Spreading Ridge


and beyond

 
June 28, 2022
 
Mountain heights: 2442 and 2673 m
Elevation gain:      1000 m
Round-trip time:     7:25
 
Solo scramble.
 
After seeing the Matt’s excellent reports for this ridge along the Icefields Parkway, the trip was immediately put on my to-do list. I was hoping to do it as a winter snowshoe ascent with Mark, but it never seemed to pan out. Noting that Bob Spirko and company had completed the trip several months after the Matts as a summer ascent I was also open to a snow-less trip.
 
Spreading Ridge was not the objective as I drove north on Highway 93. I was hoping that the outlier north of Jimmy Junior would be sufficiently snow-free to warrant an attempt. It was not and so I settled on Spreading Ridge, generally following Bob’s route.
 
Except for some good views of Mount Chephren and the northern Waterfowl Lake, early on in the trip, the first few hours were tedious and not terribly inspiring, due to the lack of views. However, that changed dramatically upon breaking treeline. This trip goes from no views anywhere to amazing views everywhere within a few minutes. And spectacular views they are: first, the striking towers of Mount Murchison, then the aesthetic forms of South Totem Peak and Spreading Peak, and most noticeably an array of several of the Rockies finest and most colourful lakes, below an array of the several of the Rockies most striking mountains.   
 
Above treeline the pinnacled summit was a mere 15-minute scree slog away. As stated, the lakes were the highlight of the summit view: Chephren, Cirque, the southern Waterfowl Lake, and Mistaya, all sporting their unique and beautiful green/blue/turquoise hues. To my surprise, however, the larger and northern Waterfowl Lake was hidden from view.
 
Enjoying perfect weather and stellar views, I couldn’t resist continuing along the ridge, towards two awesome and very distinctive outliers of Spreading Peak. Both looked to be impregnable but getting a closer couldn’t hurt. As well, the lower ridge of the first outlier was holding onto a significant cornice (if I ever had another “kryptonite” in addition to red argillite it would cornices!).
 
The cornice scenery was excellent, and views improved even more. The unexpected part of the continuation was finding a weakness in the southwest side of the first outlier. I ascended it with ease and was even cautiously optimistic that the summit could be reached – that optimism was short-lived! At the top of the gully the summit blocked appeared and it clearly was not going to yield. Even with ropes and gear, the looseness of the terrain would probably repel even the most skilled climbers.
 
Nevertheless, there were two closely spaced sub-summits, each boasting a fantastic view and I took a long break to enjoy both. A small cairn at one of the summits indicated I was not the first to make it to this point.


 
If there was a crux to this trip, it would have been choosing a descent route. I really wanted to attempt a descent down to Noyes Creek on the south side of the peak. The route appeared to be straightforward and would be an excellent opportunity to explore. However, there were also many unknowns, such as potential cliff bands, hidden in the forest, and a possible (actually probable) very high-water level in the creek itself. After much self-debate, my ever-growing conservative side won over and I decided to return the way I came.
 
Aside from the tedious few first hours, one of the best trips I’ve ever done in this part of the Rockies.   



Looking up the boulder ascent gully



Great view of the north Waterfowl Lake, but that's the last view you get until almost at the summit



I lied - Mount Chephren



Great rock on the left side of the boulder gully



The first thing you see upon breaking treeline. Bison Peak at the left and several of the Murchison Towers.



Then you can turn around to see Mount Chephren above Chephren Lake and a whackload of other impressive peaks



The east side of Howse Peak attracts only the highest level climbers in the world - not hard to see why.



Close-up of two of the Murchison towers



And another



All of the above plus a slither of Totem Tower and South Totem Peak (the snowy one)   



First good view of South Totem Peak and Spreading Peak, commonly done as a single trip



The summit block of Spreading Ridge is littered with cool pinnacles, massive boulders, and rock formations



Case in point



Big summit cairn and even bigger summit view



Close-up of the southern Waterfowl Lake



Summit pano 1



Summit pano 2



Summit pano 3



Summit pano 4



Another cool pinnacle near the summit



Some very weird eroded rock and the two distinctive outliers of Spreading Peak



Same as above, with Chephren and Howse instead



Close-up of them



A big boulder tries to imitate Chephren (and does a pretty good job of it!)



Easy travel towards the first outlier



The farther you go along the ridge, the better the views of the various lakes get



Here comes the cornices!



And a few behind too



Kaufmann Peaks and Mount Sarbach




Big wall of snow



With the outliers



And Spreading Peak



A little of everything



The outlier looks daunting from this angle



Hard to get away from this stunning section of the mountain



Mount Patterson



Definitely not stepping onto that!



South Totem Peak and Spreading Peak again - someday



Views of the lakes continue to improve as I approach the outlier



A stick protruding from the rocks. Unless sheep have miraculously improved their hoof dexterity, humans have been here!



The southwest side of the outlier



Interesting route-finding to gain elevation, but the peak still looks impenetrable



Eureka! The gully that grants access to the upper reaches of the outlier. 



Mount Noyes at the left - seems like a lifetime ago we did that trip



Bigger view of the area



Lots of cool rock, but very crumbly



Steep walls on either side of the gully



Nearing the top of the gully



The good news and bad news: great view of both outliers, but I'm not getting up either



The two sub-summits of the outlier



Nice cairn on the north sub-summit



And an amazing view



Mistaya, south Waterfowl, and Cirque lakes



The outliers and Spreading Peak



Noyes (left) and Mount Weed (right)



Looking through the gap between the sub-summits while traversing over to the south one



The ridge and summit of the outlier



The scary summit block of the outlier. No dice!



View to the south from the south sub-summit



The northern Waterfowl Lake is now visible



Another view to the south



East Barbette and Barbette Mountain



Mount Weed



Close-up of Noyes. The summit is the peak at the right.



Descending



Back at the beautiful snow section



A look back to South Totem, Spreading and the outliers



I'm going to the miss the winter snow (but not the cold temperatures!)



Traversing the west side of the ridge on return



Little glimpse of the northern Waterfowl Lake



At the shores of Waterfowl Lake

The End

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