Note: It is also possible to access from the south following a decent trail after fording the river; can't comment on this ascent, haven't been there but it could be worth investigating!
Picture courtesy of Raff.
Mount Minos GR:078237 |
| elevation: 2,210 m. | height gain: 690 m. |
| area: Ya Ha Tinda Ranch,AB | map 82 O/11 |
| 2015-Mar-29 |
| Head
towards Ya Ha Tinda Ranch and park along the side of the road at a
clearing, 079260, with the Minos-Labyrinth Col to the west. Hike to the
river, a trail exists in the trees on the right of the cutblock but it
could be difficult to find. Ford the river and bushwhack on the south
side of the main drainage towards some clearings past Mount Minos'
north drainage, 071258. Ascend the ridge through tight deadfall at
first and burnt timber, an easy plod leads to the summit. Note: It is also possible to access from the south following a decent trail after fording the river; can't comment on this ascent, haven't been there but it could be worth investigating! |
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| Meeting Raff, Marta and Andrea; Lincoln wants to get going! | ||
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| Daisy follows Fabrice across the Red Deer River. | ||
| Scramble: RT 6.75; 3.5 up. After last weekend's outing on adjacent Labyrinth Mountain, we agreed to return for some quality suffering. The dogs are always keen to follow us no matter where we go; they especially like camping trips with new grounds and warm kibbles. We elected to ascend via the north end of Minos despite knowing there is an existing trail at the south end; we figured the shorter route would be advantageous for the dogs, we also knew where to ford the river. We met Charles and Raff at the same place as the week previous. Two lovely ladies accompanied Raff, I was pleased to see Andrea again and meet Marta. Like déjà vu, we descended to ford the river; the weather was nice but still on the cold side! We wasted no time crossing the river and bushwhacking up the forest. We reached a large clearing chocked by deadfall. Usually, our dogs have no problems with deadfall but this tight tangle of large trees proved difficult for them and us as well. At some point, Fabrice and I decided to turn the hounds around to prevent an injury. Fabrice backtracked to the river while I carried on with the others. Travelling did improve soon thereafter; we casually hiked through the burned timber with an unobstructed view. Higher up, we beelined for the grassy slopes of the very broad north ridge and continued to the top. The summit plateau offers a great view and it would be possible to play Frisbee on a calm day! Today, we had some wind... With extra layers on, we sat for a good break. We went down the grassy slopes and followed the gully to a cliff before crossing back to the ascent slope with the nasty deadfall. Once over the tangled mess of trees, we carried on to the river where Fab was waiting with the hounds. Lincoln crossed the river to come and greet us, what a sweetie! | |
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| Switching runners for hiking boots. | ||
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| Less deadfall in the forest. | ||
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| Heading up burned timber and deadfall. | ||
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| After a nasty section of deadfall, the terrain improves. | ||
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| Hiking in good company. | ||
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| Beelining for the grassy slopes. | ||
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| Pleasant travel. | ||
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| Unobstructed view along the way. | ||
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| Last bit. | ||
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| Marta introduces the view north. | ||
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| Summit picture. Picture courtesy of Raff. |
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| Heading down with adjacent Labyrinth Mountain in front of us. | ||
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| Reaching the drainage. | ||
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| Some of us travelled in the gully. | ||
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| At a drop off, we climbed back on the ascent ridge to the left. | ||
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| Backtracking. | ||
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| Into the nasty deadfall section. | ||
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| Charles crosses the river with thick plastic bags over his boots. | ||
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| Lincoln crosses to greet and reel us in. | ||
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| Hungry doggies. | ||
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| After dinner mint. | ||
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| We love camping! | ||
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