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neelystar
May 6, 2002, 7:59 PM
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Does anyone know if there is any Via ferrata in the States?
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howitzer
May 6, 2002, 8:01 PM
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They're working on one in WV right now....
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climbinscared
May 6, 2002, 8:07 PM
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There is one at the Red in KY. http://www.torrentfalls.com/
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jumaringjeff
May 6, 2002, 8:14 PM
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Jesus... I can imagine the insurance premiums those guys must pay, even with a release form.... -jj
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psalmadventurer
May 7, 2002, 1:33 AM
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um i am clueless...what is via ferrata?
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psalmadventurer
May 7, 2002, 1:47 AM
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um i am clueless...what is via ferrata?
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neelystar
May 7, 2002, 3:17 AM
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Hey Pasalmadventurer This should explain Via Ferrata for you: http://www.torrentfalls.com/viaferrata.shtml
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psalmadventurer
May 7, 2002, 7:50 PM
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That is the coolest thing! I want to go! It might get boring but I doubt it! Thanks for the help! Now I just want to go!
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ToastedRavs
Oct 6, 2011, 3:21 AM
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I was wondering if anyone else had talked about the Via Ferrata on this forum, and it turns out there's a bunch of threads... good thing I looked before I started one, heheh. The place in Kentucky is amazing! I went a couple Thanksgivings back, and I totally loved it! Besides, Red river gorge is a beautiful place! The Via Ferrata is really safe, and if you really need to you can use the bars they have for footing/ hand holds-- but it's a lot more fun if you don't!
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healyje
Oct 6, 2011, 3:43 AM
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Yes, unfortunately, and set to spread like a cancer...
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rtsteed
Oct 6, 2011, 4:22 AM
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Nelson Rock Preserve in WV had one at one point, but I know they had a lot of issue. They are just down the road from Seneca Rocks.
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barleywino
Oct 6, 2011, 11:04 AM
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there's a small one on Cadillac mt in Acadia NP (Maine). also supposedly a couple commercial ones across the border near Vancouver and Montreal. Check out the Dolomites guidebooks by John Smith and Graham Fletcher.
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gojiclimber
Oct 6, 2011, 2:29 PM
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Nelson rocks has a via ferrata that is now active again. I think new owners. They non longer allow open access climbing though.
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olderic
Oct 6, 2011, 3:38 PM
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barleywino wrote: there's a small one on Cadillac mt in Acadia NP (Maine). also supposedly a couple commercial ones across the border near Vancouver and Montreal. Check out the Dolomites guidebooks by John Smith and Graham Fletcher. Most people wouldn't consider the ladder tails in Acadia NP as true via ferratas. Certainly less though then say the tourist tail to Angel's Landing in Zion. No cables to clip into and no special equipment typically use. Though I suppose you could argue that the average person does use the metal to make progress and thus is doing an "iron road" adventure. In any case the popular ladder tails there - The Precipice and Beehive are not on Cadillac but on Dorr and The Beehive.
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marc801
Oct 6, 2011, 6:28 PM
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olderic wrote: In any case the popular ladder tails there - The Precipice and Beehive are not on Cadillac but on Dorr and The Beehive. The Precipice is on Champlain Mtn, not Dorr. There is also a minimal bit on both South Bubble and Beech Mountain. But as you say, those, just like Angel's Landing and Half Dome, are not true VFs in that no special equipment is required - harness and shock absorber attachment slings - nor is there an adjacent belay wire. There is a real VF in Ogden, UT, btw. Established by one of the Lowe clan.
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barleywino
Oct 6, 2011, 6:54 PM
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I distinctly remember fixed cables on Precipice which one can clip to (this was many years ago)-- have they been removed?
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olderic
Oct 6, 2011, 6:55 PM
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marc801 wrote: olderic wrote: In any case the popular ladder tails there - The Precipice and Beehive are not on Cadillac but on Dorr and The Beehive. The Precipice is on Champlain Mtn, not Dorr. There is also a minimal bit on both South Bubble and Beech Mountain. But as you say, those, just like Angel's Landing and Half Dome, are not true VFs in that no special equipment is required - harness and shock absorber attachment slings - nor is there an adjacent belay wire. There is a real VF in Ogden, UT, btw. Established by one of the Lowe clan. You'er right that the Precipice is on Champlain but there is a ladder tail on Dorr. They just changed the name of it and I forget what it is called now. Goes from roughly the south end of the Tarn. I know they have been doing some extensive trail work on South Bubble - are there actually some rungs now? The 100 year ruins of the old trail across the slabs have some impressive delapatated iron mongery for sure. How about Jordan Cliffs? i thought there might be a rung or two there - likewise the Perpendicular Trail of Mansell on the other side. But none of these has cables which I think is a fundamental characteristic of most VF (although I have been on ones in the Dolomite's that mainly were spelunking adventures. At least 1/2 Dome has cables.
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marc801
Oct 6, 2011, 7:29 PM
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barleywino wrote: I distinctly remember fixed cables on Precipice which one can clip to (this was many years ago)-- have they been removed? If there were ever fixed cables to clip to on Precipice, it was sometime before 1965. There were/are occasional cables the held some ladders and bridges in place, but they are not intended for clipping/protection.
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atdrennen
Oct 6, 2011, 7:34 PM
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I've never done via ferrata, but I don't really get it. I'm not coming at this from the "why the hell would anyone sport climb" hard man (which I'm not) point of view. Is it just an uber protected way to get a good view? http://www.torrentfalls.com/logo_business_left_017.htm Looks like a 5.5 A0 CableWay to Heaven thingy. Might be a good way to get people interested in climbing - assuming they're not gang raping actual routes with the stuff.
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marc801
Oct 6, 2011, 7:38 PM
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olderic wrote: You'er right that the Precipice is on Champlain but there is a ladder tail on Dorr. They just changed the name of it and I forget what it is called now. Goes from roughly the south end of the Tarn. I don't remember ladders on that trail - just seemingly endless granite steps...but the last time I was there was over 20 years ago.
olderic wrote: I know they have been doing some extensive trail work on South Bubble - are there actually some rungs now? The 100 year ruins of the old trail across the slabs have some impressive delapatated iron mongery for sure. Don't know about any recent work, but there were rungs here and there 40 yrs ago.
olderic wrote: How about Jordan Cliffs? i thought there might be a rung or two there - likewise the Perpendicular Trail of Mansell on the other side. Yep, along with some other random ones - but certainly the main ones with extensive sets of ladders and rungs that ascend what would be 5th class rock are the aforementioned Beehive and Precipice.
olderic wrote: But none of these has cables which I think is a fundamental characteristic of most VF (although I have been on ones in the Dolomite's that mainly were spelunking adventures. At least 1/2 Dome has cables. Exactly. But remember that the Half Dome cables are not meant to clip in to, although I guess some do, probably incorrectly (ie: no VF shock absorber).
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olderic
Oct 6, 2011, 7:46 PM
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marc801 wrote: olderic wrote: You'er right that the Precipice is on Champlain but there is a ladder tail on Dorr. They just changed the name of it and I forget what it is called now. Goes from roughly the south end of the Tarn. I don't remember ladders on that trail - just seemingly endless granite steps...but the last time I was there was over 20 years ago. You are thinking of the one that starts up directly from the Abbe Museum and spring at the north end of the Tarn. i am thinking if the one from the south end that I believe is now called simply "The Ladder Trail" (used to be something more creative - something like "The Duke's Trail (that's not it) ). they come together about a mile up.
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barleywino
Oct 6, 2011, 8:39 PM
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actually they're uber UN-protected, in the sense that if you do fall, it's often a more than factor 2 fall, unlike conventional climbing. also they can be strenuous, on steep pitches with no ladders.
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aprice00
Oct 6, 2011, 10:22 PM
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Just throwing it out there but there are two at Horseshoe Canyon Ranch here in Arkansas. The newest is around a year old and has a cable bridge.
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marc801
Oct 6, 2011, 11:34 PM
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atdrennen wrote: I've never done via ferrata, but I don't really get it. I'm not coming at this from the "why the hell would anyone sport climb" hard man (which I'm not) point of view. Is it just an uber protected way to get a good view? http://www.torrentfalls.com/logo_business_left_017.htm Looks like a 5.5 A0 CableWay to Heaven thingy. Might be a good way to get people interested in climbing - assuming they're not gang raping actual routes with the stuff. Not so much as a good view but something that is more exciting than hiking but without the commitment and difficulty of actual roped climbing (which many people don't really want). It was definitely a genesis in my getting involved in climbing. My family used to go to Acadia every summer from the time I was 4 until age 17. I've hiked almost all the trails on the island and definitely all the summits multiple times. I just loved the quasi-via ferratas. When I entered college, the school had an outdoor club which went rock climbing among other activities. For me the progression to roped climbing was a natural, obvious step. Here's someone else's shot of the Precipice that I just grabbed via a Google search: [From: www.hungrymike.com ] Difficult hiking? No, not really. Exposed? Sure. A tiny taste of rock climbing? Definitely.
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atdrennen
Oct 7, 2011, 1:22 PM
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Ok, that makes more sense, thanks for the explanations. I didn't even think about the implications of a vertical cable and short roping a +factor 2 fall. Interesting stuff
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