Jon Siegrist Sends Dream Route The Path 5.14R

Jon Siegrist has made the third recorded send of The Path 5.14R at Back of the Lake at Lake Louise.

Siegrist said that the steep and hard quartzite trad route above the famous sport climb Wicked Gravity had been on his tick list since Trotter made the first ascent in 2007.

Siegrist is fresh off the fourth ascent of Honour and Glory 5.14d, which was first climbed by Evan Hau in 2016.

Psyched to be back in the Bow Valley after a week in beautiful B.C.! We would have loved to stay longer but for summer conditions Canmore is unbeatable. We leg-burned our way up to the Coliseum the last two days, wheezing hard after a week at sea level. Yesterday I climbed the awesome route ‘Honor and Glory’ and @mikehopkinsphotography was dangling above to grab a few awesome photos. ••• There is definitely a lot of hidden difficulty to this cliff – the hike is a solid 90 minutes and 2k elevation, the conditions are bizarre because not only does the wall seep like crazy (many holds on HnG were wet) but the mornings are pretty damn chilly and then suddenly at 1:30pm it gets debilitatingly hot. However, the rad hang, the wall of 40+ meter routes and the huge pump are certainly worth the mission. @arcteryx @lasportivana @maximropes @metoliusclimbing

A post shared by Jonathan Siegrist (@jonathansiegrist) on Jul 27, 2018 at 12:02pm PDT

The Path has been climbed by some of the world’s top climbers, including Tommy Caldwell and Ethan Pringle.

On Instagram, Siegrist talked about what the route meant to him, “Well, in reality, back then it was nothing but a far-fetched dream because I had just climbed my very first 5.14a that summer and the thought of climbing a gear route that hard was utterly terrifying.

“Fast forward to 2011 when I first walked to the back of Lake Louise and laid eyes on it. Despite climbing 9a [5.14d] and a bunch of alpine trad routes at the time I did not have half the courage to truly inspect The Path.”

Earlier this year, Jacopo Larcher made the first recorded send of the year followed by his partner Babsi Zangerl, who made the first female ascent of now-classic route.

“I love how adding the complications of risk and placing your own protection can completely change the experience and difficulty of climbing,” said Siegrist.

“It’s just another amazing facet of this pursuit that is so exciting to explore. In some not so awesome heat but with overwhelming stoke I finally had the opportunity to climb The Path 5.14aR this last Monday.”

Siegirst went on to congratulate Zangerl and said, “I truly believe that this route is harder and more dangerous for a short climber, so much respect.”

Also in the Rockies, Siegrist recently made the fourth ascent of Honour and Glory 5.14d, which was first climbed by Evan Hau at 5.15a and repeated and downgraded by Adam Ondra before a send by Miles Adamson.

Siegrist is only in Canada for a few more days before returning south.

This pitch has been on my ultimate tick list since I first saw the news of @sonnietrotter ‘s ascent in 2007. Well, in reality, back then it was nothing but a far-fetched dream because I had just climbed my very first 14a that summer and the thought of climbing a gear route that hard was utterly terrifying. Fast forward to 2011 when I first walked to the back of Lake Louise and laid eyes on it. Despite climbing 9a and a bunch of alpine trad routes at the time I did not have half the courage to truly inspect the Path. I love how adding the complications of risk and placing your own protection can completely change the experience and difficulty of climbing. It’s just another amazing facet of this pursuit that is so exciting to explore. In some not so awesome heat but with overwhelming stoke I finally had the opportunity to climb ‘The Path’ 14a R this last Monday. What an absolutely brilliant line! I must say, huge congrats to @babsizangerl on her recent ascent – I truly believe that this route is harder and more dangerous for a short climber, so much respect!! Thank you to @mikehopkinsphotography for the photographs ??? just a couple days left in Canada unfortunately… @arcteryx @metoliusclimbing @lasportivana @maximropes @zealoptics @climbonproducts @theprobar @vertical.life.climbing #alberta #lakelouise

A post shared by Jonathan Siegrist (@jonathansiegrist) on Aug 1, 2018 at 12:18pm PDT