Keeping Crags Open Starts With YOU!

It’s that time of year again: OUTDOOR CLIMBING SEASON, Whoot Whoot! It's finally time to take the training we did indoors and flex our newfound strength outside. Crush a boulder or onsight on a route, we have all the options within 2 hours of Toronto. 

Every year I see more and more people outside climbing and I am stoked to see the community grow in our area. However, with this influx of climbers outside, we need to make sure that we are representing the community the best we can. A good chunk of climbing in Ontario is located in provincial parks, and we want to keep good relations with the park and land owners so they don’t close the areas on us. As a climber, everytime you go outside you are representing our entire group, so making a good impression starts with you. 

In 2018 Ontario had a new area open called Turtle Crag, which is located on private property. This area has a lot of easier climbs and is great for new climbers. Unfortunately, it closed later the same year. They way we represented ourselves at the crag just was not up to the level that it should have been. 

Here are a couple respectful things to keep in mind when at the crag:

  • Climb safe

  • Pick up your garbage and leave no trace

  • Use the washrooms before heading in the woods

  • If playing music, keep it at an appropriate volume or not at all

  • Leash your dog

  • Climb in smaller groups


The climbing stewards for our area are The Ontario Alliance of Climbers (OAC). If you have any questions about outdoor areas or how to act,  they can be a great resource for you. They also run an awesome climbing festival which takes place in August! If you are interested ,check out their Facebook event. 


All in all just treat the areas with respect so that we can have climbing for many years to come. 


Kevin Allen