This page details the trips that I really want to do but haven't gotten a chance to organize yet. Obviously my expanded wish list includes every peak in the Canadian Rockies and the World in general. This page is specifically listing peaks and areas that are nearby areas I have already been to in the rockies. These are trips that I have thought about enough to have a plan about how to accomplish them. I have decided for now to omit popular trips and summits since there are lots of them and the information for them is available in many other places. This list I expect will never decrease in length. Since every trip I go on I tend to find new trips to put on my wish list.
Ascent of Monchy Mountain with ridgewalk to Mount Amery
This is a trip I thought up while summiting Mount Saskatchewan with Raff and Allan. Mount Amery to the South of Mount Saskatchewan has a big ridge extending West to Monchy Mountain which looked very appealing. Monchy Mountain and nearby Willerval Mountain have only been ascended once before as far as I know. The approach involves cycling down the Alexandra River Valley on a bike path and then fording the Alexandra River and camping near Willerval and Monchy. The Ridges Creek valley on the West side of Willerval and Monchy looks like a promising ascent route. Willerval looks like it could be a straight forward ascent via its North scree slope. Once onto the ridge of Willerval if the ridge looks scrambleable we would follow it to the summit otherwise the North glacier could be crossed to reach a scree slope that leads to the summit.
The Monchy Massif from the North with possible ascent routes up Mount Willerval shown as well as the ascent col for access to Monchy on the right. Mount Amery would be attained by hiking left along the ridge off the photo.
The Monchy Massif from the South showing possible ascent routes. The access col is to the left of the picture
Photo courtesy of Richard Collier
The access col to the Monchy Massif from the South.
Capricorn Lake Scramble Camp
This is a trip I thought up while summiting Mount Noyes. I took some close up photos of Mistay Lake and noticed that the river fans out as it enters the lake. This would be the best place to cross the river. From there you could hike up into 2 valleys one of which contains Capricorn Lake which may be a good place to set up camp. From this camp you could scramble up Mount Patterson and Breaker Mountain. You could ascend Barbette Mountain and Parapet Peak via a very scenic ridgewalk. Ebon Peak nearby would be a short ascent with some glacier travel. Aries Peak is also a possible ascent in the area. This camp looks like it could be right up there with Caldron Lake as one of the best places to camp in the rockies for scrambling.
Looking East to the Capricorn Lake area with routes shown. 'X' marks Capricorn Lake.
The scramble route up Mount Patterson from the Capricorn Lake area.
Breaker Mountain is one of many peaks that could be scrambled from Capricorn Lake. The ascent route is up slopes behind the left side of the mountain.
Although not a scramble due to glacier travel, Ebon Peak is a straight forward ascent from Capricorn Lake.
Caldron Lake Scramble Camp - Completed Summer 2008!
This is a trip I had added internally to my trip wish list without explicitly adding it to this list. As of summer 2008 I have completed this trip. Caldron Lake is a popular day hike from Bow Summit. The lake itself it situated just North of the Wapta Icefield. Indeed the access trail is also the access trail for Peyto Hut. My interest in this area started with Caldron Peak. Which rises above Peyto Lake. I was interested in seeing if it was scrambleable from Caldron Lake. After a reconnaissance trip in 2007 I found out that yes it was. While I was there I also noticed a probable scramble route up Mistaya Mountain which would give me an excellent view of many great peaks in the area. I also noticed a possible route up Mount Patterson that I was skeptical would go. Turns out my skepticism was well founded since we never did find a way up without the need of ropes for glacier travel. The camp in summer 2008 at Caldron Lake was a tremendous success. We had great weather and summited 2 out of the 3 peaks I had in mind. Since this page is not the place for a trip report I will direct readers to the photo pages below for this trip.
Ascent routes up Mistaya Mountain from Caldron Lake
Ascent route up Caldron Peak
Mount Thompson Scramble Route
This mountain is easily done as a mountaineering ascent from Peyto Hut on the Wapta Icefields. However from the photos I have taken from various nearby locations I believe that there is a scramble route on this mountain. Historically the Bow Glacier which is to the South of Mount Thompson would have blocked the route I am thinking of. But since the glacier has been rapidly receding due to global warming I beleive one could scramble around it and then to the summit of Mount Thompson. The route would start at Bow Lake and follow the trail to Wapta Falls. You could then scramble up the side of the valley to Iceberg Lake.. From Iceberg Lake one would hike around the right side of the Lake and then possibly be able to scramble around the right side of Bow Glacier. From there you would hike along the South Slopes of Mount Thompson to the West Side of the Mountain where you could easily hike up and down. My trip to Iceberg Lake is below.
The route passes to the right of the Bow Glacier in this photo
The ascent route up Mount Thompson from St. Nicholas Peak
The ascent up Mount Thompson as seen from Mount Gordon
Fortress Mountain
This mountain overlooks Fortress Lake in Hamber Provincial Park in BC. My main motivation for climbing this mountain is to get great views from above of Fortress Lake. Access is from the Fortress Lake Trail which begins in Jasper National Park. This mountain is a scramble.
NorthEast face of Fortress Mountain from the Athabasca River Valley
South West slopes of Fortress Mountain as seen from Fortress Lake
Fortress Mountain as seen from Mount Woolley
Serenity Mountain and Fortress Lake. The view of this lake from Fortress Mountain would be one of the finest in the rockies.
Mount Stewart
The mountain should be a straight forward scramble via the South West slopes. It should have a great view of many rarely visited peaks to the East of the parkway. It is a good 20km hike in to get to the peak. I would like to scramble this peak on an ordinary weekend so that means either doing it all in one day with day packs or hiking the approach one day then up early to summit the next as well as hike out. Either way it would definitely be physically challenging. There is a good backpacking trail through Nigel Creek then South over Cataract Pass that will help speed up the approach.
Mount Stewart from the South West. The ascent would follow the easy scree slopes.
Maligne Mountain Meadows
There is a high altitude valley full of meadows on the North East side of Maligne Mountain that I would like to set up camp in and climb perhaps either Chivalry Peak or an unnamed peak overlooking Southesk Lake. There will be great views of the North Face of Maligne Mountain and Southesk Lake plus excellent meadows for most of the trip. The approach goes over Opal Hills to another valley to the North of Maligne Mountain. There is some elevation loss required to get around an unnamed summit to reach the alpine valley by Maligne Mountain. But for the most part the trip requires minimal bushwacking. On bivouac.com the valley leads to a pass labeled "Rocky-Southesk Pass".
A google map view of the area in question. The "X" marks a place that I would like to set up camp. There are plenty of smaller lakes to camp by if this one cannot be reached in a day.
Coral Creek Headwaters Scramble Camp
The approach for this camp starts in David Thompson Country by Vision Quest Ridge. The camp is located between the South Boundary Trail of Jasper National Park and the David Thompson Highway. The approach follows the trail to Job Lake mentioned in "Hiking Alberta's David Thompson Country" by Pat Kariel and Eric Schneider. Just before Job Pass we would leave the trail for some brief and not so bad bushwacking to reach our base camp. Our base camp will be in an alpine valley surrounded by many pretty lakes. The approach is roughly 25km which I hope to cover in one day. From base camp we will have many options for our summit days. The map for this area is "Job Creek C/7". I also created a google map of the proposed trip below. Sorry for the small text it was the only way to fit everything in properly. I thought up this trip while studying some of my many maps and books. I think it would be a great club trip for the Grant Macewan Mountain Club. I plan to post it in the club climbing schedule this year for early July.
A google map view of the area in question. There is another trail that can be followed all the way up Coral Creek that would be shorter but this trail involves many dangerous fords in early season so I am not currently considering it. I apologize for the small text on the summits. I had trouble finding a color that works.
Winston Churchill Range
I had previously listed Gong Lake here on my trip wish list but recently I have become more interested in peaks slightly South of it on the Winston Churchill Range. In summer 2008 I participated in an ascent of Mount Woolley to the South of the Winston Churchill Range. From there I got a good idea of possible ascents and a good place for a base camp in the area. My main idea for this trip is to cross the Sunwapta River in late summer when the flow is less and ascend up the West slopes of the Winston Churchill Range to a glacier bench. After crossing this short glacial bench we would then descend into and alpine valley at the base of many peaks. There are a few lakes in the area that would be great for setting up base camp. One definite advantage of this trip is the proximity to the North Face of Mount Alberta will weather permitting provide awesome views of the most challenging mountain in the rockies. Some of the peaks I have in mind of summiting are Mount Palmer, Mount GEC and Mount Nelson. Mount Smythe is a possibility but requires some technical rock climbing which I am not experienced enough in to attempt to lead an ascent.
The Winston Churchill Range as seen from Mount Woolley
The Winston Churchill Range as seen from Sunwapta Peak. The approach route in red crosses the glacial bench between Diadem Peak and Mount GEC.
Return to Mount Saskatchewan - Completed Summer 2009!
I have finally completed this trip as of August 2009. It took 3 tries but I finally did it. On my second attempt I ended up ascending Terrace Mountain instead on account of bad weather. I also ascended 3 other minor peaks in the area with not so minor views.
In September 2007 I participated in a trip to Mount Saskatchewan. Our route went up the Saskatchewan Glacier to Castleguard Meadows and then into the Terrace Creek Valley where you can then access the first ascent route which I would rate as an advanced scramble. The problem with this access route is that it involves a lot of distance that is not necessary. The other common access for the first ascent route is even worse involving much painful bushwacking. I never did make it to the summit and even if I did the view wouldn't have been any better since all the higher mountains nearby where covered in cloud. For my return trip I would like to take a much shorter approach route that no one as far as I know has taken. The route heads up avalanche slopes after diverging from the trail to the Saskatchewan Glacier and leads to the scree slopes near the North Face of Mount Saskatchewan. From here the route parallels Mount Saskatchewan heading towards the Terrace Creek Valley which would be where you would set up base camp. The route avoids glaciers and will involve avoiding some dropoffs to get into the Terrace Creek Valley. Once at base camp the ascent would follow the first ascent route. I have no good pictures of the first ascent route myself but there is a great one from 1925 which can be found with a quick google search.
The approach route passed by glaciers beneath the North Face of Mount Saskatchewan
The approach then continues down into the Terrace Creek Valley via the route in this photo
Terrace Mountain - Completed Summer 2009!
After 2 days of fog a patch of blue sky appeared briefly. This patch of hope was enough for me to attempt and then succeed to summit Terrace Mountain. I scrambled through rain and fog and then when I was just about to turn around it started to clear up. The trip turned out way better than I was expecting.
Terrace Mountain is West of Mount Saskatchewan and separates the Terrace Creek Valley from the Castleguard Meadows. From my attempted ascent of Saskatchewan I spied what could be a scramble route up it. Actually from Castleguard Mountain I could also see a possible descent route as well. So it could be done as a loop that heads around the mountain. The approach to Terrace Mountain would be the same as for Mount Saskatchewan described above. Even better is that Terrace Mountain has many subpeaks that can be ascended for a multi-summit day.
The ascent route from the Terrace Creek valley
The descent route into the Castleguard Meadows
Snowdome 2: The Ultimate Icefield Scramble
There are 2 subpeaks of Snowdome Mountain that extend to the East beside the Athabasca Glacier. Little Snowdome is the smallest of the 2 and is a pleasant short scramble. It looks like you could continue on to scramble up Snowdome 2 from Little Snowdome. I would like to try it sometime. The views from Snowdome 2 would probably be pretty awesome. I know the views from Little Snowdome are already very awesome.
Snowdome 2 as seen from Little Snowdome. The rock wall at the bottom of the photo can be bypassed on the left.
Snowdome 2 as seen from the Athabasca Glacier. Looks pretty scrambleable from here.
Mount Noyes - Completed Summer 2009!
From Caldron Peak I noticed a summit that looked scrambleable from the Icefields Parkway that is not in any scramble guide. I put this on the Edmonton Sections summer schedule in 2009. Only 2 people signed up. As for the rest of you in the ACC, here is the awesome trip that you missed out on.
The South West slopes of Mount Noyes
Bison Peak
From Mount Noyes I noticed yet another summit that looked scrambleable from the Icefields Parkway that is not in any scramble guide. Bison Peak is part of the Mount Murchison Massif. It looks like it could be easily ascended via scree slopes from Totem Creek. It might be short enough to do as a Sunday ascent.
Bison Peak as seen from Mount Noyes.
Return to Mount Fitzwilliam Basin
In summer 2008 I participated in a club trip to Mount Fitzwilliam Basin. During the trip I was able to scramble up Mount Clairvaux. From the summit I observed that probably every peak surrounding the basin could be scrambled. The views of the North Ramparts from Mount Clairvaux are spectacular and returning to climb the other peaks would provide another opportunity to view these cool mountains. When I was up on Mount Clairvaux my view was partially obscured by Vista Peak to the South. When I return I would like to do a long day trip to Vista Peak to get a unobscured view of the Ramparts. Below is a link to my 2008 trip to Fitzwilliam Basin as well as photos of various peaks I would like to return to climb. Once up Frontier Peak you can follow the ridge to Mount Fitzwilliam as well as Bucephalus Peak
Kataka Mountain as seen from Mount Clairvaux
Vista Peak from Mount Clairvaux
Mount Clairvaux and Frontier Peak from Fitzwilliam Basin
Return to Mount Geraldine
I participated in an attempt to scramble up the South slopes of Mount Geraldine in 2007. We hit turn around time and had to head back. I would like to return and make it to the summit. The views from Mount Geraldine includes the 4 Geraldine Lakes as well as Mount Fryatt to the South. The view I got from our turn around point of the Geraldine Lakes was spectacular. Below is a link to the attempt trip. The photo below is a view of the Second Geraldine Lake from the slopes of Mount Geraldine
Second Geraldine Lake from the slopes of Mount Geraldine
Roche Bonhomme - Completed Summer 2009!
Roche Bonhomme is a mountain near Jasper Townsite. When I completed this scramble I managed to miss the ascent trail completely. It is an excellent scramble with great views.
Roche Bonhomme as seen from Rabbit Ears Peak.
Return to Beauty Lakes
In 2006 I participated in a trip to Beauty Lakes. I made it to the summit of 2 of the peaks surrounding the valley. The peaks surrounding the alpine valley are not much higher than the valley itself so they don't take a lot of time to ascend from a base camp. One peak nearby I ascended and descended in 2 and 1/2 hours. To help in peak identification I named the peaks from the North side of the valley to the South side in clockwise order as Beauty 1-7. Using this naming the peaks I summited would be Beauty 2 and 5. If I were to return I would like to attempt some of the other summits in the area. It is a very pleasant area with great views. One of the views includes the Columbia Icefield to the West.
Beauty Lakes Valley and surrounding peaks.
Mount Poboktan
This mountain provides an excellent view of Mount Brazeau one of the 11000ers. It also possibly has a great view of Brazeau Lake. Poboktan Mountain is accessible by the Jonas Creek/Jonas Shoulder trail in Jasper National Park. This mountain looks very scrambleable. Below is Poboktan Mountain as seen from Sunwapta Peak. Recently I read a trip report by Rick Collier who ascended this very slope.
Poboktan Mountain from Sunwapta Peak
David Thompson Country Summits
In 2007 I participated in my first scramble trip to David Thompson Country with the Edmonton Section of the Alpine Club of Canada. Ever since I have returned many times to scramble more summits from this beautiful area. I still have many summits on my wish list for this area. I hope to check off a few of them this summer. Here are some of the peaks I wish to climb.
Mount Loudon as seen from Mount Weed. Approach route is mostly bushwacking starting from Siffleur Falls Trail.
Summit of Whirlpool Ridge. I would like to return to summit Whirlpool Ridge on a less foggy day.
Rhine Peak and Elbe Peak. The 2 peaks from the Ex Coelis Complex that I have not climbed yet.
Elliot Peak from Mount Stelfox. The ascent route heads up the creek then up slopes to the right of the summit.
Another photo of Elliot Peak from Abraham Mountain. This is a very cool looking mountain and I would like to try it soon.
The summit ridge of Mount Stelfox. I would like to return and do a traverse of this summit ridge.
Mount William Booth as seen from Two O'Clock Ridge. The approach starts from the Siffleur Falls Trail Head. A bicycle would make the approach much shorter. Without one it would probably be a muliday trek.
Voltage Peak. I named this peak after the cool electric "V" rock formation in the photo. The approach is similar to that of Mount William Booth.
Brightstar Peak as seen from Vision Quest Ridge. I haven't yet decided which route I will try to ascend on this peak. The approach follows the trail to Littlehorn Meadows in the valley below.
Vision Quest Ridge with Allstones Peak and Abraham Mountain behind. The ridge is easy to reach but the highpoint is quite a ways back. I completed this ascent in the summer of 2009
Abraham Mountain. I completed this ascent in the summer of 2009
Allstones Peak from Windy Point Ridge. The ascent route goes up slopes on the opposite side.
Mount Michener from Windy Point. To climb this mountain I would have to cross Abraham Lake somehow and ascend the right ridge.
Mount Michener from Mount Stelfox. Abraham Lake is below.
Allstones Ridge from Windy Point Ridge. A trail ascends to Allstones Lake on the left from which the summit is easily reached.
Kista Peak from Windy Point Ridge. This peak can be reached via an access road to the East of the mountain.
Other Trips to be elaborated on when I get a chance. Some of them may not even seem coherent yet. I am just putting them here as a reminder for myself
Maligne-Brazeau Lake Traverse: I plan to climb Mount Brazeau and Opal Peak to help scout out this trip.
Backpack Athabasca River to Columbia Glacier.
Extend Geraldine Lakes via 2 options. Head into Fryatt valley via a pass beside Mount Belanger and follow the Geraldine Lakes Trail to the highway. The other is to head down to Divergence Creek and up over a pass to the Lick Creek Valley. From the Lick Creek Valley head over a col beside Catacombs Mountain and cross the Chaba River to gain the Fortress Lake Trail and return to the highway.
Quincy Mountain Traverse or Climb Blackfriars Peak or Mount Quincy. There are two possible approaches for Blackfriars Peak
Backpack/Scramble trip to Porcupine Lake. Reference one of the David Thompson Country books.
A ridge near Mount Stelfox shaped like a horseshoe may be fun to traverse.
Bighorn Range Ridgewalk
Scramble Allstones Peak via Windy Point Ridge. Could possibly tackle Abraham Mountain that same day.
Ridgewalk Mount Henlsey near Landslide Lake.
Scramble up Esplanade Mountain or Roche De Smet near Jasper.
Lead a scramble camp near Pyramid Mountain, by Jasper.
Scramble Mosquito Mountain and Molar Mountain via Andrew Nugeras's directions
Scramble unnamed peaks on East side of Parkway near Mount Saskatchewan
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