About

Our Mission

cragging.org is a grassroots, member-driven organization devoted to promoting cragging as a major vehicle for recreation, community development, responsible travel, cultural exchange, and environmental stewardship. We’re people from all walks of life who love climbing, understand its potential to serve a positive role in communities across the world, and want to be proactive about realizing that potential.

Climbing has always been a global preoccupation thanks to its Himalaya fixation. Until very recently, though, few people traveled farther than their backyard to go to the crag. Crags were developed and maintained by locals for locals. Things have changed. These days, Europeans bolt lines in Thailand that are a major proving ground for climbers from around the world. Americans have set up shop in Vietnam so that the rest of us can enjoy world-class deep water soloing. Boulderers from everywhere winter in India to climb with the yogis. Our community is on the move in a big way, Russians in Yangshuo, Germans in Potrero, and Japanese in Yosemite.

Climbing’s globalization has not been without its ill effects. As our crags see more traffic, access issues become a flashpoint. Tonsai Beach is a trash heap, an ugly reminder of the overwhelming impact that even a community as eco-conscious as ours can have on paradise. At many crags, especially those in the West, outsiders are still not welcome. These are the growing-pains of a community of fierce individualists, people with open minds and a wonderful capacity for stewardship and inclusiveness.

It’s time to get organized. cragging.org aims to be a focal point for our community, an outlet for information and a global advocate for our crags and the communities around them. We bring the extraordinary community-building power of the Web to an international constituency. We’re more than just a website, though. Through our programs and outreach efforts, we take our presence and our mission on the road and around the planet.

Our Programs

cragging.org isn’t just about climbing; we’re about climbing with a purpose. That mission is reflected in our programs. All of our efforts are funded by our members, whether they join us on a road trip or simply use our website. If you’d like to contribute, please get in touch or become a member.

• Blog – A community focal point. A place for addressing contemporary issues in the cragging world. Road trip updates. Editorials. Sick lines. People profiles. Pictures. Videos. The works.
• Road trips – We’re not just a website. Every year, we take our message on the road to the best crags on the planet, and you get to come along for cheap! Our road trips are non-profit programs aimed at getting folks psyched about building a better world by doing the thing they love the best: climbing.
• Exchange program – All over the world, and especially in the developing countries we visit, we meet climbers whose palms sweat at the idea of going to Yosemite or Font or Tonsai, but just can’t get themselves there. Sometimes it’s money and sometimes it’s visas, but it’s always a tear-jerker. cragging.org is determined to extend that once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to as many as we can by taking well-deserving climbers on our road trips with us as staff.
• beta.cragging.org – There are lots of websites out there that offer topos and route information. We’re the only one that does it to help maintain our crags. We use the same model that has worked wonders for Wikipedia to produce guidebook-quality information that you can take on the road with you. All of our proceeds go back to the stewardship organizations that keep our crags going. Currently under construction.

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