Just back from a couple of weeks in Jasper. Here are some recent
observations from many locations:
July 1 - Highway 16 closure west of Jasper due to mud slide. Road supposed
to be closed for at least a day and perhaps more. Check before heading
toward Robson Park via Jasper.
July 1 - Hidden Valley - Old Salt: The belay pitons on the left side of the
Old Salt route are now gone and the belay is on dual bolts at the top of the
route instead. Red Line: Two bolts and a piton have been added to the first
pitch of Redline thus getting rid of the runouts. The belay bolts at the top
of pitch one have been replaced with rappel hangers. Sword of Damocles: This
route has now been rigged to rappel off on a 60m rope. The first three
rappels stations are on the route. On the third rappel you have to diagonal
over to the new rappel bolts on Redline to get down the last rappel (first
pitch). Sport climbing fall near Spiderman Slab had Rupert and Joe flying in
to do a rescue for a gal with an injured ankle.
June 30 - Late start on Boundary Peak had us following the tracks of another
party thus our trail breaking chores were minimal. Track holding well with
only one or two post holes. Surprised by the lack of avalanche activity,
although we witnessed a nice juicy cornice collapse on the ridge connecting
Parkers Ridge with Mount Athabasca. Was quite surprised to see someone was
bold enough to go up the Ramp (normal route?) on Athabasca. Certainly more
bold than I was prepared to be on a day with forecast highs of 32 and a poor
overnight freeze. Despite this, the snowpack seemed more supportive than I
would have guessed.
June 28 - Morro Peak - Mountaineers Route now has four new bolts added to
the first pitch to reduce the runout and keep the rope from running over the
loose rubble and killing your belayer. Rest of the route remains the same
and rockfall can be readily managed if you are attentive.
June 25 - Roche a Perdrix - climbed with several parties. The snow on the
ascent and scrambles descent is all essentially gone. Fixed pins on the West
Face diagonal route all still in place. Route is pretty clean these days by
Rockies standards.
Late June - Ogre Canyon - An attempt by a bulldozer to enhance the
drivability of the road has resulted in the opposite effect. The bulldozer
flattened the roadbed and in the process brought a lot of new dirt into
play. This was then followed by a couple of weeks of wet weather which
resulted in ruts that were a LOT deeper than before the "improvement". I
definitely would not attempt to drive in from Brule in anything but a 4X4.
One person had to abandon their vehicle for over a week before they could
get the thing out.
Other observations:
Icefields Scrambles: Nigel Peak Scramble route still looks very plastered
and had a lot of sluffing in the steep W facing bowls. Wilcox still looks to
have snow along the ridge but hard to tell whether it can be avoided. Tangle
Peak Scramble still looks like it has a pile of snow above treeline.
Sunwapta Peak above treeline is very snow covered.
Colin Range - the late snows have melted off most routes in the Colin
Range... Finally.
Fryatt Valley - still looks very, very snowy for the time of year. Lots of
snow visible on Brussels, Lowell, Christie, Fryatt, et al.
Edith Cavell - still plastered.
Peveril Peak - Still had snow on the upper sections as of a few days ago.
That is about it for now.
Cheers
Cyril Shokoples
ACMG / IFMGA Mountain Guide
Rescue Dynamics
5109 - 17A Avenue NW
Edmonton, Alberta, CANADA T6L 1K5
http://www.rescuedynamics.ca
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These observations and opinions are those of the person who submitted them. The ACMG and its members take no responsibility for errors, omissions, or lapses in continuity. Conditions differ greatly over time and space due to the variable nature of mountain weather and terrain. Application of this information provides no guarantee of increased safety. Do not use the Mountain Conditions Report as the sole factor in planning trips or making decisions in the field.
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