Hanging Mountain
A recent win for climbing conservation here in the Northeast was the acquisition of Hanging Mountain in Sandisfield, MA (Southwestern corner of Mass). This project protects an untapped climbing area for future, intentionally planned, climbing use. Access Fund made use of their land acquisition expertise, as well as their Climbing Conservation Loan Program.
“Tremendous work by a group of incredibly organized and dedicated volunteers from the Western Mass Climbers Coalition. Acquisition of this newly conserved parcel tapped into both the Access Fund Climbing Conservation Loan Program and financial support from across the state line in Connecticut by Ragged Mountain Foundation. I’m already looking forward to the possibilities out there on the horizon, but I’m gonna savor this win for a moment first.” -Mike Morin NE Regional Director, Access Fund
Hanging Mountain © Christopher Beauchamp
Restore Rumney
Climb the Hill
Climb the Hill was September 18-20. A joint venture with American Alpine Club, climbers and advocates use this opportunity to descend (or should we say, ascend?) on Capital Hill and make their voices heard to various representatives. The goal being to advocate for the climbing community as constituents. Having their voices heard on issues related to the climbing community, such as access and a changing climate. This year some regional accomplishments were:
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- Access Fund connected local advocates with the local offices of representatives to better support their efforts to conserve land and promote climbing access.
- Continued to strengthen relationships with the congressional offices of NE representatives in DC.
- Asked for and received support from Congresswoman Kuster’s office (D-NH) around efforts to explore access opportunities to Joe English Hill.
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Mike Morin, the Access Fund NE Regional Director, will be on-hand at MWV Ice Fest. Make sure to stop by the Access Fund table to talk about these initiatives, and more!