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Edmonton, Alberta
Canada
137 Posts |
Posted - 07/11/2005 : 2:32 PM
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I thought i'd start a thread on Scrambles.
Post your favorite scrambles with details on them. If you have pictures or have a website or know of good websites on them post those as well. I have not had the chance to do any as of yet but would really like to do at least 1 or 2 this year.
Let the posting begin!
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Anchorage, Alaska
USA
1340 Posts |
Posted - 07/11/2005 : 9:16 PM
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| Do scrambles in southern Alaska count? That is by far the best place I've ever seen. My sig pic (click on my screen name) for example was taken on O'Malley's Peak just outside Anchorage. About 8 km in from the city, and 5000' (1500m) straight up rubbly, chunky metamorphic rock. By far the most rewarding views for moderate effort. |
Edited by - northernalberta on 07/11/2005 9:18 PM |
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 Terminator shade wearing, summit questing, double Grinding, Gordo voting self annointed 'dumb ass' and Aconcagua Bagga who dreams of Robson, Teton, The Judge, and.....and....
Port Moody, B.C
Canada
2210 Posts |
Posted - 07/11/2005 : 10:35 PM
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quote:
Originally posted by TheDeputy
I thought i'd start a thread on Scrambles.
Post your favorite scrambles with details on them. If you have pictures or have a website or know of good websites on them post those as well. I have not had the chance to do any as of yet but would really like to do at least 1 or 2 this year.
Let the posting begin!
Long scramble
Welch peak entire S ridge for it's a continous scramble that lasts several hours.
Short scramble
Mt Tomyhoi, Perhaps only 1/2hr of actual scrambling but it's very asthetic and the approach is amazing with good steep section at final summit.
There are TR's for both of those on this site. Pictures for both are in the current trip report page. |
Edited by - Jeffster on 07/11/2005 10:37 PM |
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Unity, Saskatchewan
Canada
144 Posts |
Posted - 07/12/2005 : 11:48 PM
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Long spectacular scramble, for good weather: CIRQUE PEAK, above Helen Lake in Banff National Park. Even though I was only there once (it's not so easy to make it up there), that was my all-time favorite view!! And the trail in to Helen Lake is a very enjoyable trail, with lots of variety. Sorry, I haven't scanned any of those photos to JPG.
Steep, memorable scramble for the second day of a backpack trip:
PTARMIGAN PEAK, above Hidden Lake backcountry campground, East of Lake Louise ski area. See Hiking Lake Louise for route-information. For experienced scramblers - Even though I don't recall any intimidating exposure, I wouldn't recommend it as a first scramble, as there are places people can get themselves in trouble if they get off-route or if they try to shortcut on the way down. I have a photo from the summit-ridge:  Bring binoculars and you have a great chance to spot some sheep - check out the vicinity around Skoki Lakes and the meadows/ridges nearby Deception Pass.
Word to the wise: In mid-August of the year 2000, Misquitos were very plentiful at all the campgrounds in the Boulder Pass vicinity. And that was the trip I forgot my mosquito head-net! They motivated me to get up before dawn each day, quick make breakfast, then get moving just as the bloodsuckers started to attack. Once on the trail, no big deal. Up in the high meadows, big biting flies could be a bit of a pain, but not near as bad as those skeeters! 
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- Hank from Calgary |
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Fleece thong wearin, Buntzen Lurkin, mystic poet mountain man and international spokesman of the friends of the white squirrel society
Port Moody, B.C.
Canada
5910 Posts |
Posted - 07/13/2005 : 12:07 AM
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Incredible shots !!!
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"No Trail is Long with Good Company"
Russ S.
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Anchorage, Alaska
USA
1340 Posts |
Posted - 07/13/2005 : 4:12 PM
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quote:
Originally posted by DoonOfDusk
Long spectacular scramble, for good weather: CIRQUE PEAK, above Helen Lake in Banff National Park. Even though I was only there once (it's not so easy to make it up there), that was my all-time favorite view!! And the trail in to Helen Lake is a very enjoyable trail, with lots of variety. Sorry, I haven't scanned any of those photos to JPG.
Steep, memorable scramble for the second day of a backpack trip:
PTARMIGAN PEAK, above Hidden Lake backcountry campground, East of Lake Louise ski area. See Hiking Lake Louise for route-information. For experienced scramblers - Even though I don't recall any intimidating exposure, I wouldn't recommend it as a first scramble, as there are places people can get themselves in trouble if they get off-route or if they try to shortcut on the way down. I have a photo from the summit-ridge: Bring binoculars and you have a great chance to spot some sheep - check out the vicinity around Skoki Lakes and the meadows/ridges nearby Deception Pass.
Word to the wise: In mid-August of the year 2000, Misquitos were very plentiful at all the campgrounds in the Boulder Pass vicinity. And that was the trip I forgot my mosquito head-net! They motivated me to get up before dawn each day, quick make breakfast, then get moving just as the bloodsuckers started to attack. Once on the trail, no big deal. Up in the high meadows, big biting flies could be a bit of a pain, but not near as bad as those skeeters!
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- Hank from Calgary
Awesome! I want to do Cirque Peak. I'm going up Dolomite Pass the weekend after next, for the second time. I love that spot. |
Edited by - northernalberta on 07/13/2005 4:14 PM |
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Kootenay Bud
2695 Posts |
Posted - 07/13/2005 : 4:58 PM
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Nice ski ascent in winter too  |
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Salmon Arm, BC
Canada
894 Posts |
Posted - 07/14/2005 : 10:42 AM
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Hey Dune, you beat me to it. Cirque Peak was my most enjoyable scramble, too.
What made it so good was that we did not just do the summit. We descended further to the west of the ascent route (an easy talus ski) to the head of the Helen Creek valley, then we scrambled up a talus gully to the ridge between Helen Creek and Bow Lake, ridgewalked south along that ridge, then angled our way downslope to intersect the trail less than 1 km from the Parkway.
Something like this:
So, other than the trail to the base of Cirque Peak, it was all fun and spectacularly scenic off-trail scrambling and walking the rest of the day.
Northernalberta, you may want to give this route a go, it's absolutely worth it.
Another favourite is Bow Peak, just above Mosquito Creek campground. See "Don't Waste Your time in the Rockies" for a description. To get there, you have to find an obscure trail to the outlet of Bow Lake, ford the Bow River there (thigh deep and d...d cold!), follow an old trail SE to the saddle below the peak, then turn left and it's just a straight up scramble over boulders to the top. Great views of the whole upper Bow Valley, Hector Lake and west to the Wapta Icefields. And we could see the whole Cirque Peak route that we hiked the previous day. I think the only reason I didn't enjoy this as much as Cirque was that the weather started to crap out and we had to get down.
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Edited by - pmjwright on 07/14/2005 10:43 AM |
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Kootenay Bud
2695 Posts |
Posted - 07/14/2005 : 7:50 PM
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quote:
Originally posted by pmjwright
To get there, you have to find an obscure trail to the outlet of Bow Lake, ford the Bow River there (thigh deep and d...d cold!), follow an old trail SE to the saddle below the peak,
The saddle below the peak is Crowfoot Pass - good skiing there too  |
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114 Posts |
Posted - 07/31/2005 : 11:23 PM
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Been many a years since I did Cirque Peak above Helen Lake, but one never forgets a scramble. To make it more challenging, I actually headed straight up the broken rock band rather than skirt around to the easier scree slopes on the right. Excellent scree skiing descent.
One of my favorites though would have to be the scramble up to the glacier on Imja Tse (Island Peak) in Nepal. We started from base camp at 2:45am. We had a full moon too but a high ridge eventually blocked it out. First part is high altitude hiking until you reach the first rock band around 5500 metres. A couple of hours of scrambling up some good rock (for the most part) and having the sunrise at the same time. Finally, we reach the glacier at around 5900 metres or so. The route was completely bare of snow/ice until then. and rope up to traverse to a steep ice wall. Okay, so we had fixed ropes but it was still strenuous with the jumar. My Nepalese guide made it look so easy though, simply using an ice axe (he's been to the South Col of Everest). What a blast coming down that wall. One amusing thing was that I accidentally struck one of my water bottles precariously sitting on top of the glacier. It went careening down the slope and I thought that was the last I would see of it. Fortunately, it remarkably came to a full stop on a flat section of the glacier below. Picked it up on the way down.
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Climbing is like chess, attack the weaknesses in the defense. |
Edited by - RedWolf on 07/31/2005 11:25 PM |
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Favorite Scramble w/Details
