Perry Creek - sport n trad crag | 5.7 - 5.9

Day three of our trip saw us rained out. Day four, the forecast seemed promising for a solid 20 - 24 hours ish of dry weather so planned for an alpine day.  Well the forecast was wrong, again. We were up early and at the trail head early but wet weather and low cloud drove us back to the low valley. After some fresh coffee we regrouped and took advantage of my new rock guide for the East Kootenays and we headed to Perry Creek crag. Not the alpine experience we wanted, but an awesome crag!

Crag from the road.

Our parking area (a little further than needed)

Looking up Right Hand Slab, bolted 5.9

Base of "Split the Trees" burly 5.9, bolted.

Fun 5.7 trad route.

We each lead about 12 routes, mostly bolted 5.9 routes, but I lead a real cool trad 5.7 route.  Perry Creek has a lot of routes from 5.6 to about 5.13, definitely worth a visit.

Mt. Sabine - South Face. "Funny Bunny" 5.9, 90m. "Limestone Cowboy" 5.7, 250m

Originally Laurie and I had planned a whole bunch of long rock alpine routes, including a first ascent route, but the 5 to 6 days we had arranged had the wettest weather yet in all of 2016.  Since we had work and family obligations, the dates were set and we tried to make the best of it.  First day of real climbing found us on the South Face of Mt. Sabine which is in the Rockies, but on the western edge of the Rockies in the Columbia Valley, directly above the town of Canal Flats, B.C. (50.1754, -115.7917).

South Face of Mt. Sabine

Mitch Thornton, who passed away recently (2014), developed many routes on this face and provided great route beta on his page. Hopefully this great website is maintained, RIP Mitch, thanks for the beta. UPDATE OCTOBER 2018, Mitch's old website is now down, likely forever?  I will search for the beta I have and update more here and potentially on Mountain Project in the near future. 

http://www.fivetenelectric.com/fun/climbing/rock_climbing.html

Easy access to the parking area, via the Kootenay Forest Service Road (same FSR used for approaching the ice climbing venue of Gibralter Wall). The parking area is 2.5 km from the four stop in Canal Flats, simply head west along the Kootenay FSR, up the hill, then park in a large clearing. The South Face of Mt. Sabine is easily reached with a variety of old roads and trails to the steep scree slope below the face, about one hour to the base of the sport route Funny Bunny. On this face is also an old school Pat Morrow and Bernhard Ehmann multi-pitch trad route put in 1977.  This old route and the approach sport set by Mitch Thornton and Katrin Olivaw had been on my radar for a few years.  We used the sport set multi-pitch route, “Funny Bunny” - 5.9, bolted, as the approach for Morrow/Ehmann route “Limestone Cowboy” - 5.7, trad.  Funny Bunny is recommended; a three pitch bolted route overall about 100 metres.  Mitch has a good topo with a short description for the pitches.

Funny Bunny marked in blue, Limestone Cowboy marked in red.

We split pitch1 into two pitches and combined last two pitches into one longer pitch. Our route line in red, described route in blue.

Sort of by accident, we did the described first pitch in two pitches and the last two described pitches in one long pitch.  Mitch’s description is better, I had a ton of route drag on the top of pitch three. I would suggest the ratings are a bit off, I would say pitch 1 is 5.9 and the rest of the route around 5.7 to 5.8, with short easier sections.  Laurie lead pitch 1 and I lead pitch 2 and 3. Most pitches are well protected by bolts, with the described first pitch being the longest with about 10 bolts. Overall good rock and a recommended route.

LK leading P1 of Funny Bunny. 

LK setting belay at first bolts, about 20m above base of route.

Looking up our P2 on Funny Bunny.

Looking down to our second belay station.

LK nearing top of Funny Bunny.

More LK.

I was most interested in the 1977 Morrow/Ehmann trad route.  After climbing Funny Bunny, there is a short scree traverse to the reach the single bolt station at the bottom of the broad corner start, this leads to the long obvious ramp section of the route. The long ramp is a bit tricky to see from the road, but it provides the most consistent path up the big South Face on Mt. Sabine, great route selection by Pat and Bernhard!

Short traverse to Limestone Cowboy from top of Funny Bunny.

LK on ledge between routes.

Looking up pitch 1 of Limestone Cowboy.

The route climbs about 250 metres, first on a left leaning ramp, intersected by a low angled corner. This corner is mostly good for gear and laybacks or hands where it is steep. The ramp has a few short steep sections in the lower part, then after about 50 metres gets a bit steeper, then lower angle again. The long ramp ends at a roof that is fairly big and it must be traversed to continue climbing; head left across a very exposed face, protected by a bolt, then an old piton. Once across the face, an easy gully leads to the top of the face.

The ramp has been used by local climbers to provide access up the face to create additional trad and sport routes.  Even with this traffic, the majority of Limestone Cowboy is very dirty with small pebbles and dirt and it has a lot of loose rock.  Overall I would not recommend Limestone Cowboy since it is mostly easy with short sessions of good corner climbing (5.7+), but most of the route is terribly loose. 

In order to save time, we used the bolted stations along Limestone Cowboy in the lower section where these newer routes are developed. This resulted in short pitches, but the climbing was pretty quick and the stations were in good spots that reduced rope drag and were usually in sheltered locations. If all the bolted stations are used, and one trad anchor used (our eventual station for the top of pitch 4), Limestone Cowboy would be 8 pitches.

LK leading pitch 1 on Limestone Cowboy.

First pitch had a tough 5.7 corner with poor feet to get you into the groove of the route, good trad protection; Laurie’s lead about 25 metres. I lead the second pitch, dirty, scappy 5.7 corner, about 30 metres to the bolted station. Laurie lead pitch 3, more consistent 5.7 corner, good gear and cleaner, overall a good pitch, about 30 metres.

Old piton on pitch 2 of Limestone Cowboy.

Looking down our pitch 2 of LC.

Looking up pitch 3 of Limestone Cowboy.

I lead up pitch 4 and past a bolted station since it was very close to the previous station.  Headed up for a bit of a rope stretcher and had to downclimb to get a better position for the station, about 60 metres to my first belay location.  Eventually we decided I would lead pitch 5, which leads across the crux of the route, a steep, very exposed face section. This required a lower trad built anchor station since my position wasn’t in a great location.  When I headed out for the crux we got hit by a big and very soaking thunderstorm. I retreated to the anchor which was sheltered from the rain by the large overhanging roof.  After about 2 hours of waiting, we decided the route was way too wet and the rain really didn’t stop and the temperature was too cold for the route to dry out.

LK leading up pitch 3 of Limestone Cowboy.

Long and complicated descent but we finished our last rap without the need for the headlamps, but hiked out was in the dark and rain.  Despite the poor quality of the route, we may be back one day; I left a quick draw on the top, I don’t like leaving gear behind ;-)

Hoka Hey! - 5.8+, 410m (9 pitches)

Long, sustained and challenging rock route, at least for Laurie and I. We enjoyed the variety and interesting climbing on this recent route on the South West Face of Mt. Cory.  This new route is adjacent to the famous climb Cory Crack and has a relatively short approach (about one hour) through pleasant forest and meadows. Long route, 9 pitches, most at 50 or 55 metres in length, with a lot variety of climbing.  Great views north to Castle and the Lake Louise peaks.  First ascent by the “Banff Climbers Club” in 2014.  Hoka Hey means “let’s go” in the Lakȟóta Sioux language. It was often combined with the phrase “it’s a good day to die” as part of a war cry shouted while riding into battle; we both felt like we had been to battle after swapping leads on this route.  In my view, a competent 5.8 to 5.9 lead climber will find this route a serious challenge.

Great route details here:

http://banffrock.ca/pdfs/MountCorySouthPeak_MK_Feb2015.pdf

http://tabvar.org/taxonomy/term/93

The description does say regarding the third pitch, “Some climbers will feel this pitch deserves the 5.9 grade but if you are familiar with limestone stemming corners it is 5.8, albeit every single move is that hard.” This pitch is rated at 5.8+, IMHO is at least 5.9, but I am less familiar with limestone stemming corners.  Be prepared for a full 55 metres of nonstop and sustained 5.9 hard moves all the way up.

View up pitch 3.

Laurie's shot on second up P3.

The next pitch, fourth pitch, is rated 5.8 and it is very solid 5.8. Pitches 7 and 8, are both rated at 5.8, again, IMHO, there are several very difficult moves in each pitch, and should be rated higher than 5.8, likely 5.9. The eighth pitch is lightly bolted and described as “mixed” using both bolts and trad placements. The bolts are in the perfect locations, with cams providing easy and ample protection in between the bolts. Overall this route packs a big punch, but if you are interested in some old school sustained climbing at the 5.8 to 5.9 level, but nicely protected by bolts; I would recommend this route.

LK leading up P4.

Looking up pitch 7 and 8.

LK about to launch onto P7.

KB sending us home on P9.

"East Peak of Wendell Mountain" - Scramble

Headed out to enjoy more of the summer like weather in early spring on May 6. This was an extra special trip since I had the chance to reunite with an old high school buddy. Richard J. and I were great friends in high school and a few years afterwards. We had some incredible times together, usually involving a lot of beer, lots of friends and many, many laughs. As we started our post-secondary careers we lost touch and somehow drifted apart.  I hadn’t spoken with Richard in over 25 years when he connected with me last fall.  Turns out that Richard is also an avid backpacker and scrambler, funny we didn’t find each other sooner in the Rockies.

Even with the warm and dry winter, Richard and I didn’t have the opportunity to get out for a scramble until early May.  After reviewing our lists of summits, and of course we didn’t want to repeat summits, we decided on our objective. Neither of us had been to CMC valley behind Yamnuska (Mount John Laurie). Andrew Nugara’s book describes two scrambles (Wendell Mountain and East Peak of Wendell) in the CMC valley. The description for East Peak of Wendell sounded like there was great rock scenery and options for ascent, so we chose this objective. I needed to be home for family obligations before dinner time, so left town early and were leaving the parking lot at first light.  The drive out had a fair amount of fog along the highway, which cleared when we parked, but nearing tree line on the Yam shoulder, we were treated to interesting views of fog formations in the Bow Valley.

The day warmed up quickly and soon we were descending into the picturesque CMC valley.  Andrew’s description of the “scenic route” along the south flanks of East Peak of Wendell sounded like a good choice, and it was. The rock scenery is impressive; looming canyon walls, tall vertical cliffs and interesting boulder/pillar debris make this lower traverse super enjoyable.  These cliffs (Frodo Buttress, The Runes, Runewall and Bilbo Buttress) provide many rock routes, worth a visit in the future (see Bow Valley Rock by Chris Perry for beta on rock routes).

"Wendell Mtn" left and "East Peak of Wendell Mtn" on right

Great rock scenery

Cool canyon

Cool rocks

Once completing the lower traverse, you arrive at the base of the broad South Ridge of the East Peak. Most of this next section is a mindless loose scree slog, but the descent was soft underfoot and fast. Section of slabs, and a couple of interesting slab/corner sections, provide relief from the scree grind, and then the final south summit ridge is reached. This provides a firm rock ridge the opportunity to get some fun exposure on the way to the summit.  The summit cairn did not contain a register, just a hollow black tube.

Fun slab section

Summit ridge

Summit cairn

Lakeview boys (trouble in the 1980's)

Richard and I shared our first summit with warm sun and great front range views.  Quick descent, with an awesome fast scree run. We found a good trail to the old road in the valley bottom and had less luck with a light bushwhack up to the Yam shoulder crest. Down a more direct trail on the east end and we were back to car nice and early.  Great trip and fantastic weather with an old friend.

Fast descent

Hot Fuzz - 5.8, 80m (2 pitches)

Hot Fuzz is a recent two pitch sport route on Whiteman's Crag. First ascent by Brendon Pullan and Darren Vonk in September 2013. Fun slab climbing on the lower pitch, then fun face climbing with a super fun arete on the upper second pitch. Appropriately bolted and graded, a fun 5.8. Recommended. Links to great route beta below.

http://gripped.com/routes/the-route-hot-fuzz-and-sharknado-on-kanga-south/

http://brandopullan.blogspot.ca/2013_09_01_archive.html

Looking up pitch one.

Traverse to first anchor on pitch one.

Laurie on the way to first anchor.

View up pitch two.

OSWB at top of route; hoping for more cool climbing.

Sharknado - 5.9, 100m (4 pitches)

“Sharknado” is a recent, bolted, 4 pitch route, on an older crag. Whiteman’s Crag was mostly developed in the 1980’s and mostly as a trad crag.  The super quick access, great southern sun exposure and compact rock with several fun roofs make this a great spot.  Apparently this crag is not as popular as it once was, but maybe a few new lines will bring back interest to this cool crag. The crag is above the now busy road above the dam above Canmore between EEOR and Ha Ling Peak, maybe that is why the crag is less popular?  I didn’t mind the traffic.

Looking up pitch one from bottom of route.

I got the beta on this route last year and had hoped to combine it with “Hot Fuzz”, also a recent bolted 2 pitch 5.8 route, but Laurie and I only had a short afternoon window to climb so we only got to enjoy “Sharknado”. Established by Brandon Pullan and Gaby James in September 2014, this four pitch routes weaves in between two old trad routes and picks the best rock.  Well spaces bolts and fun positions on the cruxes make this a super fun route; totally recommended.

http://gripped.com/routes/the-route-hot-fuzz-and-sharknado-on-kanga-south/

I led the two bottom pitches. Pitch one is 5.8 30 metres. Start up a broken ramp to thin face holds and right facing corner. Step left out of corner at the top, avoid loose rock up and right, eight bolts. Pitch two is 5.9 and only 15 metres, but I had to think about the 5.9 roof mantle seriously, tricky and small holds to clear this roof, but well protected by bolts; a total of 6 bolts on this pitch.

Start of the corner on pitch one, about half way up.

About half way up pitch two, just below the crux roof moves, there were a few 5.9 move to get here, then some big moves on very small hands and feet to clear the roof, good thing it is well bolted.

Pitch three, Laurie’s lead, is 5.8 35 metres. Head up a cool arête and stemmed up the gully. Cross left on to the wall and excellent grey stone. Straight up to a ledge. Eight bolts (extend the second and third bolts).

Laurie about half way up pitch 3. This section was fun, tough 5.8, small face holds.

I led the last pitch, super fun, cool side pulls for most hands, is 5.7 about 20 metres and 6 bolts. Descent is rap from each anchor to the next. We used a 70 single rope and had lots of spare rope; a 60 metre rope would just make the second rap with rope stretch, be very careful if rappelling with a 60 metre rope. Great day out, close to Canmore and super easy approach. We will be back for Hot Fuzz and maybe some of the trad routes.

Looking up last pitch.

On rap from top anchor.