Squamish rock climbing is famous for a good reason. The walls of Stawamus Chief Mountain boast some of the best granite climbing in Canada, featuring anything from confidence inspiring single pitch sport routes to enormous multi-pitch crack routes. Our 3-day rock climbing course in Squamish is an intermediate course designed to introduce you to the craft of multi-pitch climbing using traditional gear.
2024 Course Date: August 16-18 (call or email for custom dates)
Squamish Rock Climbing is famous for a good reason. The walls of Stawamus Chief Mountain boast some of the best granite climbing in Canada, featuring anything from confidence inspiring single pitch sport routes to enormous multi-pitch crack routes. Our 3-day rock climbing course in Squamish is designed to introduce you to the craft of multi-pitch climbing using traditional gear.
If you feel comfortable following trad routes up to 5.8, want to begin or continue learning to lead trad, and you want exposure to climbing multi-pitch traditional routes, then this is the right course for you.
Overall Difficulty Level: Moderate
Skills Required: Some prior lead climbing experience in a sport climbing environment
Fitness Level: Very good physical condition
Course Itinerary
Day 1: We will spend the day near the town bluffs to re-familiarize ourselves with the principles of lead climbing in a sport climbing environment. We will spend the night in the local campground or a hotel of your choice (not included in the trip).
Day 2: A very careful and systematic approach to leading, anchor building and lead swapping will be the main topics of this day along with tips for further improvement to crack climbing technique.
Day 3: Our instruction will culminate in climbing of one of the classic multi-pitch routes in this fantastic area. Depending on the mood and/or skill of the participants, we could be climbing the classic "Diedre" (5.7, 7 pitches) or even the "Angel's Crest (5.10, 14 pitches)
Course Curriculum
1. Traditional Gear
• Selecting trad gear
• Racking trad gear on your harness
• Principles of gear placement
2. Anchors and Belay Techniques
• Static and dynamic belays while climbing trad
• Equalized anchors
• Self equalizing anchors
3. Leading on Trad Gear
• Mock leading on trad gear
• Falling into your gear
• Leading on trad gear
4. Multi-pitch Climbing and Station Management
• Building a hanging belay
• Multi pitch climbing on trad gear
• Belay station management
5. Rock Rescue Skills
• Escaping the belay
• Basic rock rescue
• Knot pass
Although tipping is not a requirement, it is considered standard practice in the guiding industry and is appreciated by our guides. We generally recommend roughly 10%-15% of your course or trip cost or a flat amount that you are comfortable with.
