Mount Niblock and Mount Whyte
August 2, 2003
Mountain heights: 2976 m and 2938 m
Total elevation gain: 1500 m
Scrambling with
Mark.
A winter-like
ascent of Mount St. Piran in November of 2001 piqued our interest in ascents of
the peak’s much higher neighbours, mounts Niblock and Whyte. We waited until
August to give them a go, as Alan Kane clearly warns scramblers of the dangers of
trying the ascents when snow remains on the slopes leading to the col.
The trip
started with an easy hike to picturesque Lake Agnes, where the striking outlines
of Devil’s Thumb and Whyte provide an unforgettable backdrop. He then hiked
around the lake and up towards the col between Niblock and Whyte. Even in
August, some snow remained and extra care was required in a few sections.
Reaching the
summit of Niblock from col went with relative ease. Needless to say, the summit
views was amazing. After a short break we descended to the col and then started
up Mount Whyte. Whyte did NOT yield with ease!
Again, Alan
Kane gives plenty of warnings about the difficultly of this ascent and you need
to heed them. We took out the rope for the more exposed sections and with lots
of route-finding eventually made it to the top. In addition to another
wonderful view, we were greeted by a fellow scrambler, who turned about to be none
other than mountain extraordinaire Dow Williams. Dow’s mountain resume in the
Canadian Rockies is second-to-none and includes innumerable serious climbing and
technical routes, far beyond what Mark and I are capable of.
We chatted with
Dow for a while. He was going to try the alternate descent route that goes directly
down to the Plain of Six Glaciers Trail. Dow left and although we considered following
him, eventually a more conservative approach was taken, returning the same way
we came. This turned out well for us and was even a little easier than
expected.
A fantastic day
on two mountains in one of the most stunning environments on the planet!
Epilogue: The
following
day we would find out that Dow had an epic descent, with an enormous
amount of difficult downclimbing and route-finding. And what was epic
for Dow
might have been suicidal for us! I guess we made a good choice.
Lake Agnes with Devil's Thumb and Mount Whyte
From the col, heading up Niblock
Back at the col with Mount Whyte at the left
Steep and tricky scrambling (photo courtesy of Dow Williams)
Same as above (photo courtesy of Dow Williams)
The exposure was fairly intense in places
Near the summit
A happy moment
The End
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