Section Profile: The ACC Manitoba Section

The Canadian prairie climber: when vertical space is at a premium, distance is just a state of mind.

In the heart of the prairies lies the birthplace of The Alpine Club of Canada: Winnipeg, Manitoba. As Elizabeth Parker and Arthur Wheeler sat down to pen the ACC into existence, one can only imagine how strong the call of the mountains must have been. That same call drives today’s Manitoba Section.

The Canadian Shield - Manitoba’s playground

*Eric Veenstra and Charles Roy scrubbing South Cliff rock.*

When not venturing to the mountains, where do ACC Manitoba members go to scratch that climbing itch? The curvature of the earth hides what lies just two hours east of Winnipeg - the Canadian Shield. Covering (or should we say “Beneath”) much of Northwestern Ontario, this exposed Precambrian igneous rock is a remnant of what were once peaks higher than today’s mountains. While some of this rugged landscape sneaks slightly into the eastern part of Manitoba, the really good stuff is in Northwestern Ontario. Surrounding the town of Kenora, Ontario is a treasure trove of crags that are accessible for day trips (if you call six hours of driving accessible). More typical are weekend adventures that include climbing during the day and congregating around a fire at backcountry campsites along the many lakes, including the well-known “Hilton” and the “Bellagio”.

Many of the Kenora climbing spots were developed in the 1970’s by ACC Manitoba’s past president, Peter Aitchison, and his contemporaries. The Manitoba Section had been struggling to survive, and Peter not only built the local club back up, but also built a cadre of climbers who would develop most of the

crags and routes that are climbed today. These gems have become the Manitoba Section’s playground.

*At the Bellagio looking across the lake at the Hilton.*

One such gem is Gooseneck, situated a short forty minutes north of Kenora. Two cliffs (Main Cliff and South Cliff) boast a spectrum of single pitch climbs as well as some of the few local multi-pitch climbs. While the Main Cliff has been well-climbed since its development, the South Cliff had sadly become forgotten. However, last year a group of Manitoba Section members got their gardening tools and rappel rigs out and began the arduous process of bringing it back to life, with final efforts this year making it ready to send once again.

Where there is cliff and water, let there be ice

The South Cliff is also garnering year-round attention as it has become a base for farmed waterfall ice. There is little natural climbable ice in the Kenora area. So last year, a dedicated group of Manitoba Section members, led by local cliff icing legend Paul Monney, descended on the South Cliff to spray it with water pumped up from the adjacent Gooseneck Lake. After a few -20C weekends of around-the-clock spraying, the cliff was fat with ice and ready for epic ascents.

They say timing is everything, and so is bad timing. Days after the South Cliff was fully iced and ready to be climbed, provincial COVID health orders were announced that would prevent travel from Manitoba into Ontario. In fact, the orders would be enforced by Ontario Provincial Police stationed at the border. Since the orders would not come into effect until the following Friday, a band of ice climbers took Thursday off work to get their first and last epic climb in.

This epitomizes the spirit of the Manitoba Section community, which we hope would make Elizabeth Parker and Arthur Wheeler proud!

Ray Hope and Katarzyna (Kasia) Dyszy

After joining the ACC seven years ago, Ray has been rock and ice climbing and mountaineering ever since. He has completed his ACMG TRCI certification and attended this year’s Summer Leadership Course at the Mt Mummery GMC.

Kasia is the Member Services Chair and the Events Calendar Coordinator for ACC-MB Section. She is an active volunteer and one of the ACC-MB’s main event organizers for winter club activities.

Inspired? Get involved with your local section!

We invite all national ACC members to get more involved with their local sections. Are you new to town and feeling motivated to meet mountain people? Are you good with social media, writing grant proposals, or have an interest in becoming a volunteer trip leader to help build your guiding resume? Do you like working with youth outdoors or are you interested in grassroots environmental activism to help protect our mountains? If you possess any of these skills and interest, most sections are always looking for volunteer help.

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