Cirque of the Unclimbables, Lotus Flower Tower

Saturday, September 29, 2012

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Located up in the Northwest territories in Northern Canada, and one of the 50 Classics, this August climb definitely tested our resolve. John and I got lucky with the weather on this one, little bit chilly but our hopeful 14 hour single push unfortunately turned into a 21 hr. single push – leaving the tent at 4:00am and returning at 1:00am. We slightly underestimated this 5:10c route. After reaching the top we rappelled the entire route in approximately 2.5 hours but it would have been quicker if we didn’t need to cut our rappel line after it caught on a rock at 12:00am. It made for a rather creative final 5 pitches of repelling. Also, completing this 1200M wall on just two pepperoni sticks, half a block of cheese and two snickers bars and complimented by only 2 litres of water left me dancing in a snow storm in just my underwear at 2:00am as my legs completely cramped up getting into my sleeping bag. Very pleased to tag this one this summer and check it off my bucket list – I think I’m done with 20+ hour single pushes for this summer – the days are getting too short. I’m thinking Devil’s Tower might be the one to do next – that looks like a shorter day.

Partial list of completed climbs -

*First ascent