Milk Road

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Milk Road

Milk Road.

A quick in & out to Squamish. Couldn’t quite get up early enough on Saturday to do something popular and so ended up on Milk Road (9 pitches, 5.10+ A0). At the base well after 10am but we still found the route empty. A bit of aid on pitch 1 and a traversing bolt ladder for the second half of pitch 2 (otherwise 5.11+). Pitches 3 and 4 are the famous finger crack dihedrals with the first one being relatively easy…the second definitely not easy – 40 meters of great but strenuous finger locks. An OK 10b pitch followed by a shitty 5.8 dirt ramp. I screwed up the upper half of pitch 7 (reading the topo ahead of time is overrated) and ended up in some dirty chimneys. Hint: when the face crack divides, bear left. Sometime on this pitch, the sun came around the rim and we were instantly baking…just in time for the slabby dyke traverse on pitch 8. That last clip on that final real pitch really gave me a lot trouble in what felt like melting shoes – rest assured that the crux of the route comes at the very end. One more quick pitch – a 5.0 scramble – and we were on the friendly descent trail. A very good route overall even if we hated the dyke traverse.

Pics

Milk Road

At the top of pitch 1 of Milk Road.


Milk Road

Shirley on pitch 1 of Milk Road…see the quick change of outfit?


Milk Road

Shirley on pitch 1 of Milk Road…this was a year or two earlier when we tried the route but found it running with water & bailed.


Milk Road

Pitch 2 of The Milk Road – a 5.10c flake system to a traversing bolt ladder (or 11+) to a tricky free exit to the belay (July 2015).


Milk Road

More pitch 2 – after a bolt ladder (July 2015).


Milk Road

Leading pitch 3 of Milk Road. A very friendly and relatively low(er vs. pitch 4) angle finger crack (July 2015).


Milk Road

One of a few rest stances on pitch 3.


Milk Road

Shirley on the fun finger crack of pitch 3.


Milk Road

More pitch 3 action (July 2015).


Milk Road

Starting pitch 4…not so many rest stances and a bit steeper than the previous pitch (July 2015).


Milk Road

Pitch 4.


Milk Road

Looking down pitch 4 of Milk Road.


Milk Road

Shirley nearing the top of the 40 meter finger crack. Excellent climbing!


Milk Road

Pitch 5 of Milk Road: a fist crack to a 5.10- face (July 2015).


Milk Road

Pretty fun pitch 5.


Milk Road

The shitty pitch six – a 5.8 dirt ramp (July 2015).


Milk Road

Views of Howe Sound from top of pitch 7 (July 2015).


Milk Road

Starting pitch 7 of Milk Road – a bolted chimney to a short face crack to another (my screw up) loose chimney. Perhaps I should read the description of the pitch next time (July 2015).


Milk Road

Shirley topping out on pitch 7…the wrong/thuggish variation of the pitch (July 2015).


Milk Road

Leading the Crescent Dyke on pitch 8. This was the crux for us (by far!) – perhaps it was the heat but we both had a hell of a hard time with the exit move…save the worst for last!


Milk Road

Looking back at Shirley from midway across the pitch 8 dyke traverse – about to be not such happy camper (July 2015).


Milk Road

Shirley on the crux moves of pitch 8 (and the route).


Milk Road

Happy to be (essentially) done with the climbing in the afternoon heat (July 2015).


Milk Road

The large ledge atop pitch 8 of Milk Road – only a short 5.0 pitch remains to the top (July 2015).


Milk Road

The short if sweaty hike from the top (July 2015).


Milk Road

Tantalus Wall with pitches 5-9 of The Milk Road visible. There’s a climber leading pitch 6 visible (July 2015).


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