News from the Pariah of the Climbing Community
Dec. 24, 2002
The following will be in the next issue, but I decided to put it here for
now. It is from my Dec. 14-15 trip to Shelf Road near Canon City, KO.
A Synopsis of Cactus Cliff at Shelf Road
Considered to be a premier winter destination for Colorado sport climbers,
Cactus Cliff at Shelf Road offers bolt clipping glory on decent limestone.
Be sure to budget time for the approach, which can take up to five minutes.
Most climbs are on vertical faces with pockets and edges. Of
course, there are also some small roofs, bulges, aretes, corners and whatever
else at this crag. Routes range from 30 to 70 ft. in height,
thereby eliminating the hassle of top-outs on this 100 ft. tall cliff.
As a precaution, inspect the cold shut and Fixe anchors on the routes here
for wear since most users are forced to lower through them (by the functional
limitations of their Gri-Gris). If you don’t own a rack, worry not
- most everything that would have otherwise taken gear has been bolted for
your convenience. In another gesture of magnanimity, the developers
at this little crag have gone so far as to add a letter grade or two to the
ratings of most climbs. Because Shelf is not in the immediate vicinity
of any historically significant climbing areas and has been deemed a sport
area, an experience similar to climbing at the Sport Park in Boulder
Canyon, but on an even more aesthetic cliff, can be had without the associated
stigma.
Dec. 8, 2002
A new page of photos was added and the menu was cleaned-up a bit.
May 8, 2002
I'm about to upload Issue 11. New issues will be and are sparse due to
lack of material and help. Feel free to contribute, though there is no guarantee
that your work will appear on this site. There will be updates to rants, news
and pictures.