I should add I emailed Markus directly some days ago to ask for clarification on the situation and haven't heard back yet. I wanted to do this before starting a public discussion on it, but of course at this time of year he is quite likely on holiday.
I should also note that tape markers have been placed to show where the bolts should go on the project - line 2 on this topo:
http://www.slabi.net/Kultajuova-sektori.pdf and if they are placed where the duct tape is they will be easily clippable from the crux of Tuomo's route Kesäalkaa (line 3) which we climbed last night. I know the position of bolts is carefully considered so you can actually clip them from a decent hold, but if a way could be found to put the bolts even 50 cms further left it wouldn't be, in effect, retroing the crux of Kesäalkaa - a pre-existing line.
As I said I am upset but I don't want to start storming around and yelling etc. because as I said above, it could be that someone had previously done this line before Calle and me. I can accept that this is something of a 'clash of cultures' - that some people see cliffs as a sporting facility like a swimming pool or a skate ramp, whilst I at least tend to see them more as "nature", like a forest you hike through or a lake you kayak across. This maybe makes it difficult to find a compromise. I know the Släbi guys have done a lot of climbing on bolted Spanish limestone where routes normally finish at a lower off - not at the top of a cliff etc. and they want something similar more locally. But I guess I feel that the rock should dictate - I would like 1500 mtr-high mountains and 400 mtr long icefalls locally, but there just aren't any here and I have to accept that! Bolting a crack line which goes at 5c, doesn't turn it into a wonderful pocket-covered Fr 5c limestone slab. Its just a Fin. 5+ granite crack with a line of unnecessary bolts next to it. And that to me is sad.
I've seen the parts of the UK climbing community rip itself apart over bolts and it gets ugly. I hope that doesn't happen here, but the bolters always have an advantage - they do something: drill a hole a glue a bolt in, whilst the trad climbers do nothing, they climb a route and hope no one comes and bolts it afterwards... People who don't favour bolts are always forced into what seems like a negative, responsive act - chopping. I've got no problem with sports routes where bolts are the only way of protecting the climb - and there is so much rock at Haukkakallio surely there can be great sports routes that aren't easy to protect cracks?
I've got a friend living in Beirut and I'm sure she would laugh (or cry) about how much climbers can argue over something that might seem so ridiculous with bomb-loaded F16s flying overhead!
