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Date |
Ascent Time |
Descent Time |
| 1st Time |
18 Feb 06 |
incomplete |
incomplete |
This is a map of where we went:
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This was my fourth time across Peyto Lake, and I must say that this time, the trail running down to the lake
had a lot more deadfall than normal. Somebody should go through there with a chainsaw. Anyway, here is Blair
heading out across Peyto Lake. There was much more snow on the lake than normal. We've been there before
when there wasn't a speck of snow on it.
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Toward the back-end of the lake, there was a spot where the snow was blown off. It revealed some really
cool cracks in the ice. It showed the ice to be about a foot thick.
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We crossed the gravel flats at the back of the lake, and then headed for the trees, where we would skin-up.
If you look closely at the thick trees, you can see a slidepath cutting through them. Blair and I headed up
the climber's right side of that slidepath, straight up to the ridge.
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The further up we got, the steeper the slope became and the icier the crust. We ended up having to carry
our skis for the upper half of the slope. There were spots on this slope where we were both wishing
we had brought our crampons, which we left in the truck.
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This is me coming up the upper slope below Caldron Lake.
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This is looking back down the slide path that we climbed up. We weren't looking forward to coming back
down this way, which played into our decision to go down Delta Creek.
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This is the upper slope. We tried to stick to the scree and stay away from the cornices.
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This is Blair cutting steps across a very icy slope to the scree.
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As we crested the ridge, we got our first look at our objective. This is Mistaya Mtn. Our hopeful ascent route
is a gully tucked behind a ridge, which will lead up to the left. We'd then circle back to the summit. It
was disheartening to see the cornices hanging above our route.
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This is looking at Caldron Lake and another possible route. We debated about taking the ramp above Caldron Lake, but
without crampons, we didn't feel too comfy about that decision.
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This is a quick look at the NE face of Peyto Peak.
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We also debated about going up Caldron Peak, but there was evidence of a large avalanche. Unfortunately,
we'd have to cross the part of the slope that didn't slide. Obviously, there were instabilities on that
slope, so we didn't think it was safe to try. At this point, we accepted that the day would be a failure.
Although, we did discuss the possibility of calling this trip "The Caldron Loop", which would be a success,
but that would be misleading on the stats.
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Here is a quick look at our intended ascent gully. Given good stability, it would have been a nice ski descent,
but with evidence of small slab releases in there, and cornices looming above, we decided not to venture that direction.
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This is Blair looking at the other ramp option up Mistaya. If only we had brought our crampons.
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This is looking down Delta Creek with Mt. Weed in the background. One bright spot about going down this way
is that we'd get to scope out the ascent route up Patterson. As it turned out, we endured some serious tree-whacking.
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This is Mt. Patterson with the ski route being rather obvious. It looks like a nice ski run, but
it could use more snow. The lower part of this slope (not visable in the picture) is a lot steeper, so you'd want
to make sure the snowpack was stable.
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This is the upper portion of Delta Creek. The skiing wasn't bad here. It was mostly coasting down the drainage.
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As we got lower in the canyon, the valley narrowed, and the trees became more intense. This section sucked so bad, it
made me rethink the possibility of skiing up Patterson.
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