Pickletooth Mountain

Pickletooth Mountain

October 22, 2025

Mountain height:       2710 m
Total elevation gain:  approximately 1100 m
Ascent time:              5:00
Descent time:            4:05

Solo scramble.

As a very pleasant surprise Pickletooth Mountain will sit with See Peak, SKPP and Offender Mountain, Headwall Peak South, Newman Senior VI, Prairie Sky V, and Siyeh Pass Peak and Little Matahpi in the list of my favourite trips of 2025 so far.

After ascents of Picklewood Peak and Highwood Peak South earlier in the year, I thought I was done with trips in the Picklejar Lakes area for the time being. That was until I saw Devan Peterson’s Facebook post describing his ascent of Pickletooth Mountain. Devan had also tacked on Picklejar Peak SE1 and then gone back a week later and done Pickletooth and Dogtooth, also in a single trip – the man is a peak-bagging machine, on a completely different level than anyone I’m aware of – hats off to Devan. Lacking the speed, stamina, and pure scrambling abilities of Devan,

I chose Pickletooth Mountain alone as the day’s objective (I mean who wouldn’t want to spend 10 hours with a pickletooth!).

I had not hiked the Lineham Creek trail since long before the 2013 flood, so this would be a good opportunity to see how the flood changed the trail. In general, not much. There are several sections where the trail has been washed out, but a new trail has developed and as long as you stay left, it’s not too hard to follow. Once I gained the ridge that leads to Linehan Creek Peaks, it was time to turn north and travel new terrain. I was surprised to find a well-worn trail heading towards the valley where Pickletooth sits. Once that trail started to descend into the Picklejar SE1 valley, I turned right and descended to the creek that emanates from the Pickletooth valley.

Good thing I had chosen to wear winter boots for this trip, as the next few kilometres were all snow.

Up to this point, the trip had been scenically benign and quite unremarkable. However, this was about to change, courtesy of striking rock on both sides of the Pickletooth valley, clear blue skies, and the aforementioned snow; once above treeline I was treated to all, in spades. The stunning connecting ridge between Pickletooth and an outlier to the southwest drew my attention throughout – I think even Alex Honnold would balk at the proposition of traversing it!

Taking Devan’s advice to tackle the summit directly, as opposed to first gaining the col to the south, I embarked on a very shortened slog to the top. The snow here was a godsend, allowing me to kick-step up the slope almost in its entirety. Familiar peaks started to pop up to the west and the rock on Pickletooth itself continue to stop me dead in my tracks to take way too many photos. However, the real treat came right at the top. Views towards the highest peak of the Dogtooth Mountains (i.e. what has now been labelled as Dogtooth Mountain) were breath-taking, as were those towards Trap Peak (GR628936) and Mount Head to the south. The serrated ridges branching off from Pickletooth looked terrifying but strangely tempting.

After taking several millions summit photos, I started down, deciding to descend the west ridge for as long as possible and then head down scree slopes to the valley. This route turned out to be outstanding, again featuring outrageously captivating rock scenery at every turn. I stayed high on the slopes to best experience it before joining up with my ascent track back at treeline. The remainder of the return trip amounted to mindless hiking, with a few terrific views of Lineham Creek Peaks and Trap Peak.

A wickedly rewarding day out on one of several surprise trips of the year. I’m definitely motivated to return to the area for other objectives.

Lineham Creek and Lineham Creek Peaks (GR617954)

Someone has placed an animal skull on a branch

The southwest outlier of Pickletooth

Trap Peak (GR628936)

Close up of the outlier - looks like it could be ascended straight up that gully

Typical terrain low down in the Pickletooth valley

Finally out into the open and admiring the ridge between Pickletooth and the outlier

Rappelling down that would be intense!

First view of distant Pickletooth Mountain in the centre. It may look lower than the surroundings mountains but it's higher.

So that's what a pickletooth looks like!

Part of the impressive ridge

Mounts Strachan (left) and Muir

Lots of interesting rock underfoot also

As stated, traversing this ridge would be a daunting proposition

Same as above

Pano of the valley. Pickletooth seems even farther away now!

A nice pool and snow

I like the clouds here but I'll be happier when they are all gone

Ice is forming - here comes winter

The obsession with the connecting ridge continues

Pleasant travel along a canyon-like feature

Another scary part of the ridge

Looking down the valley

Looking up the valley at the objective

The ridge west of Pickletooth appears to have some interesting features

Like these

And these

The actual ascent slopes are less interesting. I followed the line of snow near the right.

Pano before starting the ascent

The south col - don't go there

Just go straight up

The southwest outlier

McPhail again

The Sun is about to be revealed

Drooling over the ridge is a good excuse to catch my breath

Even with a thin layer of snow, some of it is coming down

The views to the west are starting to really open up

Kicking stepping up the snow

Distracted

The crux occurred where the snow ran out. This slope is much steeper than it appears.

One of the Lineham Creek Peaks (left) and a southern outlier of Pickletooth

Mount Joffre, just left of centre

Looking down the route again

The snow is running out

Gone, but the summit is near

Traversing over to the south ridge to complete the ascent

First view of two of the Dogtooth Mountains

Close now. The summit is at the right.

Pyriform Mountain

Views to the east, south, and southwest

Last 100 metres

Success

The ridge between Pickletooth and Dogtooth features a series of striking pinnacles (perhaps why the massif was named the Dogtooth Mountains)

Close-up of the pinnacles (dog teeth). They are readily seen from Picklewood Peak.

View to the north

Highwood Peak and Crumble Peak

There's a fairly large peak in the distant centre

It's Banded Peak, I think

View to the south

A cool fin of rock of the north side of Pickletooth

Summit panos

Foothills and prairies to the southeast

The whole route down the peak

Mount Abruzzi in the centre

Joffre again

Everything to the south, including Head, Trap, and Lineham Creek Peaks

Picturesque peaks south of Abruzzi.

McPhail's aesthetic pyramidal form is always picturesque

Close-up of Trap and Lineham Creek Peaks

Descending

Following the west ridge for a short distance is easy and very scenically rewarding

Same as above

Looking back up to Picklewood is likewise rewarding

Some of those striking pinnacles from the other side

A lichen sighting to make awesome even more awesome!

Continuing down the ridge

Another lichen run-in

Following the west ridge will end soon...

...but not yet

The terrain in the rearview mirror

Down the mountain again

Last of the lichen

Same as above

The rock band at the left was the end of the line for the west ridge

Not that one..

...this one

Descending scree slopes away from the ridge

Here begins the copious amount of rock scenery photos on descent

The southern outlier and one of the Lineham Creek Peaks again (left)

A soothing contrast to the previous craggy photo

Back to craggy

A very cool, colourful, and smooth slab

Cool rib

The sky was insanely blue on descent

Mid-descent panos

Back to the rock scenery

Back near the valley panos

Makes me look forward to winter

Staying high on the slopes instead of returning to the canyon-like section

The southern outlier of Pickletooth looks so much better later in the day

In fact the whole valley does

Back to that first piece of overhanging rock

Last pano before going back into the trees

The intriguing southwest outlier

The very exposed and challenging north ridge of Trap

Much easier Lineham Creek Peaks

Just a treed hill, but I like it

Strachan and Muir

Trap

Close-up

Back in washed-out Lineham Creek

Muir and McPhail

Trap and trees

Another treed hill

A fascinating wall of rock above Lineham Creek near the beginning. Awesome trip!

The End

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