New Goat Wall 21-Pitch Bolted Rockies Route is 5.11

In 2016, Tyler Kirkland and Mark Carlson established Fluff Goat Butt-Face up the Goat Wall on the eastern edge of the Canadian Rockies.

The new 5.11 fully-bolted line is 605 metres and is climbed in 21 pitches. The wild route climbs up and right of the classic Goat Buttress, a notoriously run-out 5.10d established decades ago.

“This is a very modern addition to a big wall historically known for stout traditional climbing,” said Kirkland.

“This route tackles the face right of the Goat Buttress. It actually starts up an obscure and likely unrepeated route, established by Peter Gatzsch and Andy Genereux in 2001 called Gatzsch Your Goat for pitches one and two and again for part of pitch seven, which was only realized after the drilling began.”

The route was climbed ground-up over a few months and was originally graded 5.10 A0. After much cleaning, Kirkland noted, “The result of all the work is a well-bolted, multi-pitch adventure with rock quality better than most single-pitch sport climbs in the valley.

“Keep in mind it is still the Rockies, solid holds become lose in time and there are a couple of ledges that hold rubble.”

The route follows steep and exposed terrain and you only need one 60-metre rope, 18 quickdraws and a handful of shoulder length slings.

The route should be in condition from May until early October. “Parties can expect to take anywhere between nine and 13 hours on ascent depending on your ability to solve the puzzles and your skills as a limestone climber,” said Kirkland.

“The descent is straight down the route via 30-metre rappels which takes two to three hours. Double-rope rappels are not recommended on most of the route due to the number of non-plumb rappels and prickly stone.”

The average car-to-car has taken Kirkland and partners (who’ve made about a seven ascents) an average of 14 to 19 hours. This is a big route that should be taken seriously.