Windy Point Ridge and The Buckle
May 26,
2019
Mountain
heights: approximately 2040m and
2160 m
Elevation
gain: approximately 900 m
Ascent
time: 2:30
Descent
time: 1:40
Solo scramble.
Very much inspired by the photos from Matt Clay and Alison Sekera’s recent trip
up these peaks (plus Talus Peak), I early Calgary fairy early to give them a
go. The weather forecast for the area was predicted to be sunny and sunny it was,
but also disappointingly hazy. 
I thought this could be early morning haze that
would burn off later in the day, however such was not the case.
The ascent up to Windy Point Ridge was
generally excellent – snippets of good trail interspersed with short sections
of fun scrambling on surprisingly solid and grippy rock. Unfortunately, the
hazy skies all around and clouds over Abraham Mountain and mountains to the
west had zapped most of my motivation by the time I reached the summit. The decision was made to
ascend The Buckle but probably leave Talus Peak for another (less hazy) day.
That ascent went without a hitch and was
generally enjoyable (save the ankle jarring rubble on the north side of the
peak). I did run into a very friendly party of 4 descending a more difficult
route on The Buckle. We chatted for a minute and they went on to Talus while I
tackled the Buckle.
No improvement in the weather (haze or clouds),
in the interim and so it was time to go home. I made a fairly rapid descent and
then embarked on the long drive home, this time going through Nordegg and then
Highway 2 – a little shorter, but boring!
Not quite what I was hoping for, but I’ll take it
over a day in the city anytime!
As
a depressing side-note, the haze of the day was in fact forest fire
smoke from northern Alberta - in May!!! If the past two seasons are any
indication, this could be the start of an insanely smoky summer – pray for a very rainy June!
Windy Point Ridge is just left of centre and the route goes up the left skyline
Remnants of something???
The water level of Abraham Lake appears to be quite low
Typical terrain early on
Walking up slabs like this one was a more than pleasant alternative to
the usual glut of scree and rubble, common to this part of the world
Lots of fun scrambling
I liked the clouds here, but not the rest of them!
The Buckle - very nice!
One of the party of four I encountered is at the base of the scramble route to the summit of The Buckle
Summit cairn of Windy Point Ridge and impressive Abraham Mountain at the right
Beautiful Abraham Lake looks more of a dull gray colour, than its usual vibrant turquoise - boo for forest fire smoke!
Heading for The Buckle
At least the mountain itself sported some vibrant colours
Yeah for snow!
... and yeah for lichen on rocks!
The south ridge of The Buckle looked very tempting until you got right under it and saw how steep it was
However, this route on the left side is a cakewalk
The party of four descending the scramble route. It's a pretty stiff scramble with potential rockfall
The route to Talus Peak (right) is straightforward
Attractive, unnamed peaks to the northwest
Hazy view of the lake, looking northeast
Mount Mitchener is the prominent peak on the other side of the lake
The colour of the lake improves a little as the Sun moves to the west
Descending The Buckle (left)
One last look at the beautiful peak
Elliot Peak (distant right of centre) has now emerged from the clouds and haze.
Whirlpool Ridge is there somewhere and remains to be one of our favourite ascents.
Almost down. Kiska Peak at the left
The tree sorta' frames Kiska Peak
Back at the lake
The End
