The Hive Heights Hornets recently went to Squamish to climb outdoors. The trip involved months of planning but as so often happens, success was ultimately dependent on the weather.
We left Vancouver at 7:30 am, all the instructors in one car and a caravan of keen parents who were all willing to drive the kids and spend a day with us at the crag. As we drove through North Vancouver it started to rain, and it rained harder and harder as we got closer to Squamish. I was a ball of anxiety – how did I end up in a position where 20 people were willing to drive into a monsoon because I told them it was a great idea?
Thankfully, sometimes things just work out. As the road veered to the right at Shannon Falls, the view of the Chief opened up and at that moment it was bathed in sun. From there, everything was perfect. We set up ropes in the Smoke Bluffs and the Hornets soon learned that climbing on wet rock is actually pretty fun. The sun quickly dried the rock and the climbing was as good as it gets.
Everyone had an amazing time, and we even ran into some Winnipeg Hornets and their parents, in town for the Regionals competition at Hive Surrey. It was great to chat with them about their program – it sounds like the Winnipeg Hive Education team is doing amazing things.
Thank you to the Hive and all the Hornets parents for supporting this venture. I think that the kids gained a lot of confidence from this experience. Some of them were very surprised by how hard it is to climb outside, and the lucky few discovered a love for slab climbing.
Until next time,
Mary (Hive Heights Education Coordinator and Hornets Coach)