Toyohashi Alpine Club
Mountaineering in the Canadian Rockies
Mt. Athabasca (3491m)
Jasper National Park, Canada
August 1997
Report by Darren DeRidder
Party: Iain Williams and Darren DeRidder
Mt. Athabasca is located next to the Columbia Icefields on the way to Jasper. Like most of the nearby peaks it is glaciated and has snow or ice cover year-round. Looking towards the Columbia Icefields from the new Icefields visitors center, Mt. Athabasca is the most prominent mountain on the left. A glacier forms on the face of this mountain and reaches down toward the Athabasca glacier, which is the one tourists walk around on and fall into crevasses. It is an impressive looking ice-bound peak.Iain and I drove off to the Columbia Icefields, stopping at points of interest along the way, including Castle Mountain, where we pulled off at the tourist spot to have a cafeteria-style lunch. It was crowded so we sat with some people who asked us if we were climbers and if we used "pokey things" on our feet. We also stopped at Mistaya Canyon where the scenery was really impressive, Sunwapta Pass where we took a little break and enjoyed the sweeping views back down the valley, and Peyto Lake, where we took a little hike to the viewpoint which was crowded with Asian tourists. We stopped at the little Lake below the Whyte Pyramid as well.
At the Hilda Creek Hostel we signed up for the night, then drove the rest of the way up to the Icefields and had a look around at the new Icefields Center. Mt. Athabasca was right in front of us and looked really impressive. We had a good look at it and could even make out what we thought was a trail in the snow which marked our route. In the Icefields Center there was a Parks Information desk where we registered for the climb and got details of the conditions. It looked good. We weren't able to drive up to the climbers parking area halfway along the snow coach road so we went back to the hostel and moved our stuff onto bunks. After a while we went back up the road to the Icefields Center and waited until the last bus was gone. Then the gate was open and we drove up to the climbers parking lot at the base of the moraine of the glacier that comes off Athabasca. We hiked up a little ways, just enough to get the idea that there was a definite path up along the crest of the moraine. Returning to the car-park, we met a Japanese fellow who said he wanted to climb Mt. Andromeda. He said Athabasca was too easy. We asked him if he had any gear and he said no. He didn't have crampons, an ice axe, or even boots. So we told him not to climb. Too bad there are lots of other idiots just like this guy out there - the ones who get themselves killed every year when the set off on a lark to "climb a big mountain".
The Hilda Creek Hostel is very rustic. Don't go there if you want the comforts of say, the Lake Louise facility. There are no showers, no flush toilets, no electric lights. Water is taken from the creek and should be boiled. The place was crowded too. We got as much sleep as we could and at 4:00 a.m. we were up and away. By the time we got to the climber's parking lot at the base of our climb, it was still dark, but there were some other cars and people getting ready. If you climb much you will know that in the predawn darkness of an alpine climb preparation, nobody is friendly. There is a sense of urgency and stress in the air. By the time it started to get light, we were off. We were higher up here, we were tired, and it was slow going all the way. The trail went up and up over the moraine and broke through a cliff by way of a short scree gully. From there it levelled out slightly and then dropped down a few meters to the base of the glacier. There was a snow-patch here and a couple of Japanese guys. They were going to try the North Ridge route. The previous day, they said, they had climbed the normal route, which we were trying. They must've liked the mountain or something.
They set off and we went after them. The first part was a little tricky since the ice at the bottom of the tongue of the glacier was a bit steep. The crampons did the trick. Soon we were right on the snow-covered glacier and moving along fast. We caught up with the Japanese guys and then split from them as we followed tracks which angled up under the main face of the mountain. Above were seracs which we had to move past quickly. I was in front and set up a demanding pace. There were a few crevasses which we had to step across. We angled up to the left first, and then cut across the face to the right, moving under the seracs. Finally we emerged on the saddle beneath the summit ridge. The rocks on the ridge looked near, so we aimed for them and decided to have a break when we got there. But they were farther away than they looked and it took forever to get there at our slowing pace. When we finally did get to the rocks it was cold and blowing and we didn't feel much like stopping anyway. We put on our Goretex jackets and that was one time when they really were needed. It actually started to snow a little bit. We kept warm as we moved on up the rocks and snow-patches. Before long we were at the summit. The snow on the ridge was piled up high to the North of us. We took turns climbing up the mound of snow to the very top, keeping the rope on belay.
On top of the mountain, we could see down into the deep hidden valley to the south. It was long and lined with steep mountain faces. All along the valley floor, an enormous river of ice was slowly creeping. I was very impressed to see such a perfect example of a glacier. I don't imagine many people get to see it, the Saskatchewan Glacier.
After some summit photos and the obligatory Mars bar, we headed back down, and this time Iain set a demanding pace. As we got lower we started feeling more and more happy. It was a little warmer and the wind wasn't blowing and it was so much easier going down than it was going up. We took some fun pictures of leaping over a crevasse. As we neared the lower edge of the glacier there were more crevasses and we had to find our way carefully. The ice became steeper as we edged our way over to the moraine.
As we crossed the steepest part, which was strewn with rock fragments fallen from the cliffs above, we heard a strange sound. It was faint at first, growing louder and louder, like a dull rushing scraping sound. My first thought was "Avalanche!" Peering up the glacier I couldn't see anything, and my next thought was that a big crevasse was about to open up. There was no apparent movement however and the sound kept getting louder and louder as if it was coming right towards us. Within a few seconds we saw a huge boulder, the size of an Austin Mini, come sliding over the edge of the glacier. It rocked and wobbled and sent splinters of ice spraying as it slid down the tongue of the glacier, as if in slow motion. As the ice curved away steeper and steeper, the huge rock gained momentum and swept past us only twenty meters away, continued to pick up speed and flew down the terminus of the glacier to explode on the rocks below with an enormous clap and a shower of shrapnel. I said to Iain, "Let's get out of here."
The walk down the Moraine was very, very long. It was hard on the knees. Finally we got back to the car, feeling pretty worn out but proud of ourselves anyway.
Checking the time, I was surprised to see it was only noon. We'd started at about 5:00 and made good time. I took off my gear slowly so that all the people passing in the bus could see me and point and say "Look at the mountain climber! Look, he's got... pokey things!"
We drove back to Banff that afternoon and went to the Sulphur Mountain Hot Springs. Iain calculated that out of all the climbs we did, we had the highest elevation gain on this peak. The summit is at 3491 meters, and our starting elevation was more than 2000 meters below that.
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