Trip Report: Ice Climbing in the Canadian Rockies
Next Adventure Ambassadors, Corie and Andy, head North to the Canadian Rockies for an ice climbing adventure near Canmore, BC.
Earlier this winter, we took a trip up to the Canadian Rockies. Eager to brush up on our ice climbing skills, shake the dust off our tools and spend a long weekend outside, we booked a cheap hotel in Canmore and got set to head up North. Staying in the truck would present some challenges for us–wet gear, potentially well below freezing temps, and the lack of working cell phones (we don’t have plans that include Canadian roaming), to name a few– so we booked a room at the Canmore Rocky Mountain Inn. Amenities included breakfast, a sauna, a complimentary wine service (!!!), and two queen beds that would be awesome for laying out our gear. With the cost of some hostels being $40/night per person NOT including any food or much space for gear-splosions, the $80/night of the CRMI was well worth our “splurge.”
Before we left, we borrowed a guidebook (“Waterfall Ice: Climbs in the Canadian Rockies”) and downloaded Will Gadd's incredibly helpful app - both of which would become incredibly helpful with the huge warming front that set in during the week before our trip. We spent three days climbing, each day in a different area and in different conditions:
Day 1: Haffner Creek
We drove up to Haffner Creek to try to find some easy, accessible, ice to climb. We botched the approach after parking near the rest area since no one had hiked in from that point recently, ergo, the "well-established trail" did not exist. Adding 20-30 minutes onto the approach turned out to be fine, however, because the area itself was so close to the trailhead.
It began to drizzle lightly as we entered the canyon and the rain began to steadily increase its strength throughout the day. Finding only a couple of WI3 "boulders" to climb, we opted to dry tool up the chossy, muddy limestone near the crag's entrance. It was delightful... if you're into that sort of thing. We would alternate between climbing in the mud to belaying in the shower so neither of us hiked out dirty (silver lining!).
Day 2: Balfour Wall
Balfour was a bit of a trek for us coming from Canmore but after receiving a tip from some locals in town that Balfour was in, we decided the drive would be worth it. Driving up The Icefields Parkway at 7am with nothing to see but the outlines of stormy peaks was a crazy experience. It left us both wanting to come back when conditions, and some accompanying visibility, are improved.
The hike up to the Balfour Wall was short but sweet and we had finally found ice that we could climb.
We were joined shortly after our arrival by a pair of climbers … and those were the only other people we saw all day. After waiting in lines for climbs in the PNW, this was a welcome treat. We set up a top rope on an accessible WI4 to warm up, top-belaying each other up a few laps until we felt like we were warmed up enough to throw some screws in. We ran laps on a couple of WI3s before calling it a day.
Day 3: Evan-Thomas Creek/ Kananaskis Country
"K Country" is incredibly close to Canmore and would be a great destination if we had had more time to spend in the area and better conditions to contend with. But, a warming trend is a warming trend, so we made due with what we had.
The approach trail is super easy to follow, and we hiked by an assortment of groups waiting in line for 2 classics: Moonlight (WI4) and Snowline (WI4). We eventually found a couple of fun looking lines that weren’t in at all, before realizing that finding the routes we were after might end up being quite a chore. The creek was still ripping and there was no way we would be able to hike directly toward the routes with any ease.
With beta from summitpost and the app telling us to hike up and to the right of where the creek starts to flow in earnest, we found ourselves wandering around on a well-established trail looking for some evidence of where we could rap in, we eventually gave up on the “easy” approach and hiked the slippery trail back down toward the creek. Instead, we took the ‘zero stars, do not recommend’ approach up the left side of the creek.
After some careful route finding, a lot of slipping, and some consistent assistance from the “rock throwing” maneuver to see if the ice was thick enough to cross, we found a pitch of WI3(ish) that we could climb out. The line was called "B2" and it was short, grey, and had a muddy, adventurous top out.
We hiked out, smiles on our faces that we’d actually found something to climb, and drove back to Canmore. We’re both extremely excited to get back to the Rockies, hopefully when a few more fat pitches of ice come in!
To check out more of the Mountain Refugee's adventures, visit their site at http://www.mountainrefugees.com
It began to drizzle lightly as we entered the canyon and the rain began to steadily increase its strength throughout the day. Finding only a couple of WI3 "boulders" to climb, we opted to dry tool up the chossy, muddy limestone near the crag's entrance. It was delightful... if you're into that sort of thing. We would alternate between climbing in the mud to belaying in the shower so neither of us hiked out dirty (silver lining!).
Day 2: Balfour Wall
Balfour was a bit of a trek for us coming from Canmore but after receiving a tip from some locals in town that Balfour was in, we decided the drive would be worth it. Driving up The Icefields Parkway at 7am with nothing to see but the outlines of stormy peaks was a crazy experience. It left us both wanting to come back when conditions, and some accompanying visibility, are improved.
The hike up to the Balfour Wall was short but sweet and we had finally found ice that we could climb.
We were joined shortly after our arrival by a pair of climbers … and those were the only other people we saw all day. After waiting in lines for climbs in the PNW, this was a welcome treat. We set up a top rope on an accessible WI4 to warm up, top-belaying each other up a few laps until we felt like we were warmed up enough to throw some screws in. We ran laps on a couple of WI3s before calling it a day.
Day 3: Evan-Thomas Creek/ Kananaskis Country
"K Country" is incredibly close to Canmore and would be a great destination if we had had more time to spend in the area and better conditions to contend with. But, a warming trend is a warming trend, so we made due with what we had.
The approach trail is super easy to follow, and we hiked by an assortment of groups waiting in line for 2 classics: Moonlight (WI4) and Snowline (WI4). We eventually found a couple of fun looking lines that weren’t in at all, before realizing that finding the routes we were after might end up being quite a chore. The creek was still ripping and there was no way we would be able to hike directly toward the routes with any ease.
With beta from summitpost and the app telling us to hike up and to the right of where the creek starts to flow in earnest, we found ourselves wandering around on a well-established trail looking for some evidence of where we could rap in, we eventually gave up on the “easy” approach and hiked the slippery trail back down toward the creek. Instead, we took the ‘zero stars, do not recommend’ approach up the left side of the creek.
After some careful route finding, a lot of slipping, and some consistent assistance from the “rock throwing” maneuver to see if the ice was thick enough to cross, we found a pitch of WI3(ish) that we could climb out. The line was called "B2" and it was short, grey, and had a muddy, adventurous top out.
We hiked out, smiles on our faces that we’d actually found something to climb, and drove back to Canmore. We’re both extremely excited to get back to the Rockies, hopefully when a few more fat pitches of ice come in!
To check out more of the Mountain Refugee's adventures, visit their site at http://www.mountainrefugees.com