Dru Posted September 1, 2003 Share Posted September 1, 2003 So Kurt and I went up to the Queen Bess area accompanied by Fern's curse calling for rain every day. It hadn't rained for 2 months in the area more or less but somehow we got precip on 4 of the 8 days we were in the area Saturday 23: drive up. Drink beer with some ppl we know who have just come out from 2.5 weeks of hiking thru the Northern Pantheons. Sounds like a good place to meet grizzly bears up close and personal. Sunday 24: fly in to campsite SE of Armada Mountain. Make pancakes & eat bacon. Clouds over Wadd lower until storm begins 2 hrs after we arrive. Spend rest of day in tents. 2" of new snow then changes to heavy rain and freshiez melt. Mon 25: flat spot tents pitched on becomes lake/4" deep puddle. Lie in waterbed all day reading Charles Dickens. Spend 5 minute spells between rain storms looking for dry boulder cave big enough to use as sheltered shitter. Bit of bouldering here and there on wet rock. Tue 26: move tents to dry rock knoll during 15 minute dry spell. Bit more bouldering during clear breaks of up to 0.5 hour long. Kurt and I send a super cool 15 foot incipient seam on Crack N Ups, zero cams, RPs and hand placed beak. A5 bouldering Wed 27: dawns clear and sunny. Up before sunrise with big packs and off to try QB SE buttress. Get to Armada- 8400 col 1/2 hr above camp and see QB is white withj new snow. Bag easy pks 8400, 8600 and Mantle as consolation. Back to camp. Thurs 28: Off with new plans to try 5.5 north ridge of QB. Cross glacier. Avoid bergschrund with long traverse. Climb couloir to ridge crest c. 9600'. Ridge engulfed in blowing cloud, ice feathers. 5.5 ridge is covered with fresh snow and is horribly loose. Decide to retreat like scared kittens. Back to glacier. See other couloir we could have taken direct to summit icecap by passing loose ridge in favor of mixed rock bands of unknown difficulty. Live and learn. Friday 29: more pancakes and ham and bacon for breakfast. With late start for rest day we climb S ridge of Armada Mountain above camp. 4-5 pitches of 5th to 5.6, lots of class 3-4. Great fun. Narrow exposed sections. Get to summit and find ridge was not FA as we were secretly hoping but had been bagged in 1999 by Renz, Schurr, Martin. Saturday 30. Up earlier and off to climb Silver Swan 9400'. Big glacier hike then a short rock ridge (one pitch class 4-5 at bottom then scrambling) to cool summit with views of everything. See large lenticular clouds forming over Wadd, etc. Back to camp. Rain begins 2 hrs later lasts until late evening. Sun 31: Mike picks us up in chopper at 7:30 AM. Pay bills. Shower. Drive home drinking beer. Discover in Cache Creek that all backcountry travel in SW BC is banned. Figure we should have stayed on the glacier another week or so. fun trip. ate 15 horsecocks in 7 days Atkins Diet obviously worked, lost some weight I would like to go back to this area a little bit earlier in the year next time. Late August was to late for high elevation rock due to snow, and a bit too early for fall ice climbing. From helicopter could see "Phil's Couloir" on Kontlan was totally melted out this year due to hot summer Pictures in a week or two Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sphinx Posted September 1, 2003 Share Posted September 1, 2003 ... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dru Posted September 1, 2003 Author Share Posted September 1, 2003 ... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sk Posted September 1, 2003 Share Posted September 1, 2003 ... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AlpineK Posted September 1, 2003 Share Posted September 1, 2003 ... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fern Posted September 1, 2003 Share Posted September 1, 2003 well, I was hoping that if you had good enough weather to fly in then it would be nice for you to climb all week. Although I was more hoping that the weather would have been too crap to fly in the first place . Let's all go next year. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jordop Posted September 1, 2003 Share Posted September 1, 2003 Surprised you guys could fly in at all; thought all the helis would have been pulled for fire duties. Bring on the pics Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AlpineK Posted September 2, 2003 Share Posted September 2, 2003 The fires up in that neck of the woods are under control, and they don't have a bc ban in effect there. Mike at White Saddle is working 6 hrs a day on the fires though. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dru Posted September 2, 2003 Author Share Posted September 2, 2003 I forgot to mention that due to rain showers I found time to finish a 900 page Charles Dickens book, another 200 page book about a guy making a painting, and AlpineK's funny travel book about Patagonia. It's amazing how much you can read when you don't have cc.com to distract you!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cpt.Caveman Posted September 2, 2003 Share Posted September 2, 2003 Yes the bad weather indeed was happening in August this year it seems. I am convinced July is a better month for me. Rime ice up rock climbs doesnt exactly free you up to get some good swift climbing in. Bummer. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dru Posted September 7, 2003 Author Share Posted September 7, 2003 I put up a real trip report with some photos on bivouac.com. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dru Posted May 6, 2004 Author Share Posted May 6, 2004 now we are going to see if fern's magic rain creating powers really work or whether this was a one time fluke Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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