TR: Merci Me

[Dru]

Fred T and I had been planning tyo do the S ridge of Atwell due to the perfect conditions. Then Fred invited Ivan, the real life worlds toughest Milkman, along, so we could not leave before Ivan finished his milk run on saturday at noon. Weathe was forecast to crap out starting Sat afternoon. Friday night I call up Fred and say - maybe we should go up n face of Cheam instead, shorter approach and we can come down in the rain Ok. But Fred wasnt all that keen on maybe getting caught by bad weather half way up. So he bailed and I called up old buddy Andy C for some cragging at Squamish.

Andy got off shift at 7AM and promised he would be ready to go, even if not awake, by 9:30 AM. So I left Chilliwack around 8 to a clear sky with increasing cloud. Showers started 5 minutes away from Andy's place in West Van. Andy was actually awake and we discussed possibilities on the drive up to Squamish. Going past Murrin we considered climbs under the Big Daddy roof but did not stop. Instead we screeched in to the Grand parking lot with our sights set on Merci Me based on Andy's assertation that it was "under a roof" and therefore would remain dry

Hiked up the soaking wet Flake trail and scrambled across to the base of MM which I had never climbed before (saving the Grand Wall for the onsight, see ) There was a steady drip coming from the grey skies as I began climbing the first pitch Cairns style with thick wool socks under my slippers. It was certainly damp but all edging so I did not peel off through the celebrated runouts and eventually arrived at the belay only kind of wet. A huge slime strewak was pouring downthe next pitch but Andy said it "didnt look too bad" and headed off anyways./ The crux, conveniently only about 5m past the first bolt, is actually a friction type move but Andy put 25 years of technique to good use and somehow stemmed up past it on bizarre non holds and eventually ended up at the belay.

I was quite glad to be on TR to follow this pitch which is 5.8 when dry. The interesting crux move involved some shenanigans that probably were not necessary when dry but was good fun with water running down my neck and arms in what was now a steady downpour. Arrived at belay and we began rappels. Ropes were now soaked and the familiar "brown fountain" spraying out of the rappel device was certainly something I would have felt quite happy to do without. Got back to base, quite damp, and hiked back down to car. strangely there were few to no boulderers out enjoying the cool temperatures so conducive to good friction

Went into Squamish. drank coffee. Bought climbing magazines. Shot the shit with Robin about his new Unimog truck. Shot the shit with McLane about him cracking the whip on Serl and Jones to get their new guidebooks out. went home.

I figured out I drove about 300km to climb less than 100m of rock. That's pretty good for February. Strangely enough it neve rained all day out in the Fraser Valley and bouldering conditiions near Hope wre allegedly ideal. Of course I went out there on sunday and it just chundered down. Sat under a dry rock for an hour waytching the drizzle descend on the frozen lake, and swirls of smoke arise from my pipe...hobbit style.

Oh the joys of late winter rock climbing.

PS it was 16C and sunny in Squamish on Friday.

[specialed]

Rain just follows you around, eh? Sounds like an adventure though. I thought Merci Me was exciting enough when dry!

[Dru]

quote:

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Originally posted by specialed:

Rain just follows you around, eh? Sounds like an adventure though. I thought Merci Me was exciting enough when dry!

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I think it would be a good route to dry tool your way up as all the holds are edges.

[Cairns]

quote:

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Originally posted by Dru:

our sights set on Merci Me based on Andy's assertation that it was "under a roof" and therefore would remain dry

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My asserwhatever was that this route can be done wet. Dru's amazing if over-active mental storehouse must have added the "under a roof" part.

I would have approached the situation differently had I known that Dru had not been up MM before. Like maybe I would have said something about the pitch, like it's soaking wet steep face but has good edges and there are just the 3 bolts.

I should have picked up when Dru said, "Have you got me on belay?" Sure, buddy, get back to me when you get to that first bolt.

[Dru]

I thought it was amazingly well protected compared to oh, say, Question of Balance or White Lightning. But the latter two are probably even harder when they're wet!

[Cpt.Caveman]

I saw one of my old partners do white lightning in his tennies. I still cant do it in my rock shoes on tr over 5 years later

[miker]

Well I headed for 'sunny' california for the weekend.

Arrived LAX 11pm friday night.Arrived friends place in Long Beach Midnight.4 hrs of sleep.4am head for Jtree.6:30 get to Yucca Valley have breakfast, it is 36F7:30 arrive at Hemingway wall, it is 45F and warming up nicely in the sun.Head up some 5.7, forgot the name, feeling unimpressive after 6 months of gym climbing, but make it 3/4 of the way, then on advice from the only other group around I turn right instead of left and end up trying to finish poodles are people too, which is only 10b, but I flail and fall and grab at my last piece to keep from decking to hard on the ledge below me, but the piece pops and I fall 25 ft. Good gash on the leg and ankle, Joshua Tree rock as always leaves a mark. Then I finish the route the proper way belay my partners up to the top, then top-rope that last section of poodles and the moves are so easy I slap myself. Then my buddies ask if I am ok with all the blood on my face...seems that I have a ding in my forehead which is bleeding like a mother. I believe the piece I grabbed, a red micro-camalot has made a nice triangular dent in my forehead. I'll put up some pics. Anyway, on to another climb, 5.6 so I can get over the 'blood-loss" and then I try to toprope a 10d, flail like a wussy boy and quit. Quick lunch break, then off to Echo Cove. Friend Matt goes up a 5.9 slab, which has texture, but little in the way of hands so he scares himself before making it up in style. Speaking of falling on slabs he took the best fall I have seen in a while and just slid down on toes and hands about 15 feet, no blood, no muss. I climb the 5.9 which was a stellar lead and then TR the 5.10a next to it which is even thinner, but all that thin stuff I've been playing on in the gym seems to have worked some magic. Then across the way to Boulderdash, an excellent wall with 5.7-5.11 variations on wonderfully featured rock, I climb 5 different routes on the same TR all excellent. Sun is starting to set so we pack up and I run up a couple boulder problems some guys are working on and now I feel studly. So for a day where I never led anything over a 5.7 I feel good, gonna have to push that a little next time...3 weeks from now.

Now I am back in the cold and damp.

miker