New Nine-Pitch 5.13a in Squamish is The Drop Bear
The hard new climb features a number of stiff pitches in the 5.13 range
Jacob Cook and Drew Marshall have established a major new route on The Chief in Squamish. The Bear Drop is a nine-pitch 5.13a that climbs up The Prow Wall.
“After two months of blood, sweat and chalk, Drew Marshall and I clawed our way onto the summit of the Prow Wall,” said Cook in his route report to climbs. “Our new line The Drop Bear is a more sustained variation to the Prow Wall classic Teddy Bear’s Picnic, featuring multiple 5.13 cruxes each of very different styles.”
The huge new test-piece line climbs away from Teddy Bears into the Bear Hang and “after jamming wildly through the roof, stick the fingerlock at the lip and swing your legs way over your head, into what Drew calls a ‘surprisingly restful knee bar.'”
From there, it takes a traverse pitch into the crux up a hanging arete called The Bear Hug. “Fiddle in a tiny nut, prepare to get very pumped, and good luck clipping the bolt after the runout.”
The pitches go 5.12a, 5.13a, 5.11c, 5.13a, 5.11c, 5.12d, 5.13a and 5.11c. Gear to bring: doubles to 0.75, singles 1 to 3 camalots, small offsets cams, RPs and kneebar pads.
In fall 2020, Cook completed the first ascent (non-continuous) of Call of Sirens, a five-pitch 5.14 slab on Tantalus Wall. Read about it here.
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