Where's the Remote?

UPDATE: Alternative rap route has been installed as of 28 July, 2019. See below for updated descent.

Marble Canyon is a limestone crag.  Due to the nature of the geology, loose rock and the occasional rock fall should be expected. Climbers should be mindful of this characteristic when sharing the route with other parties, especially when rappelling. Try to tread lightly.  It is normal for some holds to break in the beginning of a new route's lifecycle.  In particular, Marble Canyon has a lot of small rock debris on ledges that loom over routes. During high winds or after heavy rainfall, debris is dislodged and is prone to falling. Water-saturated gravel from the large terrace above (below the Main Wall) can create mini debris flows over the lower wall. Thankfully, the climate in this region is typically arid and sunny most of the year so rainfall is limited.

Pitch 1, 5.8:

Start 50m down and right of Sisyphus on a bolted arete. Climb the arete (stay on arete) past 6 bolts to a two-bolt anchor on a small ledge. 22m, 6 bolts. UPDATE: 3 new bolted routes have been added to the wall left and right of the arete start (5.9-10b).

Pitch 2, 4th:

Scramble up a 4th class slab to another two-bolt anchor on the wall beside a large, coniferous tree. 15m, no bolts. 

Pitch 3, 5.7:

Begin left of anchor. Climb up to first bolt, then diagonally up right to the arete. Follow the arete up to a ledge with a dead tree and two-bolt anchor. 22m, 6 bolts.

Option: link pitch 2 into pitch 3. Use some long slings to avoid rope drag. (40m, 6 bolts)

Pitch 4, 5.9:

Step right from belay, then climb upward to the arete passing two bolts. At the steep wall, clip a high bolt on the left and reach for a jug. Pull up onto the face, then step gingerly left to the arete. Follow the arete past a tree with a cordalette to a two-bolt anchor. 35m, 8 bolts.

Move belay 15m up and left on the terrace to a single bolt belay at the bottom of the slab.

Pitch 5, 5.7:

Climb straight up the pocketed slab to a two-bolt anchor. 35m, 8 bolts.

Pitch 6, 5.6:

Traverse right past a high bolt n the wall to a left-facing corner. Climb up the corner, trending right past three bolts to a good ledge with a two-bolt anchor. 20m, 4 bolts.

Option: link pitch 5 and pitch 6. (55m, 12 bolts)

Pitch 7, 5.10a:

Climb up and right from the belay to a bolt. Follow bolts as they meander up though interesting features to a two-bolt anchor on a ledge. 40m, 13 bolts.

Pitch 8, 5.9:

Climb up directly above anchor into a groove. Trend leftward along a crack feature up to a small, overhanging bulge. Pull left over the bottom of the bulge, then up to the arete. Follow arete diagonally rightward to two-bolt anchor. 35m, 11 bolts.

Rappel the route from here or continue to the large, treed terrace. A tree on the right with a cordalette will allow you to get back to the last bolted anchor.

Note: you can rappel the route from any pitch with a 60m rope. To prevent knocking rocks on any climbers below, use the alternative rap route installed:

From the top of pitch 8, rap straight down to the anchor on the top of pitch 7. From here, rap slightly skier’s right to a separate rap anchor on the wall at a small ledge. Rap to the top of pitch 5. Rap skier’s left from the top of pitch 5 to make it to the mid-route terrace (careful, it’s a rope-stretcher). From the mid-route, treed terrace find the rap anchor on the wall skiers left of the top of pitch 4. Rap straight down 4 times using bolted rap rings on the slab. On the third rap, go over a steep wall skiers right to find the last bolt anchor on the slab below.

To rap from the bottom pitches (up to the first tree with a cordalette), rappel straight down the arete to the top of pitch 2. From the anchors at the bottom of pitch 2, you can rap skiers right to a small ledge ~1m above the ground (careful, it's a rope-stretcher)

Marble Canyon on the lower wall.

Approach:

Park at the gravel pullout on the lake side of the highway ~2kms north-west of the BC Parks Marble Canyon campsite (on Crown Lake). Cross the highway and follow a well-defined trail in front of a “littering fine” sign for 15 minutes up to the wall (turns into a scree-slope). Head climber’s right along base of wall, 50m down and right, passing the start of Sisyphus to a bolted arete behind a large tree. Stay on the arete, climbing to a 2-bolt anchor above.