Gripped: The Climbing Magazine October & November / Vol 21 issue 5

It was one of the best summers of sends across Canada, from hard boulders to big alpine routes. A new route was climbed on Mount Waddington by Ian Welsted and Simon Richardson over five days. Local legend Don Serl said, “It’s a beautiful, classic line that I had my eyes on for a long time.” Also on the coast, new alpine routes were climbed on Vancouver Island’s Tom Taylor and Rugged Mountain. There’s a new group of alpinists climbing those big routes that the previous generation skipped over. In Squamish, the new seven-pitch 5.11a Deep Impact was made public thanks to work by Jon Rigg, Brent Goodman, Kaylan Worsnop and Danny Guestrin on the Dog Wall. In Yukon, climbers got a new bouldering guidebook, which features dozens of five-star granite…

Arc’teryx Alpha SL Glove $100 Like all Arc’teryx accessories, the Alpha SL (super light) is a durable glove designed to be flexible and give you the protection you need on mixed and early-season alpine climbs. Recommended for the climber going after technical drytool routes. The North Face L5 Futurelight Jacket $850 This amazing new jacket is part of The North Face’s new line of Futurelight products hitting the shelves this season. It has a very breathable shell that works great for alpine and ice climbing. It blocks the wind and precipitation and any moisture from the inside escapes with ease. Highly recommended for backcountry climbers and skiers this year. Keen Felderg APX Waterproof $250 A European-designed retro hiker with deep lugs and environmentally preferred leather. The breathable and waterproof Felderg…

Mark Twight was one of the most influential climbers of the 1980s and 1990s, and he pushed the limits of winter climbing in the Canadian Rockies. He’s climbed so many dangerous and difficult alpine and ice routes that he’s regarded as one of the boldest climbers to ever have visited many of the world’s great ranges. He was one of the first climbers to encourage light and fast single-push climbing and, he holds one of the Rockies most outrageous speed records. He’s returning to Banff this fall to speak at the Banff mountain festival about his new book, Refuge, and the sport of climbing. 1 What was the last climb you did in Banff? Honestly, I don’t remember. But the last time I was there and did any climbing would…

New 22-Pitch Alpine Route on Vancouver Island Ahren Rankin, James Rode and Garner Bergeron made the first ascent of a 22-pitch route on Vancouver Island’s Rugged Mountain that goes at V 5.10 A0. Rankin said after, “The intention of establishing the route the way we did was to leave behind a large and safe alpine climbing route which could be attempted by climbers of various ability levels, with the bolted belays allowing for rapid retreat back down the route if necessary. The initial 13 pitches may become a popular climb unto themselves with about 600 metres of climbing to only 5.8 and a comfy bivy site at the top, before entering the more challenging climbing through the upper buttress. On the upper wall, we climbed more exciting pitches on very…

Dexter Sends Shining Dexter Bateman sent The Shining 5.13+ on Mount Louis in August. It took him over 10 trips over a few years to piece the 15-pitch route together. South Howser Rockfall In mid-August, the South Howser Tower suffered a massive rockfall next to The Beckey/Chouinard. Although no one was injured, the collapse was a reminder that alpine peaks are constantly crumbling away. Sean McColl Olympics Sean McColl finished tenth overall at the world championships in August and secured his position on the Canadian Olympic Team heading to Tokyo in 2020. Combined World Champions Tomoa Narasaki and Janja Garnbret won gold at the 2019 world championships. Garnbret is also this year’s world champion in bouldering and lead climbing. New Everest Rules Nepali officials proposed new safety rules that will…

I worked at a golf course for a number of years, but I barely ever golfed because I hate it. This begs the question as to why I would work at a golf course, not for just a year, but for multiple years. It’s a long story that adds nothing to the narrative here. Golf has got one thing right, though: an established etiquette surrounding passing. Climbing, for some reason, has yet to firm up the same tradition, or at least in my opinion has yet to do so. There have been incidences of this on two occasions in as many weeks. Both of these had a very similar theme. A slower group doing everything in its power to stay in front of me and my partner. On both of…