Crowsnest Mountain (2785m)I have climbed Crowsnest Mountain twice. The first time was on July 3rd, 1999. I did it that time with my brother and Dad. I made it to within 100 feet of the top and stopped for some reason. I know. It bothers me too. The second time was July 2nd, 2000. It really shows how much later one season can be than the other, since the first trip had much more snow. The second time I climbed it with my Dad and his buddy Lou. It was a lot of fun, and it still remains one of my favorite peaks. It's kind of like the Three Sisters for the Canmore area: the landmark mountain. The book said between 4 and 7 hours round trip, and we were up and down in about 4 and a half. We also met quite a few people along the way, including a dog on the summit!
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After starting up from the parking lot, walk down the power line cut a bit to an obvious path. Don't hope for switchbacks, because I hate to see wishes not come true. However, I thrive a bit on steeper ground, so I took advantage of this and powered up the path. If you slick your hair really nicely and put on your best clothes and look presentable, you might be able to hitch a ride on one of the quads, but once again don't get your hopes up, those quadders are scary and mean people (just kidding, I hope I didn't offend anybody)! After somewhere between 30 minutes and an hour, you break onto the inevitable scree: 2 steps forward and 1 step back! Here's the photo from the highway. Pretty impressive, isn't it? |
After the seemingly never ending scree (all scree seems that way to me), you'll have to break through the peak's first wall of defences. If you have any common sense at all, this should not be an obstacle, as it is easy to find on the right hand side. This is the photo of the first rock band. Walk in the park, if you've got common sense! You can see the scree bowl in the background. After this, you can traverse across the obvious ledge to the GULLY! MWA HA HA HA! |
Once you reach the gully, beat up the scree until it splits in two parts. If you've got common sense, go up the left side and use the sort of unecessary chain that is already bolted in place, but if you do use it, don't feel bad when I say I've seen a puppy climb up this. After you're out of the gully, it might get a bit chilly, but the views will most definately take you're mind off any of your problems. This is one of my Dad's shots of the Seven Sisters. The Seven Sisters extend off the arm of Crowsnest Mountain, and boy do I love this shot. All the clear cuts are sort of an eyesore, though. |
On top! It's just like climbing Mount Everest.... well .. not really. It's kind of like a miniature Assiniboine if you look at it from a certain angle.... which is sort of like a miniature Matterhorn.....which is sort of like a miniature Ama Dablam. Oh well, it feels great, and I'm sure all of the people in this picture feel the same way! Except Dad, because he's usually troubled by something. Now back down to Blairmore for a Chinese Buffet. Yesssss......... |
