 A message from Matt, our President:
"I first want to thank all our donors, volunteers, and those who support and continue to support our organization! None of our work would be made possible without your support! This week I traveled to Washington, DC, where several of us have spent the last few days with the Access Fund (@accessfund) lobbying our senators to support America's Outdoor Recreation Act (AORA) and Protect America's Rock Climbing Act (PARCA). Fixed anchors in the wilderness are threatened due to policy changes in land managing agencies. AORA and PARCA are bipartisan bills that aim to protect fixed anchors in the wilderness and establish rock climbing as an officially recognized and accepted the use of wilderness areas. This matters to us at the NRG even though none of our climbing is in wilderness areas because many of us travel and climb in these threatened areas. They are part of our community. Senators seemed receptive to our plea and promised to support outdoor recreation industries. However, the fight is far from over, as we expect bill markups sometime around May. It'll require more action by writing our legislators to support AORA/PARCA. We've been working on revamping our rebolting program. We hosted a training day where we taught some of the ins and outs of bolt replacement techniques, and we will continue to train a new cohort of rebolters. We'll also rebolt much of the Tattoo Wall at Bubba City in April. Our largest trail-building project of the year, (Not) Work Week, is happening from May 13th-20th! Sign-ups will open up shortly, so stay tuned and be sure to sign up to volunteer! The Climber Stewards Program is back in partnership with the Access Fund! This program was wildly successful last year, and we're excited to continue it. So be on the lookout for the Stewards at the Crag from May thru October! Meadow River access... While I have nothing definitive to offer now, many of our brightest minds are all working hard to restore access. The future looks bright. Let's keep working together to preserve our well-loved climbing areas!"
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 In an effort to remove parking and people from the shoulder of southbound Route 19, just north of the meadow river, the West Virginia Department of Highways has created a new parking area on the left side of Deitz Road.
To get there, turn off Route 19 onto Underwood Road and left onto Deitz Road. You should see the parking lot on the left. This lot can fit about 20 vehicles, so please carpool to the crag! Parking is not permitted on the shoulder of Route 19! Hope everyone is enjoying the great weather this week!  In late October, 2013, large boulders blocking the road appeared on Propp’s Ridge Rd. and the old railroad grade that parallels the Meadow River on its south/west side. These boulders have effectively blocked vehicular access to the Meadow’s Southside Crags including Area 51, The Other Place, Orange Wall, Mud Hueco, Brilliant Pebble, Rehab Crag and the crags along Glade Creek, which parallels Propp’s Ridge Rd.
For NRAC, and locals, this came as no surprise. Land ownership along the Meadow and Glade Creek has been in a state of flux since long before climbers began to explore the Meadow River cliff line, which they did on foot, hiking in from Highway 19 along the railroad tracks which were still in place. It wasn’t until 1999 that the tracks were pulled up and climbers began to drive in and park along the Meadow River to access the climbing areas. For those around at the time, the easy access had a too-good-to-be-true feel to it, and losing it wasn’t an issue of if, but when. Immediately after the roads were blocked, representatives from NRAC began discussions with land owners, the National Park Service, the County Commission, and others to explore options that would allow for continued access to the climbing resources along the Meadow River’s Southside crags. |
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