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New Steep Mixed Pitch in the Ghost

The Ghost is one of Canada’s most popular winter climbing locations and is located near Calgary.

Reuben Marsden and Ross Suchy added a new pitch to Candle Stick Maker, which is found at Orient Point.

Candle Stick Maker is a 150-metre WI5, which rarely forms as a complete ice climb. Over the years, climbers have added new pitches to by-pass the unformed ice. The first ascent of the original route was in 1985 by Frank Campbell and J.A. Owen.

In 2007, Eric Dumerac and Donald Otten bolted Green Dragon M7- WI4, a 35-metre new first pitch. A month later, Stephen O’Brien and photographer Cory Richards bolged Matchstick Maker 5.8 WI5, a new second pitch that climbed on the right wall of the unformed second-pitch pillar.

Marsden and Suchy’s new pitch climb from the back of the cave behind the second pitch and ends on the hanging dagger. They added five bolts and graded the pitch M7.

For a good map to ice climbs in the Ghost, see here. Watch this short film by Sonnie Trotter and Andy Arts about an ascent of the Candle Stick Maker.

Candlestick Maker from Sonnie Trotter on Vimeo.

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