| Park
at the Discovery Center at Rogers Pass and hike along the
well-defined trail to Balu Pass. From the pass, head towards Balu
Peak's south-east ridge; scramble on or near the ridge crest to the
summit (class 3-4). **check trail
restrictions** |
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Balu Pass Trail. |
| Scramble: RT
10.0; 5.0 up. After being shut down
on our first objective by a trail closure, we decided on a whim to
visit Balu Peak. We drove from the Icefields Parkway back home and
checked trail restrictions for Balu Pass; although a bear warning was
issued, a minimum of 4 people was not obligatory. We hugged the dogs
again and hopped in the truck for more driving, in the opposite
direction this time. It's a short drive to Rogers Pass from Golden, we
were soon at the trailhead. Our packs were light, that made the trek to
Balu Pass even more enjoyable. We didn't see much wildlife other than
marmots standing guard in the boulders. Once at the Pass, we left the
trail and started up Balu's south-east ridge. The trek to the summit
block is both short and pleasant. We continued up the steep broken
ridge without our poles and scrambled on or near the blocky
ridge crest. The easiest route was at times tricky to find; I'm
surprised it's graded as class 3, I thought it was as difficult and
longer than Mount Afton's east ridge which is 4th class. We
occasionally saw cairns and Fab flagged a couple to facilitate
backtracking (we retrieved them on descent). I was nervous; although
the scrambling is delightful, the grade is steep and is more sustained
than what I'm familiar with. The last stretch was easier, I regained my
wits and led to the top. The sky covered up, it almost looked like
thunderstorms were
eminent; despite that, we enjoyed the phenomenal view and grabbed a quick bite before
heading back the way we came. Going down wasn't as tough as I
expected; I took my time, followed Fab, recognizing the way I came
earlier. Back at our poles, we took another break as the weather was
holding. Smoke combined with clouds gave the sky color,
texture
and depth; that beautifully framed the surrounding mountains. I
felt happy about today's outcome, Balu Peak is a primo
scramble! |
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A nice trail through
the boulders and marmots. |
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Balu Peak. |
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Walking the yellow
brick road before Balu Pass. |
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Leaving the trail
behind. |
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Balu's south-east
ridge. |
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Leaving the poles
behind, scrambling begins. |
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Never too far from
the ridge crest. |
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Looking back. |
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Easier scrambling
leads to the top. |
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Whoot, whoot! |
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Checking out the
north-east ridge with Ursus Minor (far left),
Grizzly Mountain (left) and Mount Tupper (center). |
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Catamount Peak
(left) and Ursus Major Mountain to the
west. |
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Mount Sir Donald is
shrouded in cloud, Cheops Mountain is in the foreground. |
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Heading back down. |
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Delightful
scrambling on blocky terrain. |
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Last glimpse of the
upper mountain. |
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More scrambling. |
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Why not take another
break! |
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Sir Donald and
Cheops again. |
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Balu Pass. |
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The trail is a
pleasure to follow! |
| Back to home page |
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