Bugaboos, various ascents. In addition to climbs reported above, several other new routes and variations were made. In July, Jonathan Copp and Jeff “Pouche” Hollenbaugh added a 600' direct start, called Where’s Isaac? (5.11d), to the Pretty Vacant route on Bugaboo Spire, stopping at the ledge system where their variation joins the original route. The route climbs bullet granite to hourglass-shaped flakes and can be done as a direct start or as a short route. The first pitch was freed on top rope, after vegetation was cleaned by the leader.

On North Post Spire’s previously unclimbed, somewhat remote, 300m south face, Chris Geisler and Kai Hirvonen established two parallel new routes in August: West Comes East (5 pitches, III 5.10 C1)and Free Heeling (5 pitches, III 5.10++).

On Snowpatch Spire, Paul McSorley, and John Walsh climbed the two-pitch Vulgarian Variation (V 5.9 A2) to the South Face Direct. It is notable that this impressive face has only seen a handful of ascents. Marc Piche and Chris Atkinson, coauthors of the new Bugaboo guidebook, climbed a five-pitch new start (The Beach, IV 5.10+ A1) on the south face, joining the classic Southwest Ridge route at Surf’s Up Ledge.

Guy Edwards and Sean Isaac made the first ascent of a five-pitch spire located between the East and Southeast Pigeon Feathers (the group of smaller towers south of the Howser Massif), in mid-August. Isaac writes, “We dubbed the diminutive peak Prince Albert Spire after out friend Lars Andrews.” Their route, Dingleberry Spam, involved four pitches of 5.10 (including a bulging offwidth crux on pitch three) and one easy pitch.

Compiled from communications with Copp, Hollenbaugh, Isaac, and Piche