Ontario’s Leslie Timms sends her first 5.14!

Lelsie Timms becomes the fourth Canadian woman to climb 5.14 with her recent climb tick in Nevada.

First was Ellen Powick on Pipedream at Maple Canyon, then Josie Hetyie from Vancouver, then last year Vikki Weldon sent Eulogy, also at Maple Canyon and now Timms has sent Magnum Opus, 5.14a, in Lime Kiln Canyon. The Todd Perkins route has only had a handful of repeats, it is a steep, technical 40-metre face.

Ontario-based Timms spent much of last year working on her route, Above the Clouds, 5.13a, at Lion’s Head, she has been on a mission ever since. During the summer, Timms runs her guiding company called On the Rocks and organizes the Beaver Valley Climbing Festival.

From Timms’ blog: “I had one route on my mind this trip, a climb that I had associated with being the most fingery of them all, Magnus Opus 5.14a. It was put up by Todd Perkins, a local legend and really inspiring climber that I admired. I really looked forward to trying out his Magnum Opus.

“This technical test piece stands tall at The Grail, a beautiful limestone crag with perfect 35 m limestone face climbing. I felt like I’d earned my keep on this wall after onsighting Honeycomb 5.13a, Mantis 5.12c and climbing both Homo Fabor 5.12d and Hoarse Plattitudes 5.13b in a day. Magnum Opus was the next step, it was the last one standing.”