Old Baldy Mountain

Old Baldy Mountain (unofficial peak north of Mount McDougall) – December 31, 2005

Mountain height:   2,728 m (8,949 ft)
Elevation gain:      1,280 m
Ascent time:          6:05
Descent time:        4:05

Scrambling and mountaineering with Mark.

It took us 7 trips, but we finally managed to finish nabbing all the major highpoints of the Mount McDougall massif. The final and highest summit, at GR356417, was the day’s objective. Though incorrectly identified as Old Baldy Mountain on an old map, over the years the name had stuck with us, and it is a little more interesting than Unnamed at GR356417. Also, the peak towers above Old Baldy Ridge and so the name seems quite appropriate.

The day began with a labourious slog up the west-facing slopes of Old Baldy Ridge. Normally, we would have taken the Old Baldy Ridge Trail paralleling McDougall Creek, however, a marked trail had miraculously appeared on the new Gem-Trek map – one that started at the Boundary Ranch and ascended the west face, directly to the summit of Old Baldy Ridge. It appeared to cut a significant distance off the hike from the highway to the summit. We didn’t find the trail (it was 7:45 am and still quite dark when we started), but the route was pretty obvious – just go up!

900 vertical metres later, we topped out on Old Baldy Ridge and a terrific view of our intended ascent route up the mountain’s west ridge. We were also quite surprised at how easy the ascent appeared to be from that vantage point. We had dragged along a good deal of climbing and mountaineering gear, expecting that there would be at least one section of very steep terrain. Such was not the case, and the initial part of the route proved to be easy and also quite spectacular, as huge pinnacles and crumbling uplifts of rock lined the left side of the ridge. A stunning, massive, smooth, and almost vertical slab seemed quite out of place amid the crumbling pinnacles, prompting some curious stares.

From our observations of the route, while ascending Mount McDougall, three weeks earlier, we concluded that the steepest sections of the ridge were lower down and once passed them, it would be a “cakewalk” to the summit. Have we still not learned that nothing in winter is a “cakewalk”? Unseen from Old Baldy Ridge was a large section of the west ridge of Old Baldy Mountain that was fairly narrow, steep on both sides, and plastered in snow. I guess, if nothing else, we have learned to be prepared, and the mountaineering gear finally came out. With the potential of triggering slab avalanches, we thought it prudent to use crampons and ice axes and belay each other across the steep snow slopes. There were several places to put slings around rocks for belaying and although travel was slow, it was relatively safe.

We hit the windy and therefore bitterly cold summit at 1:50 pm. If there was a cairn and/or register, it was buried deep in snow and a large cornice, overhanging the precipitous east face keep us from venturing too far out. Cloud cover had increased throughout the day, but we were lucky enough to receive clear views to the north and south, as the clouds dissipated upon reaching the eastern edge of the mountains – an added bonus of staying in the front ranges when heavy cloud cover is streaming in from the west. It was especially gratifying to look down on all the other highpoints we had reached along the lengthy ridge. A very reliable source told that the entire traverse from Mount McDougall to Wasootch Peak (GR334455) could be done as a long day trip – but probably not on December 31 of any year!

After 30 minutes, admiring the splendid panorama, enjoying the scenic, sun-splashed, snow slopes below us (lame alliteration!), and intense shivering, we descended the way we came. There appeared to be easier descent options on either side of the ridge, but they would have put us on long snow-covered avalanche gullies and we didn’t feel the risk was worth it. The descent back to Old Baldy Ridge was quite easy and fast, however, from the ridge back to the car was seemingly endless and of course, we had to take out the headlamps for the last hour.

A most enjoyable and rewarding last trip in 2005 and a great end to our best year yet in the mountains.