Made It To The West Coast - Seattle, WA

Monday morning we woke up from the Missoula KOA and headed out to a local climbing area known as Kootenai Canyon. This area is only about 30 minutes south of Missoula, so it was perfect for a day trip. Jodi and I spent the whole day climbing and exploring. We first climbed a classic 5.10a called "11th Commandment" on the First Buttress, which was kind of pumpy for a 10a, but super fun. After a couple of laps on that, I decided to give the 11b ("Fire Drill") to the right a burn. I was kind of nervous, since this was going to be my first "harder" route since my finger injury. I gave it a burn and got it first go, with very little pain in the finger. I felt so comfortable with my finger, that I ran it 4 more times after that. After those couple of routes we headed across the stream to the other side to an area known as "The Outer Limits". There we ran into some locals who gave us tons of beta about the climbs and other local information. We first jumped on a mixed 5.8 route which was really cool. I had to place gear for 20-25 feet or so then clip two bolts on your way to the chains. After I finished the climb, I asked the local we just met if he wouldn't mind following the lead to check out my gear placement, and to give me his honest opinion. He had a lot more Trad experience then I did, and thought he could give me a couple of pointers. I told him to be brutally honest with me, and that he wouldn't hurt my feelings if he thought something looked like crap. So he tied in and proceeded up the wall to check out my gear. The only suggestion he had for me was to put an additional sling on the first piece (.75 cam), because it could have the potential to "walk-in" on me. Also, he thought the first piece was slightly over cammed. Other than that my 4 other pieces he said looked great. His exact words were " I would fall on that". This gave me a little more confidence in placing gear. He really helped me out a lot. After the 5.8 we headed uphill a little ways to end the day on a 75' 5.9 called "Sleeping Beauty". I led it, and then ran a couple of laps on it to get a good workout in. Jodi also ran a couple of laps on it right after me. We cleaned that route up, packed our bags, and hung out by the stream for about 30 minutes, soaking our hands and feet in the beautiful Montana water. It was a great end to a great day. We left the canyon and looked for a place to eat. Our buddy Scott, who used to live in Missoula, had told us about a place in downtown called "Shawn Kelly's". It is an Irish pub kind of place with good food and good beers. We headed over there for a quick bite and a brew. Had a really nice time, hardly anyone there. After dinner we headed back to the camp site for some shut eye. Below are some pictures of Kootenai Canyon.

Tuesday morning we woke up, fixed breakfast, packed up the camp site and then headed back to Kootenai Canyon to do some more climbing. Our plan for the day was to climb till 4pm or so then head up to Glacier National Park, where we would spend the night and the next day there. Once in the canyon we headed back to the "Outer Limits Area" so Jodi could lead "Sleeping Beauty". Before she had a crack at that, we warmed up on the 5.8 that we did the day before. Jodi also lead it, which was really cool since she had to clip the gear that I put it. Even she was getting a little more comfortable with Trad. After the 5.8 we pulled rope and headed uphill so Jodi could lead "Sleeping Beauty". She stepped right up and fired it. She looked really strong and super confident. After she sent it, she came down and said, "I was dreaming about that climb all night long". I think most of us climbers can relate to that? After that we headed back across the stream to the First Buttress, where we were the day before. We headed slightly uphill from there to check out some overhanging 11's and 10's. I spotted an 11a/b the day before which looked really cool, and wanted to give it a try. It was overhanging rock for the first 4 bolts then slabbed out a couple more bolts to the chains. Tied in and fired it first go. Jodi and I played around on that route for a little while then pulled rope and set up the 10b right next door. That also was overhanging rock for 3 bolts, then a slab run to the chains. I found this climb to be a little more awkward than the previous one but whatever, climbing is climbing right? After those couple of routes, and running laps, we were pretty tired and also had a bit of a drive ahead of us. We packed our stuff and headed back down to the river were we soaked our hands and feet once more. After 30 minutes of soaking, we left the canyon and headed for Kalispell which is right outside Glacier National Park. Kalispell was the closet town to Glacier that had a place to stay. We didn't know this, but most of the places up there fill up very quickly this time of year because of all the tourists. Everything close to the park was either full or outrageously expensive. Kalispeel was the best fit for our budget. The drive from Missoula to Kalispell was about 3 hours. The highlight was going around Flathead Lake. What an amazing drive. We pulled into Kalispell around 8 pm and checked into the Super 8. (Only place with vacancies). Headed across the street for an appetizer at the Montana Club and then called it a night. We had a long day of exploring ahead of us on Wednesday. Side Note: As we were leaving the parking lot from climbing, I recieved a text message from our buddy Jamie who told me that we were registared for the 24 hours of Horse Shoe Hell at Horse Shoe Canyon Ranch in Arkansas at the end of September. It is a 24 hour endurance type event to see how many climbs you can climb in a 24 hour period. Jamie and I have wanted to do this for some time now and finally got in. I was so excited!!!! Thanks again Jamie for getting all of that done. So, I better get my butt in gear and start training for this event. Below is a picture of us hanging out by the stream after climbing.

Wednesday morning we woke up around 8am or so grabbed a shower and flew out the door on our way to Glacier National Park. Our plan was to spend the whole day there and crash again at the Super 8 for the night. We gassed the car and headed up to the west entrance for Glacier. The drive was about an hour or so, wasn't too bad. Entered the park with our pass (thanks again guys, you saved us a ton of money so far) and headed for the "Going To The Sun Road" and Logan Pass. On our way to Logan Pass, our drive took us along the perimeter of Lake McDonald. We stopped off at a couple of pull outs and shot some pictures. Below are some pictures of Lake McDonald.

After passing Lake McDonald we passed McDonald Falls. We stopped again and took a couple of pictures. Below is a picture of the McDonald falls.

After McDonald Falls we kept moving forward to Logan Pass on the "Going To The Sun Road".
The "Going To The Sun Road" is quite steep with breathtaking scenery. They were doing some construction to the road that day, in which a lot of the road was one lane traffic. This was kind of nice since you could really enjoy everything around you while waiting for your turn to move. Below is a picture of the scenery on the "Going To The Sun Road".

After about an hour of driving we crossed over Logan Pass. We wanted to stop and do a hike, but the parking lot was overfilling and decided to come back later in the day. After passing over Logan Pass, we started descending down toward St. Mary and the east side of Glacier. Shortly after our decent we came to the pull out for Jackson Glacier. We got out, shot some pictures and continued on. Below is a picture of Jackson Glacier.

We continued driving and stopped again, this time for a short hike to a waterfall. I believe the name of the waterfall was St. Mary's, but I'm not 100% sure. The hike was a total of 2 miles or so, with a gorgeous waterfall at the end. Below is a picture of Jodi and I at the St. Mary's falls.

After our short hike we headed down to the St. Mary's visitors center where we fixed ourselves some lunch and took a stroll around the visitor center. Side Note: We parked our car at the visitor center right next to a car with VA tags. I got out and checked the county sticker on the car. They were from Arlington County. Seriously, VA people are following us. Thought that was pretty funny. After the visitor center we turned around and headed back the way we came to exit out the West Side. We wanted to drive the road again to see the scenery going the other way. We headed for Logan Pass again and pulled off at another waterfall hike. I believe this one was called Baring Falls?? I really can't remember, we saw a lot that day. Anyways, we hiked down to that falls and shot a couple of pictures. Below is a picture of the falls.

After the falls we continued on to Logan Pass again. As we approached the top of the pass this time, the parking lot seemed less crowded. We found a spot to park and headed up to the Logan Pass visitor center to start our hike to Hidden Lake. The hike was about 3 miles round trip, and really enjoyable. We saw tons of wildlife along the way, which included marmots and mountain goats, no bears. We even walked through some snow, which was still left over from a June snow storm. The best part was once we reached the end you where presented with one of the most beautiful lakes in the whole park. Below is a picture of us at Hidden Lake.

Below is a picture of us hiking back down to the visitor center at Logan pass.

Once we got to the parking lot it was close to 6pm and we decided to call it a day and head back to the West Entrance, and then back to Kalispell for the night. As we entered the parking lot there was a lot of commotion going on. It turned out that there were two rams, and a reindeer in the parking lot. Below are a couple of pictures of the guys hanging out in the parking lot. Pretty cool to see. Thank goodness they weren't near our rental car. That would have been nice to explain to Mr. Avis. So how did your car get a dent in it? It was rammed by a ram at Glacier National Park...... Yeah right......

After our wildlife adventure we headed back down the "Going To The Sun Road" and exited the West Entrance. I took us a good hour just to get out of the park. Then it was another 45 minutes or so to Kalispell. Once there we ate across the street from the Super 8 again, at the Montana Club, and called it a night. We needed to get some sleep, because Thursday was going to be a push to the West Coast......Seattle.

Thursday we slept in a little, till 9 or so, hopped in the car and took off for a full day of driving. Our goal was to get to my buddy's (Scott) house in Seattle where we could chill for a day or so, then head up with him to Squamish, British Columbia for the weekend to do some climbing. Jodi took the first leg, and drove us a little past Spokane, Washington. We grabbed some lunch at Taco Del Mar (yummy) and then I took over for the remainder. The total drive was about 9 hours, give or take. We arrived in Seattle around 6, and meet up with our friend Scott at his place. We chatted for a little while, then he took us out for a beer and a bite to eat. We chatted most of the evening, and told him everything that was new. Got home around 10pm and hit the sack.

Friday morning we woke up early and I spent the morning writing this blog. Jodi did a load of laundry, and went for a run. We are waiting for Scott to get off of work (took a half day) so we can drive up to Squamish this afternoon. Our plan is to drive up there tonight, stay all weekend climbing, and come back Sunday night. Scott has to be back at work on Monday. That is where we are at right now. I will keep you all posted as soon as we get back from Squamish, BC