Joy 5.6 Mt Indefatigable

Last week Roy and I got together to climb the route Joy. I had never done it before and had always wanted to and Roy was psyched for the adventure. We met up at 6:30 in Canmore and started the hour and a bit drive to the Kananaskis lakes. What an incredible area! On our way we saw Elk, deer, and a moose and on our way back a black bear…not bad for one day!

We arrived to a foggy morning but as we hiked along the lake the clouds lifted and soon we could see our climb. 400 meters of a perfect slab corner. Not something you see everyday in the Rockies!

The approach was a bit of a grunt up talus but before we knew it we were at the base and starting up the first pitch. The climb starts very low angled and eventually rears up. There are no bolts, no bolted stations and only a handful of pitons on the entire route. There ARE however, a ton of belay and gear options as you go, so it is a great adventure and you feel quite committed once you get started.

We did the route in about 10 pretty long pitches, mostly staying in the corner with a few sections of moving onto cracks on the face. It is a pretty serious calf pump!

Amazing views all day though, and once on the ridge we skirted and angled on the backside to avoid the windy and chossy ridge and headed for the notch.

Rambly meadows and trees took us eventually to the scramblers trail and back to the car. This definitely felt like bear country up there, but luckily we didn’t run into any until back at the car!

Roy and I enjoyed our lunch and drinks at the lake and watched the clouds that had been gathering all day finally settle over the lake and start to release their inevitable moisture. Sure felt good to be down and back at the car safe and sound from the elements!

Thanks again for a great day out Roy! Hope the calves have come back to normal again! looking forward to the next adventure:)