Acting BLM chief Fry debuts on sandstone wall at Red Rock

Tuesday, Dec. 14, 1999 | 11:15 a.m.

One of the nation's top land management officials headed out to Red Rock Canyon National Conservation Area Monday and quickly reached the end of his rope.

But he planned it that way.

Tom Fry, acting director of the Bureau of Land Management, donned harness and helmet and went rock-climbing for the first time Monday morning. Fry is in town this week for the governor's annual conference on tourism, where he is a panelist in a discussion about how scenic byways boost tourism.

The Red Rock visit was part of Fry's whirlwind tour of the Southwest that started Thursday at Santa Rosa Mountains National Scenic Area in California. Fry spent three days in California, where he rode an off-road motorcycle, hiked new wheelchair-accessible trails and got the chance to drive a kite buggy.

At Red Rock, Fry scaled up the rugged face of a tawny sandstone slab near the Sandstone Quarry and pedaled a mountain bike through Red Rock's Cottonwood Valley in the afternoon.

He said he wanted to experience the kinds of activities that are drawing more and more visitors to BLM land. The agency, he said, isn't just about grazing rights and conservation anymore.

"It's the urbanization that's taking place in the West. We're dealing with a lot more recreation now," Fry said, moments before he tied on a pair of gummy-soled climbing shoes.

"About 75 percent of people in the Intermountain West live within an hour of BLM land, and they're starting to use it more," he said. "We're hoping that it's a good experience, but we're hoping that's a responsible use too."

Fry then turned his attention to the wall in front of him. With a BLM climbing ranger stationed on the rock above and one guiding the lines from the ground, Fry had nothing to fear except one teeny thing.

"I've never done this before," he said. "But this is a recreation tour."

Gingerly taking a toehold here and a foothold there, Fry carefully scooted about 40 feet up before deciding to rappel back to terra firma. He returned to the ground sweating, flushed and grateful.

"There's a reason there are 25-year-olds up there doing that," he said, laughing.

Dick Crandall, president of the American Recreation Coalition, and Tim Blumenthal, of the International Mountain Bike Association, were among those in Fry's entourage who climbed the wall. The men, who also attended the tourism conference, said they are amazed at the scope of outdoor activities available so close to Las Vegas.

"This is all within 25 miles of Las Vegas, and it's amazing," Crandall said, referring to Red Rock Canyon. "Of the top 25 counties in the nation, 24 are in the West. And the top 25 are the fastest-growing. People are choosing the West, which is why there is the increase in (recreation) pressure."

Fry, who has worked for the BLM for three years and been the acting director for the past year, is waiting on Congressional approval to take over the director's job. He said he hopes to bring the agency's land-use plans up to date.

Those plans are outdated in many regions, he said, which leads to unnecessary local controversy over roadless areas, off-road vehicle use and conflicts among trail users. The BLM needs to change the focus of its philosophy so its land will remain as unchanged as possible.

"Our plans don't even recognize that circumstances have changed," Fry said. "We're starting to call the BLM the 'open space agency.' There are places you can go and get lost for a few days, and we want to keep it that way."