Igneous Peak II
August 16, 2021
Mountain height: 2426 m
Elevation gain: 900
m
Ascent time: 2:35
Descent time: 3:10
Solo scramble.
The goal on this smoky August day was to check
out the drainage south of Igneous Peak. 
My first ascent of this minor outlier
of Mount Blakiston had provided a smorgasbord of unforgettable and stunning
scenery. On that day, though I was very tempted to descend the drainage directly below the peak, I
settled for another trip up Ruby Ridge and then a breathtaking descent down its south
ridge. My expectations for the drainage were not terribly high and so doing the
route on an “iffy” weather day seemed like a good idea.
I should know better by now than to have low
expectations for anything in Southern Alberta! In short, the drainage was not
only replete with stunning rock scenery and awe-inspiring views of Blakiston’s southeast
side, but also offered several hundred vertical metres of super fun and easy
scrambling up step-like rock. 
Higher up the drainage, I completely expected to be
tossed out of it onto annoying scree and rubble, but just like Anderson and
Grinnell, it went on and on, almost all the way to the summit ridge.
Upon reaching the ridge, the summit of Igneous was
reached via a short but interesting hike, with an exhilarating drop on the
north side. 
Though I had tried my best to keep my childish “weather scowling”
to a minimum, knowing that the day would be a smoky one, it did rear its unwelcome
head at the summit. The route had exceeded my expectations by giant leaps and humongous
bounds – clear skies would have elevated the experience beyond measure. I’ll be
back on a cloud- and smoke-free day!
Nevertheless, even in the thick smoke,I still had some motivation for
further exploration, and instead of returning the way I came up, I decided to descend
to the Igneous/Ruby col. The rock scenery here did not disappoint either,
boasting a maze of towering pinnacles and rock formations to explore and gawk
at.
At
this point, though the summit of Ruby
Ridge was close, the hazy skies prompted me to call it a day. I
embarked on a traversing descent route back towards the Lineham Falls
Trail, encountering a phenomenal section of red argillite en route. The
trailhead was reached shortly after.
Totally awesome route, but as stated, I’ll be back!!
The obligatory shot of Mount Lineham
The beginning of the ascent drainage
The rock scenery in the drainage quickly graduates to the "Holy Oxidized Rock, Batman!" level
Good thing I'm not a kleptomaniac, otherwise this beaut might have
ended in up in my backpack (and I could have ended up being fined or in
jail!)
Out into the open. The southeast side of Mount Blakiston to the left. Igneous Peak is the inconspicuous bump near the right.
The next pleasant surprise was this stunning band of red and green argillite on the left side of the drainage
A few wildflowers added to the spectacle
Lots of rock shots from here all the way to the ridge
A minimal amount of water running down the colourful rock
The igneous band of rock (bottom) that provided the objective's unofficial name
Looking over to the summit of Igneous
But more rock distractions first
"Holy Smoke, Batman!"
On the ridge, looking over to the summit
Ruby Lake and the devastatingly smoky view to the west. Normally, you
would be treated to an excellent view of the west sides of Dundy,
Dungarvan, Rogan, Galwey North, and Galwey.
Looking northwest to the awesome southeast side of Blakiston
Same as above from farther along the ridge
The northeast side of Igneous is near vertical in places
The view of Ruby Ridge from the summit of Igneous. You could
hardly see any other mountains in the area, so I left almost
immediately.
Since the far-reaching views were non-existent, I thought I might as
well descend to the igneous band of and take a million photos of the
solid, lichen-covered magma!
There's 2
and 3
Bye-bye igneous rock
From a distance the band of igneous rock is clearly visible near the right
Instead of losing a bunch of elevation and then regaining the ridge, I
was able downclimb here, but I wouldn't recommend it in a larger group
(ie. more than one person)
Almost at the Igneous/Ruby col
Very clear delineations of rock type here
Suddenly the true summit of Blakiston appears
Interesting terrain to explore near the col
The summit of Ruby is temptingly close, but the view would be very disappointing
I'd much rather seek out interesting things close at hand....
...like the lichen
...and the cubical boulders
The second last section of interesting terrain, about a third of the way down the mountain
Easy terrain to descend, but the smoky views of the Buchanan group and Mount Carthew were still very disappointing
Looking back to the summit of Ruby (right) and Blakiston
Lineham looks tragically gloomy, in sharp contrast to its appearance from the west and without the smoke
One of the coolest rocks I've ever seen. Again, glad I'm not a thief!
From a different angle
And another
And another, with more of the overall view
The last interesting section, featuring lots of bright red argillite
Really bright!!
Wish my kitchen table looked like that!
Bye-bye red argillite and gloomy Lineham
The End
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