Rockfall is a serious hazard to rock climbing. On April 3rd and
the 4th, a serious amount of rock fell at Yosemite's Churchbowl
climbing area. The granite fell from an area above Bishop's
Terrace and hit the second pitch of the climb, the short section
that climbs to Bishop's Balcony. The rappel for the route was
also hit. A large amount of debris fell to the west of the base
of Bishop's Terrace. Greg Stock, a Yosemite National Park
geologist, commented about the hazard. "Although I'm not able to
predict future behavior, I have seen cleaner source areas than
this one. Future rockfalls are possible." In response to Stock's
investigation and seeing the rockfall himself, Yosemite climbing
ranger Jesse Mcgahey issued a temporary closure. "Although there
is always a possibility of rock fall on Yosemite's crags, domes,
and walls. We feel there is an elevated level of risk for rock
fall over Bishop's Terrace over the next week or so. Therefore
we have temporarily closed all routes at Church Bowl East of,
but not icl