EDGE Newsletter

Jacob Wahinehookae

Spanish Fork, UT

Outdoor Recreation in Parks and Tourism, Emphasis on Outdoor Education

Outdoor Engagement Track

Swett Hills Wash Bouldering Development

My project involved the development of a climbing area near Cedar City, UT called the Swett Hills. The Swett Hills are located about 12 miles west of Cedar City. There are numerous sport climbing and bouldering areas within the Swett Hills including The Cone, Pocket Rocks, Sprocket Rocks, The Wash, 10 Weeks, The Haven, Iron Mine and Sarsen Blocks. These areas were developed in the early 90’s and 2000’s and have not seen any recent development. The area is one of the closest outdoor climbing areas to Cedar City and contains the highest concentration of sport routes and boulder problems near Cedar City.

For the duration of my project I spent countless hours exploring and discovering the Swett Hills. I spent nights in the desert and learned how to navigate over long distances of dangerous terrain. I claimed first ascents of many boulder problems and also discovered a few new areas for future climbing development. I re-constructed a common trail in the area, parking spaces and cleaned up garbage and debris in nearby campsites. The project overall was a learning experience for me and a way to help the growing community of rock climbers in Southern Utah.

The inspiration for my project came from how passionate I am for the outdoors and specifically the sport of rock climbing. When I first started school at SUU I immersed myself in the outdoors because of the school’s wonderful location. I changed my major to Outdoor Recreation in Parks and Tourism from Biology because I wanted to be outside for the rest of my life. My passion led me to volunteer on many occasions with the local BLM offices in trail building opportunities and eventually to an enormous amount of time spent in the outdoors. I discovered the Swett Hills when I was looking for nearby climbing areas and fell in love with the rock quality and accessibility in the Swett Hills. The area has an enormous amount of climbable rock and I saw an area with great potential to be a fun, easy to get to climbing area.

While deciding when I was going to complete my project I also had a hard time deciding where as well. The Swett Hills are a large property owned by the Bureau of Land Management and set aside as public lands. This area was hard to explore because of the rugged terrain and lack of maps or resources throughout the Hills. Most of the exploration for new areas to develop was a result of curiosity and boredom. This was challenging because I never had a plan of exactly where I wanted to go and made the process painstakingly time consuming.

My project helped the Swett Hills become easier to explore and more acceptable of an area to climb. With the help of the BLM I was able to create an interpretive map of the Swett Hills meant to inspire visitors to explore the Swett Hills without getting lost. Also with the improvement of trails and parking areas, visitors can now have easier access to popular areas among the Hills and cause less damage to an already unstable environment. My project helped visitors on BLM lands and also the Southern Utah climbing community by making a more accessible and easier to explore piece of land/climbing area.

This project has also helped me in many ways. Because of my diligent efforts to keep this area pristine, I know have a small idea of what I want to do for many years to come. I plan on helping many climbing areas be the best they can be for my benefit as well as any climber visiting an area. I enjoy rock climbing and want to keep it as fun and safe for myself as well as others. I gained a new understanding of what land management agencies do to keep lands preserved as well as gained firsthand experience engaging myself in protecting and interpreting our public land.

“The EDGE project gave me the experience I need to move my career forward as an outdoor professional.”

“I am excited to see what kind of work I will be able to do in the future.”