Katie Lambert, 45, does High Country Lover (8c+)

Katie Lambert, with six 8b+’ under her belt, has done High Country Lover (8c+) in Pine Creek. The 45-year-old needed well over 30 sessions during four seasons for the send of the Ben Ditto route that sits at some 2 400 meters elevation.

Can you tell us more about the ascent, the process behind and peaking at 45?
Its the second ascent, and has been tried by a few others. True to my post when Ben first started climbing on it years ago I couldn’t do the “crux” and the rest just seemed overwhelmingly burly and I felt like;

1)it would be completely badass to be able to climb well on this thing
2)in order to do that I would need time, patience and would need to get stronger
3) and what a worthy goal.

Having limit projects at home is kind of ideal for all of that as it takes some of the stress of “time” and “access” away. However being south facing and a little at elevation there were a lot of challenges with “conditions”. Each season I tried I would creep up to the end of the season having almost sent and then get shut down for many months due to weather and temps and then have to kind of start all over again when the sending seasons arrived.

Last year having gotten close again and then shut down I told myself I needed to level up my base strength and mental game in order to get it done within the good windows we have. I was aiming for this past fall but what with climate change and all the weirdness that brings we didnt have much of a fall with things going from an extended summer to freezing winter. So I told myself to prioritize for spring, stay relaxed but focused with it, and just do my best.

You know the game- try your hardest but be completely unattached to the outcome. That mindset really had me approaching this climb more as a practice than really anything else.

Peaking at 45, I’d say its really the Euros and Bill Ramsey that inspire this for me. And tbh I don’t think I’ve fully peaked yet- lol.