Approach: We met Jay at 4:30 AM and proceeded to drive to the climber's parking lot. The upper gate was closed so we walked the snowcoach road. At the buses' terminus, on the glacier, we roped up and continued towards the headwall. Snow coverage and travelling conditions were great; along with perfect weather, it's doesn't get any better! With much daylight to attain a location to set camp, we casually made our way up and around Snowdome's southern flank. The expanse of the névé is astonishing and it seems that you never get anywhere fast. Still, I didn't get tired of watching the surrounding majestic mountains, the crevasses and all these shades of white. Several teams heading for Mount Columbia dotted the glacier and we knew that two teams were ahead of us on the northern arm of the icefield; the Columbia Icefield was buzzing with action! After some time, I started to feel worn from the weight of my pack, having to pause every 15-20 minutes to lean forward and rest my load on my poles. Although this pattern became repetitive over a long distance, it enabled me to continue further. Eventually, all of us got tired. After a 9.5 hours trudge, we reached a broad saddle next to Mount Kitchener. We were still 4.5 km away from the North Twin/Stutfield saddle but we agreed that travelling light was a definite advantage. We set up the tent, rehydrated plenty and rested for the rest of the day. We retired to the shelter early to evade the wind. Tightly tucked in the roomy two-man tent, I suffered from claustrophobia a little. During the night, I woke up in a panic numerous times to get out of my sleeping bag and open the tent flap for air... Hummm, get a grip Jo. At some point I did fall asleep, from exhaustion I guess.
We didn't bother setting an alarm, the brightness woke us early and we left the camp at 7:45 AM. Travelling light was enjoyable and we all felt good. As we neared North Twin, we heard a helicopter and saw it coming towards a camp ahead of us. The wind was fierce; the helicopter swung around and seemed to be swooped by the wind before landing. A rescue? We reached the camp shortly thereafter. Three lads were preparing to leave. I recognized Vern Dewit as he told us about his friend having symptoms of HAPE and requiring a prompt evacuation. Bummer... Following a brief exchange, we continued our way; I knew we would meet Vern eventually! We got to North Twin's ascent slope in good time. It looks much easier from close, the grade isn't that steep. We carried on with the climb, somewhat sheltered from the wind. Even with a slow steady pace, we attained the ridge fairly quickly. The wind augmented along the ridge, strong wind gusts threatened to make us stumble and steal our mitts. Yet, we were jubilant; we could see the summit tip. We skied within 10 meters of the top. The bootpack was short but exciting as we clambered over the narrow snowy summit with 80 km/h gusts. We bravely stood on the tip for pictures but crouching across was the preferred technique. After glancing down at the intimidating Twins Tower, we kneeled for a break. We enjoyed the phenomenal views and great accomplishment while keeping a good grip on our things!!! Returning was fast; we unroped and skied next to the up-track. Skiing was not ideal but we had seen worse. Back at the saddle, we had a good long break. In time, we roped up again and headed towards our next objective, Stutfield Peak.
(Some pictures courtesy of Jay Lund)
