Access Troubles In Yangshuo
03. Jun, 2009 
14 Comments
Photo:
le niners
The limestone sport climbing crags near Yangshuo, China, specifically White Mountain, have been receiving an increased level of attention the past couple of years. The climbing there has been featured in several magazine pieces and high profile movies like Dosage V. Chris Sharma took a trip there just last month.
Not surprisingly, this increase in attention has resulted in tension between local farmers who own land adjacent to the crags and climbers:
On Saturday morning White Mountain was the scene of a thirty-minute stand-off between a multi-national group of climbers and local farmers who are unhappy about the outcome of talks with Yangshuo’s climbing association. The confrontation was the second this month. Three weeks ago a small group of climbers was threated with farm tools and, after calling the police, were made to leave White Mountain. Several routes were subsequently vandalized.
The crux of the farmer’s concerns?
These are a poor but generous people, and they’d like to make a bit of money for allowing us continued access. Their chief complaint is that we arrive in taxi vans and contribute to the erosion of their dirt roads. This complaint seems legitimate, so I suggested that we might walk or ride bikes to the crag, thereby not damaging the roads. They didn’t seem pleased with this suggestion. I also suggested that we might buy our water and snacks from the village, providing them with some income. I think, in the end, we may just have to pay a few yuan each day to have access to the crag.
Read more about the situation at Cragging.org.
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A on 
Colin on 
Sarah Marvez on 
Craig on 
Mark on 
Philly Cheese on 
Andrew F on 
Dude, Climbing should be free to everyone, Man! I am not paying to climb. I am going to protest by trespassing. I mean really, dudes, its not like we piss and crap in peoples backyards, scream profanities, and are a general nuisance to the folks just trying to eek out a living.
Ah,yes. Kentucky or China. We climbers are losers around the world.
to add to craig’s comments i’d like to point out most climbers wear natural colored clothes. which, like gang attire, makes them an ally of nature. and since poor farmers are closer to nature because of the whole farming thing climbers are also allies of farmers.
why can’t people understand this and stop trying to take away the freedom of hard-working climbers?
why?
Climbing should NOT be free to everyone. It’s someone’s land you are imposing on. If the land owner wants to charge you for access, then either pay it or go somewhere else. The property owner paid for their land. If they want to profit off of others who want access to their land, so be it. Business 101. They should be able to do with it what they want, within the limits of poperty law.
I really hope you two were being sarcastic, otherwise it’s you and other like-minded people who cause closures and access problems.
Definitely sarcastic…
Lets give God a break. It was to early in the morning for sarcasm when I read it too.
god. omniscience fail….
Because I am God, I choose when to use my superpowers. I choose not to know certain things so that I can be surprised i.e. surprised by certain human stupidities.
BTW, you’re have less than three days to live.
um, dude. i’m 15. i’m immortal.
Touche.
My blood smells like cologne.
I was in China once. Holy shit was it hot and humid there. No way would I climb there. It was just like Wisconsi… Ehh never mind.
Well done…
god once turned off his all knowning powers just to feel ’surprise’
god does not always drink beer, but when he does, he prefers dos equis.
stay thirsty, my friends
He once had an awkward moment, just to feel what it was like.
Everyone wants a piece of the pie.