The Landmark in Orient Bay is Long Running Project
Canada has many unfinished routes and Ontario is no exception. The Landmark in Orient Bay has been talked about for decades. It’s an eye-catching dihedral that leads to a roof and more cracks up the prow of Mount Olympus. With only a five-minute approach from the road, the 100-metre wall of compact and splitter basalt is surprisingly underdeveloped. In 2006, Jody Bernst and Steve Charlton ventured up the Landmark after rumours that it was climbed at 5.9 many years before. They found no sign of passage or fixed gear and loose rock. They climbed two pitches at 5.9 A2 and stopped below a large roof.
They nailed bird beaks, bashies and hooked their way up, sometimes placing bolts in the blank sections for the first 30-metre pitch. They added a second 20-metre pitch up a wide crack and stopped below a large roof. They added a few metres up the final pitch, descended and never returned to top the route out. In 2013, Jen Olson made the first free ascent of the established line, freeing the aid sections onsight. The 70-metre route now goes at 5.11+, but still has not been taken to the top of the 100-metre wall. The Landmark might one day reach the top of the wall and anyone who visits will find a dozen high quality routes up, but lots of potential for future development. Orient Bay is north of Nipigon and about a 14-hour drive from Toronto. Below is a photo of Olson on the Landmark by Ryan Creary during the first free ascent.
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