Ref: Drew
and Mark in the Canadian Rockies
Note:
This peak is most often referred to as Wastach Mountain to match the
official name of Wastach Pass but it was in fact officially mislabeled
as Wasatch Mountain in 1997 (Bivouac). |
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Moraine Lake. (pic by Charles) |
| Scramble: RT 7.0; 3.75 up. I really wanted to head up to Moraine
Lake to see the fall colors before the road closure. We still hadn't
climbed Wasatch Mountain, it seemed like a good objective. I sent out
a couple of invites to gather a group of four to comply with the trail
restrictions. Raff and Charles were interested despite the unstable
weather forecast. We met at Laggan's. To our surprise, Raff greeted us
with a friend; it was Sonny Bou! Fab and I were quite thrilled about
meeting him, we drove off to the trailhead filled with excitement. The
hike up the trail was great, the larches were yellow and the
temperature was mild. We were so immersed in conversation that we would
have gone beyond the ascent gully leading to Wastach Pass if it wasn't
for Sonny and Charles noticing it! As we expected, the gully was filled
with soft knee-deep snow. Raff and Charles plowed their way up leaving
great footsteps for us to follow. We reached the crest of the gully and
started up the blocky terrain towards our objective. Snow hid some deep
holes and the lichen-covered rocks were slick, careful trekking ensued.
As we neared the summit ridge, the wind increased. Undeterred, we all
gathered at the top for our summit rituals. Tons of pictures were taken
and great stories were exchanged before it was time to leave. We
cautiously glissaded wherever possible; good times! Back on the trail,
we crossed numerous groups of people also enjoying the lovely scenery.
The outstanding company definitely made this fabulous trip memorable! |
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| Conversing along the way. (pic by Charles) |
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| A fine bunch! |
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| Wenkchemna Pass beyond the beautiful larches. |
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| Another quick pause and more chatting. |
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| Eiffel Peak. |
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| The Perren Route (just left of center) and the Schiesser Ledges (right of center) that lead to the Neil Colgan hut. |
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| Eiffel Lake. |
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| Leaving the trail to head up towards Wastach Pass. |
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| Looking back at Eiffel Lake. |
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| Up the easy gully. |
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| At the top of the gully, the upper slope comes into view. |
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| The Valley of Ten Peaks. |
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| Blocky terrain. |
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| Paradise Valley. |
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| Last steps to the top. |
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| Looking along the summit ridge with Eiffel Peak on the left. |
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| Ninja! |
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| Charles, Sonny, Fabrice and Raff. |
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| Sonny's summit ritual. |
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| Another group shot. (pic by Charles) |
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| First glissade of the winter season. |
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| Eiffel Lake again. |
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| Back on the trail. |
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| Take this! (pic by Charles) |
| Back
to home page |
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