Sunday, September 16, 2007
The Fortress
I'd only ever really seen this one from highway 40 on the east side, or long ago, from the Fortress Mountain ski resort at the base of its imposing face. It looks utterly inaccessible from the north or east.
I got a reasonably early start on a clear, cloudless morning. I had been watching the western horizon throughout the week for new snow, and while there had been some a couple of days before, much of it was gone the weekend. Obvious during the drive out was the encroachment of autumn. The slopes of the Opal Range on the east side of the Kananaskis Valley are covered in fall colours now. It seems too early for that, yet.
After a dusty drive up the Smith-Dorrien Spray Trail, I pulled into the Chester Lake parking lot behind a half dozen early arrivals. The sun hadn't quite risen above Mount Chester, and the air had an autumn chill. Across the highway, the valley to Burstall Pass was unobscured by any haze. The air was remarkably clear.
I set out along the wide ski trails that lead back into the forest and southward below Mount Chester. The plan was to hike to the Headwall Lakes to the east, then up to The Fortress. I wanted to return by Chester Lake. Basically, a loop around Mount Chester.
After three and a half kilometres of ski trails, I crossed a bridge over Headwall Creek, and stopped to switch from jacket to light fleece, while a couple of hikers passed. Five minutes later, I caught up with them again at a small inconspicous cairn on the side of the ski trail, marking a narrow inconspicuous trail into the forest.
This is one of the most charming forest trails I've traveled. Narrow and winding, but not at all claustrophobic, the forest is open enough, yet the trees seem to grow close.
The trail quickly joins Headwall Creek, and follows it to an overgrown meadow. It winds through thick bush, never letting you see too far ahead, but giving completely unobstructed views of the ridges on either side. The bush gave way to open forest and in front of me, the first headwall.
It rose a hundred metres and was covered in loose forest, it's blobby, pillowy texture showing it's volcanic origins. A waterfall skittered down the middle, and the trail climbed beside it, switching in and out of the trees.
At the top of the headwall there was no sign of the creek. The trail split, left through stunted, open forest, or right along the edge of it. I stayed right. Past the trees and another climb of thirty metres or so, and I was at the first lake.
The trail went left, then petered out. The left side of the lake was a hump of scree, that looked barely possible to cross. The right side was a scree slope, more manageable, but farther on it looked a little steep. A quick snack and I went right. Once on the scree, the trail was obvious, and it seemed like there was a cairn marking the way, every hundred metres or so.
Past the lake, meadow alternated with rock fall for a short distance to the next headwall. It was smaller than the first and lightly covered with ground hugging vegetation. It was quick climb to the second lake. The trail went right again, and I was quickly into the broad, flat, soggy meadow behind it.
The trail quickly disappeared in the springy muskeg. It wasn't a problem, though. The mossy carpet lay thinly over rock, so even the most goopy looking quagmires were really only a thin layer of mud on rock. It was very easy walking.
A long walk ended with the valley rising on broken rock bands toward the peak of The Fortress. The idea was to climb to the col on the left between Mount Chester and The Fortress, and I could see people up there, who had come up the Chester Lake side. Another col to the right separated The Fortress from the ridge on the east side of the valley.
I'd lost the trail back at the second lake, and wasn't sure how to proceed. There looked to be a trail across the upper reaches of the rock bands to the left hand col. The scree leading up to the right hand col also looked like there might be a trail up it toward that traversing path. The direct route up to the left hand col looked steep and seemed to have to wind around an outcrop.
I gott get a better grip on my perceptions of this terrain. It's hard to judge the way, and for some reason, I tend to avoid scree slopes. I climbed the rock bands, trying to find some indication of a trail either left or right. On the right it was soon obvious there was none. Nothing to the right either, but as I climbed I could see the scree slope was actually quite gentle.
The rock bands were quite easy to climb - quite fun, actually. I checked for evidence of a trail constantly, especially on the scree to the left col, but could see nothing, and I was soon too high for an easy traverse to it. Rock bands cut across the distance between.
Eventually it got steeper to climb, and what had looked like a trail traversing to the left col from below, became invisible as I got close. I could not go much farther upward, and I was even with col now anyway. The traverse looked not too bad. It was all scree, but below it was slab which ended in a drop off. I started across.
It wasn't bad at all. I did have to descend forty metres or so at one point to get around slab, but with the poles it was an easy, if moderately exciting traverse. At the end, I was just ten metres below the col.
I climbed up and stopped for a snack, watching a trio ascend the scree from the other side. The first on up stopped and chatted a while, while his companions immediately started up the last three hundred metres to the summit. I shouldered my pack and we started up after them.
This was easy climbing, a little steep, but a well trod trail switch-backed up the ridge. It was thirty minutes to the top. Half way up, I found it came within a metre of the cliff overlooking that right hand col, perhaps two hundred metres below. Across the col, the chalet and other buildings of the Fortress Mountain ski resort spread out below.
At the summit block, the trial skirted to the right, and a quick, easy climb up a notch lead to the top. One of the trio had sprinted up, and called down to the rest of us. We climbed up to discover a party of perhaps a dozen climbers just about to make their way down. It was a busy place.
The top sloped up to an edge that dropped completely out of sight. I eventually summoned the courage to belly up to the edge to have a look, but it seemed very nearly vertical.
Another spectacular view. To the south, we looked down on Mount Chester, still high enough to hide the several glaciers far across the valley. We could just see the edge of Roberston Glacier. Just beside us to the northwest was Gusty Peak, and behind it, Mount Galatea. I managed to pick out the broad summit block of Mount Sparrowhawk, slightly west of north. Northeast was the great flat open area of the Evan Thomas Recreation Area, northward from The Wedge. Just around the shoulder of Mount Kidd, I could see the scars of the Kananaskis golf course.
On Mount Kidd, it was easy to spot the avalanche slope that I'd climbed the week before, the cirque I'd traversed, and the gully I'd descended. Just to the left of that, obvious from this vantage, was Guinn's Pass. Directly south was that massive peak I wondered about from Sparrowhawk a couple of weeks ago, that I now know is Mount Joffre, at almost 3500 metres. And of course, to the west was Assiniboine.
I hunkered down with the trio behind a small wind barrier that had been built, and chatted about past hikes and scrambles. I ate the lunch I'd brought and watched as a huge pall rose directly behind Assiniboine. Perhaps a forest fire south of Lake Louise?
I started down. I met several other hikers on their way up, and stopped to chat with a couple. At the col, I went west to complete the loop I'd started. Loose scree made it easy to descend, and I ran down most of it. Near the bottom it thinned to hard pan, but it was relatively painless to cover that. The trekking poles made it easy.
I walked through several potholes, nothing but mud at the their bottoms, and copious cairns marked the way (where were those in the other valley?) I clambered through those, and over the ridges between, before coming to a meadow with the beginnings of forest.
Larch and pine spotted the landscape. The larch is starting to turn to it's billiant yellow fall colours. I came startlingly quickly to the top of a headwall. The trail lead down its face into the forest that lay between me and Chester Lake.
After that it was through the forest, skirt Chester Lake, and a long walk to the ski trails which lead to the parking lot.
Here's a fabulous shot of my return path. Gusty Peak is the ridge up the centre of the picture, and the squared off top of The Fortress is to its right. Just off the frame to the right is Mount Chester, and farther right would be the Headwall Lakes. Behind Gusty Peak in the upper left, is Mount Kidd. At the bottom of the picture is Chester Lake. The valley on the right with the three lakes is, of course, Three Lakes Valley.
Something I need to think about after this hike and last week's adventure on Mount Kidd, is not to be afraid of scree. It might be a slow slog sometimes, but it's often the easiest, or even the only, way up.
The Fortress
Starting elevation: 1913 m (6276 feet).
Highest elevation: 3019 m (9905 feet - official summit at 3000 m/9843 feet).
Lowest elevation: 1913 m (6276 feet).
Elevation gain: 1106 m (3629 feet).
Distance: 20.2 km (12.6 mi).
Time: 7:35.
I got a reasonably early start on a clear, cloudless morning. I had been watching the western horizon throughout the week for new snow, and while there had been some a couple of days before, much of it was gone the weekend. Obvious during the drive out was the encroachment of autumn. The slopes of the Opal Range on the east side of the Kananaskis Valley are covered in fall colours now. It seems too early for that, yet.
After a dusty drive up the Smith-Dorrien Spray Trail, I pulled into the Chester Lake parking lot behind a half dozen early arrivals. The sun hadn't quite risen above Mount Chester, and the air had an autumn chill. Across the highway, the valley to Burstall Pass was unobscured by any haze. The air was remarkably clear.
I set out along the wide ski trails that lead back into the forest and southward below Mount Chester. The plan was to hike to the Headwall Lakes to the east, then up to The Fortress. I wanted to return by Chester Lake. Basically, a loop around Mount Chester.
After three and a half kilometres of ski trails, I crossed a bridge over Headwall Creek, and stopped to switch from jacket to light fleece, while a couple of hikers passed. Five minutes later, I caught up with them again at a small inconspicous cairn on the side of the ski trail, marking a narrow inconspicuous trail into the forest.
This is one of the most charming forest trails I've traveled. Narrow and winding, but not at all claustrophobic, the forest is open enough, yet the trees seem to grow close.
The trail quickly joins Headwall Creek, and follows it to an overgrown meadow. It winds through thick bush, never letting you see too far ahead, but giving completely unobstructed views of the ridges on either side. The bush gave way to open forest and in front of me, the first headwall.
It rose a hundred metres and was covered in loose forest, it's blobby, pillowy texture showing it's volcanic origins. A waterfall skittered down the middle, and the trail climbed beside it, switching in and out of the trees.
At the top of the headwall there was no sign of the creek. The trail split, left through stunted, open forest, or right along the edge of it. I stayed right. Past the trees and another climb of thirty metres or so, and I was at the first lake.
The trail went left, then petered out. The left side of the lake was a hump of scree, that looked barely possible to cross. The right side was a scree slope, more manageable, but farther on it looked a little steep. A quick snack and I went right. Once on the scree, the trail was obvious, and it seemed like there was a cairn marking the way, every hundred metres or so.
Past the lake, meadow alternated with rock fall for a short distance to the next headwall. It was smaller than the first and lightly covered with ground hugging vegetation. It was quick climb to the second lake. The trail went right again, and I was quickly into the broad, flat, soggy meadow behind it.
The trail quickly disappeared in the springy muskeg. It wasn't a problem, though. The mossy carpet lay thinly over rock, so even the most goopy looking quagmires were really only a thin layer of mud on rock. It was very easy walking.
A long walk ended with the valley rising on broken rock bands toward the peak of The Fortress. The idea was to climb to the col on the left between Mount Chester and The Fortress, and I could see people up there, who had come up the Chester Lake side. Another col to the right separated The Fortress from the ridge on the east side of the valley.
I'd lost the trail back at the second lake, and wasn't sure how to proceed. There looked to be a trail across the upper reaches of the rock bands to the left hand col. The scree leading up to the right hand col also looked like there might be a trail up it toward that traversing path. The direct route up to the left hand col looked steep and seemed to have to wind around an outcrop.
I gott get a better grip on my perceptions of this terrain. It's hard to judge the way, and for some reason, I tend to avoid scree slopes. I climbed the rock bands, trying to find some indication of a trail either left or right. On the right it was soon obvious there was none. Nothing to the right either, but as I climbed I could see the scree slope was actually quite gentle.
The rock bands were quite easy to climb - quite fun, actually. I checked for evidence of a trail constantly, especially on the scree to the left col, but could see nothing, and I was soon too high for an easy traverse to it. Rock bands cut across the distance between.
Eventually it got steeper to climb, and what had looked like a trail traversing to the left col from below, became invisible as I got close. I could not go much farther upward, and I was even with col now anyway. The traverse looked not too bad. It was all scree, but below it was slab which ended in a drop off. I started across.
It wasn't bad at all. I did have to descend forty metres or so at one point to get around slab, but with the poles it was an easy, if moderately exciting traverse. At the end, I was just ten metres below the col.
I climbed up and stopped for a snack, watching a trio ascend the scree from the other side. The first on up stopped and chatted a while, while his companions immediately started up the last three hundred metres to the summit. I shouldered my pack and we started up after them.
This was easy climbing, a little steep, but a well trod trail switch-backed up the ridge. It was thirty minutes to the top. Half way up, I found it came within a metre of the cliff overlooking that right hand col, perhaps two hundred metres below. Across the col, the chalet and other buildings of the Fortress Mountain ski resort spread out below.
At the summit block, the trial skirted to the right, and a quick, easy climb up a notch lead to the top. One of the trio had sprinted up, and called down to the rest of us. We climbed up to discover a party of perhaps a dozen climbers just about to make their way down. It was a busy place.
The top sloped up to an edge that dropped completely out of sight. I eventually summoned the courage to belly up to the edge to have a look, but it seemed very nearly vertical.
Another spectacular view. To the south, we looked down on Mount Chester, still high enough to hide the several glaciers far across the valley. We could just see the edge of Roberston Glacier. Just beside us to the northwest was Gusty Peak, and behind it, Mount Galatea. I managed to pick out the broad summit block of Mount Sparrowhawk, slightly west of north. Northeast was the great flat open area of the Evan Thomas Recreation Area, northward from The Wedge. Just around the shoulder of Mount Kidd, I could see the scars of the Kananaskis golf course.
On Mount Kidd, it was easy to spot the avalanche slope that I'd climbed the week before, the cirque I'd traversed, and the gully I'd descended. Just to the left of that, obvious from this vantage, was Guinn's Pass. Directly south was that massive peak I wondered about from Sparrowhawk a couple of weeks ago, that I now know is Mount Joffre, at almost 3500 metres. And of course, to the west was Assiniboine.
I hunkered down with the trio behind a small wind barrier that had been built, and chatted about past hikes and scrambles. I ate the lunch I'd brought and watched as a huge pall rose directly behind Assiniboine. Perhaps a forest fire south of Lake Louise?
I started down. I met several other hikers on their way up, and stopped to chat with a couple. At the col, I went west to complete the loop I'd started. Loose scree made it easy to descend, and I ran down most of it. Near the bottom it thinned to hard pan, but it was relatively painless to cover that. The trekking poles made it easy.
I walked through several potholes, nothing but mud at the their bottoms, and copious cairns marked the way (where were those in the other valley?) I clambered through those, and over the ridges between, before coming to a meadow with the beginnings of forest.
Larch and pine spotted the landscape. The larch is starting to turn to it's billiant yellow fall colours. I came startlingly quickly to the top of a headwall. The trail lead down its face into the forest that lay between me and Chester Lake.
After that it was through the forest, skirt Chester Lake, and a long walk to the ski trails which lead to the parking lot.
Here's a fabulous shot of my return path. Gusty Peak is the ridge up the centre of the picture, and the squared off top of The Fortress is to its right. Just off the frame to the right is Mount Chester, and farther right would be the Headwall Lakes. Behind Gusty Peak in the upper left, is Mount Kidd. At the bottom of the picture is Chester Lake. The valley on the right with the three lakes is, of course, Three Lakes Valley.
Something I need to think about after this hike and last week's adventure on Mount Kidd, is not to be afraid of scree. It might be a slow slog sometimes, but it's often the easiest, or even the only, way up.
The Fortress
Starting elevation: 1913 m (6276 feet).
Highest elevation: 3019 m (9905 feet - official summit at 3000 m/9843 feet).
Lowest elevation: 1913 m (6276 feet).
Elevation gain: 1106 m (3629 feet).
Distance: 20.2 km (12.6 mi).
Time: 7:35.
# posted by Kelly @ 8:42 a.m. 
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