FFA of Europa 5.8

[Dru]

I expect that some of what now appears stable will crumble as its time of exposure to surface processes increases.

[matthewc]

I expect that some of what now appears stable will crumble as its time of exposure to surface processes increases.

Have you been up there yet and had a look? There is nice, choss-free climbing much of the way. Take a look at the start of pitch 2, for example:



The chossiest part is probably the top of pitch 4, but that's fairly easy climbing.

[Dru]

Having been on Crap Crags years ago, I have no intent of ever venturing onto or anywhere near that section of cliff ever again.

[pinner]

That seems to me a bit like saying you wouldn't climb Supervalue in the Bluffs because you climbed Auntie Gravity a few years ago and it was wet and filthy....

By the way - nice pic Matthew, looks like a beauty crack

[Jeff Mottershead]

On the subject of falcon closures, I was sure that Matthew's description of things--no closures until they see nesting, and no nesting yet--was correct, but the world would be a better place if we stopped to check what we thought we were sure about now and then, so I asked a park ranger.

Straight from the Ranger (April 29, 2008):
There are no closures presently. Normally the closures some in May or early June. They've had people looking with telescopes, but there is no sign of nesting yet. They expect that this year it will be particularly late because of the cold.

The BC Parks website is not particularly clear. It said no route closures at present, but that they usually do close on March 15. I asked about that specifically, and was told that there are no closures at present, and that the March 15 statement was incorrect. They claimed that they are going to clarify the website. Parks staff have way too much to do with too little resources, so I'm not going to gaurantee that they get around to it any time soon.

I also mentioned that I'd been hearing some people were confused because there was a sign up in the bathroom by the ranger cabin saying that it was nesting season. That sign has been up there for 11 months, from the last closure. They say it's going to get taken down.

Hopefully that clears things up.

Jeff

[Rockitman]

Thanks for checking up on that Jeff!

We looked for closure signs on the way in but after this thread I wasn't sure anymore.

Good to know we're not poachers

[J Mace]

Ya Jeff thanks for taking the time to figure that out and post it and I got to say it takes a good guy to not reply to sh*t that was incorrectly posted about the falcon closures.

Folks take it easy on everyone you never know when you may need their help

Cheers

[Jeff Mottershead]

Thanks guys. A little thanks goes a long ways.

I've got pictures up now.

[Tenn]

OK, I stand corrected. I was pretty sure about that too. With most of the rangers layed off at the present I figured it was just that the website hadn't been updated.

I got nothing against the route. Glad the cleaning job is over. Also glad to know that we can climb in the dihedrals area for the short term - now we just gotta pull a few strings with the sun gods...

[hafilax]

I climbed Europa yesterday and it's a fun outing. It's a lot of pulling over blocks and wedged flakes. You have to be very mindful of pulling stuff off and placing gear since things do move. Otherwise the pitches are long and there are a bunch of gear anchors so gear management was the game of the day. The 3 consecutive chimneys at the top are a blast.

Overall it was lots of fun and I'm glad I got on it before the falcon closures. My first long route of the season so I'm feeling it today.

[squamishrocks]

Hi Everyone,
The signs for the Falcon closure have now been posted at the Chief. An observer was out today and saw the nesting site about 100 yards from Europa. As there has been a lot of disturbance this year from all the construction, let's not bother them further by climbing until the closure is done.
Hopefully BC Parks will get this update on their website soon.
Have a good summer climbing!

Jackie Hancox

PS Thanks for the hard work Jeff (and crew) I'm looking forward to trying something new!

[swebster]

Is the nest on Trichome? 100 yards where where on Europa? I ask because some people might be interested in climbing the lower pitches of the climb and rapping (there is a rap line).