Mount Erickson seen from the highway above Summit Lake.
Mount
Erickson After our Mount Erickson attempt five years ago Dinah Kruze and I had some unfinished business there. It was time to complete the job we started and we invited Sonny Bou to join us. We followed the same procedure: After driving up Highway 3 to the south end of the mountain, we parked on the east side of the bridge. From the car, we followed the ridge to the summit. At first, the grade was steep with mixed terrain of bush, trees and loose rock. Eventually the slope became gentler and turned into an enjoyable walk in the woods interrupted with short, interesting scrambling on the rocky sections. Going at a leisurely pace, it took us three hours to reach the south summit. We continued along the ridge, dropping down to the col (losing 80 m of elevation) only to climb nearly 300 m to the false summit, distinguished by a green tower in the shape of a missile. From there it was an easy scramble along the ridge with little elevation gain to the true summit. The summit cairn held a register with a single entry from last October. From the summit I could recognize several peaks to the east – Crowsnest Mountain naturally stood out – but the distant peaks west were unfamiliar to me. After spending more than half an hour on the top we retraced our steps back to the car. The return was unremarkable except for the last section to the highway. Here the steep grade, loose rock, and undergrowth made for a miserable finish. Although the views weren't outstanding, we enjoyed climbing Mount Erickson. I highly recommend it as a late season scramble. MOVIE (3:39) |
Mount Erickson seen from the highway above Summit Lake.
The trip begins with a steep climb.
This sheep horn was surprisingly heavy.
Most of the forest was a pleasant walk with little underbrush or deadfall.
We often came across rocky sections like this in the forest.
Sonny climbs a stretch of rocks. Phillipps Peak in the background.
Reaching yet another rock slope.
A dead tree on a rock slope
This ruffed grouse displays his tail.
A mining project blights the view west.
Huge rock field just before the south summit
On the south summit looking at the false summit which is topped by a green
tower.
The ascent after the saddle was easier than it looked.
A fissure on the south summit
Allison Peak (far left) and Crowsnest Mountain (far right)
Looking back at the south summit
On the saddle leading to
the false summit
Sonny hikes up the grass slope below the false summit. Sentry Mountain in
the
background (mouse over).
Looking back from the false summit
From the false
summit we made our way to the true summit.
Looking back along the ridge
Sonny makes his way to the summit.
Looking back at the false summit from the true summit
Sonny and I study the mountains to the north.
Sonny returns to the summit after checking out the views from a low point on
the left
(mouse over)
360° view
from the top
82 G/15 Crowsnest
