Summer 2007 - The Alpine Club of Canada

Rockies’ ice climber tastes Scottish classics
BY LYNN MARTEL
With over 1100 established ice
and mixed climbing routes,
the Canadian Rockies are the
dream destination of climbers the world
over.
But for Canmore’s Sean Isaac, who
has spent half his 34 years ice and mixed
climbing, authoring dozens of new
routes and a guidebook—Mixed Climbs
in the Canadian Rockies—in the process,
the dream destination was Scotland,
birthplace of technical ice climbing.
In March 2007 Isaac got his
wish, spending six days at the British
Mountaineering Council’s fi fth Scottish
Winter Meet. Held every second
winter, with a similar event organized
alternating summers, the gathering drew
representatives from climbing clubs
around the world, including France,
Slovenia, Norway, Greece and even
China.
Although Isaac learned of the meet
seven years ago, this year he was fi nally
able to attend thanks to the Alpine Club
of Canada, which covered his plane ticket,
making him only the second Canadian
ever to participate.
“Ever since I started climbing, I
wanted to go to Scotland,” Isaac said.
“We live in a great spot for ice and
mixed climbing, but Scotland is where
it all started. It was an incredible week
of cross-cultural exchange, with the best
mixed climbing I have ever done.”
With all expenses covered by the
BMC once there, each day the visiting
climbers joined a local host for a Scottish
adventure.
Activities were halted on two days due
to stormy – even by Scottish standards
– weather and extreme avalanche hazard,
but for his fi rst outing Isaac climbed the
classic Indicator Wall on Ben Nevis, a
route that fi nished by climbing through
a cornice and throwing a sling around a
summit marker.
At 1344 metres, Ben Nevis – taken
from Gaelic words for poisonous or
terrible – is Britain’s highest mountain,
which attracts some of the nastiest
weather anywhere as climbers test
themselves on its 700-metre north cliff s.
“It’s a great training ground, and a
big reason why some of the best alpinists
have come from Scotland,” Isaac said.
20 Alpine Club of Canada ● Gazette ● SUMMER 2007
“Hard technical climbing in full-on nasty
conditions. You have to have your systems
down.”
Impressively, some of Ben Nevis’
classic routes were fi rst climbed at the
turn of the 20th century, including the
northeast buttress in 1895 – with a fi rst
winter ascent a year later.
With “Mr. Scotland,” Simon
Richardson, a father of two and
guidebook author with a full time job
who puts up a new route nearly every
weekend, Isaac was shown a “true
Scottish wilderness climbing experience.”
“We rode bikes for about an hour and
a half, then hiked over the moors to a
little quarry way on the backside of the
Cairngorms,” Isaac said. “It was a fi vehour
approach – a 12-hour day for three
pitches of climbing – but it was a new
route.”
Th e fi rst pitch consisted of climbing
vertical frozen grass, “With all four tools
and feet stuck solidly in the turf.” Once
actually on rock, the fi nal pitch featured
an overhang and 70-degree snow.
“In the Rockies, if you come across
70-degree snow it’s dry powder on loose
slabs,” Isaac said. “Th ere the snow gets so
solid, it actually squeaks.”
Scottish climbers practice a unique
style of winter – or ice – climbing, he
said.
Rockies ice climbing happens on
steep, pure ice waterfalls, with mixed
climbing consisting of climbing bolted
dry limestone to access frozen icicles.
By comparison, Scottish rock is
granitic, laced with cracks and features
that lend themselves well to traditional
protection.
“Plus it gets hammered by
storms, it’s more like snow covered,
rimed up rock,” Isaac said. “You go
up and scrape off all the ice and
climb the rock.”
As well, Scottish style
strictly adheres to a ‘no
British ice climber Ian Parnell
leads the fi rst ascent of
Curly’s Arête, a new route on
Scotland’s Ben Nevis named
in memory of Canmore AB
climber Karen McNeill
PHOTO BY SEAN ISAAC
bolt’ rule, as well as a ground up, on-sight
ethic.
“Which is a great thing,” Isaac
said. “Th ey’ve got a limited resource,
especially compared to what we have in
the Rockies. Th at way they’re preserving
what they have for future generations.
Th ey’ve turned little mountains into big
adventures.”
For his last day, Isaac teamed up with
British climbing star Ian Parnell for a
fi ve-pitch new route on Ben Nevis, which
they rated the equivalent of Rockies M7.
“It was steep, technical, challenging,
it took all day, and we topped out in the
dark,” Isaac said.
Th ey christened the route Curly’s
Arête, in honour of Karen McNeill, who
died last May on Alaska’s Mount Foraker
– and her plentiful dark curls.
“It was defi nitely an eye-opener for
me,” Isaac said. “Climbing in Scotland
takes skills, not just climbing skills, but
navigation too. On Ben Nevis, you need a
map and compass and goggles – always.”
With plenty of evening entertainment,
Isaac was invited to present a slide show
on his home country, which left the Scots
equally impressed.
“Th ey were
really
psyched,
we’re the
envy
of
the