Jimmy Junior
May 11, 2015
Mountain
height: 2750 m
Elevation gain: 800 m
Ascent time: 2:30
Descent time: 1:20
Snowshoeing with Nicole.
Mount
Jimmy Simpson has always been one of my favorite trips in the Rockies, and therefore
I had every reason to believe that Jimmy’s offspring, Jimmy Junior, would offer
similar outstanding scenery and views – and he did!!
I
convinced Nicole to accompany me and we set off to find the ascent gully. We
failed to find it, however, the treed, lower slopes were fairly easy to ascend.
As expected, above treeline the view of Bow Lake and the surrounding mountains was
absolutely magnificent.
The
ascent became far steeper at that point, but were no match for my new Tubbs, Flex
VRT snowshoes, and Nicole’s Tubbs, Flex TRK shoes! After gaining a bunch of
elevation, Nicole decided that was enough for her and waited on a bare rock
patch while I ran up to the summit (figuratively that is – nobody runs
up 20-30 degree snow slopes wearing snowshoes!)
The
remainder of the ascent was fairly straightforward, though quite steep in
places. The summit block was also bit of a challenge and I traded my snowshoes for
an ice axe and crampons here. High cloud had started to envelope the area at this
point, detracting a little from an otherwise fantastic summit view.
The
descent was a riot. We found the correct gully and glissaded a huge portion of
it.
Junior
did not disappoint in any way whatsoever – a fantastic ascent with an equally
remarkable summit view.
