We touched down in Vancouver early Tuesday evening, eager to embark on a twelve-day British Columbia road trip. We picked up the rental car; grappled with traffic through downtown Van; got lost; got back on route; stopped for dinner at a White Spot near Stanley Park; then over the Lion’s Gate Bridge at sunset, out of the city and jetting up the coastline where the scenery was ethereal in the fading light. By nightfall—which is 10:00 up here in July—we were in Squamish, knocking on the front door of LeRoy Russ’s bayside residence.
In terms of rock climbing, Squamish is Canada’s ground zero, the cat’s meow. Blackish gray monoliths rise out of a rainforest laced with cascading streams, the emerald waters of Howe Sound sparkling offshore. It is the climber’s epitome of Shangri-La in the Pacific Northwest. There are tons of routes here, and more being developed all the time. If the weather held—a chance of rain is always a factor in the PNW—we could get in three or four days of climbing. What better way to kick off a vacation?
Early morning, I rolled out of bed and peered out LeRoy’s living room window to the imposing hulk of the Stawamus Chief shrouded in clouds. Damn. Just as the weatherman had predicted, a front was moving in off the Pacific. Then again, that’s Squamish for you, where it can turn from sunny T-shirt weather to rain parkas, and then back again, in short order.
Our friends Ben Chapman and Pam Neal had arrived at LeRoy’s place a few days earlier—driving all the way up from Los Angeles in two long days—and they had already put in some quality time on the crags before the weather changed. Now we were all sitting around the breakfast table, surfing the internet on laptops, iPhones and crystal balls, looking for just One Sunny Forecast to hang our hat on. Surely the crud would blow over soon. Right? But it was not in the cards.
Since wet rock is not well-suited for climbing, the five of us opted to go for a hike and investigate some routes. First stop was Shannon Falls, where LeRoy led us into the woods along a faint but discernible footpath to the AMO Wall. Deep in the timber, a velvety stillness prevailed. Somewhere up ahead, as yet unseen, was the base of a 400-foot cliff.
We drove to the Smoke Bluffs after lunch, where the morning’s intermittent drizzle turned to rain. But deter us, it did not. Ben was determined to scope out some routes on the numerous crags here, and with guidebook in hand—a challenge to keep dry in the rain—he led the procession up and down the maze of trails that meander through the wooded cliff bands. At one point, Terry and Pam stopped at a short wall with two nice-looking hand cracks slicing up the stone (photo). They pondered the first moves; where to get a good hand jam; where to place that first piece of pro; strategizing and optimizing—in the rain. These ladies are climbers to the core.
The next morning the Chief was still veiled in rain and mist. It struck a menacing pose, rising 2,300 feet above the shores of Howe Sound, dark and gleaming, and erasing all hopes for a climbing agenda. We were grounded for a second day.
LeRoy has made Squamish his summer home since about 2001, ever since retiring from the executive world and taking up mountaineering and skiing full time (yeah, it’s a tough gig, but somebody’s gotta do it). He and his partner, Margo Koss, are both founding members of the SCMA, and each summer they open their BC condo to club members who wish to venture north of the border. My own visits to climb up here with LeRoy have been quite memorable. He is the host with the most.
The town of Squamish, named after the First Nation people who have lived in this region for centuries, got its humble start in the 1910s as the southern terminus of a railroad line that extended into the hinterlands of the province. Built at the head of an ancient fiord, it remained isolated from Vancouver until a highway and railroad could be carved and blasted out along the rugged coastline in the 1950s. Before then, the only way to get here from the city was by ship. The logging industry was big throughout most of the 20th century, but the last lumber mill closed in 2006. Today, with a population of around 17,000, Squamish is the fastest growing town in British Columbia.
The 2002 crime thriller, Insomnia, starring Al Pacino and the late Robin Williams, was filmed in and around Squamish. Al Pacino’s character checked into the old Chieftain Hotel downtown, and a few scenes were shot in its lobby and bar. If you wish to have a drink in a genuine Canadian pub, go here. But if you’re looking for that generic SoCal sports-bar ambiance, then continue down the street to the Howe Sound Brewery.
On the third day, we awoke to blue skies. Yes! Ben and Pam got the drop on us and headed right out to the Smoke Bluffs. I assured them we would catch up. Unfortunately, Ter and I got out there later than anticipated and we couldn’t find them anywhere. It’s easy to get disoriented in the forested maze of trails. We passed one rock formation where I knew Ben had been assessing a route the other day in the rain. But no one was there. Finally we decided to just find something to climb, because it was late morning by then.
We settled on Tunnel Rock for several reasons: 1) The trail we were on just ended there; 2) we had the crag to ourselves, and; 3) we wanted to go climbing NOW. All in all, we scaled five routes. Pictured here is The Constant Gardener (5.8), a delightful crack with a tricky start and perfect hand jams up higher.
Erin is a yoga instructor and lives in town. She rendezvoused with two of her Vancouver friends at Tunnel Rock and they climbed next to us in the afternoon.
One of the Vancouver guys was kind enough to snap a photo of us together (a rarity, except for the occasional selfie). The furry brown mass at Terry’s feet is Erin’s wooly mammoth dog, who adopted us for the afternoon.
When Terry volunteered to lead Easy Skankin' (5.8), I was all for it. I’d watched the Canadians struggle with it earlier, which didn't shore up my confidence much. The technical crux is a slippery off-width crack at the bottom. But the psychological one is near the top where the crack/corner terminates (triangular pod above Terry’s head) and one must step out right, onto the exposed face, and run it out to the chains. Long story short, my wife crushed this route. I followed it, and fell at the off-width. Twice.
Marc and Jillian Cyr joined the crew on Saturday. LeRoy and Ben had picked them up at the airport in Van late the night before, and they were all smiles at the base of the Stawamus Chief the following morning, in the queue to climb Rambles (5.8). Ter, LeRoy and I trailed them as a party of three.
LeRoy cruises up the first pitch of Rambles.
All smiles on Pitch 2 of Rambles. Is she flirting with me?
The usual suspects.
After Rambles, we swung by the Smoke Bluffs to hook up with Ben and Pam. And once again, they were nowhere to be found. We were deliberating in front of the Burgers & Fries Wall, when Marc got the yearning to climb the super-classic and popular Burgers & Fries (5.7), a sweet hand crack up the middle—and there was NOBODY on it. What the heck? Isn’t that why we’re here? Marc racked up while I flaked out the rope. I gave him a belay. He led it in style.
Meanwhile, Pam and Ben, and their cute little dog Sophie, were also climbing at Smoke Bluffs. It would be a couple more days before I finally figured out that my text messages were not being relayed to my phone. Once I changed the settings, a slew of them came in. All along, Pam had been texting me where they were climbing: first at the Neat & Cool Wall; then Fern Gully; then Ronin’s Corner… Jeez. My bad. In the photo (shot by Ben), Pam prepares to send a route, and that’s Sophie belaying her. Sophie can catch a whipper, no problem—just don’t forget to anchor her down.
Returning to the car at the end of the day, we munched on blackberries that grew in thick brambles along the trail. The ladies had a particular knack for picking the sweetest ones. We dropped Marc and Jillian off at LeRoy’s place, where they would spend the night and climb with the rest of the gang tomorrow. As for Ter and I, it was time to move on. We pulled onto Highway 99 and drove deeper into the mountains. Next stop: Pemberton.
For the entire photo album of Squamish, go here...
https://www.flickr.com/photos/91696789@N00/sets/72157648045868632/
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