Forum Peak II

Forum Peak II

March 7, 2010

Mountain height:         2415 m
Elevation gain:            780 m
Ascent time:                5:45
Descent time:              3:00

Snowshoeing and mountaineering with Mark.

This one definitely gives “Middle Kootenay Mountain II” a run for its money in terms of being my favourite winter ascent to date. After seeing the Forum Ridge ascent on Bob’s site, we decided to give it a go if we were in the area. In addition to snowshoes, we brought along some climbing gear in hopes we could continue on to the summit of Forum Peak.

The first part of the trip was very easy, thanks to a very well-used and packed down approach trail to Akamina Pass. We then followed the cutline, as described in Alan Kane’s book. This too had seen a substantial amount of traffic. That was until we arrived at “the big hill”. The tracks abruptly stopped at the bottom of the hill. After making it to the top we discovered why. The hill is unusually steep, approaching 45 degrees for a few short sections.

Travel at the top was much easier and soon the trees started to thin, revealing some pretty decent views. They were decent to begin, but quickly turned into magnificent as the east face of Mount Custer emerged – what a stunning mountain Custer is! Our good progress to that point came to a grinding halt, photos opportunities eating up a huge amount of time. However, that’s always time well spent.

As we followed the beautiful ridge towards the north face of Forum Peak, the possibility of an ascent seemed to diminish rapidly. It looked pretty intimidating from afar and got worse as we approached the rock face. Nevertheless, the phenomenal scenery continued to inspire and we were both happy just to make it to the rock and then turn around.

After trading snowshoes for crampons and some climbing gear, we followed the slightly narrowing ridge to the rock face and then began a treacherous traverse around the right side of the rock, looking for the weakness that Kane describes. I crossed two short, but steep slopes that definitely pushed my comfort level beyond comfort. Upon starting across the third, we both agreed we had “pushed” too hard. With only one good belay point, a slip down the mountain or an avalanche would have resulted in a significant pendulum across the slope that would probably cause as much physical damage as a fall down the entire slope. Mark led us slowly and safely back to a good position at the foot of the rock face.

This was a little disillusioning as we knew the view from the summit of Forum Peak would be really good. However, with more than enough time to try other routes, we decided to look around for something else. Firstly, I started right up the centre of the ridge. That didn’t last long – I lost me nerve about 3 metres up the face and quickly retreated. In a last ditch effort we looked around the left side of the rock face. This side did offer the easiest route up, but it was far from easy. Some fifth class moves and a fair dose of exposure made for a tense ascent. Thankfully, there were several great handholds along the way and a couple of good places for slings. The first step was the most difficult. After that easy terrain took us rather triumphantly to a large cairn, near the summit.

The view was not really good – it was stupendously, amazingly, outrageously magnificent! The striking forms of Custer, Peabody, Kintla, Kinnerly, and Long Knife Peak in Glacier National Park, a wonderful contrast with the aesthetic curves and straight lines of Waterton’s Akamina Ridge. Some of the nearby trees were so thoroughly encased in snow you could actually stand on top of them. As well the drop down the east side of Forum was killer (nostalgic ‘80’s terminology)!

After exploring the summit area, marveling in one terrific view after another, we headed west towards one of Akamina Ridges’ several highpoints. Returning the same way would have been reasonably fast, but would have also required a rappel – no point leaving webbing on the mountain when a slightly longer, but rappel-less descent is possible. This descent route was the same one Mark, Keri, and I had used on ascent in September of 2005. It turned out to be a straightforward affair, though crampons were useful in sections. Snowshoeing down untouched, pristine slopes west of Forum Lake was very satisfying. We returned to the car tired, but in great spirits, thanks to some of the most incredible scenery we’ve ever seen.

"The Big Hill"