clean climbing’ movement in
the 1970s, when we realised the damage pitons did to the rock and made a big effort in most
parts of the world to climb/mountaineer leaving no fixed equipment, we have moved to a
situation where we drill/bolt cliffs and mountain faces on an industrial scale. Climbers leave
vast amounts metalwork in the outdoors while comparable outdoor sports leave nothing.
The sad story of Poi, Kenya’s premiere bush crag, is a good illustration of the problem we’re
dealing with here. Basically the Kenyan climbing ethic (established by people like Ian
Howell, Ian Allen and Andrew Wielochowski (who did the first ascent of Poi) was groundup adventure climbing. Andrew established his classic route on the east face of Poi in this
style and attempted at least two other lines including a second one on the east face. Inspired
by Andrews route Steve Sudstad, John Barry and I got half way up a new route on the north
face, again climbing ground up with natural gear. We retreated due to John having an
accident but completed it the following year (Dark Safari, E6, possibly still the hardest
adventure climb in Africa).
Between these visits the late Todd Skinner and company got sponsorship from National
Geographic magazine and flew into Poi equipped with a Maestri-style petrol-driven
compressor. They hired about 40 porters to lug all their kit to the top and over two weeks
bolted a 20-pitch route left of Andrew’s – completely ignoring the local ethics.11
This face was going to be my next ground-up objective (Andrew had got 500ft up it with no
bolts) so I was a bit sickened by these tactics. Todd commented that he saw no need to pay
any regard to the ethics of 'a bunch of ex-colonials'. After this precedent another (Slovenian)
route was established by bolting top down. I climbed with one of this team in Wales a
couple of years later and he told me he regretted doing the route in this style, but the
damage has been done and Kenya's ultimate adventure crag, which had the potential for
some of the world's most challenging adventure climbs, is now considered fair game for
bolting, basically due to the actions of climbers with corporate sponsorship acting with no
regard to (even contempt for) the established ethic and the crags history.
Respect for the rock is becoming lost – rock is just a commodity to be exploited for the
creation of sport climbing venues (or, even worse, bolted climbs in wild mountain terrain).
We had a sport with high ideals, unlimited adventure, and (at its best) harmony with the
natural environment (where it left few traces). Now rock climbing is in real danger of
becoming a tame sport which relies on an artificially modified environment, risk-free and
adventure-free. Pretty much indistinguishable from climbing on an artificial wall.
I’m really glad you are getting your teeth into these issues and I stand, ready to help
wherever I can.
Best wishes
Pat Littlejohn
International School of Mountaineering
www.alpin-ism.com 12
Below are comments received on 9 May 2012, from Charlie Sassara endorsing this
document.
I am writing to summarize the American Alpine Club’s (AAC) current position on
Traditional Climbing preservation in the United States and around the globe and to offer
our support. For many decades, the AAC has demonstrated its commitment to the
preservation of natural rock resources and the environment. As such, we are in support of
the UIAA’s commitment to preserving the traditional climbing experience around the globe.
As a backbone to our mission of uniting the climbing community, the AAC endorses and
promotes the key values of Stewardship, Fortitude, Self- Sufficiency and Partnership. These core
values continue to guide our policy positions with respect to all styles of climbing including
traditional climbing. Our organization continues to work with U.S. Federal land managers
to ensure that their policies are consistent with our views on climbing ethics and style.
In 2002, we endorsed the Tyrol Declaration, which expresses the desired ethics and values of
alpinism, climbing and other mountain pursuits.i In 2009, our Board adopted a further
position on the use of fixed hardware in designated Wilderness areas in the United States.ii
To summarize, the AAC opposes the use of power drills in Wilderness areas and supports
the use of fixed anchors as a “tool of last resort” only for the purposes of safe descent or
connecting lines of weakness in the rock face. We advocate for the utmost discretion when it
comes to utilizing fixed hardware as a “tool of last resort.” We see consistency in our
position with respect to the UIAA’s letter expressing the importance of protecting and
preserving the rock resources around the globe.
The American Alpine Club stands ready to discuss and adopt additional policies as
necessary. We remain committed to preserving and sustaining the places we
climb, being self-reliant, responsible stewards and supporting the community at large with
sound climbing ethics.
Sincerely,
Charlie Sassara President
American Alpine Club
Cc: Phil Powers, Executive Director, American Alpine Club
Mark Richey, North American Representative, UIAA
Leigh Goldberg, Conservation & Advocacy Director, American Alpine Club
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