Bishop Climbing Rangers // 2023-2024 season
Casey Fellhoelter is returning for his second season as a Bishop Climbing Ranger and is stoked for a great season ahead!
He started climbing nearly a decade ago in the hills of East Tennessee where he fell in love with the sport. Since then, Casey has traveled the country climbing and working to better our public lands and recreation opportunities. He cares about conservation and responsible recreation, his best feline friend Spooky, and the beautiful places in the Eastern Sierra he’s come to call home. He’s excited to get back to work and help protect the areas we love.
Kara Flowers began climbing in western North Carolina, where she worked in outdoor education guiding adventure trips through the beautiful Appalachian Mountains. For the past few years, she has traveled up and down the West Coast climbing full-time on beautiful granite, exploring the mysteries of the desert, and meeting inspiring climbers and adventurers. She is excited to be back in Bishop diving deeper into the climbing community and helping to preserve this magical land.
About the Program
Climbing has exploded in popularity and our public lands are seeing the effects.
The Bishop Area Climbers Coalition, Eastern Sierra Interpretive Association (ESIA), and Friends of the Inyo in partnership with the Bureau of Land Management Bishop Field Office, the Inyo National Forest, and Los Angeles Department of Water and Power (LADWP) have hired two seasonal climbing rangers to patrol the increasingly popular climbing and bouldering areas in the Bishop area. Additional help from the Bishop Area Chamber of Commerce and individual organization fundraising events have contributed funds to help support the two climbing ranger positions.
The Bishop Climbing Rangers work seasonally from October to May. The rangers patrol the Tablelands, the Happys and Sads, the Buttermilks, Pine Creek Canyon, the Owens River Gorge, the Sacreds, and the Druids, providing education to climbers about where to park and camp, Leave No Trace principles, and climbing etiquette.
Climber Coffee is held every Sunday at the Pleasant Valley Pit Campground (November-April) to help develop a community forum for climbers in the area. Check on Bishop Climber’s Instagram (shown below) for the latest updates on Climber Coffee.
The climbing rangers also track visitor use patterns including documenting parking and camping uses, tracking changes over time and overseeing restoration and stewardship activities such as campsite clean-up, trail delineation, educational signage, planting native plants in heavily used areas, etc. They coordinate volunteer events and look to remedy issues such as off-road travel and otherwise recommend long-term solutions to increase use patterns.
Thank you to everyone that has contributed funds so far for this important program. Funding this program is ongoing, please consider donating if you’re able.
Join us as we ensure climbing on our public lands continues to be done with as little impact as possible.
2022/2023 Climbing Rangers: Casey and Matthew
Casey started climbing nearly a decade ago in the hills of East Tennessee where he fell in love with the sport. Since then, he has traveled the country climbing and working to better our public lands and recreation opportunities. Casey cares about conservation, responsible recreation, and the beautiful places here in the Eastern Sierra. He’s excited to meet you all and help protect the areas we love.
Matthew has been enchanted with the Eastern Sierra since 2007, when he traveled to CA for the John Muir Trail. He bailed halfway and hiked to Bishop where he spent a few days. He’s been dreaming of living here ever since and finally did last winter between his seasonal work as a Yosemite Climbing Ranger. He is excited to return with a job and mission focused on education, community, habitat restoration, and preservation.
