MountainZone.com reports that the Access Fund is fighting the climbing ban at Cave Rock, Lake Tahoe, Nevada.
The Access Fund will appeal the ruling made by a federal judge upholding a decision by the US Forest Service (USFS) to ban climbing at Cave Rock. Cave Rock is a multi-use recreational area in Nevada on the shores of Lake Tahoe, and the Access Fund believes the climbing ban violates both the First Amendment to the U.S. Constitutional and the Administrative Procedure Act.
On December 15, 2003, the Access Fund filed suit in Nevada Federal District Court requesting the court overturn a USFS decision to ban climbing at Cave Rock. On January 28, 2005 a federal judge in Reno, Nevada ruled against the Access Fund’s lawsuit. The Access Fund Board of Directors responded on March 15, 2005 by voting to appeal the district court’s ruling to the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals. On February 16, 2005 Lake Tahoe Basin Management Unit Forest Supervisor Maribeth Gustafson signed an order to begin implementation of the climbing ban with the posting of signs to inform visitors of the prohibition. The USFS also announced its intent to remove the safety protection bolts found at Cave Rock even if the Access Fund appealed the federal judge’s ruling. On March 28, 2005 the Access Fund filed its appeal with the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals on the USFS ban.
According to the forest supervisor’s decision, climbing is the only activity to be prohibited while other “compatible” recreational activities such as hiking, fishing, and picnicking will be allowed to continue because these other activities do not conflict with the “feeling and association” of Cave Rock. US Hwy 50, which runs through Cave Rock via a dynamited tunnel, lies just a few feet away from the climbing area. The Access Fund seeks a more balanced decision from the Ninth Circuit Appeals Court that would allow limited climbing at Cave Rock to continue in a way that does not negatively impact traditional Washoe religious practices.