Living the best adventure life, since 1958
Nahmint Mountain has been on my bucket list for a long time, but there always seem to be bigger and more important mountains to tackle than this peak. The main issue is that the trip reports I’ve read discuss how long the trip is, and it’s difficult to find people who are interested in doing exceptionally long days. I’m happy to report that we used a route that got us back to the vehicle within eight hours.
June 1, 2024
~ submitted by Su Castle
7 of us met Jan Neuspiel, owner of Island Alpine Guides at the Comox Lake crags for our day of instruction.
He ensured we all got what the course promised to deliver at a follow-able pace. Additional knowledge was shared as response to our many questions! Jan was friendly and incredibly knowledgeable. We had a mix of theory and hands on practice. The instructor was able to deliver to the different levels of experience within the group.
Minimizing risk in the mountains was emphasized with many relevant examples and stories. Participants were actively involved and I think we all got what we wanted/needed from the course. It was a lot of information and we were encouraged to practice and contact IAG with any questions in the future. So worthwhile!
April 6, 2024
~ submitted by Pete Hrkac
We parked at the trailhead for the new approach to the Main Gulley route. Conditions we’re fairly good; overcast/foggy weather, light snow on the ground turning into a supportive crust.
Continue reading “Mount Arrowsmith – Main Gully”
~14.7km/1620m (+/-)
Steamboat Mtn falls inside the Tla-o-qui-aht Tribal Parks, A donation was made to the Tribal Park Guardians on the way through.
Up at stupid o’clock by all, had us all together and on foot for 6:30 am. An eager group of 6, we set out on what was planned to be a full day out. How quickly the gentle start of an easy spur trail to distract you fades away, leading to progressively tighter and tighter trail, until the forest consumes you completely and spits you out the other side! Up old creek beds, steep forest, around wasp nests, under logs, over logs, repeat and repeat again and eventually you’ll find yourself at a nice unnamed lake maybe halfway up. A chance to ditch some pack weight, refill water and have a quick snack.
Continue reading “Maquilla Peak washed down with Mount Alston”
What a day to be in the mountains!
Nestled in a valley between The Cats Ear and the Mackenzie Range Peak, Canoe Peak is a hidden gem that is often overlooked due to its obscured location. Trust me when I say it’s worth the squeeze, but you’ll have to squeeze hard!
—submitted by Greg Deabler
In spite of an excellent forecast, we were once again reminded of the vagaries of mountain weather (August 18, 2022). The gate at the Cameron Connector was opened at 8:00 am and we were heading up the trail toward the Arrowsmith Cokely saddle by 8:45. The morning fog/cloud persisted, and finally settled in to a dense layer with little visibility by the time we gained the bumps. There was still enough snow on the steeps to the first bump to warrant our ice-axes, but once the top was attained, we put away the axes and proceeded in close to zero visibility to the base of the Nose. We got a bit off route on the forth bump, and instead of bypassing the bump summit on the right we ended up on top of the bump. We couldn’t see the Nose nor col in the grey void, and even though we were within meters of our gpx track, everything looked different with no background landmarks to orient to.
We backed up on our route until we were able to correct our direction. On the col, we stopped to put on harnesses and made the decision to drag the rope up both pitches since it was a first ascent for Graham and Geoff and would give them the option to follow using the rope. Although the first pitch is 4th class, there are a couple of exposed moves near the top of the pitch. It is a nice clean route with solid holds and we arrived at the end of the technical section in one piece and enjoyed a quiet summit, though we weren’t the first for the day on the summit. A mature marmot was enjoying the day on the far side of the helicopter pad! A few pics, a bit of lunch and we headed back to the top of the nose to rapel down.
We had just finished our rapels when the heavy cloud cover let loose with a fine rain which lasted across the bumps and most of the way down the saddle trail. A fine day in spite of a lack of views made better by the fine company. Thanks to Geoff and Graham for driving up from Victoria and joining me for this timeless classic!