Little Odaray
attempt






 
June 26, 2024
 
Elevation gain:    910 m
Round-trip time:  3:20

Snowshoeing and mountaineering with Mark. 
 
When Doug Robson offered me two bus tickets to Lake O’Hara, saying no wasn’t an option. The area is as spectacular as all the hype (even more so, in fact!), but walking the 11 km road, there and possibly back, is about appealing to me as a lukewarm milkshake! Of course, we were going to be the mercy of the weather, and the relatively early date meant the area could still be quite snowy.
 
On the first point, the forecast turned out to be decent in the morning but completely cloudy from noon on, similar to our last trip there with Natasha and Kasey. We could live with that. On the second point, not only was the area snowy, but the Parks person at the bus starting point announced the only viable hike was around Lake O’Hara and perhaps up to Victoria Lake. Every other trail was completely snowbound and not recommended.
 
That fact was not about to stop us from trying something more ambitious than a short romp around the lake. While most stepped onto the bus with only boots (some with sneakers) and small backpacks, we boarded wearing full-on winter gear, snowshoes, and an ice axe on our packs, and crampons inside.
 
Once off the bus, we decided to make our way towards Little Odaray, a prominent outlier of Odaray Mountain, and then assess conditions as we approached the peak. The Parks person did not exaggerate the magnitude of the snowpack – it was snowy and that snow was deep!
 
Following the tracks of some brave soul who had postholed his/her way almost all the way to Schaffer Lake, we had the snowshoes on within 10 minutes. They worked perfectly, allowing us easy travel to the base of Little Odaray. We were able to proceed on foot from here, though the snowshoes stayed on our backpacks, just in case. The ‘shoes would not return to our feet until we were back at the base of the mountain, several hours later. However, crampons and an ice axe were soon employed once the dry ground gave way to steep, snowy slopes.
 
Besides exponentially improving views of the surrounding area, the most interesting aspect of the ascent was the clouds – wispy, arching formations created some amazing scenes. Sadly, those wispy clouds eventually multiplied to create something less desirable – a wall of white! Not a favourable turn of events, but exactly as predicted.
 
 
We continued to push on, avoiding avalanche terrain, and also cognizant of our time restriction. Progress was generally a little slow because of the snow and missing the last bus out was not an option! When the terrain became more serious (steeper and icier) a decision had to be made. We decided that the risk wasn’t worth it and backed down.
 
A terrific third trip to the Lake O’Hara area. No summit, but we felt privileged to enjoy these sublime environs once again. Many thanks to Doug for giving us this opportunity.



Little Odaray (centre) and Odaray Mountain (right)



Mount Schaffer



Looking back to Mount Huber (left) and Mount Lefroy (centre)



Schaffer Lake



Looking up the alternate (and not recommended) descent route we took down Schaffer



Stunning Park Mountain will receive the most amount of photo attention



First good view of the objective



Here come those cool clouds



Distant Mount Owen and the wispy clouds



The snowshoes were perfect here







At the base of Little Odaray



Park again, but the Goodsirs are also visible to the right



No snow and great clouds







The view starts to open up



Victoria, Huber, and Lefroy



Back onto snowy terrain



No direct route up Little Odaray here; the route goes around the right side.



Thankfully the snow here was supportive and didn't require snowshoes







And then there was no snow!



Still enjoying the clouds...



...and the view of the horseshoe massif surrounding Lake McArthur, comprised of Schaffer, Biddle, and Park



Lake O'Hara is now visible



Stumbled onto the Grandview Trail



Ice axe required here















This slope was much steeper than it appears. We got to the rock band above then backed down.


    
At the rock band and cringing at the prospect of stepping onto that (left photo). Backing down.



Another steep slope is around the corner but way less intimidating than the previous one



The snow disappears again



But only for a short distance



It's all snow from here on in (and the cool clouds are still with us)



Odaray Mountain (left) and Cathedral Mountain - another of our most memorable days



The clouds to the east are not so cool



Getting closer



The route goes up the ridge near the left



Odaray. There's a big notch before that summit that apparently pushes the ascent beyond the realm of scrambling.



Deeper snow, but still manageable without snowshoes



Much of the route to the summit is now revealed



Clouds over Biddle and Park







Big terrain



The terrain is about to get more serious















Happy to get onto some rock



The route ahead is fairly steep and the layer of ice below the snow made travel more precarious than anticipated. We retreated here.



Cautious downclimbing







Big terrain again



Park and the Goodsirs don't look as good with that wall of white behind them



Back to Schaffer Lake, with Little Odaray behind. Bye for now.

The End

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