Aaron Parlier
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State: Virginia
Park: Grayson Highlands State Park
Age: 26
Bio: I am a senior majoring in Natural Resources Conservation and Recreation at Virginia Tech, and I plan to seek my masters at Appalachian State after this year. I am an avid rock climber and I am currently writing a comprehensive bouldering guidebook for Grayson Highlands State Park in Virginia. I have been climbing for about six years now, and exploring the bouldering potential in GHSP for over three. While climbing is predominantly my focus, I enjoy all things outdoors and State Parks have always been my venue for my excursions.
Aaron's Updates
I Am A State Park Ambassador Because: I've become an ambassador to Grayson Highlands State Park through my climbing. The park has me as a climbing Ambassador with my focus basically toward the rising popularity in the bouldering in the park. I am also an administrator for Virginia for the website called Mountainproject.com which is an international online climbing guidebook and community. Through Mountain Project I reach many people and inform them about the bouldering in Grayson Highlands. As an Ambassador, I can also do this in person in the park. I hope to inform the parks visitors at various events held in the park. I also hope to help further the low impact approach that the park has taken toward the bouldering in the area.
Schools Attended: Wytheville Community College, Virginia Tech
First State Park: Hungary Mother State Park, Virginia
Favorite State Park: Grayson Highlands State Park, Virginia
Park I Am Dying To Visit: Grayson Highlands State Park... Again
I've Visited State Parks In: Alabama, Arizona, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, New York, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia, West Virginia
Coolest Thing I've Seen In Parks: My favorite feature to any state park would be the massive, beautiful, overhanging, steep, grey boulders in Grayson Highlands State Park. They have huge pink and tan drop stones suspended throughout them and they are naturally formed with mesmerizing features and shapes. Also there are enormous boulders scattered and clustered in the natural balds near 5,300 feet in elevation. These boulders are on the mountain crests and on top of them you can see to seemingly endless vantage points. The wind on top of the boulders is constant and sometimes defining, and it brings with it unpredictable weather and enveloping waves of thick cloud cover without warning. In the distance you can see the wild, free-range miniature ponies grazing in the bald. Overall this setting is the most serine, and sometimes surreal setting in a state park I have ever experienced.
Interests: climbing
Music Played At My Campfire: any and everything!
What Not To Miss In My State's Parks: the climbing and bouldering
Who I Would Go On A Hike With If I Could: anyone with a crashpad for me to land on once we get to the boulderfield.
This Sums It All Up For Me: Virginia is for lovers:)