1987 - Metal Dome, Bugaboo Spire, North West Face of Matier, the Split Pillar, Family at Gold Creek

Metal Dome - Whistler area
Location of Metal Dome
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Bob Cuthbert with the Tantalus Range in the distance

In the late spring, Bob Cuthbert and I went on a hike up Metal Dome. We hadn't been in the area much before and it was a great viewpoint. It looked like it would be worthwhile to go over to Brandywine, but we didn't have time that day.

North-East Ridge of Bugaboo Spire - Bugaboo Provincial Park - Purcell Mountains
Location of Bugaboo Spire

photo by Ed Cooper

This picture taken by Ed Cooper follows the ridge from the snow patch in the lower right and pretty much follows the ridge line between the dark shadow and the rock in the sun up to the peak, which is the north summit.

Chuck with Snowpatch Spire behind him.

Chuck had climbed Bugaboo by the normal route with Chris Cooper and by the NE ridge with Garvin Morris. I had got to the giant gendarme on the regular route years before and had dreamed of climbing it to the top. To climb the NE ridge would be a dream come true.

Keith at the top of the first pitch.

Chuck McCafferty and I climbed the north-east ridge of Bugaboo Spire in the summer of 1987. We camped above the hut and were the first climbers on the route. The picture here shows me sitting on top of the first pitch. The rock was superb, the exposure great, and the weather was fine.
Just climbing up to the bottom of the first pitch was fun. The first pitch starts when you are already quite high up on the ridge, so the exposure starts right away. Chuck was a confident and able leader and I was more than happy to second.

Keith enjoying some high friction rock.

Chuck did almost all of the leading except near the top. His leading ability was always great. He just had the ability and willingness to go out on the sharp end of the rope.
The granite offered a lot of friction and above the first three or four pitches you followed a system of cracks that offered very enjoyable mid fifth climbing.
The climb rightly deserves its popularity. The first four pitches are the most demanding, and after that there is pitch after pitch of mid fifth climbing.

Our tent was but a dot.

The next morning we watched from out tent as a party got caught on the lower part of the ridge in a gathering electrical storm. They felt the lightning strikes as their legs involuntarily did twitches! Needless to say they rappelled down as quickly as they could.
Our tent is just a tiny dot on the right hand side of the photo close to a small patch of gravel. This picture is looking down the east face.

Howser Towers in the distance.

Reaching the top was a wish fulfulled. On my first try with Chris and Chuck, I ran out of gas on the regular route just below the famous gendarme. This was sweet having climbed the north-east ridge - one of the fifty classics of North America. The afternoon thunderheads were still holding off as we headed down.
The next morning we slept in and woke up to poor weather compared to the day before. We watched climbers from the entrance of our tent on the route we had done the day before. A storm moved in and there was thunder and lightning. We later talked to the climbers who were on the route and they said as the lightning struck the mountain their legs involuntarily twitched! The soon rapelled off the route. Another good reason to have two ropes for those long rapells.


NW Face of Matier - Joffre Lakes - Duffey Lake Road
Location of Mt. Matier

Chuck on the face.

Chuck McCafferty and I kicked stepped our way up the north west face of Matier in the summer of '87. Matier is in the Joffre Lakes area south east of Pemberton. We approached via the Joffre Lakes trail. The snow was not that firm and when you stepped up to the next step, sometimes your lower step gave way. Not very nice.
Fortunately even though it is steep, it is not "that" steep and we enjoyed the excitement of making the top of the face.

Chuck enjoying a snooze.

The descent was down the easy regular route and then back down to the lakes and the trail out.
Oh yes, the top was great for a nap!

The Split Pillar - The Grand Wall - the Squamish Chief
Location of the Grand Wall on the Chief

Well anchored!

Chuck was in good form and he had done it before. He invited Ken Willis and I for a climb up the Split Pillar in the middle of the Squamish Chief. The pillar is a huge pillar of grey granite that is mainly detached from the surrounding vertical rock. It's climbed by making your way up an ever widening crack. Some people layback it, Chuck likes jamming when he can. I didn't care how he did it, as long as he was confident.
We made our way up Merci Me, a dyke of volcanic rock that provides small slanting holds amid the high angled granite face. Once up to the vertical rock, the traverse over to the Grand Wall route begins. It was intimidating looking, and I knew it wasn't going to be easy, but I knew once I got over to the bolt ladder, I could either clip in, or jumar up to the tree belay. There were a couple of steep, narrow, mantle moves that I remember and I was very pleased that I made them well. I tensioned over to the bolt ladder, and used my etriers to gain the belay.
I belayed Chuck as he led the pillar, a huge vertical slab of rock somehow still attached to the face of the Squamish Chief. The thin crack slowly turned into a large off width higher up but Chuck did a great job on it.
I made the most exciting jumar climb of my life up to the top of the pillar and clipped into as many bolts I could! Gees it's exposed at that spot. You're in the middle of this smooth, vertical desert. Very humbling. It is rare that one gets on something that is truly vertical and smooth, but this was one of those places. I remember finding it intimidating at first, and all I wanted to do was sit and soak up the situation. I finally stood up and Chuck took my picture by the bolt station festooned with slings and gear. What a fantastic place.

Ken is between my feet.

In the picture of the rappel, you can make out Ken's red shirt between my feet He is at the belay station at the base of the pillar
A series of exciting rappels saw us on the ground, and I glowed in satisfaction at the car. Off for milkshakes at the DairyQueen!

Family at Gold Creek
.... and sometimes we would go for a hike with my mom and dad.

Toivo, Eric, Lynn, and June Rajala at Gold Creek's Hiker Beach in Golden Ears Park.