the Adventure Lifestyle magazine

At issue is a Texas Parks and Wildlife Department (TPW) resource management plan intended to protect the park's resources by limiting access to certain areas. What it's managed to do, however, is stir up protest, especially from climbers. The plan, enacted September 1, requires all park users to call ahead for ��� reservations and sit through a 20-minute orientation on environmentally sible behavior. It also ropes off acres of popular climbing routes and curbs free-roaming range of park visitors. Of the 210 people allowed into Hueco ily, only 50 will be permitted to wander on their own. All other visitors must be ompanied by a guide, whether they want to hike, climb or even picnic. While k-escorts might add to some people's visits, they may detract from what climbers me to find at Hueco. "This is a spiritual place for bouldering," says Sam Davidson of the Access Fund, a nonprofit climber's advocacy group. Guide-only access raises questions for climbers who may be more experienced than their newly-assigned chaperones. "For bouldering, it makes no sense to have a guide with you," says Josh Lowell, a climber from New York. "It's not like Mt Everest where having a guide serves a purpose. It seems like a lack of understanding about what climbing is all about." Everyone agrees that Hueco is a valuable resource. Climbers feel, however, that by closing popular climbing sites and limiting visitor numbers, TPW's plan cuts them off as legitimate park users-a restriction they feel is heavy handed, discriminatory and ill-conceived. Park officials argue that these limitations are necessary to stabilize damaged areas and protect Hueco as a natural, archaeological and historical resource, both from the expected wear from 65,000 visitors a year, and from vandalism. In recent years, park employees have found damaged and graffiti-covered rock paintings. "Restricting access will allow the healing process to begin," says Ray Sierra, park manager. Another prong to the debate is the lack of a marked trail system. Both climbers and park officials' believe that a constructed path would keep visitors away from eroded or spiritually-significant areas. That's why, in 1994, the Access Fund gave TPW a $2,000 grant towards constructing a trai l. Even now, after winning a $22,000 grant from the National Recreation Trail Fund in 1997, TPW sti ll needs to raise an additional $22,000 to fund a path system through Hueco's sprawling domain. Rea listically, TPW would need $22,000 more to build a trail system, but the Access Fund's gesture should go further than its cash value, Lowell says. "Climbers are not just consumptive users. We're trying to help the place and TPW hasn't been open to those efforts." Climbers say they'd be willing to apply fo guide status and would love to lead visitors in search good climbs. But they feel that Hueco doesn't have to be so strictly regulated to preserve its resources. "It's a World Heritage site as far as climbers are concerned," Davidson says. "We can strike a better balance between archaeol and climbing. The park is equally valuable to both." -Sarah Karl f,Q)ႀ䊉)feiႀ䊉

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