granite and top it all off with a refreshing
swim.” These statements still ring true
and many of these areas are now highly
developed and loaded with new problems.
Describing bouldering activity in the val-
ley as a frenzy over the last decade would
be an understatement.
Locations such as Skaha Provincial
Park, The Slayers, The Butcher Shop near
Penticton and Cougar Canyon and Ellison
Provincial Park near Vernon are still gems
of the Okanagan bouldering world and
surely help cement the region as a desti-
nation, but there’s little doubt that over
the last decade, The Boulderfields has
become the f lagship location of Okanagan
bouldering. No other area in the valley,
or possibly the country, has seen the same
amount of activity or development in that
time. The Boulderfields is now one of the
largest and best bouldering areas in this
part of North America.
Over the past decade, The Boulderfields
(affectionately named The Fields by locals)
has experienced a development explosion
that includes a jump from less than 100
established problems to what is now, at best
guess, over 1 , 600 established lines. Some
suggest that the area holds double that in
potential, and could easily eclipse 3 , 000
lines when development nears its end. With
that jump in problem concentration there
has been a parallel increase in the qual-
ity, boldness, and difficulty of the lines.
The Fields’ lines are very diverse and now
range from V 0 to V 14 in difficulty with
hard projects awaiting some love. Most of
the rock in the Okanagan is solid gneiss,
and the gneiss in The Fields is extensively
featured and steep, resulting in the area’s
rumored powerful, gym-climbing like
style. You can find pretty much everything
in The Fields. Easy, hard, tall, short, good
landing, bad, safe, life-threatening, world-
class, yada yada – it’s all here folks.
For years, I’ve been proclaiming that
the bouldering in The Fields is as good
as or better than nearby destinations such
as Squamish and Leavenworth. Yeah, I
know, bold statement. I’m sure some think
of me as little more than some sort of
Boulderfields zealot, but those who have
made the trek know the truth. That first
walk to the rim of The Fields usually seals
the deal. Imagine pulling into a parking lotOpposite: Jay Duris
on Bohemian
Backwards V12feature