Shared by Aaron Parlier, as Guest Blogger.

Grayson Highlands State Park is renowned by lovers of outdoor recreation, far and wide, and it’s easy to understand why: It’s absolutely gorgeous.

You don’t even need to get out of your car (although I highly recommend that you do) to recognize that it’s an incredibly special place.

Grayson Highlands is a natural destination for rock climbers 

The stunning landscape, wonderful trails, flora and fauna, friendly and knowledgeable Park Staff, awesome camping opportunities, ponies, high elevation, cooler temperatures in the warm months, and jaw dropping fall colors bring folks from all over to experience the grandeur of Grayson Highlands.

Those reasons, along with the vast amount of incredible and unique rock formations, make Grayson Highlands State Park a coveted destination for Southeastern rock climbers looking for fun and challenging boulders to climb.

Climbers share their love of nature by and the outdoors by embracing LNT ethics

Climbers have long recognized and embraced the need to respect, preserve, and sustain their natural surroundings. Leave No Trace (LNT) ethics are a centerpiece to our climbing experience.

We share the cliffs and boulders we love so much with a dizzying array of special flora and fauna, some that are rare and endemic, occurring in no other location than that rock or cliff. Core to those ethics are the careful considerations taken with not disturbing those rock formations. Only lightly brushing holds to clean debris from foot holds and hands holds, but not disturbing the mosses and lichens is one such example. Responsible use of climbing chalk is another, where light chalk is essential to climbing in keeping your hands dry, but too much chalk could be unsightly and an unnecessary distraction.

Often our perspective of a rock formation is much different than other visitors, looking up from the bottom as opposed to down from the lookout. 

Through personal LNT practices climbers regularly pack out litter, debris and trash from the bases of cliffs where litter often accumulates, thrown by careless visitors.

Stewardship is paramount for those who love the great outdoors

Climbers are proud of their participation and membership with local climbing organizations, such as the Central Appalachia Climbers Coalition, that voluntarily host clean-up days, trail maintenance days, and graffiti removal days (as much as everyone dislikes looking at spray paint on a rock formation, its likewise awful for climbing).

Increasingly, climbers are participating as citizen scientists, helping identify sensitive and rare plant and animal species such as peregrine falcon nests, rock gnome lichen, the roan mountain bluet, and the spotted green salamander just to name a few.

We can all lend a hand in preserving this natural scenery for future generations

All told, most climbers would agree that one of the best aspects of going climbing is the beautiful places that it can take you.

Helping provide stewardship, being conscience of your individual impacts and Leave No Trace practices as well as others, and doing your part to leave a place a little cleaner than when you visited are all an important part of keeping those places beautiful for the next visitors and generations to come. 

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Aaron Parlier grew up in Southwest Virginia, not far from Grayson Highlands. Aaron served as a US Army paratrooper and after returning from Afghanistan, attended Virginia Tech and then Appalachian State University. He volunteered with Americorps for three seasons, teaching outdoor education in Grayson Highlands State Park where he was awarded the Robert E. Wone National Service Award.

Aaron is the author of the Grayson Highlands Bouldering Guidebook, co-founder of the Central Appalachia Climbers Coalition, and co-owner of Center 45 Climbing & Fitness in Boone, North Carolina.

Editor's Note: Be sure to click the following to get more information for biking, hiking and paddling. See a map of all Virginia State Parks here.