As Lion's Head season ramps up, it's important to make sure that climbers are aware of the significance of having good relations with the local community.

Many visitors are unaware that Lion's Head is suffering greatly from over-tourism, and the local sentiment towards visitors is quite negative. If we want to be able to continue to enjoy access to climbing here, we need to distance ourselves from the typical BlogTo tourist who comes here and overuses the facilities, leaves behind garbage, clogs up the roadways, and then leaves without spending a dime or doing anything else useful for the community.

One of the most important actions we can do as a climbing community is to make sure that we are staying in designated areas. Ninja camping, whether it's in a tent, car, or van, is not acceptable anywhere in this area – full stop. Some people think that just because they didn't get a ticket, that means it's ok, but that is definitely not the case (and there have been instances of $700 tickets being handed out). In a small town like ours, everyone knows everyone's business, and rest assured that the entire local community (including some very influential people who would love to see climbing banned entirely) know exactly who is sleeping in their cars in which areas.

We've had a lot of climbers working really hard over recent years to establish good relations with the local community in order to preserve climbing access. You can help their efforts by frequenting local businesses, booking short-term and seasonal campsites, doing charitable work and making friends with local citizens. Unfortunately, a few bad actors can erase all of this goodwill, as locals don't differentiate between these individuals, who they see as freeloaders taking advantage of their already-bursting-at-the-seams town, and the larger climbing community - we all get tarred with the same brush.

So please, if you want to climb in Lion's Head, book your accommodations ahead of time (there are lots of excellent campgrounds, as well as short-term accommodations to choose from), support local businesses, and make friends with the locals you encounter. We need to be thought of as high-quality visitors who are good stewards of the area and positively impact the community, rather than as freeloading dirtbags. Don't be the person who sets back the work we have done to make inroads with the local community, and don't be the person who turns a blind eye to others who are harming access for everyone.

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