North Walls Project, Solo Mission... 1st Entry..

A few weeks ago I was up around the north walls area and I found something that I thought would make a fun climb. I came back the next day and started climbing, and cleaning a short section. As I was looking at what I had cleaned I found some cool features under all that moss, and dirt. I decided that this was going to be my solo mission. The first ten feet wasn't to difficult but I arrived at a few thin placements, in a thin crack. I wacked in some knifeblades, and hoped they would stick. And as luck would have it they did. I had a couple of days where it was raining and all the mud was casscading down the wall and all over me. It was fun I liked having a project to work on it took up most of my two week holiday. I felt like I was on a mission everyday going up there to work on it for a few hours. I was getting really good at setting up anchors in the crack so that I could leave my rope up there and get back up to where I left off. Most of what I used for anchors were pins, knifeblades and lost arrows. Maybe not the best choice of gear, but it was all that worked..

Mellie's Rock, Squamish BC,....

It was the last day of climbing, before melanie, goes to Hawaii. It was a great day, just like it always is when I get her out there on the rocks. 'Rockin' the rocks, as she says'!!!. It's fun being out there with her, because she's always happy, to be on the rock, and having fun. On wednesday, August 25th it was a great day, not to hot, not to cold just right.. We went to her favourite spot. We did Mellie's route, a three pitch classic slab, I renamed it in honour of her. It was because we found this new area, and Melanie, was the first person that went with me to climb there.. She enjoyed that alot, she even liked leading the second pitch. She was climbing alot better I thought this time, using her feet, and her hands just for balance. It was great because we made some funny videos, with my digital camera. After we went to the Brew Pub, and watched them and had a pretty good laugh. Not to mention we had some good food to end our day!!..

Banana Peel, Adventure!!.. The Apron.

Me, Melanie, and Edgar decided to tackle Banana Peel on the Apron. We arrived at the base of Diedre, and climbed the first slab to the birch tree. An excellent moderate climb with few difficulties, much variety and a few very easy runout sections. We traversed along the fault, and made our way to the base of our intended route. Everyone made it to the first tree belay, at the top of a short slab!!.. Edgar lead the first pitch, and did it fairly well. I was surprised that he only placed two pieces of gear in the whole pitch, he made it to the top, and then it was my turn to go. I climbed up and took out the gear he had placed. I then put Melanie, on belay and she started up the slab, and then she just didn't feel good about continuing on.I also did not think it was a good idea, for her to go on. Safety first.. She was climbing just great up until that point, but because the wind was blowing so hard and it made it very hard to communicate with her, because I couldn't see her, for a short time. We dacided to back off and get Melanie, down to a safe spot. Edgar lowered her down slowly, while I guided the rope.. She was back on the tree ledge and everything was cool!!... I had to go back up the rope batman, style to get up to help edgar, with getting the ropes ready for rappel. It was an adventure, and everyone made it to the ground safely.. We hiked back down to the parking lot, and headed for a well deserved beer, and appies at the Brew Pub. It was a fun day, Edgar, climbed well and Melanie, was definately solid and kept her cool!!.. I was impressed with her because she didn't panic, and let the exposure get to her.. She was awesome the whole time.. An excellent effort by all!!!..

Amo Wall, Route Descriptions, And Route Names...

Pitch 1: The Relish Route, 5.7 28m 8 bolts left. Follow the line of bolts up towards the stump, and up the glassy slab. Pitch 1: Variation, Muckel Onto Ehrr, 5.9 28m 7 bolts right. Crux move surmounting the slab. Pitch 2: The Relish Route, 5.6 22m, 4 bolts left. Pitch 2: Variation, Awol 5.10a 30m 8 bolts right. Cruxy down below monopockets on a steep slab. Pitch 3: The Relish Route, 5.8 25m 7 bolts centre. Crux up high pulling the bulge. Pitch 3: Gihlle Suit 5.9 22m 8 bolts left. A technical fun traversing dyke feature. Pitch 3: The Beaten Zone 5.7 3om just 10 bolts right. Tops out on the cliff with a view of Shannon Falls.. Here are a few pictures, of the routes.

Adventures With Melanie, On the Amo Wall.. To the Top!!..

HEY BUDDY .... RIGHT ON .....

It's so cool to climb with you ...we always have a lot of fun.
I am really excited that we found the "Melly Rock" ;-) at the Shannon Falls...I really love these SPOT!!!!
You know I am fear of heights ... but well.... it gets from climb to climb better
because of you a great teacher ;-) I hope i will get perfect, so i can teach someone when I am back in Germany 'just kidding' ! Next week ... we Rock the Rocks again, Buddy .... !!!! RIGHT ON ...... !!!! The Amo Wall adventure was awesome, We did three pitches, and made it to the top. We sat up there and enjoyed the view, of Howe Sound. Melanie was awesome, she was as cool as a cucumber, following the three pitches. She was as solid as a rock!!. She looked so great up there, confident about what she was doing and where she was. She was so great at figuring out where her feet were supposed to be, and where her hands were.. It was alot of fun climbing up there. With bolts every 2, to 3, ft it was great fun... The slabs were gentle, and rolling, with a few divots here and there.. The foot placements were very secure.. All in all the Amo Wall is a great place to climb on bolts.. Alot of fun awesome climbing, the exposure, is very friendly.. Like it alot and I will be back.. Way to go Squamish!!!... A beginner friendly area!!...

A New Friend, And Climbing Partner...

New friends are great to find, like the one that I recently met a few months ago. It's so cool, to hang out with her. Oh by the way her name is Melanie, she's from Germany. I took her out climbing, and she really enjoyed it alot. We have such a great time hanging out, and we have the best conversations. Since she, has only been out climbing twice she's definately up for the challenge... She's got it going on!!!. Melanie has a cute, and funny way about her. When were out there, she's got a great personality, and a great smile, that makes my day everytime I see her. I know that she, has a great time with me, because she's allways so excited to get out on the rock, for another challenge.. I like that I can take her out there and teach her, something that she's never done before. The one comment that I will remember the most is that when we were out climbing. We were at the Ammo Wall, near Shannon Falls, and she called it MELLIE'S WALL, Our Place!!!... So everytime I go there I will allways remember that saying... I have Melanie to thank for that.!!!

Melanie, And I... Our Place!!!!..

Melanie,and I were talking at work, and she said that I WANT TO GO CLIMBING!!!!.. So we made plans to go the next day, that was the holiday Monday. I was pretty stoked to get her out there again. I showed her how to belay, so that I could lead. We went to Murrin Park, for that part of the lesson. We were at Melanies, favourite crag the Sugerloaf. After I climbed to the top, and put in all the gear she came up after me, and took it all out. After awhile it got pretty crowded and we decided to go check out the Ammo Wall, an area that has just been developed. It has some lead friendly bolted routes. We tried one that was about 28meters, and it had 4 bolts and then two big ones for the anchor. It was awesome the first part was a steep bulge, and then you get up into the slab, with little edges. We got to the top of that one, and then I showed Melanie, how to rappel down. She was very happy with her accomplishment, and the big smile on her face told me everything.. After that she wanted to top rope the same one. She did it twice, and when she came back down to the ground, she said ya!! know what?.. This is OUR PLACE!!!.. It was so nice to be there, because we were the only ones there. That made her feel very confident, relaxed. It was her day, she climbed well for her second time out. She was happy about what she had done, and I myself was very impressed with her effort. It was an AWESOME!! day lots of fun being out there with her, and showing her the ropes..

A Day Of Aid Climbing, And Free Climbing On Squamish Rock!!..

This weekend Dave Jones, called me and told me that he was at the Climbers Campground. I went over to meet him and we made a plan, to go do some aid climbing at the base of the Grand Wall. We went to climb Iconoclast,a short A3+ that goes two pitches, or one long one. It consits of bolts, hooking, a few knifeblades, lost arrows, angles, and beaks, or rurps,and the usual cams. We met on Saturday morning, and off we went for an aid climbing, adventure. It was a fun session. We arrived at the base at about 8:am, we got organized and I took the lead.(This route has been some sort of a project for me). I got up about halfway, and I was into the traverse section of the route and I had pounded in a knifeblade, and an angle. I moved from the knifeblade, and went onto the angle, and I was trying to figure out the best piece, for the next move. I figured things were going well,up until that point. It had only taken an hour and a half to make it to that point. Then all of a sudden it happend the piece that I was on pulled out, and away I went flying accross the wall for about twenty feet. I ended up pulling out three pieces of gear, and finally came to a halt. I looked up at the wall, and couldn't believe how far I'd fallen. Dave lowered me back down to the ground, and I regrouped and went back up to get the rest of my gear. This was a big deal for me because I made It past my high point and pushed myself to a higher level, of my aid climbing ability. After the aid climbing adventure, we headed for Shannon Falls. Dave climbed Klahanie Crack, this crack was unbelievable, it's one of the best 5.7,5.8 cracks ever. Dave climbed it and did pretty well on it. I'll climb it next time. After that it was to the Brew Pub for a beer and some natchos. To talk about our great day!!. It's always a great day climbing with dave!!..

A Great Day On Squamish Rock..

On Tuesday, I went to pick up, Melanie, Anna, and Christoff for a day of climbing.I went to Deep Cove, where they live. We haeded back up to Squamish, to have a great day at the Craggs. We started at Murrin Park, up at the power tower. We arrived there and we were the first ones at the cliff. We set up top ropes, and started our day of climbing. It was great to finally get Melanie, out on the rocks. I was very impressed at how great she climbed, and that she made it to the top!!!.. I gave her alot of encouragement on her first time. Oh yeah, they all come from Germany. Anna, and Christoff were pretty good on the rock as well. It was great to have the company of others. We went to the Smoke Bluffs, to the burgers and fries area. We tried a couple, of other climbs, and then we relaxed in the sun for awhile at the top of the cliff. Then it was off to the Brew Pub for beers, and burgers, out on the patio. It was a great way to celebrate a fun outing. And end a great day. Squamish Rocks!!!..

Smoke Bluffs, The Apron, And Royal Robbins..

On thursday Dave Jones, came up to meet me for some fun climbing. We met at the smoke bluffs, and went to Burgers, and Fries area. We did a few different climbs. After that we went to the Brew Pub, for Burgers and beer. on Friday we met up and went to the Bluffs again to be interviewed, and filmed climbing. It was fun to do that and get the chance to talk about what we liked about climbing, and what it meant to us to do that. We also explained what we were doing, and how we were doing it. It was a good experience, and it will be even better to see the dvd, when it is produced. After all that we decided to head for a quick snack and then it was up to Banana Peel, on the Apron. We completed the climb and made it back down to the car by 6:45pm, and then it was off to the Eagle Eye Theater for some climbing movies. While we were on route, there were five soloists that climbed past us. Lots of climbers were up there. The grandfather, of modern climbing Royal Robbins, did a great presentation of his climbs and what he has accomplished in his life. He wrote a book, I picked one up and he signed it, I got a picture with him. It was an awesome day, great climbing, and it was great to be up there with my good buddy Dave...

Island Lake 2010. The Gang!!...

I just spent a week up at Island Lake, with Andy. We met Russell, jeff, Kris, Spencer, and Jorden, along with Scott, Rob, and Denise, and my friend Dave. It was great fun fishing with all of them. The fishing started off kind of slow, but it got better as the week went on. Andy and I had some great days with some good numbers of fish. We fished chironimids, alot and did well with that. I fished a halfback on a full sinking line, and a bloodworm, under the indicator on the floating line. I tried alittle dry fly fishing in the evenings and did ok, with that. We had some great weather, pretty hot!!. It was a great relaxing week of fishing, socializing, and a few cold beers. It was great to see everyone after a year. I will look forward to seeing the Island Lake gang next year..

Another Try On Ivey Lake..

Bryan, and I did another trip up to Ivey Lake. We were out there early, and fished most of the day. When we arrived there we were the only ones on the lake. Because it was a weekday we figured that we would have the whole lake all to ourselves. A couple of other guys showed up that we had met the weekend before. It was like everybody new eachother, and it was all good fun. We trolled around alot With flies under the indicator. I had a lot of hits, and didn't connect until later on in the afternoon. Bryan, hooked up on a nice 20inch, rainbow and had a little fight on his hands. He landed the fish, and he was pretty happy, about it. I landed one as well it was the same size, and put up a good fight. It was a nice day, the lake was calm for most of it. That made it easy to troll, or just sit there with a chironimid, and not move at all. I did get a couple of good hits on a brown chironimid, and lots on the pumpkin fly. I landed my fish on a brown one. It was tough fishing because we didn't see anything on the surface, so we didn't know exactly what to use. It was by guess, and by golly, that method seemed to work. It paid off and it was another fun day. Tight lines were had...

Out On The Lake Again.. Big Sky Country!!!....

It was about time to dust off the lake fishing gear and get out there!!.. The destination of choice was Blackwater, and Ivey lakes. Two fun lakes that usually produce some good action. I went with Bryan, we got out on Blackwater in the morning, and trolled around and had some action. Bryan landed a few fish, and was pretty stoked to be there. I myself had a few hits but could not connect. After fishing that lake for awhile we decided to try for some bigger fish on Ivey Lake. We fished the remainder of the day there and had some hits. Bryan was using an indicater on floating line, and managed to pick one up about 18, inches a nice fish he got on a purple micro leach. He had another hit as we were coming back in to end the day. I had a few more hits but there again could not connect. It was a fun outing, and I was happy to see Bryan pick up a nice fish... It was nice to fish those lakes again. Relaxing on a nice sunny day, chilli'n on the pontoon boat, and chucking flies around..

Floating, The River, Swinging Big Flies..

I met Brian, early on Saturday morning and we went up to the upper Squamish, to do a float. We started at 27,mile and ended up at the Ashlu Bridge. It was brian's first time floating a river, and after alittle instruction from me, he got the hang of it. It was a nice sunny day, warm and just a great day to be out on the river. We ran into Pat a guide, from Whistler, Flyfishing, and his friend from Calgary. We hung out and talked for awhile, it was a real social event. Brian, and I decided that it was time to get moving and hit some other spots before it got to late. It was getting to the end of our float, and we finally found a few dollies, around the Goat Run, and one other zone at about 22mile. Brian was pretty stoked about getting out there, and he was more than happy to land a dolly. We pulled out at the bridge, and had something to eat, and a beer to end a great day on the river...

It's About Time!!!..

It was a nice day on the river, with Jonathon, and Brian. We met at my house and headed out for a day on the Squamish River. We started at 24,mile and fished the top of the run and I had a couple of hits, on the way down. After that we went up and fished 28,mile and that's when it happend!!.. I went up and fished the riffle water, while Brian, was in the mid section of the run, and Jonathon was at the tailout. I cast my big blue marabou, rabbit strip fly accross stream and let it swing around and hooked up on a nice steelhead of about 10 to 12lbs. It fought hard, and broke the surface a few times. I just had to say IT'S ABOUT TIME!!!.. Brian said it was the most exciting experience, to see a steelhead up close. Jonathon, said that I am a steelhead god!!!... What a great day, it was.. Awesome!!!..

Good Times In The Wild Squamish River Valley..

It all started a week before, when at work a new girl was hired from Germany.We started talking alot and then we were emailing back and forth every night for over a week. I asked her if she wanted to go fishing, with me and she jumped at the chance to do something that she had not done before. Flyfishing, that is. We met on a friday and headed out to get her a lisence, for one day. Then it was up to the Brew Pub, for dinner. She couldn't wait to get out for a fun filled day of fishing. We started at my favourite spot, mile 24. We fished the top of the run and pulled a nice Bull Trout, about 3lbs, on the first cast. I handed her the rod and she played it like a pro. Melanie, and I fished a few other spots, had a few more fish. I had a great day with her, and she had fun to.. Good company, good times...

On The River, With A Fun, Easy Going Australian!!!..

March 27, 2010, was a fun day. I was on my way to the Squamish Hostel,to pick up my fishing partner for the day. I met a nice Australian, girl at the Brew Pub, and we talked for awhile and made plans to go fishing. I did the usual and took her out to one of the school fields, for casting practice. After that we picked up a one day licence, for a day of flyfishing on the Squamish River. Liv, was super excited about getting out on the river. We lucked out and had a really warm day, not much rain. We had so much fun walking the river, and throwing cast after cast, in so many different spots. We didn't find any fish, but Liv had such a great time out there that it didn't matter that we didn't catch anything. She was happy to be out with me, doing something that she had never done before. It was funny because she couldn't bealieve how fun flyfishing, was and how she could walk in the water with a pair of waders on and that she wasn't cold, or wet. We finished the day at about 7pm, and enjoyed a cold beer on the river. She told me that she had a great time with me. I enjoyed her company, and just being out there with her, was alot of fun. Another fun river adventure!!...

No Work, More Fishing!!!..

It's great when you, wake up on a monday morning, and say hey!!! I don't have to go to work for a week.I guess the logical thing to do is head out to the Squamish River, and chuck some flies around in hopes of catching some fish. Just my luck I didn't have to wait to long.I floated the river three times during the week, and every time was very successful.I didn't see to many other fisherman out there.I had the river all to myself for the better part of the week. Peace, and quiet, and nothing but the sound of the river, flowing along. The action was pretty steady all week. Most spots produced fish, and some hits that I was convinced were steelhead.I fished the floating line, long leader and wet fly, and had some good action. The flies that were producing were the Black G.P, Purple G.P, and black intruders, with some flash. Black and blue were also working well, and black with purple and black mohair with sculpin wool.I was swinging these these flies through runs, and riffles. All of these areas were roughly two, to six, feet deep. The weather was bright and sunny, which makes it hard to catch fish, in these conditions. With alittle finnese flyfishing it can be done. I think that floating the river produced more fish, than walking, either way the action was good and produced some nice size bull trout...