May 23, 2001

A CTCC Majority Response to:
Larry Kruse's "An Open Letter to Climbers in Central Texas"

Dear Fellow Climbers,

On behalf of the 6 other elected members of the Central Texas Climbing
Committee (CTCC), let us state that there is not a "schism". The opinions
of Mr. Kruse are the only dissenting ones on this issue. We believe that
Mr. Kruse raises some good issues that allow us the opportunity to explain
the facts regarding trail construction initiatives at Enchanted Rock and to
use this opportunity to ask for your support. This is a very challenging
time for E-Rock and the signs of wear and tear are everywhere. The park
visitation peaked a few years ago at nearly 360,000 visitors per year.
Think about it, this equates to an average of almost 1,000 persons per day
(every day of the year). Since most visitation occurs on weekends, the
problems are exacerbated and an incredible amount of foot traffic over short
intervals lead directly to the degradation and erosion of the trails that we
all have observed. Visitation has decreased, but is still in the range of
300,000 visitors per year. This is not an issue about climbing, as Mr.
Kruse has stated. This is an issue about the future environmental health of
Enchanted Rock.

The original trails at Enchanted Rock were constructed by TPWD employees,
however, the original design did not account for the sheer volume of traffic
that has overwhelmed the park. Jim Angel (renowned US Forest Service trail
builder) gave a clinic in the early 90's at Enchanted Rock and Barry Wilson
attended this course using a grant from the Access Fund. Barry is now
"certified" to supervise trail construction at Enchanted Rock and shares
this designation with only 2 other individuals at E-rock, both TPWD
employees. Their first effort addressed the lower sections of the Motorboat
Rock area, but was limited in scope and lead to future persistent erosion
problems.

Since 1995, the major portion of the proceeds from the Granite Gripper
climbing competition have been reserved for conservation work. Through
contributions of these proceeds by leaders of the climbing clubs, the CTCC
began to hold these funds until a meaningful trail construction effort could
be initiated. Additional funding was secured from a number of sources
including The American Alpine Club ($2.5K), volunteer grants from Exxon
secured by Natalie Merrill and Paul Majers ($2K), more contributions from 4
of the major climbing clubs in Texas, and other contributions from climbing
related businesses. To date, about $10K has been expended in the
reconstruction of the lower Echo Canyon trail, Motorboat Rock (purple)
trail, News Wall (blue) trail, and portions of the Triple Cracks trail. The
money was used to purchase and transport construction materials, equipment,
and supplies. All the labor has been volunteer (mostly by climbers) and we
are very proud of the results. This work is a fantastic legacy that has
been built largely by the climbing community of our own initiative and
financial commitment.

The Friends of Enchanted Rock (FOER) was formed as a non-profit corporation
last year with a much broader mission of preserving and conserving the
resources of Enchanted Rock, improving infrastructure and facilities, and
creating interpretive and educational programs for the park. Facilities
include trails, campgrounds, bathrooms, group meeting spots, and other
things from which climbers derive a direct benefit. In 2000, the FOER
applied for a grant from the Federal Government (USDOT) and was subsequently
awarded over $30K to purchase tools and all the materials necessary to
reconstruct the severely degraded lower portion of the Summit Trail and the
Upper portion of the Echo Canyon Trail. This money must be provided up
front by TPWD from a reserve fund and will later be reimbursed by the
Federal Government from highway funds. The grant requires that 20% of the
project cost be the responsibility of the park (E-rock) and 80% will be
reimbursed. TPWD does not have the money in the park budget to fund this
20% match. However, any volunteer labor provided in the construction of the
project will be counted at a minimum hourly wage toward the 20% match. This
is the only way that this project can be successful.

The FOER has not solicited any CTCC funds for this project and it is not
anticipated that CTCC would agree to provide them. The CTCC is not directly
accepting the responsibility of managing this project, although some of the
CTCC membership are also members of the FOER board. For those CTCC members
that are also on the board for the FOER, it is not perceived to be a
conflict of interest, but rather an honor. Where is it written that
climbers must always be in conflict with everyone? Both organizations are
volunteer (uncompensated) and require a tremendous amount of dedication to
Enchanted Rock. The Charter for the CTCC states specifically in Article II
(2) (d) that one of the general purposes for the CTCC is "To develop plans
with landowners and land managers to facilitate climbing access, minimize
adverse resource and environmental impact, and preserve existing resources".
We do not perceive the Summit Trail project to be in conflict with our
Charter.

Many of the tools, like chain saws, hoists, cables, web straps, rock drills,
hand tools, and wheelbarrows will be purchased using Federal money and will
become the property of E-Rock. These tools may be used on numerous other
projects including maintenance of previously constructed trails and new
trail initiatives. Volunteers for this trail work will be solicited from
all user groups at E-Rock (hikers, scouts, bird watchers, photographers,
tourists, conservationists, etc.). But, the success of the Summit Trail
project may depend largely upon the great amount of experience and energy of
the climber's contribution. We (and also the park management) understand
that the experience gained over the past 3 years of trail building makes the
climbing community a great asset for the park.

With the understanding that the FOER grant brings much needed money and
improvement to Enchanted Rock as a whole. The tremendous goodwill it has
already fostered with the park management and the value of bringing many
different user groups (including climbers) together to help mitigate the
cumulative damage and continued future degradation of the trails at E-Rock
is a great thing. Climbers have always led the way in conservation efforts
at E-Rock and we should use this opportunity to show other user groups how
it is done. Only by education and hard work will they become aware of their
impacts and the level of effort required to counter-act them.

CTCC funds for trail work are currently limited to about $800 remaining.
Additional funds from last years Granite Gripper may be transferred to this
balance, if needed. The current project, reconstructing the News Wall
(blue) trail, is nearing completion. At this time, there are no other
approved trail projects in the park (aside from the Summit Trail). The time
frame for the Summit Trail project will be starting in Fall 2001, only after
the work on the News Wall Trail is complete. The CTCC intends to continue
in our efforts to assess the condition of the trails in the park and work to
maintain and improve trails that provide access to climbing areas. The
timing of these projects will depend largely upon resources and available
funding. This is an on-going process that may never be completed.

As members of the CTCC, we always encourage your direct input. Please
reflect upon the tremendous opportunity and challenge that has been
presented to us and the love that we all have for Enchanted Rock. By
pledging our support and helping the FOER to accomplish its goals, we all
benefit. Should you make the personal choice to abstain from involvement in
the Summit Trail project, please respect the fact that the project is
attempting to bring much needed funding and improvements to Enchanted Rock
that would not otherwise be available. Your continued support is valued and
very much needed in this effort.

Safe Climbing,

CENTRAL TEXAS CLIMBING COMMITTEE

Mike Lewis, Chair
Denise Wilks, Treasurer
Barry Wilson
Gail Billings
Rick Watson
John Myrick