Mount Richardson
and Pika Peak
July 25, 2005
Mountain height:
Richardson: 3,086
m (10,122 ft)
Pika:
3,033 m (9,948 ft)
Elevation gain:
Hidden
Lake to Richardson: 876 m
Richardson to Pika: -261 m, +210 m
Ascent time:
2:30 (from Hidden Lake)
Traverse time:
1:15
Descent time:
?
Scrambling with Jodi.
My first trip to the beautiful Skoki area
and I had the privilege of being accompanied by Jodi Soare, with whom I had
made my 9th trip up Mount
Baldy, earlier this year.
We planned to stay three days and do a couple of scrambles in the area.
The hike 8 km hike to Hidden
Lake campground was made mercifully
easy by a very generous Lake Louise worker,
who gave us a ride up the Temple
Fire Road. The remaining 4 km was easy and very
scenic, with Pika and Ptarmigan
Peaks forming a gorgeous
backdrop. Upon arriving at the campground, we were immediately accosted by two
unknown individuals who seemed to know who we were and even called me by name.
I was more than pleasantly surprised to discover that they were Brigitte Greve
and Martin Siddles, two scramblers/climbers with whom I had been trading emails
for sometime. Both had offered me encouragement and advice in my quest to
become a better outdoors person and both sport extremely impressive climbing
resumes. Martin has done innumerable scrambles and alpines climbs and Brigitte
has a backcountry resume that would put Tarzan to shame. She could also easily
write a sequel to Kane’s scrambles book, having completed countless unnamed
peaks in remote areas. Not only were their climbing records impressive, but
they were both extremely friendly and personable and we share a few laughs over
the next few days. Jodi also knew Brigitte from The Stronghold climbing center.
After setting up the tent, Jodi and I set
out to ascend Mount Richardson and Pika Peak.
The ascent of Richardson
was little more than a steep hike, although adventurous Jodi took a couple of
more difficult diversions, scrambling up steep rock on the right side of the
ridge. The summit view was terrific and I was surprised at how much snow
remained on top.
We then continued down Richardson’s
snow-covered east slopes to the Richardson/Pika col. Turning around to look at
snowy Richardson
was quite a treat. The scrambling on Pika was fantastic – lots of hands-on
stuff on solid rock, often with an airy drop on the right side. And to
compliment the enjoyable scrambling we arrived at the summit to a spectacular
view. The Wall of Jericho, three stunning turquoise lakes (Merlin, Zigadeus,
and Myosotis), the breath-taking view back to Mount Richardson,
and numerous 11,000ers were highlights of the panorama.
On descent, at the Richardson/Pika col, we
traversed the west slopes of Pika to complete the loop. Given a little more
time and energy, an ascent of Ptarmigan
Peak would have been a
viable option, requiring minimal effort (a very easy, scenic, and enjoyable
3-peak day!). Two wonderful scrambles, both with outstanding summit views.
