We are pleased to announce that Jason Ammerlaan and Colin Moorhead have established a new route, Lunar Tide (5.11d, 250 m, 10 pitches), on the Zodiac Wall in Squamish, BC.
Lunar Tide (5.11d, 250 m, 10 pitches)
Approach: As for Gone Surfing. Follow Astro Ledge across and past Parallel Passages. Two bolt belay can be found under the obvious splitters of Gone Surfing. If you’ve reached the Calling, then you have gone too far.
Decent: Follow a faint trail up and climber’s right through thick salal. Continue rightwards on faint trails (occasional flagging on trees) until crossing under some fallen trees and joining the original trail off from The Calling. Follow the trail left until a fixed rope on a small step leads back right (~100m from junction). Trail leads to the Zodiac summit.
Description: Gear: SR to 4”, doubles in finger size and 2x #3-4. 12 quickdraws.
Pitch 1-2: 5.11a/5.10b 60m: Climb Gone Surfing. A rope is fixed above Astro Ledge to a belay stance below the steep climbing. It is possible to free this section (5.10b, one bolt), but it is often wet and dirty and can easily be skipped for a more pleasurable experience.
Pitch 3: 5.11d 15m: “The Pipe” Climb through the imposing roof chimney above from right to left. Exit the chimney (crux) and commit to powerful lay-backing to the anchor.
Pitch 4: 5.10a 35m: Climb up and left into a finger-crack on the face. Stem left into the grungy corner for ~six meters and then follow bolts up and right to pleasant easy face climbing on edges.
Pitch 5: 5.11d 30m: Follow the fully bolted arête above. No trad gear needed.
Pitch 6: 5.10d 15m: Face climb right, and then up past one bolt. Thin gear protects a short boulder problem into a big flake. Big lunch ledge for the belay.
Pitch 7: 5.9 20m: Follow the obvious cracks to the right of the belay through the bad rock band. From the mid-height ledge follow the right-most corner crack to a bolted belay on a pointy stance right of the large roof. Pitch 7-8 can easily be linked.
Pitch 8: 5.11c 25m: “The Barrel” Climb the monster roof through the wide crack. Two bolts protect the initial steep moves. A finger-tips dihedral continues above the roof. Stellar pitch!
Pitch 9: 5.11a 30m: Follow the wide crack up to a large ledge. Climb a short boulder problem left of the single bolt and follow fun crack features to the ledge above.
Pitch 10: 5.8 20m: Climb cracks up and left to the limbed tree. Climb the tree to the top!