Anchors: Good Medicine at Ruth Lake gets a Second Visit
From July 7–10, 2026, the anchor maintenance crew escaped the valley heat and headed into the Uinta Mountains to revisit one of the range's busiest climbing destinations: Good Medicine Wall at Ruth Lake.
Back in 2021, the crew visited this wall to perform general anchor maintenance and upgrade the anchors. At the time, the lead bolts appeared to be in relatively good condition with little visible rust, so they were left in place.
Five years later, we returned with a more experienced crew, an evolved maintenance program, and a different perspective. One of the biggest lessons we've learned over the years is that a bolt can look perfectly fine on the surface while hiding significant corrosion beneath the rock.
As we removed the first lead bolt, we weren't surprised to find substantial rust despite its clean exterior. While we wouldn't consider these bolts to be "ticking time bombs," replacing them before they became a more serious issue was the right decision. Had we waited another five years, many of these bolts likely would have been much more difficult to remove due to seized sleeves, excessive corrosion, or bolts snapping during extraction.
Most of the bolts we removed were only about 2 inches long, a common bolt size for the 90's.
Over the course of the week, the crew was able to replace hardware on the majority of the wall, with only a handful of routes on the far right side still awaiting a future visit. Every route we worked on now has1/2-inch Team Tough glue-in bolts or 1/2-inch stainless steel sleeve bolts installed during our 2021 and 2026 efforts, providing climbers with durable, long-lasting hardware for years to come.
Stats
Routes Visited: 16
Lead Bolts Replaced: 148
Bolts Maintained: 19