We are pleased to announce that Skaha Provincial Park is back open to climbers. Here is an update from Rolf Rybak:

Skaha Bluffs Park will be open today (Sept.4th, 2020) at noon for climbing but two Eastern and Southern areas are still closed. Shady Lane /Hollow, Flake and Gillies creek areas are still close. The ward-1 trail branching off of the Grand canyon trail and easter crags are still closed, Rutopia, Retardant and Belvedere areas.

Security guards will be posted at closure area trailheads.

Finally but most important, a big thank you to Wendy Pope our Regional Park Manager for advocating on our behalf to open the park
Rock Oven, Ward 1, Sauerkraut trails and the Smythe FSR remain closed
Rock Oven, Ward 1, Sauerkraut trails and the Smythe FSR are in exceptionally poor condition – Active wildfire, danger trees, ash pits, chainsaw operations, and aerial suppression remain as hazards in the Area Restriction. for climbing.

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We are psyched to announce that Graham McGrenere has made an ascent of Black Magic (v13). Cool!

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The climbing community: Friends forgo going to their projects in order to bring pads and support others on their projects, they come out at night with lights and cameras, even when you’re nowhere close to sending. . No one cares how hard you’re climbing, they are psyched on how hard you’re TRYING. The friendships and bonds I’ve created within the climbing community are unlike any other, transcending language or borders. We come together with a shared objective of pushing ourselves out of our physical and mental comfort zones, and we’re psyched for each other whether we send 5.6 or 5.16. . That is what I love about climbing. . Black Magic 🧙‍♂️ . . . #organicclimbing #noplacetoofar #hiveclimbing #onwardupcampus #petzl_official #fuelupproteinbar #squamish #squamishbouldering @organicclimbing @scarpana @hiveclimbing @onwardup_campus @petzl_official @fuelupproteinbar

A post shared by Kim and Graham McGrenere (@kimstagraham.mcg) on Sep 2, 2020 at 8:43am PDT

Ben Harnden is at it again, making the first ascent of Test Pattern (5.14 hard?) in an undisclosed Squamish, BC.

Photo by Thomas Burden ©

New video featuring route development at University wall in Canmore, BC.

A Mellow Ticino featuring Jimmy Webb and Daniel Woods

We are very psyched to announce that Becca Frangos has made the second female ascent of ASDATO (5.14b) in Horne lake on Vancouver Island.

Photo by Milen Kootnikoff

Braden Bester’s first ascent of The Empyrean; a route he bolted at Lake Louise in Banff National Park.

Evan Hau is at it again, this time with the first ascent of Bow Valley Challenge (5.14d) in the Stoneworks area. This place is steep and mega! Congratulations Evan! Hard work!

Evan Hau – Sacrifice (9a+/5.15a) 2nd ascent.

Details are unknown on how badly the wildfire near Okanagan Falls has hit Skaha Provincial Park. There is a strong sense that the park has seen little damage but that could change depending on wind direction over the next few days

What we do know is that the BC Wildfire Service is reporting high winds in the area for today, with the fire reaching 2000+ square kilometres.

The park is officially closed and BC park staff are asking climbers to respect the closure for as long as it takes them to assess the damage and risk to re-opening.

We will keep folks updated the best we can over the next few days!