Dave's Alpine Touring
Welcome to my Alpine Touring section. Alpine touring is a type of mountaineering, and I'm having
a really hard time deciding where to put various ascents. For instance, you have to ski to get to
Mt. Columbia, so, do you put that in the Alpine touring section or the alpine climbs section. Hmmmm.
My plan here is if the summit is in Dougherty's book, then I will put it under Alpine Climbs. Otherwise,
it's going under this section. So, to answer my question, Mt. Columbia would go under Alpine Climbs.
Now, before I show pictures of various routes and try to tell you where to go, let's first explain
how this works. You have a pair of skis, which are similar to downhill skis, but a little lighter.
Unfortunately, they are about twice as expensive. Because of the cost, some people will actually use
downhill skis. After you have the skis, you have the bindings. AT bindings are sort of like cross
country skis in that the toe is fixed, but the heel will lift up as you walk. When you are ready to
ski back down the mountain, you lock the heel down and then the boot is fixed like a regular downhill
ski. When skiing up a mountain, you are probably wondering, why doesn't the ski slide backwards.
Well, I'm glad you asked. You have these things called climbing skins. They are this special faberic
strip which is really smooth going one direction, and very course going the other. On the back side of
the skins, you have glue which sticks the skin to the ski. Anyway, these skins keep your skis from
sliding back down the mountain. Now for the boots. The boots are similar to downhill boots except
AT boots allow you to walk more naturally. Ever try to walk a long way wearing downhill boots? It's
not the best feeling.
Now, aside from the ski equipment, you also need avalanche equipment. When you are skiing in the
backcountry, avalanche conditions can be high. People die every year because of avalanches. Because of
this, you need to be prepared. First, take a course on avalanche safety. Then get an avalanche
transceiver, snow shovel, and probing pole. As for the transceiver, strap it to your body. If you put
it in your pack, and you are in an avalanche, the rescue people will find your pack, not you.
Now, on to the guide books. When it comes to guide books, ski mountaineering has a definative
author named Chic Scott, but unlike Alan Kane or Sean Dougherty, Chic Scott has two books (no offense
Alan !!!!). And like the Alpine Climbs book, I have no intention of skiing all of the trails and
ski peaks. The "Trails Book" is more for light touring and offers some easy slopes. Some of them
are actually flat and you don't even need skins. The "Summits Book" is designed for big mountains
and long glacier traverses.
The Alpine book and the Scrambles book are both very well organized into geographical areas, and
I've more or less stuck with that area when designing those sections of my website, but I really
don't like the way Chic Scott has organized his books, so I've going to use my own method of organization.
Now, I will only list the areas that I have skied in. Check them out, and I hope you enjoy!!!!
Touring by Area
| |
Mountain |
Date Last Climbed |
Total Elevation |
| Lake Louise Area |
| |
Mt. Niblock |
13 Apr 02 |
9,764 ft (2976M) |
| |
Twin Cairns |
18 Jan 04 |
8,300 ft (2530m) |
| Icefields Parkway |
| |
Mt. Andromache |
incomplete |
9,829 ft (2996M) |
| |
Bow Peak |
incomplete |
9,081 ft (2768m) |
| |
Bow Summit |
22 Dec 01 |
8,144 ft (2482M) |
| |
Cirque Peak |
22 Feb 03 |
9,819 ft (2993M) |
| |
Crowfoot Glades |
05 Mar 00 |
?,??? ft (????M) |
| |
Crowfoot Mtn |
17 Feb 01 |
10,009 ft (3050M) |
| |
Dolomite Peak Circuit |
05 Jan 02 |
8,202 ft (2500M) |
| |
Mt. Hector |
07 Feb 04 |
11,135 ft (3394M) |
| |
Mistaya Mtn |
18 Feb 06 |
10,630 ft (3240M) |
| |
Mt. Wilson |
18 Mar 00 |
10,630 ft (3240M) |
| Wapta Icefields |
| |
Mt. Baker |
30 Apr 05 |
10,433 ft (3180M) |
| |
Bow Hut |
24 Apr 04 |
7,644 ft (2330M) |
| |
Mt. Collie |
23 Apr 05 |
10,224 ft (3116M) |
| |
Mt. Gordon |
21 Jan 06 |
10,508 ft (3203M) |
| |
Mt. Jimmy Simpson |
29 Apr 05 |
9,731 ft (2966M)) |
| |
Mt. Olive |
24 Apr 04 |
10,269 ft (3130M) |
| |
The Onion |
01 Mar 02 |
8,800 ft (2682M) |
| |
Peyto Peak |
29 Apr 06 |
9,777 ft (2980m) |
| |
Mt. Rhondda North |
31 Mar 01 |
10,023 ft (3055M) |
| |
Mt. Rhondda South |
12 Mar 05 |
10,023 ft (3055M) |
| |
Mt. St. Nicholas |
15 Feb 03 |
9,744 ft (2970M) |
| |
Vulture Peak |
17 Mar 02 |
9,701 ft (2957M) |
| |
Wapta Traverse |
02-04 Mar 01 |
9,908 ft (3020M) |
|
