Oct 15, 2011
For those looking for trailhead directions: Matt Gunn’s description got us there with no problems, except that the length of the cul-de-sac where you park looks about 80-90 m to me, not 150 m, and the name of that street is “Anson”, I believe.
Evgeny called this one out through Wanderung but there were no other takers, so it was just the two of us. Unsure of the conditions, I packed 3 sets of foot gear: snowshoes, crampons and microspikes. And surprisingly, got to use all of them! With additional warm layers, they made for a heavy backpack, and I felt I was slower than my usual: the steepness of the trail is certainly a factor to be reckoned with. However, it’s not even the steepness of the trail that keeps your mind from wandering, but the fact that at times, you’re on a very narrow path above the drop-off straight down to the rumbling creek. Wouldn’t want to be there when the ground is wet or icy, and huge respect to those going up (and down!) with a multi-day pack.
The photos don’t do justice to the waterfalls you encounter close to the beginning: those are absolutely spectacular! The first manifestation of this year’s early winter were icicles and frost on log crossings: not fun. After the long 2.5 hrs we got to see the first views and the steep headwall along the creek we would be climbing. Cairns and ribbons led us along the wall decorated with frozen waterfalls, and then up the Place Creek, where we started searching for a ledge to scramble up. We continued on until we could see a ledge suitable for scrambling and decided to give it a try. Thankfully, the rock was mostly dry with winding icy veins which were easy enough to avoid. Spotting a ribbon higher up, we knew we were on the right track.
At the huts in 3h 40 min from the car, we took a half an hour break for lunch and pictures, enjoying the sun and warm air. Set off for the SE ridge shortly after 12pm. Very soon, we were on the snow-covered boulder field. After a few postholes down to the thigh, I stopped to put on the snowshoes while Evgeny continued. Amazing how different the snow quality here compared to Vantage Peak last week: there, the snow was heavy, great for kick-stepping, and held your weight really well. Here, it was over half a metre of powder which provided little support and made you treadmill on the way up. The boulders became larger, and we spent quite a bit of time circling around the snow-covered slabs, probing for places where you wouldn’t be standing on an inclined rock with 20 cm of easily sliding snow on top. We aimed for the notch suggested in the Scrambles book; it didn’t seem too steep until we were part way up it and realized we should have switched to crampons a long time ago. So we did. Hated the powdery snow, but at least you were in it down to the knees which helped with anchoring. Getting to and through the gully was the longest part of the trip. Higher up, it was enjoyable scrambling (despite some loose rock) that got us to the top fairy fast.
For the first time in the few recent hikes, the summit welcomed us with sun and windless tranquility. Didn’t even notice how half an hour passed. We were about an hour behind schedule, leaving the summit around 4:45. The original plan was to descend via the NW ridge, but that side was covered in snow, and we couldn’t see a way to descend from the top. Unenthusiastic about returning through the gully, we decided to continue along the ridge past the notch, where the descent looked far less steep. Scraped off some snow from the rocks on the other side of the notch and climbed up. We considered this approach for the way up instead of the gully, but had we done so, we may have ended up just seeing a corniced drop-off into the notch and would have likely had to abandon that plan.
Saw two flags when we descended into the saddle, then swiftly headed down a much simpler terrain, capturing the beautiful sunset colours. By the huts at 6:30pm, we made it to the slabs in the remainder of the natural light and travelled back down by headlamps. Had to take the GPS out a couple of times to find the correct boulder field to descend: cairns weren’t enough now. Back on the trail, I was glad I packed microspikes which went on for the remainder of the trip, proving useful for the icy logs and steep frosty ground. Back to the car at 10:20pm: a satisfying 14.5 hour trip with spectacular views, adventure and incredible weather. Well, minus the ice and frost :).
Evgeny made a few videos with his cell. Those are best viewed directly from Picasa (see bottom of elevation profile for the link).
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