Episode #29- Audrey & Curtis Gale-Dyer

The Climbing Advocate

The guests for today’s episode are Audrey and Curtis Gale-Dyer. This power couple serves as the land management team for the Red River Gorge Climbers’ Coalition (RRGCC) in Kentucky. As land managers, they are responsible for planning and implementing large- and small-scale stewardship projects all around the Red River Gorge. It’s no secret that the “Red” holds miles and miles of cliff line that attract thousands of visitors each year from around the world. As you can imagine, stewarding a destination area of this size is no small task, but Audrey and Curtis approach their responsibility with confidence and passion. Audrey and Curtis have been a part of the RRGCC for many years now, and their experience in planning and executing stewardship projects is exemplary. In this podcast, they walk us through what it takes to successfully plan and execute large-scale stewardship projects, including recruiting, making sure you have the proper tools and resources, and more. They also talk about the aftermath of the flooding events that the Red and surrounding areas saw in early March. In conclusion, Audrey and Curtis share some of the most common issues they often face and talk about a couple of their personal favorite stewardship projects. If you’re interested in the stewardship side of advocacy, this episode is for you. Enjoy! 5:43 - Curtis’ & Audrey’s intros 10:12 - Recent flooding in Kentucky 14:21 - The flooding’s impact on the Red 18:30 - Working as land managers for the RRGCC 26:13 - General stewardship planning 37:15 - Planning: assessment 42:17 - Planning: recruiting 46:00 - Planning: tools & resources 48:56 - Most common projects 50:01 - Reasons why they use certain infrastructure 52:21 - Audrey & Curtis’ favorite projects 59:01 - Don’t forget the fine details! 1:03:53 - Community involvement 1:06:38 - Curtis’ takeaways 1:07:27 - Curtis’ definition of advocacy 1:08:33 - Audrey’s definition of advocacy Red River Gorge Climber’s Coalition: http://rrgcc.org/ Red River Gorge Climber’s Coalition Instagram: @rrgcc Red River Gorge Climber’s Coalition Facebook: @rrgcc Red River Gorge GoFundMe page: https://www.gofundme.com/f/help-red-river-gorge-2021-flood-disaster Access Fund’s Top 10 Threatened Climbing Areas: https://www.accessfund.org/open-gate-blog/10-climbing-areas-in-crisis