Ryan Van Horne Solos New Colonel Foster Route

At the end of June, Ryan Van Horne hiked to the Colonel Foster and camped at the south col. The following day, he moved under the large west face until he was below the main summit. He then climbed an esthetic line to the summit ridge with short 5.8 sections and mostly low fifth-class to 5.6.

Colonel Foster is the fourth highest peak on Vancouver Island, after King’s Peak, Elkhorn and Rambler Peak. Foster has the most technical alpine climbing terrain of the four and is reached by way of the Elk River Trail to Landslide Lake. The first ascent was by Mike Walsh and Joe Bajan in June 1974. For more info on route up Colonel Foster see here. Earlier this year, Marc-Andre Leclerc and Brette Harrington made a fast solo up Into the Mystic, a 1,200-metre 5.10 on the big east face.