Leg 6 up the Chief

Rain clouds and wind be damned; all 34 participants of Leg 6 of the OARD were determined to hike and climb a mountain! (by Kelly Franz)

On Friday, May 25, 2008, four climbers and a full gaggle of hikers set out to climb the Chief in Squamish. At about noon and after a stylish torch hand off from Leg 5's armour clad mountain bikers, amidst rock trucks and excavators in the under-construction Grand Wall parking lot, four rock climbers set out for two different routes up the wall. Jer and Andrew climbed the Squamish Buttress route, while Katy and Kelly climbed the Grand Wall route with the torch dangling from harness alongside all the climbing gear. After racing up the peak and after only a few close calls with the challenges of the climbs they all finally made it up. At about 5:30 the climbers topped the climbs within minutes of each other to be met by a crowd of hikers already assembled on top. A few minutes of rest, the passing of the torch to Rebeka and company, and a gratuitous summit photo, and the satisfied crowd made their way down the 600m back to the starting point. This completed the successful and fun Leg 6 of the Outdoor Adventure Relay for Darfur.

Behold the Grand Wall! While meeting with a very cool reporter from the Squamish Chief Newspaper, the Leg 5 mountain bike riders arrived with the torch.

Two teams began the climb up the Chief: Andrew and Jeremy on Calculus Crack to the Squamish Buttress...

And Kelly & Katy on the Grand Wall, bearing torch...

meanwhile, mouses were lurking in the forest, meandering ever upwards.

making vertical progress against the greatest of odds, by all means available

and then sat back to drink beer on the summit

meeting locals

x

"chill" out

and salute the sun and ocean

and then arrived the climbers

and they all descended happily ever after