PRESS RELEASE: POWERLINEZ OPENS MAY 1ST!

Congratulations to the Torne Valley Climber's Coalition,  and everyone who pulled in the right direction!

All you've got to do is sign a waiver and hand it in, and you'll get an annual permit that you can carry with you.  No fee. The waivers are now available at The Gravity Vault, and at Rock and Snow.

Please read the attached info and support this incredible opportunity.  We are the first area and group of climbers with which The Palisades Interstate Park Commission has partnered.  It's a real honor.  Stay informed and climb free!

Other Key Facts:
1.  Access Path Has Changed - It now goes up the dirt road by the river.  We do not have permission to use the old access path.
2.  Off Limits Boulders - we do not have permission to use the West End Wall, on the far West side of the Boulder Road,  before you get to the open swath (South) of the Powerlinez.
3.  No Bolts, Pitons, Chipping.  Clean climbing!

Basically think Peterskill with no fee,  read the attached Press Release, and THANKS

Meeting of the TVCC (Torne Valley Climbers' Coalition)

Meeting Notice: the Torne Valley Climbers Coalition will have an informational meeting on April 17, 2013 starting promptly at 7PM at The Gravity Vault, Upper Saddle River (107 Pleasant Ave @ Rt. 17, Upper Saddle River NJ). The Torne Valley Climbing Management Plan will be discussed, as well as TVCC actions going forward. Hope to see you all there.

Paint Sludge at the Powerlinez

Paint sludge in the Torne Valley.

As the TVCC (Torne Valley Climbers Coalition) continues to work toward the goal of opening access at the Powerlinez, (Yes, it is still closed and the TVCC is making progress)  there are some key issues to highlight that will effect access and use in the future.


On the top of that list,  is the fact that the area has been used as a dumping ground for excess paint sludge.  The paint sludge pictured here lies just off Torne Valley Road, by the new Ramapo Saltbox Environmental Research Center. (ERC). 

One such sludge deposit lies right off the access path by the turn-a-round used for parking by climbers,  and there are many more in the valley.  Odds are,  if you've hiked or climbed around the Powerlinez,  then you've walked over and around the paint sludge.

The paint sludge came from a Ford Plant that was operating in Mahwah,  and there have been countless articles: NJ Record Article and an HBO documentary titled Ford vs. Mann about it's toxicity and pollution. 

Environmentalists have been fighting for clean-up for years and they still need our support.  Ford dumped the sludge there because they thought no one would notice,  and the corporation has been very effective in evading its responsibilities.  If climbers are allowed to use the area,  we can definitely raise awareness and continue to point out the obvious:  the Torne Valley is dangerously polluted with paint sludge.

Powerlinez Access Denied

Based on the following article,  the Palisades Interstate Park Committee is planning to enforce its no climbing policy on the Powerlinez.

Power Struggle Over the Powerlinez

The author, Joseph Caravaglia, reports that:  'that climbers caught in the area will “be escorted off the premises by park police, although the area will remain available for hikers.” Signs and fences are scheduled to be placed throughout the property, and failure to adhere to the new mandate (repeat offenders) may face steep fines instead of steep faces.'

The Torne Valley Coalition of climbers met 1 Feb 11, to discuss the issue and made the following statement:

Climbing is currently prohibited in 95% of the Powerlinez. We are pursuing legal access and any unauthorized climbing will impact that effort in a negative way.  We are definitely soliciting the support of the entire climbing community and welcome any contributions and suggestions you have.  Finally,  remember that many park officials will visit this site, and what is said will be read by them, and unfair characterizations may hurt our cause.

NEXT Torne Valley ... Coalition Meeting

February 1st, 7 pm Gravity Vault.

Top-roping at the 'Linez

NEXT Torne Valley ... Coalition Meeting: Wednesday, February 1st, 7 pm Gravity Vault. Items on the agenda will be: access issues, mapping climbing areas and trails, and more access issues.

Thanks to the great bunch of people that came out for our inaugural meeting.  We covered a long list of topics from trails and parking to rattlesnakes and artifacts, and if I may,  the general consensus was to create a positive relationship with the land managers by planning ahead to reduce impact.  Happy Holidays,  Jon.

Gunks climbers stop by!

Here's the link to Jesse Littleton's blog:  Gunksterpuller  He really gets in a lot of climbing, and he and Andrew from Rock and Snow were able to stop in and enjoy some first ascents and projects.  The full text is contained below - thanks for the write-up Jesse,  and make sure to stop by his blog for some beta and insight into a lot of great areas!

Powerlinez

So lately I've been putting a "z" or two on the end of blog post titles to be ironic and funny. But, actually, Powerlinez is the name of a climbing area. I just found out about it last night...how ironic!!

Powerlinez is a climbing area about an hour south from the Gunks, just off of the Thruway. The rock there is a granitic gneiss, so it has a similar feel to the Adirondacks, except a little bit smaller and broken up cliffs. That and there is a bunch of good, worthwhile bouldering. Most of the climbing is under some pretty heavy duty power lines...hence the name...how IRONIC@!@11!

We started with some bouldering and warming up at the first little spot, which was only a few minutes from the car. We did a fun little dynamic V3 and then moved over to some tall cracks with some exciting top outs. Then we went over to a slab-ish arete kind of thing. It probably goes at something like V4. It was really good. I got it second try.

Andrew "near the top."

After that we went uphill a little bit and roped up at the Stockade Cliff. There was a top-rope climb at the cliff called Crankenstein that hadn't been led yet, so Andrew and I rock/paper/sicissorzed and he won. He geared up and put the thing away. Very much fun. Bouldery off the ground, and then hero climbing to the top.

Andrew, just after the crux on Crankenstein.

Our friend John, author of the Powerlinez guidebook, was out with us, and he had a little project that he tried after Crankenstein. There's a horizontal feature that runs across most of the Stockade feature. And since we are all really Gunksterpullers, sideways travel is second nature. It's a really good line. It's got technical ballet feet and a range of good, decent and bad holds. Nice and long too, like close to 70 feet.

John on his traverse at the Stockade Cliff.

When we were done with the ropes, we all decided that we were kind of spent from the sunshine, so we moved back into the woods and did some more bouldering. It looks like there is a lot of sub-cliffs and smaller bands of rock. You could certainly get lost back there doing some exploring. Some cool stuff for sure.

Andrew ending the day with a sweet, dynamic, V3.
After that little bit of bouldering, we all decided that the sun beat us down, so we called it a day. All in all it was a fun day. Definitely worth the trip down to the Powerlinez. It's only a half-hour from New York City, so I bet Powerlinez is a good alternative to the Gunks if the weather is iffy, or maybe if the Gunks are gonna be busy for a local looking to get some time on rock.

Oh, and I forgot to mention...the weather was so good today! All the humidity got sucked out of the air last night, and the temperature dropped by at least ten degrees. That's the good stuff.