[MCR] Gimli Peak / Valhallas - Rock Fall Incident

[Public Mountain Conditions Report]

I guided the S. Ridge on Gimli yesterday as a day trip from Nelson.
 

 
There was a party ahead who while traversing towards the summit knocked an
~80 lb. block off which fell the full length of the west face and missed
hitting hikers below by 5m.  The rock smashed into pieces on impact and
miraculously no one was hit but one hiker fell off the trail and took a good
tumble down the talus slope.  This was a frighteningly close call.  I spoke
with the hikers who seemed pretty shaken up.
 
Climbers doing the S. Ridge should be reminded that along with the frequent
hikers who walk out to the Nisleheim col, there are now more and more
parties on west face routes (as there was yesterday).  Climbers who show up
with the "Select Climbs of the West" guidebook don't seem to realize this.  
 
When traversing the peak to reach the descent after climbing the S. Ridge,
please tread carefully as there are loose blocks that can easily be
dislodged and the safety of those below relies on your diligence.  Write
down your intended route in the log at the trailhead so other climbers know
where you are.
Hikers - please do not linger under the west face and be aware of overhead
hazard.  Spacing your party out while traversing to the col is a good idea
as is communicating your intentions with climbers.
 
Conditions:
 
The descent was snow free with the exception of some nice boot skiing snow
patches at the bottom.  Whoever left their crazy carpet behind - I have it.

 
The camping area know as The Beach was looking great with the new large food
storage locker and fixed wire for hanging packs.  There is still a steady
flow of water near the trail close to camp. There were 2 parties already
camped up there with another 15 or so folks hiking up to camp for the
weekend.  The parking lot was full when we left - bring your own chicken
wire if planning to stay overnight.

 
Back in the Mulvey Basin, the main lake is still mostly ice.

 
The access road is the worst I've seen it with some large rutted sections
that seemed noticeably worse at the end of the day after all the weekend
traffic drove up.  One couple in a Tercel were abandoning their car 4.5 kms
from the parking lot.  My Subaru Forester was fine but I wouldn't recommend
anything less. 
 
More photos at  <http://www.facebook.com/mountainsense>
www.facebook.com/mountainsense
 
Cheers,
Shaun King  ACMG / UIAGM Mountain Guide
 <http://www.mountainsense.ca> www.mountainsense.ca 
 
 
-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: <http://six.pairlist.net/pipermail/mcr/attachments/20120811/a91770a3/attachment-0001.html>
-------------- next part --------------
A non-text attachment was scrubbed...
Name: not available
Type: image/jpeg
Size: 53101 bytes
Desc: not available
Url : <http://six.pairlist.net/pipermail/mcr/attachments/20120811/a91770a3/attachment-0004.jpe>
-------------- next part --------------
A non-text attachment was scrubbed...
Name: not available
Type: image/jpeg
Size: 68008 bytes
Desc: not available
Url : <http://six.pairlist.net/pipermail/mcr/attachments/20120811/a91770a3/attachment-0005.jpe>
-------------- next part --------------
A non-text attachment was scrubbed...
Name: not available
Type: image/jpeg
Size: 63299 bytes
Desc: not available
Url : <http://six.pairlist.net/pipermail/mcr/attachments/20120811/a91770a3/attachment-0006.jpe>
-------------- next part --------------
A non-text attachment was scrubbed...
Name: not available
Type: image/jpeg
Size: 57493 bytes
Desc: not available
Url : <http://six.pairlist.net/pipermail/mcr/attachments/20120811/a91770a3/attachment-0007.jpe>