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Massive Snowpatch Spire Rockfall, Famous Climbs Destroyed

The Tom Egan Memorial Route and Sunshine Crack are gone, and approach to the Bugaboo/Snowpatch Col has changed forever

A huge rockfall on Snowpatch Spire is sending shockwaves through the local and international climbing community. This will forever change this part of the Bugaboo Provincial Park and access to certain routes.

The face has classic aid and free routes, including the Tom Egan Memorial Route, which Will Stanhope freed at 5.14 in 2015, which is now gone. The popular Sunshine Crack, an 11-pitch 5.11 first climbed by Alex Lowe and Shelly Scott, has also been destroyed as at least the lower pitches have been wiped out.

Tom Egan Memorial Route. Source: AAJ 2016 – read here

Will Gadd was one of many climbers to break the news, saying, “This an absolutely immense recent rockfall that takes out a big swath of hard classic climbing. If you’ve climbed in the Bugaboos this will sure shake you up.”

The temperatures in this part of B.C. have been dipping to -40C at night with slight warm ups during the day. Hopefully this will be the last of the rockfall in the Bugaboos this winter.

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