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Calgary, Alberta
Canada
1197 Posts |
Posted - 07/02/2012 : 10:39 AM
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2012-06-30
Total Distance: 12 km
Elevation Gain: 700 meters
Time: 4 hours
Devil's Thumb is one of my favourite hikes/scrambles. I've been up several times and it never gets old. Everyone I've taken up here has loved it. The area is quite touristy, and for good reason. The lakes are beautiful, the glaciers are plenty and the peaks are majestic. Devil's Thumb offers a good view and is surprisingly quiet, perched just above very busy trails.
This makes a good destination on a lazy day or a back-up plan if the weather is iffy. The approach is simple and the route is short. Simply follow the masses from Lake Louise to Lake Agnes. Take the trail around Lake Agnes and the switchbacks up to the Big Beehive. At the sign pointing the way to the Plain of Six Glaciers, take the narrow and less visible trail on the right. A short hands on section will have you following the narrow path along the hillside. The path goes around Devil's Thumb, up a steep gully, then back towards the top of the feature.
On this day I decided to take a different route. It starts off the same narrow trail, just as you get into the view of the Plain of Six Glaciers. An opening in the cliff offers good rock and plenty of hand holds. There seemed to be multiple ways to go up and they seemed to range in difficulty. I would describe the route I took as a "climber's scramble."
The scrambling was sustained and quite enjoyable. The rock is absolutely solid at the bottom, but gets a little loose near the top. It's still much better quality than most of the scrambles I've done. The route tops out just below the Devil's Thumb summit, but a short walk gets you around and to the top.
This alternate route and the sustained hands-on scrambling on such solid rock makes me put this scramble near the top of my all-time favourites.
Photos
         
Map
[Download GPS Track]
More Photos
http://markostavric.fotki.com/2012/20120630/
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Edited by - Marko on 07/02/2012 10:46 AM
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Burnaby, BC
Canada
1294 Posts |
Posted - 07/02/2012 : 10:49 AM
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That scramble looks real fun  |
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Edmonton, AB
Canada
216 Posts |
Posted - 07/02/2012 : 11:53 PM
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| Nice. I was right across the lake at Mt. Fairview at the time; we probably took pictures of each other. |
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Hope, BC
Canada
7098 Posts |
Posted - 07/03/2012 : 12:16 AM
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| That does look awesome, thanks for sharing your trip. |
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1078 Posts |
Posted - 07/03/2012 : 02:05 AM
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| The route sounds cool! |
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North Vancouver, BC
Canada
330 Posts |
Posted - 07/03/2012 : 05:13 AM
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| Agreed, a great scramble where one will often find oneself in solitude. Thank god it's not in Kane's book! |
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Calgary, Alberta
Canada
1197 Posts |
Posted - 07/03/2012 : 08:55 AM
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| My pics don't do it justice. I was pretty lazy with the photos on this trip. The highlight for me was really the alternate scrambling route. It felt like 10-15 minutes of vertical scrambling. |
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High River, (just south of Calgary eh!), Alberta
Canada
1703 Posts |
Posted - 07/04/2012 : 09:22 AM
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| Remarkably snow free |
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Calgary, Alberta
Canada
1197 Posts |
Posted - 07/04/2012 : 09:42 AM
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| I feel like there should be less snow for this time of the year. |
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High River, (just south of Calgary eh!), Alberta
Canada
1703 Posts |
Posted - 07/04/2012 : 10:02 AM
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Compared to what I've been experiencing and seeing in reports it seems snow free.
Using the calendar to predict what to find in the mountains is like the Calgary long term forecast. We can't help it! |
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| Engor
Intermediate Member
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Calgary
838 Posts |
Posted - 07/05/2012 : 6:15 PM
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Lake Agnes still frozen. Crazy!
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Devil's Thumb
