Mer

Slab climbing Slab sliding Ice cream Wound tending

It seems to me we followed a fine, aesthetic and direct line from the top of the slab to the summit, but we're chicks, we could have been off route. It's so hard for us to read a map. We could claim the first all-estrogen ascent, but we also farted a bunch and talked about transmissions, such behavior might make it invalid.

It was plenty of fun. 5.5 pitches isn't quite 9, but that's ok, really. Here's a shot of Fern sprinting up pitch 3. And one of the buttress.

Wait a minute, you can't really compare bouldering to knitting. Knitting is the alpine climbing of the handicraft world-- double pointed needles, stitch markers-- it's gear intensive. Bouldering would be something small and intricate like crocheting a hacky sack. I'm not sure what sport climbing is, maybe one of those needlepoint thingys that spells out "Bless This Home" and has a picture of a cat sleeping.

Ah the sunset, the rock, the grotto... I've been back for a week and this wet rainforest still seems mighty gloomy in comparison.

I have a some free days coming up and would like to check out the long free routes outside of Powell River. My alpine partner re-scheduled (whose initials are DB, I believe he posts here occasionally ) so I have July 29 to Aug 6 or so for a week of climbing. I'm in Vancouver, would consider other stuff too, as long as it's large, remote rock. I have some experience and am generally pleasant, but will be grumpy as hell if I don't get to go climbing for a week. Cheers,

Spot on! How very sporting of you. Pip, pip, huzzah

We were finishing on the apron in the late afternoon. The girl on Diedre was wearing an orange top and matching orange and brown plaid pants. We were consumed with fashion envy!

What a tedious TR, allow to point out the highlights that Dru neglected. Actually, day one was a pretty routine cragging day. Although we did have some smug fun with "proprietary guy" who demanded to know which route we were going to climb at bog wall because he was about to TR something. "The 5.11 arete around the corner" we said importantly before sneaking around the corner to put up our own TR so we could hang and flail and practice saying "taketaketaketaketake" really quickly. Then we strolled back down miming moves and talking loudly about heal hooks and crossthroughs. On Saturday eve, the money saved by not paying for parking or camping we squandered on Guinness at the Shady Tree. Sunday morning we enjoyed the chance to snigger at hikers heading up the chief and their big packs, arsenal of poles, floppy hats and gaiters, Then Dru changed into his cut off jean shorts and accessorized with snazzy Teva knock-off sandals. I chose to wear my gold Polo Sport approach shoes and multi-zippered Schoeller pants. Craftily, as Dru had done Cream of White Mice before, he led the first pitch and left me the horrible traverse which I "protected" with two lobes of a zero cam and a tiny nut draped over a rounded protrusion. Then I got confused and lost, and yelled at my belayer for not saying the appropriate things to guide and soothe me. With much fuss and carrying on I finished the pitch. On the way out I decided to do Coogie Crack. While on the pitch I reverted to being Princess PainInTheAss and demanded that Dru sing a little song to comfort me, and yell encouragement every time I put in a piece or inched up a fraction. With much wailing and nonsense I finished the pitch, but had to explain to Dru on the walk out that I had been "testing" that piece not weighting it. We decided that our current outfits were OK for slab climbing but we'd better put on our ballcaps and slab shoes. Dru capably led all the pitches of Over the rainbow without fuss or yelling, including the 10b move out of the arch. I seconded everything whining about how much I hate slab, and bitching about the tightness of my new shoes. I did sport my blue Prana top for a pitch or two, accesorized with a pale white roll of flab pooching out over the top of my zippery pants. We smuggly complimented ourselves about finishing our 5.4 topout faster than the couple simuling on Diedre next door. Then Dru put on his Cloudveil wind shirt and we sauntered down the slabs. Gear Notes: Accessories make the outfit.

oh yeah, there are photos attached, didn't notice. --but you sent photos of the the gear used! Please do not continue to enable my own sicko gearheadedness. p.s. What kind of toothbrush is that? Were the shoes comfortable, or were they exquisitely, piercingly painful?

You are a sick, sick gearhead my boy. Which shoes did you wear?

Dru exaggerates, I'm a sad excuse for a ropegun, there were only seven pairs of shoes, three of the five pieces were adequate, one pulled out and one was pretty marginal. The place was alive with snaffles though, no ticks sighted, but I had dozens of twitchy, phantom-tick false alarms. Good times booty

Stuff and nonsense, climbers should be drinking the following highball: Scotch and V8, on the rocks of course. Served in a cracked glass with a delicate stem, and a chalk dusted rim. Lightly swizzled with a nut tool garnished with a lemon twist tied in a double bowline Arrrrrrr

the reverso doesn't develop a sharp edge if you alternate the orientation for raps, ie the free-end is sometimes the climber, sometimes the hand. Yes, it changes amount of resistance, no it's not issue is most situations.

sunshine cubicle mittens

Definitely wear your down jacket in the gym -- it gives everyone else a good giggle. Particularly fine if you wear it while you belay and accessorize with belay gloves and white athletic socks.

I'm glad you asked--down jackets should not be worn in urban areas after memorial day or before labour day, never with white shoes, and always with a hat. They're OK with skirts, but look foolish with shorts.

Evidence of the brayshaw excuse generator in the route desciptions is amusing though.

The wisest thing would have been to get on it early before the day really started to warm up. The first two pitches were the diciest. We just crossed the water as one short pitch to minimize the amount of time that the ropes were exposed to ice fall, and we weren't dallying either as the ice was rather flowy there. Still, the universe could have dropped a big block of ice on my head, but I am humbly grateful that it did not.

Climb: Shannon Falls-regular route Date of Climb: 1/15/2005 Trip Report: The falls froze! Lots of parties taking advantage on Saturday. The falls. We were poking around Lion's Bay and Britannia trying to ID things in the new guide. We thought we'd just stop and have a look at the state of the falls, but it was in, and there were parties on it. Couldn't pass up such a chance to go up even being late and last. As we were coming up through the trees we heard huge chunks coming down. Two parties at the top of the first pitch had been soaked with the splash and were spooked enough to come down. Ice came down the middle open channel. Aside from one crossing, most of the climbing on either side is out of the line of fire. The crossing is one or two quick, very aqueous steps that leave you, the ropes, and the gear lightly iced for the next pitch. The wetness Several easy pitches to the terrace where we escaped into the bushy darkness, leaving a final pitch or so for the next decade when the falls freeze again. Nearing the top. Gear Notes: Headlamp, lots o' gortex Approach Notes: follow the tourists

Prana Organic Grace Sport Top --$43.00 Canadian CCH Aliens Cam--$78.00 Canadian For the price of two sport tops I can buy a new alien and still have cash for several t-shirts from the thrift.

I'm in for any midnight bluffs missions you might be planning

I concur, it was remarkably unwarm in the bluffs on Sun, yet Burgers and Fries was still foolishly crowded. At the base of Peaches and Cream was a smashed TV and lots of glass, a yellow plastic rainhat, a pile of slurpy cups, a tangle of blue polycord, resting next to the anchor was a torn condom packet. Ah, wilderness! Perhaps time for a little cleanup session at that crag.

I loved the euro-spaceship van. I just don't have the posh euro-lifestyle to put in it. All anyone really needs on their list is good weather and a bucket of gumption for sending hard routes (ok, for Dru, two buckets).

Cold day at Squamish.