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alex3141
Sep 27, 2007, 3:53 PM
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Registered: Sep 19, 2006
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Has anyone climbed at Wild Iowa?
I hear stories about crumbly limestone and sketchy bolts. Any feedback is appreciated.
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jonqdoe
Sep 27, 2007, 4:31 PM
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Registered: Aug 30, 2005
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Never climbed there myself, but I have heard the same things. Friends I know who have climbed there say that there is only one climb worth doing, and they say it also has sketchy bolts.
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norsk
Sep 27, 2007, 4:35 PM
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Registered: Jul 25, 2005
Posts: 33
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If by Wild Iowa you mean the area at Pictured Rocks park, then I have a partial answer:
I have never climbed there (or anywehere in Iowa for that matter), but have read online stories and warnings regarding the quality of the bolts and/or anchors. I am sure the rock could be crumbly in places, but that is part of the natural environment that we cannot do anything about. I actually became interested in the quality of bolts/anchors at the park and did some research about it. I found out that all of the bolts are old, but there is a policy prohibiting any new drilling *including* replacement of the existing bolts. I confirmed this through email conversation with state and local representatives/authorities. I asked these people that while I understand these policies, if it would be at least possible to replace the potentially dangerous bolts/anchors. As for an answer, they gave me the name and email of someone else, so I sent that person an email asking the same question and volunteering to do the work. Perhaps not surprisingly, I never heard back.
I am orginally from Minnesota and travel back there a few times a year. I was excited that I do some climbing in Iowa on my way through, or make a day trip of it from home. However, since I am concerned over the safety of the bolts/anchors, and officials were not welcoming to my offer to replace the them, I will not be climbing at Pictured Rocks (and therefore not spending any money at local shops, gas stations, etc.).
So, the short answer is that while I have never been there, I do know that whatever equipment exists at Pictured Rocks is old and suspect, and I have decided not to climb there.
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norsk
Sep 27, 2007, 6:32 PM
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Registered: Jul 25, 2005
Posts: 33
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FWIW, here is a link I dug up:
http://iowaclimbing.com/climb.php?sectionid=1&areaid=1
If anyone has any newer, updated info please share.
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