Exclusive: Connor Herson Frees ‘Drifter’s Escape,’ World’s First 5.15 Trad Climb

Last summer, Connor Herson completed the first free ascent of Drifter’s Escape in Squamish, British Columbia, and proposed 5.15a. Drifter’s Escape begins with two protection bolts to allow safe access to the crux crack feature, but the majority of the pitch is protected with trad gear. While definitions of what constitutes a “trad” climb may vary, at the very least, Drifter’s Escape features some of the hardest trad climbing on the planet, with two V11 cruxes. During a telephone conversation on January 26, Herson, who was finally ready to share the news, told Climbing that the quality of Drifter’s matches the difficulty: “it is rare to find a route that perfect.”

Until 2021, Drifter’s—which is the fifth pitch of Bald Egos (VI 5.9 A4; 1,500ft)—was just another mostly forgotten aid route on the Stawamus Chief. Jon Rigg, who repeated Bald Egos, described the Drifter’s pitch as “…a mini shield [of El Capitan’s] headwall,” in a Facebook comment. About 65 feet from ledge to ledge, Drifter’s follows a series of parallel cracks through an otherwise blank headwall of white granite, just left of the classic University Wall (IV 5.12-; 800ft). It is of no surprise that the whispers of hard free climbing projects in Squamish found their way to Herson’s ears, who has been a regular in the Stawamus Chief parking lot—the de facto dirtbag hang out—since 2023. (In that time, Herson has worked his way through all but a few of the established 5.14 trad climbs in Squamish, not to mention many of the hardest trad routes in North America.)

Herson originally rappelled into the line with Ethan Salvo, a prolific Squamish boulderer who recently dipped his toes into roped climbing and quickly sent Dreamcatcher (5.14d, sport) and Cobra Crack (5.14b, trad). The initial inspection revealed a line that was very hard, but probably doable, and certainly beautiful. Herson fixed ropes to the ground and commuted via toprope solo up two pitches of an obscure 5.11, Wall of Attrition, to the ledge at the base of Drifter’s.

Regarding the protection bolts at the beginning of the route and whether or not Drifter’s is one of the worlds hardest trad climbs—or a trad climb at all—here’s what Herson had to say:

“The bolts were already there when I started trying the pitch, and I’m not one to chop bolts or take unnecessary risks—the idea of skipping or removing them didn’t even cross my mind. I don’t want to make a pedantic argument of what constitutes “trad.” I’m not claiming a “trad” ascent, and the grade is just a proposal. I know a lot of the media will focus on trying to compare this with other ascents in terms of difficulty, style, and the like. To me, it was just a very fun project up an incredible piece of rock. It was a privilege to climb on it.”

Drifter’s begins with two bolts that protect a V7 boulder problem (with an otherwise ugly ledge-fall potential) into the crack features that define the route. From there, insecure 5.13 laybacking with tension-dependent feet leads to a ledge that you can perch, no-hands, on a heelhook. It’s a finite rest, Herson said, who described the stance as very “glute-intensive.” Then comes the first crux: “certainly a double digit boulder, probably V11 or so.” Herson was quick to add, “[but] I don’t know bouldering grades.” Climbing asked Salvo, who does know bouldering grades and has spent considerable time on the route; he thought V11 is accurate. This first boulder problem—protected by a 0.1/0.2 offset cam—revolves around a “pogo” style move, bumping the right hand and generating momentum by swinging the right leg—the move is viewable here at 00:24, in the Mellow Film Tour teaser. After this initial crux, there is reprieve in “two perfect fingerlocks” followed by “really cool, pumpy 5.13 climbing up these twin cracks.” This deposits you at a poor stance and a cam placement before a final crux, another V11, but more technical. Herson was characteristically underspoken about the difficulty of this boulder, so Climbing again asked Salvo, who provided more context: “He described the left hand grip as a “weird back-two finger pod…your upper two [fingers] are just side-pulling” and the right hand as an insecure, slippery fingerlock. But, Salvo added, the line’s overall difficulty “comes from how punchy the whole upper half is.” The pitch culminates in an airy mantel onto a sloping ledge with anchors. “Ledge to ledge,” Herson said, sounding pleased with this notion.

Herson redpointed Drifter’s after 20-odd sessions spread out over two summers—the most time he’s ever spent on a trad route. Considering Herson has climbed 5.15 sport and trad climbs like Magic Line (5.14c), Meltdown (5.14c), and Empath (which has been graded everything from 5.14b to 5.15a), Drifter’s Escape is, as the grade suggests, likely at the very cutting edge of trad climbing. It might be the hardest trad route on the planet right now, and at the very least sits alongside routes like James Pearson’s Bon Voyage (5.14d) in Annot, France, William Moss’s The Best Things In Life Are Free (5.14d R, with two protection bolts) in the Gunks, Pete Whittaker’s Crown Royale (5.14d) on Norway’s Profile Wall, and Jacopo Larcher’s Tribe in Cadarese, Italy, which was ungraded, and remains so after repeats by James Pearson and Pietro Vidi. Regarding the future of trad climbing, Herson said, “of the various forms of climbing, trad climbing has the most immediate potential for progression.” Herson pointed out that Sean Bailey’s new 5.15d Duality of Man has a V15 crux—“There’s no trad climb on the planet with anything like that.” Herson admitted that finding a line of such difficulty that goes on gear is an “extra challenge”—after all, the intro climbing on Drifter’s is bolted—“but the lines are certainly out there.”

It has been six months since Drifter’s. What has Herson been up to in the meantime? Similar to this delay in spray, he was tight-lipped, but did offer that Black Diamond will be releasing a film series about “my climbing in the second half of 2025.” A series, which suggests that if you are tired of reading about Connor Herson, the future is not looking good.

Herson and his sponsor, Black Diamond, kept the summer ascent under wraps in preparation for a film, which premiers February 27 in Boulder, Colorado, as part of the Mellow Film Tour.

The post Exclusive: Connor Herson Frees ‘Drifter’s Escape,’ World’s First 5.15 Trad Climb appeared first on Climbing.