Eastpost Spire

Eastpost Spire

August 15-16, 2009

Mountain height:                                     2728 m
Elevation gain:                                        1200 m
Ascent time to Appleby Campground:     4:00
Ascent time to Eastpost:                          1:30
Descent time to Appleby Campground:   0:45
Descent time to parking lot:                     2:15

Scrambling with Mark, Dan, and Steve.

Seeing the Bugaboos had been on our “to-do” list for some time and so we set our sights on the scramble route up Eastpost Spire, as described in Hikes around Invermere. We also gambled that The Weather Network would actually be correct in their prediction for relatively clear skies all weekend (we should know better by now!)

Dan did the driving and I’m glad he did. His dad’s truck was a much better combatant for the long and severely pot-holed approach road than my Civic would have been. After the rough and bumpy drive, the hike to the Appleby Campground was surprisingly easy. Short of installing an escalator from the parking lot to the campground, B.C. Parks has done everything possible to make the hike a pleasant one: several chains on the rock for extra protection, a ladder bolted up a steep rock face, bridges across all waterways, and large, stable rocks placed to make steps. I thought this to be overkill, as we made our way toward the Conrad Kain Hut, but changed my mind on the hike down the next day, with a heavy pack on my back.

The scenery en route to the campsite was as spectacular as advertised, even with overcast skies. After setting up the tent Dan, Mark, and I went on a short exploratory trip to check out the area. Seeing these immense granite spires of rock was truly a unique experience in comparison to other areas we’ve been in. The glacial lakes added further to the views in this outstanding area.

The worse part of any backcountry trip followed – sleeping in the backcountry! Mark and I have yet to experience a good night’s sleep in the backcountry and I doubt we ever will. What made this night the worst of many awful backcountry sleeps was waking up for the umpteenth time during the night to discover my head and left shoulder immersed in a pool of Gatorade. It seems I had somehow managed to get the hose of my Gatorade filled camel-pack caught underneath my head and the contents had spilled out. I actually tried to go back to sleep, lying in the pool of liquid, but that was useless. At 4:30 am I dashed out of the tent to try to get dry. Given the high humidity level, even that was a miserable task. At least the skies were clear at that time of the day – a situation that was to soon change.

We finally started the attempt of Eastpost’s west ridge at about 8 am, under increasingly cloudy skies. The ascent was generally very easy, much shorter than anticipated, and lots of fun. Though the route probably boasts some of worst granite in the park, it was granite nonetheless and a pleasure to look at and scramble up. Cloudy skies marred the view to a degree but things could have been much worse.

Only the final 15 metres of the trip provided any real challenge. Since we had a rope with us, we used it. After taking in a fine summit view, of which the highlights were definitely the distinctive forms of Snowpatch, Bugaboo, Crescent, and Brenta Spires, we rappelled the crux and then returned to the campsite in less than an hour. The hike back to the car took only just over two hours and again was made very easy by all the work B.C. Parks has put into developing the trail.

A very enjoyable trip that has provided tons of motivation for a return to the area.

Day 1: The approach and exploring