ASCEND & WANDER

 In mid April I flew into Whitehorse for 4 days and wanted to get my last days of skis in the season. This time of year was an amazing time of year to go with super quiet streets and good road conditions but still decent snow coverage at the passes. Mount Sima was closing down in a few days. This weekend was their last festival for the year.  From the plane window and guessing it is Marsh Lake to the SE of Whitehorse Whitehorse Landed and went straight up to Mount Sima for a few laps  Shelter at the top of the chair View from the top The road to get to the ski hill passes is part of the Trans Canada Trail Miles Canyon and the Yukon River S.S. Klondike  Empty downtown near the visitor center All this in a single afternoon. Wild

 This was my first trip back to Big White resort in about 10 years after having had a seasons pass there for 4 years during my university time in Kelowna. A few of the lifts like powder chair had upgraded passes that scan but other than that it was the same old. We parked at Black forest and skinned up the snowshoe trails to reach East Peak where I remember doing a long day boot pack following some guys last time.  I will try and find some old photos from that big day.  Lumberjack sub Back in West Kelowna Here are the photos from what was tagged as March 18 2012...  Me over 10 years ago along the boundary Liam and forget the other guys name on the climb up  View from the ridge before East Peak  Us near the top of the climb Riding the cliff chair

Quick skiing break along the Coquihalla driving from Vancouver to Kelowna. The food truck at Zopkios was up and running with hours 8 AM to 7 PM GPS GPX Mount Baker looking good from the highway Snow was looking pretty thin, especially at Box Canyon, on the drive up but Zopkios seemed to hold onto enough for a couple more weeks  Open and enticing flowing creeks The summit of Zupjok was our jobjective Cool view looking at the highway North to South The needle ridge and peak route Skinning and already in the Alpine  Summit of Zupjok. 1835m Looking north towards Llama and Alpaca. This route would make a great ridge ski on a nice day when the snowpack is too touchy for anything steep  Guanaco Peak at 2127 metres This saddle is a key mark on Baldwin's map. To create a cool loop from ridge north of Zupjok, you should ski to Llama and take a couple lines that drop to 1400m then you contour at that elevation before climbing again to the saddle. The ski down looked doable but also ...

  I only spent a few hours here in the zone with a late start checking out of my air bnb and having to make my 4 PM flight. I figured if I made it to the hut by 1 PM, I would be able to ski down rather quickly then drive to YXC airport, return the rental car and catch my flight considering it is a small airport. The other 2 people at the hut were very surprised by how close I was cutting it. The ski out ended up being fast. Staging area for the hut is at the junction of the Crowsnest and the Tunnel Creek FSR. There were 2 main entrances but the one at the southern side of the creek is correct Skinning along the logging road Emerging out beneath treeline The logging road switchbacks back down the mountain but you want to veer up the creek The route apparently follows an overgrown summer trail up this creek before going lookers right up to a bench   Fernie Trails Association Apparently you can participate in summer volunteer work which earns you early booking privileges for...

I had been wanting to visit Waterton Lakes National Park for a while now but getting there always included a long travel time. I was surprised it is only 2 hours from Fernie and the drive takes you over the Crowsnest Pass and through some rural Albertan towns. Few people backcountry ski here but with some quick research I had found a route and figured I would get more information at the visitor center also. Apparently in April they pave the section of road in Glacier National Park but not the road connecting Waterton to Glacier until June so you always have a few options depending on the time of year I have been driving the Crowsnest highway tons around Hope BC and few times as far as Nelson/Castlegar but this was my first time going over Crowsnest Pass itself Path to Kootenai Brown cemetery at Lower Waterton Lake Bear's Hump trailhead Visitor Center Great chat with the park staff at the front desk who also happened to be the author of the red field guide. She had extensive knowled...