marc_leclerc

Have you forgotten about your Canadian cohort??? Too bad I'm pretty much only available Weekends. Then again you should come out for a week or two again this summer.

Nice looking climb!

haha... thats exactly what I tell my Mom all the time....

I don't seek any fame for being the youngest Canadian at 7000m, I just want to go there and climb. The 'young' thing is what might help us get there, the 'catch' as some call it. Just so that you dont get the wrong idea, Im really not a fan of blowing my own horn and attracting attention to myself, I just enjoy climbing. I'll make a statement about being the youngest to help attract a sponsor or two but my intention is not to go down in a record book, my intention is for an amazing and beatiful climb to go down in my internal memory book.

Will it hamper you flow of movement on the overhangs when it is cliped to your gearloop? Just a small concern of mine before I pick one up?

Off-Chimneys are scary without, duh...

Immature

There is the ocassional car once past Williams Lake. No lines in the road after a short while and we just drove all over the place at reckless speeds, watch out for occasional cows that may ram you or something...

This seems like a great opportunity to spray about grades...

Can style points be awarded for taking an upside down whipper, cutting a leg open and decking then getting up and finishing the lead? Just asking?

I liked what you said about never backing off because your tools were not up to the job. I basically never have much money so Im currently climbing on POS lucky 007 tools. I have climbed on much better curved, leashless tools but like you said Ive never not been able to climb something because my tools suck, only because i suck But I am pretty darn excited to get rid of them and pick up some Cobras or something...

Great Post Dane! I really like the part about leashless tools. YOur hands DO stay warmer and you can shake out so easily. If you can hang onto bad holds on rock than hanging onto these handles is super easy. I can do a 4 minute hang on my hang board no problem, I have never climbed a pure ice climb that required hanging 100% on my arms for that time. Leashless = easier. As for these easy to place screws, I don't see many people placing 15 screws per pitch. I run it out sometimes because placing screws takes a lot of timeand Im too ADHD for that stuff. I do appreciate being able to twist in a screw in 30 seconds on the steep stuff. The first time I tried headless, leashless Z-handle tools I was skeptical but I climbed pure ice just as well/better that with leashed tools with adzes and hammers. Not having an adze isn't much of a disadvantage as you can do the same stuff just as well with a pick.

I know that it costs a lot of money to get there.

SICK! Thats Huge!

No, I think the ice may have been softer or something as it was warmer for us. I was pretty easy to get sticks on the first or second swing.

Trip: Sumallo Bluffs - Manning Park - Landmark Gully Date: 2/21/2009 Trip Report: So after scoping Sumallo Bluffs out after climbing in Box Canyon last weekend Don and I were looking forward to heading up this weekend. When Jesse and Graham climbed 'Anthrax Ripple' and 'Landmark' and posted their photos I could hardly focus in class, I just stared at the clock every day wathcing it tick towards the weekend second by second. I had Friday off school so my girlfriend, Tamara, and I headed into the Chehalis Valley to climb some quality sport routes. I managed to get my mind of the Sumallo Bluffs for a while as I pumped my way through the overhanging crux of Pneumonic, the best sport route in the Fraser Valley, but as soon as I got home I got on the phone and gave Don a call to plan for Saturday. My alarm started schreeching loudly at 4:45 AM and although I felt inclined to either throw the clock or shoot myself I took control of my anger at being so rudely awakened and simply flicked the 'off' on the alarm. Don showed up at 5:00 and we headed out to the Bluffs, stopping to grease up at McDonalds on the way, and arrived at 6AM on the dot. We left the car at 6:20, crossed the mighty Sumallo River on a downed tree and hiked into the base of Landmark gully, ariving at the ice at 6:10. The first pitch did not look difficult so we pulled out the tools and started soloing. The ice was a bit funky on the first step in places but never too bad. We tromped up the gully on frozen snow and some ice then soloed another WI3 step to the base of the 'big flow' leading up the curtain. We pulled out the ropes and I started up the spectacular flow consisting of nearly perfect ice. This 60 meter pitch had two distinct steep sections which were highly featured, providing many natural footholds and easy tool placements with minimal swinging. The pitch verged on WI4 in the steep section but also had some nice rest stances after every steep section where one could easily rest the calves and put in a screw. Let's say, 60m WI4-. Don followed the pitch and climbed past my belay up a 35 meter flow of easy grade 2 ice to the base of the spectacular upper curtain. I quickly rambled up to the belay below the curtain, had a drink and a sandwich and gave all the hardware to Don. He racked up and started climbing the ramp behind the curtain until he reached a gap and pulled around the corner onto the face of the curtain. I listened as Don swung his ice tools into the front of the curtain but could not see him climbing as my belay was located behind the curtain. I payed out the rope until I heard Don yell 'secure' with only 5 meters of rope to spare; another long pitch! I started up the ramp in behind the curtain and noticed that the roped were dripping water onto my legs, when I pulled out of the gap onto the front of the curtainI could see the reason for this. The left side of the curtain was spitting water everywhere! I felt like someone had turned the tap on above me as I quickly climbed the steep curtain trying to avoid getting soaked as much as possible. I climbed up to where the angle eased back and sure enough, there was a small hole in the ice with water gushing out of it like a shower nozzle. The rest of the final pitch was lower angled but the ice plated in a couple spots and was a bit funky in other spots, but overall still nice climbing. We had both expected to curtain to be much harder but the ice was easy to get placements in and there were spots to stem on to get some weight of the arms so in the end it wasn't bad at all. Instead of being the WI5 we were expecting it was more like a solid WI4, maybe 4+ but certainly not a 5. Jesse and Graham had rapped the route on Abalakovs and we used the in-situ anchors and cruised down the route with 6 rappels. The hike out the the car was nice and easy, crossing the river on the same log we came in on. Hopefully the log doesn't get washed away as it makes access much simpler. After drving around a bit and taking pictures of the other routes for future reference we drove back to Agassiz and showed up at my place at 5:00, 12 hours after leaving. Overall the route was excellent and the ice was very good. The curtain was like climbing vertical ice in the shower bit it wasn't too bad and all worth getting a bit wet in the end. The ice might stick around for a while if it doesn't get 'too' warm or rain on it a lot. Lets keep out fingers crossed! Landmark Gully: P1: 30m WI3 (soloed) P2: 25m frozen snow/easy ice (soloed) P3: 30m WI3 (soloed) P4: 60m WI4- P5: 35m WI2 P6: 55m WI4/4+ Landmark (left) Busowski/Kippan (right) Landmark Don Approaching the Ice Don Soloing the second WI3 Step Don Starting up the 'Big Flow' Pitch Don finishing up the 'big flow' Pitch Don heading up towards the Curtain View from my Belay Daggers Hanging off the Upper Curtain Don Sneaking in Behind the Curtain Rappeling the Route Rappeling the Route Leave the Waders at Home! Gear Notes: 12 Screws, two 60m ropes, plenty of slings & biners. Approach Notes: Cross River on Fallen Tree Below Busowski/Kippan. Head over the the base of 'Landmark' Gully and hike up to the ice. (50min)

great song... aerosmith classic [video:youtube]v=62_w7WmQmRo

Maybe the North Face Couloir of Slesse could be one of the best lines. Hiking snowy logging roads in the dark also seems pretty popular... not my favourite though.

i didn't really think of it that way until now Dru... jeez, way to corrupt

fuck money, i'm going climbing!

I facebooked your mom

Hey Don, check the Manning Park Forecast. It doesn't look too bad up there and the ice is pretty close to the park...

What a great day! Great route, great conditions, great company... Sumallo looks SICK right now, Crunchy Frog and Landmark looks particularily sweet IMO Box Canyon = Sumallo Bluffs = :tup:

Deeping Wall TR Jolly Rancher lead

Well... I hiked to the end of the road a week ago today... i'm in.... what route do you propose we ascend??? I can bring all my aid gear and hanging BAT tents...