[MCR] Rockies, Louise Group

[Public Mountain Conditions Report]

Myself and four of my colleagues guided in the Lake Louise group, August 11-17. Overall we had good to great weather and good to excellent conditions on ascents of North Ridge of Mt Scaffer, East Ridge of Little Odaray, the Huber Ledges to the Huber/Victoria Col, South-East Ridge of Mt Victoria, West Face of Mt Lefroy (loose rock threat at the ridgeline as reported by Mike Trehearne earlier), Normal route on Mt Niblock, the Devil's Thumb, East Ridge of Haddo Peak, the Grand Sentinel and the normal route on Mt Temple. Good rock climbing at the Back o' the Lake too.

Of note is that the approach to Abbot Pass from O'Hara, and the normal route on Mt Temple, are both very busy and rockfall from other parties, and onto other parties, is an issue. These routes may be considered a "hike" for the whole family on a calm clear day with no one else around, but these are not those days. Everyone going to these routes would be wise to have a helmet and to have studied where the safest routes go. We guides protect the crux step, up and down, on Mt Temple with a rope and belay.

My aspirations for a traverse of the Mt Haddo on August 15th were crushed (literally) by a serac collapse down the North Glacier. The debris was visible and disturbing from the summit, and reported to have happened in the hour previous by my fellow guide, James Madden, who saw it from the Devil's Thumb. Our ascent route via the glaciers and snow patches above Surprise Valley was in excellent shape, save for the talus slopes left exposed by the size 3 avalanche that ran on glacier ice earlier in the summer. We chose to retreat our ascent line and that added a couple of hours to our day, but kept us out from under the unhappy serac. Note that we ascended, and later descended, the snows of the NE aspect of Haddo to the highest escape ledge leading left to the East Ridge, about 300 feet higher than the Haddo/Sheol Col exit.

Yesterday was the clearest and best day of my summer thus far. I could see North Twin and Mt Alberta to the north and the British Royal Group to the south, awesome.

Happy trails,

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

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the summit ridge of Mt Temple, August 17th