Arethusa Cirque I , II, and III

Arethusa Cirque I, II, and III
and Little Arethusa III

July 7, 2018

Solo hikes.

I forgot how beautiful this cirque is. I would describe it as being infinitely more scenic than its far more popular counterpart in the valley to the north – Ptarmigan Cirque. Certainly a hidden gem….for now!

I was surprised to see an abundance of larches. Gillean Daffern suggests this trip as a larch season one and I can see why.

After a little exploration of the stunning south side of the valley I traversed to the north side, where lies an idyllic stream below Mount Arethusa and Little Arethusa. Of course, an unplanned ascent of Little Arethusa followed and then I returned to the south side of the valley, given the improving weather and amazing scenery over there. This is one you’d definitely want to do during larch season, with sunny skies.

Heading into the south side of the cirque

Following this stream is one of the early highlights of the hike. The massive buttress at the right is the main focus of this side of the valley.

Cairn in the valley under Storm Mountain

The south side of the buttress

Looking towards the north part of the valley and Little Arethusa (left)

The buttress again

Mount Arethusa in the centre

The northwest side of the buttress

The idyllic stream that separates Mount Arethusa and Little Arethusa

Looking back to Storm Mountain and the south side of the valley

Storm and a hoary marmot - can you see him/her?

There he/she is!

On the upper ridge of Little Arethusa, looking at the summit of Mount Arethusa

Storm is one beautiful mountain

Arethusa and Mount Rae

Summit view to the southeast

Summit view to the south

The distinctive rock-folding on Mount Rae

Rae

Storm again

Back down in the valley

... and then back over to the south side

Last look at the buttress

October 17, 2018

Mid-October was the first chance I got to revisit Arethusa Cirque with the aforementioned criteria: sunny skies and during larch season. The recent near records amounts of snow for early fall would hopefully add to the already amazing scenery in the valley.

The 17th of the month was also a week(work)day and so I didn’t start the hike until 5:15 pm. This was a race against the setting Sun that I’d say ended in a tie. I did get to experience much of the upper valley in full sunshine, but the lower valley (with most of the larches) was in shadow by the time I reached it. Nevertheless, what an incredible valley!

The added bonus of snow and yellow larches, but the Sun is already reaching only the upper valley

The buttress is certainly getting some Sun!

The larches are definitely on their last legs, but still looking good

Heading up towards the base of the buttress

The south end of Mount Arethusa

This section of rock on the buttress was spectacular

Strange shapes of lichen

The Sun setting part of Storm Mountain

Superb camouflage

October 19, 2017

A tie is as good as a loss and so two days after reaching a stalemate in a race against the setting Sun I set out to see if I could win. Of course, I had an Ace in my pocket. Work finishes 1.75 hours earlier on Fridays and so the fix was in!

The big question was would the larches still be in full form – October 19 is pretty late in the season. Answer: well, not quite. They were definitely in the last stages of losing all their needles.

After seeing what I came to see, I explored the valley between Storm Mountain and “Storethusa Ridge” a little and then enjoyed a leisurely stroll back as the Sun set.

Three visits to the same place in less than four months - I guess we could call the Obsession #2 for 2018 (see Pincher Ridge). Nevertheless, each trip was magnificent and I'd repeat Arethusa Cirque in a heartbeat!