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Ghost
climber
A long way from where I started
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Oct 10, 2011 - 12:28pm PT
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Jim Campbell, who added the two [short] extra pitches, and pulled the name switch, was also the guidebook writer at the time. Hmmmmmmmmm..... The power of the pen!
I doubt there was any evil intent. When Steve Loomer and I climbed what later became Rock On, no one knew where Bastille was. It was one of those mystery routes that had been reported in the old guidebook, but which no one knew anything about. When I made my first foray up into the South Gully I was actually looking for Bastille, but couldn't find anything that matched the guidebook description.
When I tried to find someone to join me in an attempt on a corner system I saw up there, no one was interested. The consensus was that there wasn't anything in the Gully worth the effort of bushwhacking in (no trail in those days), and even if whatever I had found did turn out to be a decent climb, no one would ever bother with it. Loomer, who was a close friend and my regular partner, finally gave in, but made it clear he was doing it as a favor, not because he thought there would be anything worth climbing.
So we climbed three pitches, then exited right (down gully) on a ramp we found. We had to excavate every piton placement, and found no evidence of any previous activity. Not a pin scar, no disturbed dirt, no slings, no bolts. Nothing. Which is not to say that Hamish didn't climb the same corner, but as far as we knew, we were the first party on the thing.
The next summer Don Serl and I went up and gave it a thorough cleaning. We didn't name it, but we did tell anyone who would listen that it was a great climb.
Over the next couple of years, it began to get traffic, and eventually Jim Campbell and Bob Millward realized that a continuation was possible. They added their new pitches, which took the route to its present finish, above Baldwin Ledge. They also named it, but given that as far as they knew they were pioneering new ground, it is hardly reasonable to accuse Jim of subsequently using his position as writer of a guidebook to revise history. They, and everyone else, believed that Loomer and I had done a new three-pitch route, and that Jim and Bob had added a couple of additional pitches.
Whatever its history, Rock On is a great climb. With the dirt and bush removed, it offers five pitches of superb free climbing at a modest (5.10) standard, in an amazing location.
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bmacd
Mountain climber
100% Canadian
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Oct 10, 2011 - 12:36pm PT
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I have posted this shot before ... good chance to sneak it in again !
about halfway on the route I think
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Ghost
climber
A long way from where I started
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Oct 10, 2011 - 12:44pm PT
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about halfway on the route I think
Pitch 3. The only pitch on the climb that didn't require extensive cleaning -- because it is mostly under that big slanting roof on the right.
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Reilly
Mountain climber
The Other Monrovia- CA
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Oct 10, 2011 - 01:01pm PT
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Yes, there is someone there!
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thekidcormier
Trad climber
squamish, b.c.
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Oct 10, 2011 - 01:13pm PT
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That looks like the awkward section before the traverse to the base of the final corner, what a superb route, I scored a cluster of booty in the final corner earlier this season, 4 nuts, a quick draw and 2 lockers(right before the persistently wet spot)!
-@Anders; I just finished reading the entirety of your history project, very nice work, I think, at some point, you should publish it into material world perhaps in hard cover edition. I would certainly like to have some of your storys and pictures in book form on my coffee table.
P.S.-
..looks like those damn kids and their damn spray paint got to the Granddaddy overhang.. gonna have to break out the sand blaster...
Also during this wonderful turkey holiday I met a gent by the name of Mike Boniville, who spent alot of time climbign in squamish in the 70s, any buddy recall this fellow?
-Luke
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Ghost
climber
A long way from where I started
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Oct 10, 2011 - 01:23pm PT
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Here's a clearer shot of a climber in about the same spot as GF in Bruce's photo above.
Note: Not my photo. I'll remove it if asked.
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Mighty Hiker
climber
Vancouver, B.C.
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Oct 10, 2011 - 05:18pm PT
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Thanks, M. Cormier. The idea is to produce a printed history of Squamish, in due course, building on the stuff that's here and elsewhere. Certainly covering the period from the beginnings through the later 1980s in detail, with some on the later things. I've started interviewing people with a videocamera, both for that and for general oral history purposes. That will take a bit of time, but I'm starting with climbers from the 1950s and 1960s. I visited Ed and Debi Cooper in Sonoma recently for an interview. It's possible that the book might include a DVD, with excerpts from the interviews, and extra photos and documents that don't fit in the book.
Areas where I'll likely need help, apart from information, editing and publication, include things like scanning and sometimes restoring photos and documents, and layout and design.
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Big Mike
Trad climber
BC
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Oct 10, 2011 - 06:38pm PT
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Anders- I could help with editing and shooting video. I hope you decided to invest in the wireless mics. Sound quality is the most important thing in a documentary! Watch for hiss in the audio track!
Check out some amateur docs on youtube and compare them to some professional ones and you will know exactly what i am talking about!
Edit Sorry about all the exclamation points! :)
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bmacd
Mountain climber
100% Canadian
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Oct 10, 2011 - 10:42pm PT
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Mighty Hiker
climber
Vancouver, B.C.
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Oct 10, 2011 - 11:38pm PT
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The book is taking after its author, perhaps.
Videorecording seems to work okay with the internal stereo microphones, as long as it's indoors, and there are no ambient noises, and little chance of echoes. Beyond that, a lapel mike seems the ticket.
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Ghost
climber
A long way from where I started
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Oct 11, 2011 - 01:05am PT
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I couldn't figure out who the illustrator is - anyone know?
Gordie's brother? My memory says that's who it was. But I wouldn't be a lot of money on anything my memory tells me.
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Mighty Hiker
climber
Vancouver, B.C.
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Oct 11, 2011 - 01:09am PT
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Bruce: RTFM. Failing that, read this thread. Somewhere about 600 posts back.
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bmacd
Mountain climber
100% Canadian
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Oct 11, 2011 - 01:32am PT
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Big Mike
Trad climber
BC
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Oct 11, 2011 - 04:23am PT
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Stopped by the Bluffs in the rain today and took a quick shot of Spiderfly to see if it sparks Tami's memory. KM says "A wicked thin crack and a famous Squamish legend" 11d/12a
Anders- Sounds like you have it under control. It is nice to have a scenic backdrop once in awhile.
Wow amazing guidebooks guys... So cool.. Smails descriptions are awesome. Straight and to the point. When I first started climbing I thought the beta I had was hard to work with.... :) Any chance we can see more of Anders's?
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hamie
Social climber
Thekoots
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Oct 11, 2011 - 04:06pm PT
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"Any chance we can see more of Anders's?"
More of what? The mind boggles....
H.
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Big Mike
Trad climber
BC
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Oct 11, 2011 - 04:43pm PT
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Hamish- His guidebook.
Anders- I hope you get a chance to talk to Jim Sinclair soon. I ran into him this spring in the Apron parking lot before we went up the Buttress.
I asked him how he was doing and he told me about his stroke on Memorial Ledge when he was placing the plaque for Grace Wong. He had just finished installing it when it hit and the next thing he knew he was laying on his back on the ledge. Then he says "I saw an angel come down on a rope".
A local rockstar rapped off of memorial crack and found Jim lying there. He told me who it was but for the life of me I cannot remember... Anyways this kind individual managed to get him down the rap route to the South Gully and then somehow short roped him back to the parking lot. Jim said he was stumbling down the trail totally out of it..
Jim is a good friend and has told me many fine tales over the years, which have given me much appreciation for the pioneers of our craft.
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hamie
Social climber
Thekoots
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Oct 11, 2011 - 05:37pm PT
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Wow! My first photo on St, and it worked. Thanks, MH.
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Big Mike
Trad climber
BC
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Oct 11, 2011 - 05:38pm PT
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Looks wicked hard! Does PC have small fingers? Did you free that pitch? or just him?
Edit
Was respectfully asked to remove this. Sorry.
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Ghost
climber
A long way from where I started
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Oct 11, 2011 - 05:59pm PT
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My friend Rick jumped on that one this fall because he thought Luke had told him it was 10a.
For quite a few years the third pitch of The Avalon Connection was shown as 10a in the guidebook. I think Kevin even had it that way in two editions. That was the most sandbagged climb at Squamish as far as I know. I think it's finally been corrected to 10d or 11a. Great climb, though, whatever the grade.
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Mighty Hiker
climber
Vancouver, B.C.
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Oct 11, 2011 - 07:36pm PT
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Yes, it's rather stout for 5.10a.
Sort of on topic, many of the routes that Jeff and Glenn did were first climbed in autumn or spring, which was a considerable help on the slabby ones particularly. Explaining why many of them seem a bit stiff for their original grades.
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