From Climbing · Anthony Walsh · · 2m
How I Was Benighted on the Rockies' Most Straightforward Route
A climber gets lost on Canada's easiest mountain route, spending the night in a dangerous corner.
In brief
A climber gets lost on Canada's easiest mountain route, spending the night in a dangerous corner. A climber spent the night benighted on Mt. Indefatigable's 'most straightforward' route after getting lost in a technical corner. Originally reported by Climbing.
First summer as a climber
I was deliriously excited about climbing, working five days a week in Lake Louise, Alberta.
David and I planned Joy climb
David, a confident climber with experience in Yosemite, invited me to climb Joy on Mt. Indefatigable.
Joy route description
Joy is a 2,000-foot limestone corner that gains steepness with height, with no bolts but a walk-off trail at the top.
We start climbing Joy
We began climbing Joy’s corner, swapping leads and building anchors with minimal gear.
We lose momentum
We lost momentum 200 feet from the summit ridge and tried to climb a loose slab instead.
David tops out the corner
David reached the summit ridge but found it impassable, requiring us to go down immediately.
We rappel down the mountain
We rappelled down the mountain, finding bolts and building anchors in the dark.
We spend the night benighted
We spent the night benighted on the mountain, hanging from a rappel rope with no protection.
A rat scares us
A rat scurried up my rope, making me panic and causing David to think our anchor had failed.
We reach the approach trail
We reached the approach trail by 5 a.m., having downclimbed the loose slab side by side.
I return for a rematch
I returned to climb Joy again, now a more experienced climber with confidence.
We successfully complete Joy
We successfully completed Joy in a couple hours, finding mellow terrain and a calm slope.
The story's consequence
The climber learned to think for themselves after a night benighted on the most straightforward route.
The short version
A climber spent the night benighted on Mt. Indefatigable's 'most straightforward' route after getting lost in a technical corner.
