Bow Valley

Heart Creek Amphitheatre

Submitted by carlsonmark on Mon, 09/21/2015 - 20:38

Blackheart Amphitheatre Summer 2015 Topo (update from Marcus Norman)

Blackheart Amphitheatre has a history of reconnaissance, route building attempts, aid ascents and looser rock. Expect cerebral routefinding on bands of alternating excellent and not-so-excellent rock. It is advisable to wear a helmet until these routes see enough traffic. It is also advisable to have a full 70m rope for all longer routes.

Echo Canyon - Hungry Tiger Wall

Submitted by carlsonmark on Fri, 06/17/2016 - 21:16

Hungry Tiger Wall.

This new crag is a great addition to the shady side of Echo Canyon. Save it for warm summer days when the other side is baking in the sun. Hungry Tiger crag is located on the same cliff band as The Notch, but is accessed from below. The routes tend to be long and offer steep climbing on beautiful, featured stone, albeit sometimes sharp. Bring a 70m rope and lots of draws. Grades range from .11b to .12b. Those looking for an easier warmup can start at Sunset Crag, which you pass on the way to the Hungry Tiger crag. If it’s a colder morning, a warmup at The Hideaway is a sunny option. All the routes dry quickly after a rain.

McGillivray Pond

Submitted by carlsonmark on Thu, 07/14/2016 - 11:55

From Gerry Drotar

A new sport crag with 10 routes and one gear climb. Bolted spring 2016. 8 quickdraws and a 60m rope.
Either park in the large pull out overlooking the small island with flags and picnic table in Lac des Arcs
(westbound lanes, necessitates a sprint across the highway – not recommended). Alternatively, from the
eastbound lanes pull off just before the guardrail begins. Park in the ditch or at a small clearing just
above.

Echo Canyon - Lookout Update

Submitted by carlsonmark on Thu, 07/14/2016 - 13:50

From Grzegorz Tos via Facebook:
Lookout Update
The Shield area (page 160,161 Bow Valley Sport)
This little gem of a spot is often overlooked but offers a great spectrum of grades of routes with five star quality. Perfect in Spring and Fall. Gets sun from 9:30 till 4:00.

Echo Canyon - Balcony

Submitted by carlsonmark on Thu, 07/14/2016 - 13:52

From Grzegorz Tos via Facebook:
Bit of heads up for those heading into Echo Canyon this spring. Since the last print of Bow Valley Sport guide book a lot has happened in the canyon. To avoid confusion look through all the updates on TABVAR page for walls that you are interested in. From what I can tell all guys involved have been good at posting updates here. Some sectors have more than twice as many routes as in the guide book. Example is The Balcony. Attached is a nice topo put together by Bonar McCallum.

Cougar Canyon - Creekside updates

Submitted by carlsonmark on Thu, 07/28/2016 - 12:42

From Don McPhalen:

July 2016 Update - Creekside Crag Cougar Creek

The routes listed as #4, 5, 7, 14, 15 and 19 in the Bow Valley Sport book have been retrofitted with permission. Each route now has its own anchor. The bolt positions and numbers have changed to update the routes post flood. In addition a “second pitch” has been added to route #4 - this may be a good setup to practice the up and down of multipitching.

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