Chasing Early Season Ice in Canada: Part 1

Introduction

This story starts back in 2014 or 2015, I can’t quite remember which. I had the pleasure of meeting a phenomenal Polish climber by the name of Jedrez Jablonski, whom I call JJ because I cannot pronounce his name properly, and he laughs at me when I try. His speciality is dry tooling and mixed ice/rock climbing. He is very strong at this niche in climbing, and I sometimes question why he even ever climbed with me as I am not near his ability level. Perhaps it is just that I am always willing to hike up to obscure chunks of rock and ice and give him shiverfest belays while he works out the moves on the local hard mixed lines that are very rarely attempted by anyone. At the time of our meeting, I was going to school at Montana State University in Bozeman Montana. Bozeman is well known in the US for its easy access to good ice climbing. Within a forty minute drive you can find yourself in the gorgeous Hyalite Canyon, which is well populated with quality ice climbs ranging from the easy WI2 grade, all the way up to hairy WI6+ - 7 X “if you fall you could get seriously hurt” routes.

The author makes moves towards the ice on one of the "easier" mixed lines in Hyalite

I met JJ in the Bingo Cave in Hyalite. This is a cave about 20 meters high, and 60 meters wide, and contains the most difficult “new era” dry tooling routes in Hyalite. I was up there climbing with a college friend, when he wandered up by himself wearing a straw cowboy hat, just assuming he would find somebody to belay him on a difficult project of his. His assumption turned out to be correct, and I turned out to be that willing belayer. We continued to climb together for a couple of weeks. JJ would try all the hard dry tooling routes. I would then flail around on them in an attempt to follow him. Ice is a little different then dry tooling, and I am pretty much able to keep up with him on that terrain without issue. We also climbed several of the hard ish classic ice climbs in the area. In the evenings JJ was staying at my place in Bozeman, since at the time he was living out of the back of his truck. A house is a much warmer place to sleep then the back of a truck cold Montana winters. In return he would cook up delicious steaks, and be an exceptional rope gun to the top of some of Hyalites more difficult routes.

We maintained contact for several years since our season in Hyalite together. Mostly conversations about ice climbing. JJ had moved to Seattle for work with his girlfriend, and was finding ways to consistently get up to Canada, where the Ice climbing would appear to be superior to Montana. I was climbing ice intermittently in Montana, but focused on school and other various unrelated rock climbing goals. Although we were talking every once in a while, we hadn't actually climbed together since that winter in Montana for about 4 years. A lot can happen in 4 years, a person can get fat and out of shape and be a terrible climber. So when JJ wanted to do a trip with me to Canada I was a little surprised.

JJ and I recently began a dialogue about meeting up somewhere in the States to climb. I was working in the Colorado area, so the idea was to get on some of the Ice around Vail, none of which was in climbing condition at the time of our conversation in early November. I proposed that we delay the trip until December/January when more Ice would be climbable, but upon getting a new job offer, JJ would be unable to climb then. We began brainstorming where ice could possible be in within a long weekend trips radius. Montana wasn't in yet, neither was Wyoming. A spur of the moment decision was made that we would meet up in Alberta Canada, where it has been cold for long enough to ensure some good early season Ice. So with only a couple weeks notice I booked a flight to Calgary, and the plan was set. I had some chaotic shuffling of my work schedule to do in order to squeeze a couple of extra days of climbing into the trip. But I am pretty sure my boss didn’t notice, and at this point I seem to have gotten away with it.

Day 1

The first day we got up pretty late for a climbing day, since we had gotten in from the airport at 2 AM. Another impressive characteristic about JJ is that he does not drink coffee. After our late night, I on the other hand, was sucking down cups in order to motivate to brave the Canadian cold of which I was not yet accustomed. We had to make a couple stops in town, the gear store, the food store, the gas store, etc. , and then we were ready to climb. The plan for the day was to go up to a rock cave that has some of the most popular dry tooling routes.

We ended up getting on some ultra classic dry tool route that was right at my limit. JJ of course cruised it, as it is around his warm up grade. After this route, we went looking for some cave that he was interested in bolting a new line. We struck out up the hill, hiking up a steep, heavily wooded slope. The light layer of snow dusted over scree and loose rock making upward progress difficult. After about 30 minutes of hiking, we reached the rock wall above... but the cave we were looking for was nowhere to be found. With our daylight dwindling, and modivation low, we decided heading home sounded like a lot more fun then trudging around looking for a cave of which we weren't entirely sure on the location.

A dissapointed JJ, hopeful for a more successful tomorrow.

To be Continued...