Disaster Point - Traffic Jam Crag

Several hundred meters west of the Hidden Valley parking lot is a rock outcrop right beside the road, with a small parking lot across the highway. This is the original "Disaster Point" of the fur trade days. Further south of the parking lot more climbing has been done but the rock above the old road is severely shattered from the blasting to make the old road bed. It is best avoided, even though it has been used for numerous mostly easy climbing and aid routes and even used for mountain warfare training in the 1940s and again in recent years. It's use for piton placement practice and aid climbing is probably fine so long as you pay attention to what you are hammering on. Large loose blocks of body crushing proportions occasionally move when people touch them. Ouch! The first four routes described do not have this problem and are right above the road. Park at the paved parking lot across the road and not directly below the routes.

1. Highway 16 (Original Route)
   5.10r gear 23m
   unknown / likely NWMC members
   c late 1970s
   First led in the late 70s on gear, it is the obvious corner left of the bolt ladders. It is best left alone until bolts are added to remove the ground fall potential.
2. Rainy Days and Mud Days
   A1 or 5.10+ 11 bolts 23m
   Craig Daniels, Cyril Shokoples
   June 29, 1998
   Practice aid bolt ladder; may go free. Shares the last one or two bolts with Traffic Jam. (Free grade is tentative)
3. Traffic Jam
   5.10 A1 or A1, 11 clips 23m
   Harvey Struss, Cyril Shokoples
   June 22, 1994
   Practice aid bolt ladder; may go free.
4. Dead Sheep Tell No Tales
   5.10 A1 or A1, 11 clips 23m
   Cyril Shokoples, Harvey Struss
   June 22, 1994
   Practice aid bolt ladder; may go free.
   

Rick's Revenge A2, gear & clips 15m

Sept 12, 99 R. Checkland, C. Shokoples
A new short practice aid climb just along the old road past Traffic Jam Crag along the blasted road cuts. It is more than vertical (overhangs perhaps 10 - 15 degrees) for it's entire length.. It starts with a couple of rivets. Bring small wires to tie them off, then 2 bolts, then a series of pin placements to a two bolt rap anchor. Bring a couple of Knifeblades, a couple of short Lost Arrows and a couple of small angles.

Disaster Point Area - North Wall

Two routes were climbed in the late 70s on the large north facing wall about 1 kilometer east of the Hidden Valley parking lot. The wall can be steep and loose with grassy and dirty ledges, but potential exists for a few good routes if someone is willing to put a reasonable amount of work into it. The existing routes are Limestone Ploughboy 5.7, A0, gear, a line just left of centre, ascended by Bill Tinge and Steve Otto around 1980 and No Disaster Here 5.6, gear, along the right hand edge, done by Paul Trepanier and Cyril Shokoples in August 1982. A few other uncompleted lines have been attempted.