[MCR] Rockies, North Face of Mt Athabasca, June 12th

[Public Mountain Conditions Report]

My fellow guide, Peter Thurlow, and I guided the North Face of Mt  
Athabasca yesterday, June 12th. Lots of information from the  
Athabasca area yesterday so we'll just add on in the believe that  
more information is better.

It is the days of the overnight frozen crust and we found ok travel  
on the North Athabasca Glacier if you followed old tracks below 9,500  
feet (we followed old descent tracks as they got us farther away from  
the seracs on the N side of the mountain), above that -basically at  
the base of the Silverhorn- the frozen surface carried well.

There has been a couple of large serac avalanches into the north  
basin recently, and it looks like there is more to come as there is a  
large serac tower seperated from the hanging Silverhorn Glacier on  
all sides (see photo) ready to go. We didn't dally across the basin - 
put your head down and get a move on.

The bergshrund was crossed easily on an eyebrow of snow. The frozen  
crust over moist snow did not grant enough foot penetration for short- 
roping so we climbed 5th class (note that it is not very often that a  
guide can short-rope there). We had two seperate snow picket belays  
(having two snow pickets with us was good), one at 30 meters (the  
shrund crossing) and the second a full 60 meters higher. Both of  
these anchors were enhanced by first compressing a square meter of  
snow before picketing, or T-slotting. 60 meters higher again the  
snowpack shallowed out and I could dig down to ice for screw anchors  
in less than a meter.

There is a nice amount of ice in the crux right now and it is easier  
than when it all gets hacked out, or melts, in later season. Fun  
climbing.

We descended down the AA Col route and it was still holding together  
well -not avalanching from the sun- at 15:00. I think that this will  
not be the case given a clear sky and the warmer air temperatures  
that have to come soon.

Happy trails,

Barry Blanchard
Mountain Guide
www.barryblanchard.ca
www.yamnuska.com

-------------- next part --------------
A non-text attachment was scrubbed...
Name: P1020137.jpg
Type: image/jpeg
Size: 116609 bytes
Desc: not available
Url : <http://six.pairlist.net/pipermail/mcr/attachments/20110613/0683c7a5/attachment-0001.jpg>
-------------- next part --------------

The hanging serac that should serve to hasten one across the North Basin