Was fortunate enough to spend a day off with good friends Jen Olson and Mark Cosslett….Jen had big dreams of going to the Asylum, Mark psyched to get on ice, and me…wanting to see if my freshly punched out boots would still leave me hopping on one foot. We found a sort of middle ground on Essondale Right. Atleast none of us had climbed it before, it was in the sun and not a super long day. Other then the not so fun hike along the highway, the approach wasn’t too bad, thanks to some stiff avi debris. We got to the climb and went through the usual ritual of figuring out who is leading what. Jen the first pitch, Mark the second and Sarah the third. Done. The first pitch was a hollow thin curtain but with sticky ice, and Jen took it a full 70 meters to behind the pillar. The pillar pitch was also super amazing one swing stick ice and it had Jen and Mark hooting in glee. I on the other hand, had then realized that my boot punching had not helped my situation and began my one foot hopping technique that I was starting to master. I gave Jen my final lead which she made short work of and we all headed back down. A fun day despite the painful toe, nice to be in the sun, with friends and fun to mindlessly second some beautiful pitches. This is a great route and I will for sure come back to it again…maybe this year still!
