Between a Rock and Hard Place in Joshua

The way Ernest Quintana, superintendent of the sprawling national park here, sees it, any time someone picks up a hand-held drill, bores a hole and hammers a bolt into one of Joshua Tree’s ancient rocks, it leaves a permanent mark on the wilderness.

Fine, say the rock climbers who clip their safety ropes into the bolts to break a plunge if they should slip. Ban bolts. But while you’re at it, eliminate the trails and markers, and forbid horseback riding because, what’s the difference? Why should pathways up the rocks be treated differently than routes on the ground?

The ongoing dispute over whether to ban the bolts from wilderness areas of Joshua Tree National Park, known as one of the premier rock-climbing sites in the West, reaches beyond the glints of metal barely visible on towering rocks.

National Park Service officials, environmentalists and the rock climbers themselves say the debate raises questions about where national parks should draw the line between being beloved playgrounds for outdoor enthusiasts and preserving wild places, free of signs of human activity.

“We have to figure out right now, before it’s too late, the appropriate use of wilderness,” said Brian Huse, regional director of the National Parks and Conservation Assn.

Quintana and his staff are among the first national park managers to devise a management plan that includes rules for the bolts used by rock climbers.

“The parks and wilderness were in part established for use and enjoyment, but we have to set limits to protect the resources,” said Jay Watson, regional director of the Wilderness Society. “Joshua Tree--all of California--is a microcosm of what’s happening elsewhere. This is at the forefront in California because we’re tops in outdoor recreation.”

The park, about 1 1/2 hours east of Los Angeles, covers 800,000 acres where the Mojave and Colorado deserts merge.

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The park’s grandeur and warm winter sun are as much of a draw to climbers as the twisting, exposed rock. That rock, quartz monzonite, is sharp and offers a good gripping surface. Where there are cracks and crevices, climbers can fit spring-loaded wedges into the rocks and clip their ropes in for safety. But climbers use bolts when confronted with a smooth rock face, considering them a last resort in plotting a route.

Eric Larsen, a Bay Area resident who was climbing at Joshua Tree recently, is one of the enthusiasts who have deluged superintendent Quintana’s office with letters protesting a ban. He said the move unfairly singles out climbers.

“Yosemite has giant parking lots and hotels. I’ve seen Joshua Tree so crowded I couldn’t find a campsite,” Larsen said. “With those kinds of huge impacts, it’s hard for me to believe that people are so upset over a little piece of metal.”

He and other climbers contend that the bolting issue is just a way to discourage climbers from using the park: Climbers with their vivid clothes can be seen for miles. They yell back and forth. They create trails as they travel to popular rocks.

“In a way, climbers are incompatible with the purpose of national parks,” said Larsen, a self-described wilderness advocate. “Rangers would rather see people bird-watching or people hiking around looking at cactus, and I sympathize with them.

“But climbing is active, exciting and a tremendous amount of fun. It’s the challenge to see if you can do it, the feeling of self-reliance.”

He recalls a climb last year that took him to the top of a route as the sun went down. He watched the stars come out, heard the bats wing by and the coyotes howl, and saw no one. He fears such experiences will be lost if the number of climbers continues to grow while new routes are curtailed with a ban on bolts.

A first draft of the National Park Service’s new management plan for Joshua Tree calls for a ban on all bolting in wilderness areas, including replacing existing bolts. Park staff said this honors the Wilderness Act of 1964, which prohibits the installation of permanent fixtures on primitive federal land.

The outcry from climbers was angry and sustained. What was going to happen when a climber clipped onto an aging, unsafe bolt?

Deluged by mail and comments at meetings, Quintana extended the deadline for public comment on the ban from Feb. 1 to Feb. 28. He also asked representatives from three groups with differing points of view--the Wilderness Society, the National Parks and Conservation Assn. and the Access Fund, a climbing advocacy group--to devise an alternative set of suggested guidelines.

So far, the three groups have agreed to recommend allowing replacement of existing bolts. But they have not been able to decide on whether new routes should be allowed, and complicated issues remain. How many new routes, if any? What kind of permit process? What enforcement?

Park officials said Joshua Tree has grown increasingly popular in recent years and they expect that the number of visitors to the park will double in the next 10 years to about 4 million a year--a proportionate number of them climbers.

In addition to regulating rock climbing, the park’s new management plan includes less controversial proposals for limiting the size of groups allowed to camp overnight in certain areas, opening 22 miles of trails to bicyclists for the first time, and designating 55 miles of routes for horseback riding to discourage riders from making their own trails.

The final decision on rock climbing practices will probably come this summer after Quintana submits his entire management plan to National Park Service officials for review.

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He has previously demonstrated a tough-mindedness and willingness to take a controversial stand. Two years ago he rebelled against his superiors in Washington by campaigning against Eagle Mountain, a proposed dump next to the park. The fate of the dump remains tied up in the courts.

Quintana said he has nothing against the rock climbers or their sport, but maintained that his first concern is protecting fragile wilderness areas. He said he is willing to listen to ideas on how to strike a balance.

“I’m delighted Joshua Tree is seen the world over as a premier spot to test skills. I like it when people come up to me and speak of the climbing at Joshua Tree. But I like it even better when they speak of the beautiful nights, the sunsets, our wildlife,” he said.

“What I’m hoping the public will understand is that we really are open to suggestions on how to permit recreational activities while doing right by our natural resources.”