Getting out climbing

Ooot and aboot for my first day of trad climbing this season. I hooked with old friend and climbing mentor Dave Edgar. We hadn't spoken for over a year and I'm not sure if we sent an email to each other in that time either. But that's what makes climbing unique in some ways. With partners you like and trust, regardless of the circumstances you can often call or email out of the blue and next thing you know you're walking on a approach and catching up on each others' lives.

Yamnuska is an interesting climbing area in the Bow Valley. The approach is a 1hr minimum (for mortals such as myself) huck-up-a-lung trail to get to the base. The routes are long, committing and pure rockies climbing. Loose rock, hard to find pitches and even the easiest of climbs can be scary. But we weren't on the easiest of climbs... noooooo. We were on a route called Dazed and Confused. Turns out this was the last route that Colin and I climbed on Yam together. I'm not the best at remembering routes but once we got to base I remembered the pitch as Colin had taken a lead fall when his hold broke. I held his fall but got dragged quite a ways by his sheer weight. Ironic that this was the route we climbed as I was thinking of Colin on the drive out there and inevitably shed a few tears before meeting up with Dave. Such is how climbing is for me these days, happy and sad all at the same time.

The first pitch is a sustained 10a pitch, 50m of climbing. As I was climbing it, getting tired and pumped I remember distinctly how I felt the first time I climbed it. Exactly the same way! Tired forearms, sore calves, feeling scared since everything feels harder on the first pitch. I'm reminded how hard trad climbing can be. Woooee and I call this fun!

An 8 pitch 10b climb may be a bit stiff for the first multi-pitch of the season and humbling too. I found the approach hard even though I'd been running hills and staying fit. The climbing was tiring me out too and I was quickly schooled that bouldering in my gym and sport climbing is no match for Yamnuska.

Dave climbed strong and deliberate. Climbing with a professional is always a treat and Dave is a finess climber. He couldn't resist pointing out where my habits were sloppy and I didn't mind one bit. He'll always be a teacher to me.

Multi-pitches are as much an exercise for the mind as the body. As per normal on Yamnuska climbs, I would be happy to be done by about pitch 4 or 5 and I know I have another 4 pitches left. That feels like a daunting task as I look up and see how far we have to go. This experience was no different. There are moments when I fall in love again with the beauty of climbing, the physical act and the movement. In the next moment I am surprised at how hard it really is and I wonder why I do something that makes me tired and scared.

It was nice to see Dave and catch up. It doesn't matter how long the gaps are in between. He is a friend of the soul and someone who's enriched my life. For that he will always have my loyalty and friendship.

After the climb I headed to Canmore to stay at Tom's house. I walked into his house around 9pm-ish to the aroma of something exotic. Was it cardamon? Perhaps a curry? I was like "Hello! Damn it smells good in here...." He laughed and said "Have you eaten?" my quick response was "Nope but I really need to have a shower first" As I was getting ready to jump in the shower, Tom was putting sheets on the bed I'd be sleeping in. I started to help him and he said "Go have your shower, I'll get your bed ready, feed you and then hell I'll rub your feet" I am not making this shit up my dearest readers. I was shocked at how tired and sore I was after a 10hr adventure on Yamnuska.  I got downstairs and Tom was making me a burrito of some sort with a curried mixture of chicken, paneer, peas, rice, fresh spinach all wrapped in a tortilla, to be washed down with with a chilean merlot. Heaven, heaven, heaven. My hands were sore and scratched up but I could still wield a fork and knife with lightening speed. To my credit I fished out some treats for Tom. Some of the best dark chocolate from the Sharfenberger chocolate factory in Berkley, CA. He quickly opened one of the bars and squirreled the rest away. Really, when one is borrowing heavily on anothers' hospitality they should come bearing at least a few gifts, including a trinket from the last far away place they visited such as a hand weaving from Bhutan.

I figured the foot rub would have been pushing the limits of Tom's generosity and I didn't come with enough goodies to really warrant it.

Tom and I's plan was to climb at the Back of the Lake in Lake Louise the next day. I have to admit that my appetite for climbing a second day was waning as quickly my hunger was having devoured my dinner! My feet hurt, most of my muscles were complaining any my scratched up hands were reminding me how they felt too. 

My opening line to Tom went something like "We don't have to be in a hurry tomorrow, let me take you out for breakfast..." He started to eye me suspiciously which suggested he was willing to look a gift horse in the mouth, so I followed up with, "Lake Louise isn't that far away and it'll be warmer later, and there's plenty of daylight" My reasoning mollified him. The truth is I knew I would get my ass out climbing, I had no intention of bailing on Tom even if I ended up being his belay slave all day.

The next morning we chatted over our leisurely breakfast. We got immersed in our visions for the future, our dreams of making the world a better place and our schemes to get other people involved. Eventually we did find our selves at the climbing area. We started out on some nice 5.7's and I surprised myself by wanting to lead. As we moved into the 5.9 range, I found some of the climbs surprisingly difficult. I excel at the juggy overhanging route which gets higher grading, but I find myself getting scared on the balancy, thin hold style of climbing that we were doing. The one thing I did miscalculate was my feet. They were sore and swollen from the previous climb so I should have brought my multi-pitch climbing shoes which are more comfortable. Instead I brought my sport climbing shoes which squish my feet on a good day let alone today! I worried this might pose a problem later on and of course it did. I would take them off after every climb and slip on my flip-flops. A few times Tom couldn't help but comment on the red little sausages which are normally my toes. My sore muscles could get warmed up and wasn't a big issue, but after a while putting pressure on my feet wasn't making the climbing fun. By that time though we'd been climbing for over 5 hours so I had put in a respectable amount of time and didn't look like a wimp. There is a plethora of good climbing at this crag and I'd love to go back with fresh feet!

I dropped Tom off in Canmore and headed back home. I was tired and looking forward to sleeping in my own bed. It was a nice to walk into my house and pet my kitties. The glass of wine I just finished hasn't hurt either. It actually feels like glass #2 wouldn't be such a bad idea but its already past midnight and I'd have to open a fresh bottle. I think I should head to bed instead. The past 2 days have been fun but some rest and recuperation is a good idea!