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Sign up for the 2016 Beaver Valley Climbing Festival!

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The 4th Annual Beaver Valley Climbing Festival is coming soon! Join hundreds of other climbers on July 15-17th, enjoy the festivities on Saturday night as well as Beaver Valley climbing on Saturday and Sunday, all while supporting the Ontario Access Coalition. The price of $44 includes Saturday dinner, camping, clinics, and Sunday breakfast. We hope to see you there!

Beaver Valley Climbing Festival - logo

The BVCF web page is at https://www.ontarioallianceofclimbers.ca/bvcf-2016, and you can sign up there.

PS: The Ontario Access Coalition Annual General Meeting is June 27 at The Rock Oasis Toronto, 7:30PM. There may be highly desirable door prizes.

OAC Annual General Meeting: June 27, 2016

By Access, Events, News

The OAC invites all members to partake in our 2016 annual general meeting on June 27, 2016. It’s a great opportunity to ask questions about the organization and our on-going projects in addition to sharing your input on the future direction of the OAC.

The meeting will be held at The Rock Oasis – Toronto (388 Carlaw Ave Suite 204, Toronto, ON) on Monday June 27th at 7:30 PM. Half price climbing for all attendees!

To be eligible to vote at the AGM, one is required to be a member of the Ontario Access Coalition. To allow for the processing of new members, please ensure applications are submitted prior to June 10th. Please visit our membership page at https://www.ontarioallianceofclimbers.ca/join/ for further details.

The OAC is very interested in increasing its capacity by attracting new ideas, leadership, and energy. At this meeting, we will elect three members to the Board of Directors (all for a two-year term). As always, we are also looking for portfolio managers and general volunteers. While members can be nominated to the Board at the AGM, any nominations submitted by June 10th will have their profiles distributed to the membership in advance. This will facilitate a structured voting process. Interested members are encouraged to contact the OAC in advance.

Potential board members should have:
– An interest in (learning about) outdoor climbing access issues in Ontario
– A varied skill set with a self-starter attitude
– A positive, proactive team-based approach to problem solving

As a board member the individual will:
– Attend bi-monthly board meetings
– Lead projects and/or access portfolios
– Participate in developing and executing the OAC’s strategic goals

Further details will be provided to members 14 days prior to the AGM. If you do not receive notification by email, please send us a note ( info@ontarioaccesscoalition.com ).

Volunteer at Halfway Log Dump this summer!

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Are you a boulderer, looking for a way to help the OAC keep Ontario bouldering areas open? This is your chance to help! Enjoy time at one of Ontario’s premier bouldering crags while giving back to the community by becoming a site host at Halfway Log Dump!

The OAC and Bruce Peninsula National Park are looking for help from the climbing community in the form of volunteer weekend Site Hosts. Site Hosts, like Camp Hosts, act as stewards or caretakers for the area during their time volunteering. The Site Host program has been a huge success since the launch in 2010, so the OAC and the Park are looking again for volunteers for 2016. If you want to help access efforts and become a Site Host for a weekend, click HERE to fill in the volunteer application.

Ng_01

Iman Thabit climbing in Bruce Peninsula National Park, ON. Photo by Dennis Ng.

What does a Site Host do?

Site hosts act as ambassadors for Halfway Log Dump. They ensure everyone is having a good time, communicate the rules that are in place, point out the endangered Lakeside Daisy (see it right over there?), explain bouldering to curious tourists and, of course, know all the beta on every problem ;). These honoured volunteers will receive free camping!!! (as available), and pre-paid parking ($11.70 per day) at the park. This is all courtesy of Bruce Peninsula National Park as a thanks to volunteers.

Who makes a good site host?

If you like to boulder outside, can get yourself to the Bruce Peninsula, and are interested in helping maintain climbing access in Ontario, you will be a great site host!

I would like to help, but I have never been to Halfway Log Dump. Can I still volunteer as a site host?

It might be your first visit or your 101 visit to Halfway Lakeside-Daisy-Closeup_Guide-4-Final_ 2Log Dump. This honour is still open to you. We can tell you what you need to know. It’s not hard. You can put it on your resume and land that promotion you’ve been after.

A guide for Halfway Log Dump is available for free from the OAC. If you download this guide we hope that you will take the time to become an OAC member, or make a donation if you are already a member. Click HERE to download the “HWLD Interpretive Bouldering guidebook”.

A beautiful new, updated guidebook is currently in the works by Author (and Site Host!) Joe Ho. For further details on Joe’s new guide, Click HERE

Yeah, but, if I go there I want to focus on climbing

The time commitment of site host at the boulders is minimal and can easily be incorporated into a regular day at the crag. You will be walking by other boulderers and they will be walking by you. In talking to other boulderers, you may discover that they know something you don’t about the latest lines, new beta, local weather, best dining, local plants, or a shortcut home.

A big thanks to those of you who apply!

Cape Croker re-opened to climbing

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The Ontario Access Coalition is thrilled to announce that climbing at Cape Croker has been re-opened effective immediately!

Cape Croker, photo credit Zach Treanor

Access to the cliffs at Cape Croker is through the property of the Chippewas of Nawash First Nation. As always, climbing on other peoples’ lands is a privilege, not a right. Please be on your best behaviour. In particular, tread quietly and lightly, respect the OAC Code of Ethics, and adhere to Leave No Trace principles. This will help preserve access for future generations.

If you need overnight accommodation in the area, consider camping at Cape Croker Park, which is owned and operated by the Chipppewas.

Many thanks are due to Dr. Harry Hoediono, who negotiated on behalf of the OAC. We would also like to thank Gus Alexandropoulos for his generous offer of a free full-page ad for Cape Croker Park in his upcoming Volume 2 guidebook, which was instrumental in getting Croker re-opened.

Harry Hoediono on Holy Roller; credit Zach Treanor

Harry Hoediono on Holy Roller; credit Zach Treanor

Comprehensive guidebooks and closed crags

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We’ve received questions about the OAC Approved program and the new Ontario Climbing: Volume 1, Southern Escarpment guidebook’s inclusion of closed areas.

credit: Gus Alexandropoulos

credit: Gus Alexandropoulos

Gus Alexandropoulos and Justin Dwyer have produced an well-researched and comprehensive guidebook. This guidebook furthers the goals of the OAC by including accurate access information, educating climbers about best practices at the crag, and advocating that climbers follow these practices. We’re pleased to endorse this guidebook as being OAC Approved.

Some climbers have asked about the guidebook’s inclusion of closed crags. Our position is that the closed crags are clearly identified as such and that the guidebook authors are in no way advocating that climbers visit these crags. Of course these crags exist. We even list the fact that they exist on our crag status document. In the guidebook, the authors argue that describing closed crags has two positive effects: 1) it documents historic practices (climbing has long been practiced in Ontario); and 2) it encourages climbers to work towards getting these areas re-opened. Closed crags can re-open, and when they do, having them in the guidebook is helpful. A recent example is Roadside at the Red River Gorge. The OAC Board of Directors agrees with this reasoning.

We’d be happy to discuss this at greater length. Feel free to send us an email at info@ontarioaccesscoalition.com or find an OAC Board member at one of our upcoming events!

OAC 2015 Survey Now Open

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It’s time for the 2015 OAC survey! A good chance to reflect on your climbing from the previous year and to think about your goals for the upcoming outdoor season.

https://survey.ontarioaccesscoalition.com/2015

Like last year, we are running a prize draw for two $50 MEC gift certificates. We’ll draw one cert on March 21st (in two weeks) and the second one on April 4th. If you complete the survey before March 21st, you’ll be in both draws.

Please answer! Your answers help us better understand the community that we are representing, and we use survey information in communicating with stakeholders. Help us beat our record of 214 responses from last year.

Curious about last year’s survey results? Here they are:

https://www.ontarioallianceofclimbers.ca/2015/07/21/2014-climbers-survey-results/