Training Log Archive: iansmith

My first multipitch! Tori took me up the first four pitches of Aftonroe, a sport climb near Banff; we ascended a 5.8 on the first pitch to get around some descending climbers:
http://www.summitpost.org/aftonroe-5-7-220-m-9-pit...

The sky was gloriously clear, but the wind was quite intense. Tori led every pitch, and her expertise and skill dwarf my own. 5.8 is about the limit of my comfort right now, but I have total faith in the equipment. Grappling with fear and quieting the mind in precarious positions with lots of exposure is an excellent mental challenge even given the rational knowledge of my safety. We called it a day because the wind was making it difficult to hear each other, and I decided I didn't want to proceed. A bald eagle glided past during our ascent; 'Murica, no big deal.

I have many attributes which are beneficial for climbing - very long arms, big hands, strong forearms; I need to improve my confidence, practice my technique, and work on my problem solving. I rely too much on brute force when I get into binds.

Ascent up Rundle. The first 90 minutes were straightforward hiking through the forest. I abandoned any aspirations to run, since I expected to need my strength for the scramble. The second 90 minutes were extremely exposed scrambling. I often used hands and feet, surrounded by loose and sliding rock, with vast precipices to either side. The scramble was just on the edge of my comfort level, and fortunately, there was no snow; I tried to remember what Tori-Wan Kenobi taught me. I reached the summit ridge, discovered I would have to make an absurdly exposed traverse to get to the actual summit beyond my skill, and decided to head down. I stuck my head out over the ridge and looked down at the awesome sight of the northeast face below me. It looks like the crux has 600m vertical in 1 km horizontal, for an average slope of 31 degrees. I had plenty of adrenaline coursing through me. Fortunately, after I reached the treeline, the rest of the descent was uneventful. I saw about 25 hikers over the six hour period. I consumed a liter of water, two tortillas, and three snickers bars - chocolate courage.

C • Rundle! 8

Walk to and from the trailhead and descent with post-mortem Garmin. This segment took approximately two hours.

Real time: 43634; a mix of hiking and running. At first, I tried to scramble up Mt. Norquay, but at the top of the chair lift, I learned that a crew was doing some construction for guided tours and was knocking lots of rock down the slope. I changed course and hiked up to the Cascade amphitheater. The weather continued to be favorable, so I proceeded up onto the ridge - reaching a false summit before I deemed the snow conditions and exposure unsafe. It was sublime. I wrestled with many inner questions on this hike, and sang and conversed aloud a few times to discourage bears. I snacked on a bag of tortillas. According to my track, the ascent up Cascade had a 17% average grade; the 5.6 km took 2 hours because I am weak.

Descent. RIP not fully charged Garmin.

Run up Sulfur mountain. The trek was advertised as 5.5k, 700m from split 3. I carried a little waist pack with bear spray, water, a windbreaker, headlamp, a snickers, and some emergency gear. The run was satisfying, though I had to walk some of the way up the mountain. I'm impressed with how consistent my GPS is with the mapped trail route. Unfortunately, the weather was decidedly overcast, so I didn't see much from the top. Running with the waist pack was awkward, as my 7:00/km pace on Banff streets reflects. The need to carry a large can of bear spray curtails some more athletic goals, though I might do a quick bomb up tunnel mountain tomorrow or Sat.

Descent. I sang a little to deter bears and stopped occasionally to take pictures.

Hike/scramble up Wilcox Peak with Tori. Until we ascended onto the ridge, the hike was a bit of a slog - mostly crossing snowfields with gaiters and postholing. After climbing onto the mountain proper, I flirted with the edge of my comfort zone when we kicked steps into a steep snowfield. We decided to turn back when I reached my limit - an exposed ridge with some narrow snow traverses over long precipitous snowfields. Tori was a great sport when I started hanging onto the rock for dear life. Total time: 4:48.

Quick run from Lake Louise up to Lake Agnes and the Big Beehive overlook. Given more time, favorable weather, and perhaps snowshoes, we might have attempted Mt. St. Piran or Mt. Fairview, but I'm inexperienced at snowy scrambles, and both had lots of snow.

I introduced Tori to Boris's "Cows" game on our drive from Glacier to Banff and promptly lost 16-7. It turns out that I cannot visually discriminate horses from cows at a distance.

C • Cows!!! 7

Day hike to the ridge. We boot skied down some sweet snow fields. Two hours actual time. Apparently many areas of Glacier NP are closed in late May due to snow conditions, but we got a decent trip in. Garmin died after 18 minutes.

Hike out to St. Mary's. We booked it in 2:49, over an hour faster than our trip in.