Once on a rainy day

Mais qu'est-ce qu'on fait ici?

We escaped the rain in Squamish and headed eastwards to the canadian Rockies. Our first stop was in Skaha (Penticton), one of the driest and arid places in Canada, and so hot they even can produce wine there. But here to the rain kept following us. Despite one day of good weather, during which we climbed some shiity rock in the burning sun, we moved our asses out of this not so pretty region and continued our way to the Bow Valley (Banff and canmore). Our Walter survived his first long distance trip and we could enjoy the beautiful Rockies during the ride without worrying about car problems. This part of Canada is the most expensive place on earth. Banff is like Chamonix but without the climbing and mountaineering atmosphere. Instead hordes of tourists are engulfing the region with their RV's and 4x4's. You have to pay for everything here, a basic campsite is 26 dollars and when you enter the Banff national park, you have to buy a pass, none of which we actually did. Sleeping in the car is so much better than being immersed in an elitist campground full of people who just are to lazy to get there asses out to the top of a mountain and instead just walk 500m to a lake, just to return after 30minutes, filling parking lots with tons of cars (literally), and causing problems for other people who really want to enjoy nature during a day trip. Enigo, the Spaniard from Basque Country, who came along with us, went back to Squamish. Just as we did during massive rainfall on this trip, he asked himself "Qu'est-ce que je fais ici?". Me and Tim took advantage of 2 sunny days to hit the rock. We went to Cougar Canyon and Echo Canyon. Although the rock is a bit chossy at times, we could enjoy some routes. I did an 8a and 7c in Cougar creek and Tim could do the same 7c. The approaches to the different sectors are really long, 1 hour minimum, but the good point is, that it's calm and quiet, no crowds or traffic noise, perfect. A few days ago, we took a rest day and went to Moraine Lake and hiked up to the Sentinel pass. No massive tourist invasion up there. Yesterday first shower in 10 days, today again mierda liquida,  and two dirtbaggers who ask themselves "qu'est-ce qu'on fait ici?"

Hails

Hoog Sammie, kijk omhoog Sammie, want dan wordt je lekker nat

The car is in the pocket. Finally freedom and no more walking to buy stuff. It's a 20 year old volvo 740, and it still drives pretty smooth. Only, the left front light is broken, there is no right mirror, the speedometer and odometer are broken. The horn sounds like a coughing chain smoker when honking, and the knalpot is as good as disappeared.  Walter, we have baptised our car, old but undestroyable.

How has the climbing been, well not much "soeps", rain, rain and again rain. Last week, before we get rained out, we did Alaska Highway (5 pitches). A really nice route but it felt so hard for me. The second pitch is a bit overhanging with chimneys. So you have to squeeze and press your a way up. both technical and physical, in the end i did more aid climbing, just pulling on the gear. A really got multiple slabs in the face, also in the next pitch. Offwidths and chimneys are hell if you don't know the technique.

After Alaska highway, you have a ledge and then you can continue with the Calling, what we did. It was already too late to finish the route, so we only did the first 2 pitches, and the second pitch is an amazingly incredible perfect and at least 30m crack. I laybacked it (i can't fucking properly handjam yet). I never shouted so loud in a route before. I finished it with pumped chickenwings.

After that it startyed raining, untill the rain was pouring into our tent. Stinky, humid sleeping bag = not cool. Now both me and my sleeping bag have become first class "dirtbags". I went with Siebe to Murrin park (we call it urine, go to nightmare rock there and you'll know why) to do some single pitches and take a bit easier. We also went to Cheakamus canyon, apparently the only sportclimbing area in the neighborhood. Here we discovered a totally different kind of climbing. The rock is gneiss, a kind of granite bit less rough. Nice to feel sharp crimpers under my fingers again, peeling off  layer after layer of skin. We did some 7th degrees and I could do 8a+ in the big overhang at the end of the day, while being totally frozen, fossilized and feeling cripple like an 80 year old man. That's the time to send things. Bompa Sam did it again.

Yesterday evening Tim went to the presentation of Nina Caprez for the Squamish Mountain festival, while I stayed with siebe in Cheakamus to do the 8a+. When he came back, he was followed by a policecar, but didn't notice it. A liitle bit further he saw the cap and pulled over at the next intersection. He got a fine of 250 bucks, cuz he was driving to fast (speedometer doesn't work remember) and apparently he neglected the the policeofficer in his car. The fact that half of the car is broken, there were 2 people to much in the car, and Tim that had drunken a beer didn't seem to be a problem for the cop (well we can discuss about Tim's alcohol test when the cop couldn't figure out how to use the alcohol blow thing and instead asked "breathe in my face", probably that's the fininf reason) but seeking a safe stopplace and fining you for that is the world going around in squares. If we don't pay in 30 days, we'll get a conviction and we'll have to do collective work instead of the payment. Lol we're moving our asses out of here in the next weeks, so no payment and no problems, although a dry night in the cell is worth the consideration, just a little. 

Walter, the Sportbolide

Fearless creature (mix of rat, mouse and squirrel) - beware, nothing seems what it likes

Second pitch of The Calling - Bambi Sam the beast roaring himself straight to hell

 

Maestro Tim leading and almost dying in the second pitch - begin ma te kwijle

The Big Show wall in Cheakamus

Hails

Busted in the showers

It has been a while since my last post. Meanwhile a lot of things have happened. First the shower story. As there is no shower at the campsite, we wanted to check out the showers at the Klahanie camping 400m down the road, which is forbidden. After a first inspection round, we returned in the evening at 10h, hoping there would be nobody in the showerblock, but we got caught by the raging bull campsite wife while standing under the shower. It freaked us out. The stupid asympathic rich people with a big 4x4 and a cravan as big as my house saw us entering the building. Man that women was dangerous, she almost teared off the showercurtains, grabbing all our stuff, throwing it through the air and forcing us to come out of the shower naked, yelling like "you have no right to be here, you didn't pay, now you have to deal with it". If the women would have had a shotgun, we would now be dead, I can tell you that. But in the end it was a funny experience, standing outside bare naked with people laughing at you.

A 50% shower - we've had a first 100% shower in the rec(reation) center a few days ago, in the swimming pool shower there, bringing no swimming short with us, and thus showering in our underwear - give us enough energy to attack Grand Wall again. This time we did it without problems. After that days of rain kept us away from climbing. The visit of a special guest to our campsite helped us to survive the boring period. A momless little baby bear roamed around for 2 or 3 days searching for food. And food it did found, in the form of all my apples, rice cakes and little triangular breads, our bear boxes didn't close to well and during the night the little one mananged to open the door, grab the food and run off. This was my first bear encounter ever, a wild bear a couple of meters away from me, he being more scared asme. After the sky showed us his blue again, we tried Freeway, another 12 pitch long classical route on the Chief, and slightly harder then the Grand Wall. Reaching the summit, Red didn't want to rappel, he didn't want his ass dangling in the air under a giant roof, so we walked back along the trail, barefooted, 'cuz we didn't bring our shoes with us. Once but not twice. lol

Tim and me are now very excited, because we're going to buy a car. We've met an Australian climber here, Rob Wall (suitable name for a climber) who wants to sell his 20 year old Volvo to us for 700$. A nice deal and a real luxury in "beautiful" British Columbia. The belgian dirtbaggers are almost free to hit the road!!

Hails

Our rack of gear

Me in the Split Pillars

Me in one of the pitches of Freeway

Tim Hulk

Tim in the Split Pillars