Related: Balu Pass, Rogers Pass: Old Faithful Ski Tour

Report from November 27, 2025

After two days of heavy rain to 2300m, Freddy and I figured now was a great time to kick-start our ski touring season at Rogers Pass. Fortunately, the tail end of the storm system brought 20cm of dense powder, burying the burly melt-freeze crust. With a forecasted warm spell settling in over the day, we hoped the warm snow would stick to the crust and cushion our turns. We planned on skiing a classic of the Connaught Valley, the Cheops North Bowl.

We followed the standard Connaught uptrack, aiming to gain Balu Pass. With the low elevation coverage, we stepped over rocks, roots and cautiously maneuvered over gaping streams. In the early season, it’s best to budget some extra time to navigate the valley bottoms. Surprisingly, the fresh rain crust helped shield our skis from the rocks on the trail. After two hours of continuous side-hilling, we gained Balu Pass and stumbled into old friends, Chris and Will, who happened to share the same objective.

We took a breather at the pass, snacking on granola bars and dehydrated mangoes – my all-time favourite in the backcountry. Looking south, we could see the Loop Brook, Asulkan and Illecillewaet Valleys in the distance. It got me excited about our upcoming winter and all the epic terrain at our fingertips. We mosied across Balu Pass, arriving at the foot of the Cheops West Ridge, the next leg of the ski tour.

As we climbed the broad shoulder, I probed for potential wind slabs and evaluated our snowpack. For a heavily wind-scoured feature, I was surprised to find more than 180cm of snow across the slope. Beyond, the alpine was caked in snow. The warm temperature and heavy snow had coated our mountains, filling in boulder holes, open creeks and eroded gullies. Despite the recent rain, that’s a great start for the 2025-2026 season. With Will expertly breaking trail at the front, we gained the distinct bench, marking the entrance of the Cheops North Bowl.

While the crew executed a quick transition, Will (being Will) pulled a beer out of his bag and crushed it on the spot. Not my style, but I can appreciate the effort to haul it up the hill. Will and Chris decided to ski Nicci’s Notch, an advanced line nearby. We dropped into the bowl, ski cutting the convex entrance to evaluate the wind slab’s reactivity. The warm snow offered smooth, groomer-like skiing, thankfully cushioning the crust below. While I wouldn’t call that powder skiing, it was as enjoyable as it was different from what we’re used to at Rogers Pass. The vast alpine terrain was looming overhead, making us feel very small in comparison.

As we approached the traverse under STS Couloir, we noticed a string of avalanche debris emerging from the steep couloir above. The debris had carved out the terrain, leaving great big gullies of tough ice. We carefully descended through the challenging section and raced down to the valley bottom once clear of the debris. In times of better stability and snow quality, I often ski the steep chutes directly below the bowl. They are often loaded by the downflow winds, blowing from the top of Balu Pass.

Route Info

7-8 h	1020m	11 km	1330-2250 m

The post Cheops North Bowl: Great Alpine Skiing Despite Thin Coverage appeared first on The Uptrack.

Where’s Granite From?

Granite is actively being developed in one of Canada’s cherished mountain sports capitals, Squamish, BC. Software developers Esteban and Gabrielle are working tirelessly to improve Granite’s offering. It’s a pleasure to support a local initiative that focuses on building a strong community of outdoor enthusiasts. Here’s what they have to say:

Made in Squamish — We are climbers, skiers, and hikers building the platform we want for our own days in the mountains. Accurate maps, useful reports, and a community that keeps knowledge where it belongs, with the people who live it.

Why Granite?

Who’s tired of juggling multiple apps, all at once, to plan your outings? One app for satellite imagery, another for topo maps and a thick brick for route descriptions. It’s exhausting! In the past, I was jumping between Gaia GPS, FATMAP, Google Earth and CalTopo. Granite solved my problem by combining all this data into one app. They even partnered with Avalanche Canada to include their avalanche bulletins. It’s so darn convenient.

What About Their Features

From the outset, Granite was launched with a ton of exciting new features that work flawlessly. They’ve also been great to work with, keeping us posted on upcoming features. The founders are updating the app monthly. You can track their progress and vote on new features using their official roadmap.

Current Features:

• 3D offline maps, including summer and winter satellite basemaps, as well as topographic maps
• Advanced terrain overlays (avalanche Slope, aspect, flat terrain, ski lines, forest service road status, private and personal heatmap)
• Avalanche Canada bulletins
• Strava & Garmin integration (mountain stats, private activity history)
• Trip reports (mountain conditions, high-quality photos, clear route details)
• Digital guidebook published by Verified Experts (such as The Uptrack)

Explore The Granite Roadmap

In the coming months, they plan on expanding their winter satellite imagery and community content with active trip reports and trail conditions. They’ll be adding more features such as an advanced folder library to organize your routes, batch route import and weather layers. Honestly, I’m thrilled to see such a dedicated team working hard to make Granite the best 3D mapping app on the market! You can download the app on Google Play or the App Store (Apple).

What’s The Master Plan?

I’ll be duplicating the ski touring and mountaineering routes posted on The Uptrack, offering an abbreviated yet insightful version on Granite. The Revelstoke-based content will then be organized in regional collections (guidebooks) to accommodate Revelstoke’s expansive ski touring network. You’ll be able to browse a route on Granite, refer to it in the backcountry, and follow its link back to The Uptrack for the extensive trip report, including additional terrain photos and ski photography. To get you guys invested in the app, Granite is offering a 1-month free trial for visitors of The Uptrack.

Get Your 1-Month Free Trial On Granite

The post Granite X The Uptrack: A One-Stop-Shop Mapping App appeared first on The Uptrack.

Related: The Early Season Snowpack: How It Affects Your Winter

McCrae Peak

Best time to visit: Mid-October to early November

5-6 h	820 m	10.5 km	1770-2415 m

As far as early-season ski touring goes, the McCrae Peak zone is an all-time classic. Its main glacier, the McCrae glacier, offers an enjoyable yet short descent, with a challenging finish down a windy canyon. For added vertical, you can bootpack up the peak’s west face to its summit (2500m), granting you panoramic views of the surrounding Selkirk Mountains and the Monashees’ Gold Range across the Columbia Valley. Why is this such a popular early-season spot? On one hand, you’ll start your tour at an elevation of just under 1800m at the top of the McCrae forestry road. You essentially drive all the way up to the snowline, skipping the typically heinous valley bottom bushwhack. Since the McCrae FSR is part of the broader Akolkolex forestry road network, bring a VHF radio along to monitor the busy logging traffic. This is an active logging zone, requiring a 4×4 vehicle to access. Check out this post about safety on forest service roads in BC.

Related: McCrae Glacier: Season’s First Powder Turns

On the other hand, McCrae’s west shoulder is a mellow grassy meadow, with more grass than rocks, perfect for some early-season backcountry skiing. For the keen adventurer, you can complete a variety of intricate loops involving alpine bowls and steep chutes as seen in my latest trip up McCrae Peak in spring.

Joss Mountain

Best time to visit: Mid-October to early November

5-6 h	650 m	12.5 km	1490-2150 m

Peaking at 2386m, Joss Mountain is a prime early-season ski touring spot in the Monashee Mountains. The route requires a 4×4 vehicle and a VHF radio to navigate the generally well-maintained Wap Lake FSR. Beware: the journey’s last leg up one of the lesser-used branches is much steeper and rockier than the main artery. The challenging access is worth the effort, however. You’ll be rewarded with classic Monashee-style skiing, including chutes, pillows, booters and pristine alpine bowls. Thankfully, the 1-hour drive from Revelstoke and the harder access make Joss Mountain a lesser-known destination, a hidden gem. You’ll hardly cross anyone on the uptrack.

Related: Joss Mountain: Monashees: Seeking The Halloween Powder

The peak is crowned by an old fire lookout, worth the visit if you can muster the 850m ascent. With a little exploration, you’ll find that the south bowl harbours quality skiing. The ondulating alpine terrain offers a perfect opportunity to ski multiple laps, dust off the cobwebs and get your touring legs under you.

Rogers Pass

Rogers Pass winter permit required

Best time to visit: Early November to mid-April

If you’ve been lurking on The Uptrack for a while, you’ve probably figured it out. Rogers Pass is a world-class backcountry skiing destination that also delivers the goods in the early season. The ski season usually starts in early November in the Connaught Valley when there’s just enough snow for a marginal ascent and a hair-raising descent. I’m not going to sugarcoat this – October/November skiing at Rogers Pass is no joke. You’ll be hopping over sharp rocks, crossing open creeks and bashing alder bushes along the way. Nonetheless, the challenging valley bottom conditions give way to excellent skiing in the alpine bowls.

Most folks begin their season in the Connaught Valley with the Balu Pass ski tour. The gentle valley ascent, combined with the mellow open slopes at the valley’s headwaters, makes for a great first tour of the year. I’ve had some of my finest November faceshots there. For the expert skiers looking for challenging lines, a short climb from Balu Pass up the Cheops West Shoulder gets you to the entrance of Nicci’s Notch and the Cheops North Bowl on the valley’s south slope, two great options for early-season backcountry skiing.

On the north side of the Connaught Valley lies Ursus Trees, offering perfectly spaced tree skiing that can be lapped over and over again. Skiers and snowboarders with a penchant for mountaineering can easily summit Video Peak and ski down its south face. It’s a classic early-season objective. You’ll find some great alpine skiing in the vast Hospital Bowl below the peak. Beware: the valley’s lower slopes are carpeted with thick alder bushes, making progress difficult. Stick to the well-used uptracks below treeline to ease your ascent.

Dusting Off The Cobwebs

Since we’re talking about early-season backcountry skiing, it’s worth mentioning the steps you can take to get ready for the season. My latest pre-season preparation for ski touring post discusses those very steps, ranging from looking over your gear to physical conditioning for the season. I spend considerable time training my avalanche and crevasse rescue response before even clipping into my bindings for the first time of the year. You never know – you might be faced with an incident on your very first day out in the backcountry, and you must be ready for it.

Let’s be honest with ourselves: our first packing party of the year is often a rusty one. I’m slowly packing my backpack in the least effective way possible, often forgetting essential items. Well, look no further. This handy-dandy post on what to pack for a ski tour covers all the gear you’ll need for your first ski tour in October or November.

Lastly, not only is it good advice to practice avalanche safety scenarios before hitting the backcountry slopes, it’s also crucial to review the common avalanche problems encountered in October and November. This post on the early-season snowpack covers the fundamental weather mechanisms and avalanche problems that take shape in the early parts of the winter.

The post Best Early-Season Backcountry Skiing Near Revelstoke, BC appeared first on The Uptrack.

Related: Afton Southeast Couloir, Rogers Pass: High Exposure (East Variation)

Report from December 1st, 2020

Generally speaking, I’m not a big fan of ski touring in large groups, but this day was different. The crew, comprised of Rigel, Steph, Freddy, Phil, Kaitlin, and me, assembled at the Loop Brook parking lot, ready for a fun day of introductory ski-mountaineering. For some, this was their first couloir. Phil and I picked the Afton SE Couloir as it seemed like a good appetizer for the newcomers to the sport.

After a thorough gear check, we slithered along Loop Brook, engaging early up the west flank of Mt Abbott. With the season being young, the snowpack was quite shallow. We battled surface crusts and faceted snow through the steep forest, laying down technical kick-turns and using trees for belay. There’s no sugarcoating it, the forested ascent is heinous. I broke my skin tip twice by stumbling on deadfall and buried rocks. You have to stay focused and punch through the treeline.

As we emerged from the trees, we could peer across the Loop Brook Valley. Mt Green and Ross Peak were standing proud. I took the opportunity to scope out the Ross SE Couloir, an objective I completed a few days later after it had shed during a storm cycle. We took a solid break, replenishing our energy while we basked in the early-season sun. We then continued along the wind-scoured ridge leading up to Mt Afton.

Once the snow got too hard to travel on skis, we strapped our skis to our packs and started bootpacking up the Afton NW Ridge. The shallow faceted snow would let go at every step, punching through the thick wind crust to the depth of the boulders underneath. Progress was tiring and slow, but we eventually made it up the ridge. Freddy took a wild tumble down a few boulders after he lost his footing, a stark reminder to check your holds when climbing even the simplest ridge. Due to short daylight hours, some of us avoided the summit. It’s such a quick detour that I decided to complete the ascent and bag Mt Afton. This also gave me a premium view of the Afton SE Couloir and an opportunity to scope out the snow conditions.

The couloir had been battered by high southerly winds. The snow surface was visibly wind-affected, which is pretty common when ski mountaineering. I figured the wind slabs were more than 72 hours old and wouldn’t pose much of an issue. To make things worse, solar input over the last few clear days had changed the snow. This was expected, being a SE aspect. As usual, I would first assess the conditions before committing to the descent.

The sun was setting behind the Bonney Massif. At this time of the year, daylight is scarce. While I descended from the summit to join the group, the crew readied up for the short scramble into the couloir. Phil, Freddy and I led the way, looking for the easiest way through the narrow band of rocks spanning skier’s right from the couloir’s entrance. We helped the first-time couloir skiers through the scramble, assisting them as they mounted their skis. I truly wanted to avoid a ski rocket down the hard snow.

Ready for the descent, Phil launched down the line after a powerful ski cut. The skiing was challenging, to say the least. The top section was heavily wind-affected. Phil was cutting small chunks of unreactive wind slabs as he descended the couloir. I was snapping photos. The lower portion offered excellent powder skiing since the mountains across the valley provided shelter from the low-lying sun. With the hour drawing late, the Asulkan Valley was shrouded in darkness.

Once the party had skied the couloir, one at a time, we continued down the Rampart Bowl toward the valley bottom. The powder skiing here was excellent: sheltered from the wind, with no solar input and some interesting features off which to jump. This was a literal playground! We trended skier’s left towards an isolated band of trees and followed them down to the Asulkan Brook.

From there, we glided downstream along the Asulkan Trail back to the Illecilleweat parking lot. Since we had driven up with two cars, we carpooled back to the Loop Brook parking lot in the dark. I highly recommend doing so; otherwise, you’re stuck walking a few kilometres along the Trans-Canada Highway with semi-trucks blasting their horns at you!

Route Info

7-8 h	1500m	14 km	1130-2543 m

The post Afton SE Couloir, West Variation: Easing Into The Winter appeared first on The Uptrack.

Related: Christiana Glades: Skiing The Old Growth

Report from February 16, 2025

Tom, Steph, Kaitlin and I started the day at the Bostock Parking Lot, ensuring our winter-restricted permits were visible on the car’s dash. We navigated past the refrozen, plowed snowbank that leads to the Bostock Trailhead. After two weeks with little precipitation during Rogers Pass’ busiest month, the trail was in rough shape. The cut bank was packed with snow, creating a slippery track, slanted towards the rugged slope leading into Bostock Creek. Nonetheless, the walk through the old-growth forest was pleasant and progress was darn fast. We crossed the tracked-out McGill Main Chutes exit.

After a quick water break, we started the ascent up a narrow shoulder leading to Wolverine Ridge. Tree branches, pine needles and old man’s beard (moss) were scattered over the old snow after a bout of strong arctic winds. I broke trail through rotten faceted snow, barely supporting my weight. Progress was slow and demanding but we finally linked up to an existing uptrack, as suggested by Kaitlin. The refrozen track was much more supportive and expedited the ascent.

To be honest, I wasn’t too confident we would find good snow as I was breaking trail from the valley bottom. A firm sun crust on steeper pitches covered the surface while the preserved snow was littered with tree bombs and blown-over branches.

However, things improved dramatically as we climbed the shoulder. As we gained the treeline, we heard several “whumpfs”, perhaps a buried surface layer letting its presence known. By then, I had abandoned the refrozen track, slippery and way too aggressive and was setting a gradual, “guide’s” uptrack through sparse trees and open slopes, making sure to avoid the steeper, south-facing features.

We stopped as the trees led into an alpine ridge, Wolverine Ridge. The open slopes above were visibly wind-scoured by the NW winds and would offer terrible skiing. After discussing our options, we decided to transition behind a small thicket of trees, sheltering the group from the cold, icy wind. We opted to ski the upper part of the shoulder with patches of open terrain, basically reversing our uptrack.

The mellower upper slopes offered great skiing in boot-deep powder. The incline was too shallow to be affected by solar exposure at this time of the year. Given the “whumpfs”, evidence of buried surface hoar sitting on a sun crust, I steered the group away from the steep south-facing slopes. Once we were below the hazardous feature, I veered skier’s left into a patch of sparse glades. Battling with a variable sun crust in a few spots, we linked the mellower forested clearings and made our way down the valley, where the snow was surprisingly good.

Pleasantly surprised by the quality run we just skied, we stuck our skins and walked a little way down Bostock Creek to set us up for a speedy descent to the parking lot. We ripped the skins early on and favoured side-stepping through the short uphill sections so that we could ski down the rest of the trail. It worked out great! We were at the Bostock lot within 30-45 minutes!

Route Info

6-7 h	1300 m	15 km	980-2140 m

The post Wolverine Ridge: Exploring The Far Reaches of Bostock Pass appeared first on The Uptrack.

Related: Afton SE Couloir, Rogers Pass: High Exposure

Report from February 20, 2020

Let’s begin this story by mentioning I was on a hot date with Kaitlin, my now fiancée, plus two of her friends. The stakes were high, and I dressed to impress. Not literally – I had my usual ski touring attire – but I expectedly showed above-average confidence bordering on cockiness! I’ve come to resent that over the years and gotten rid of it for the most part. It wasn’t my most attractive quality (sarcasm intended)! This happened 5 years ago when I was but a wee, inexperienced lad. Back to the story, we slithered along the Asulkan Trail for a little over 3km, whizzing by the Glacier Crest turnoff. Thankfully, the snowpack was mega-deep in 2020.

We crossed the Asulkan Brook and started the real ascent up the forest bordering the Abbott East Slidepath. With good avalanche stability in the forecast, we utilized the Abbott Mini paths, a series of small avalanche paths to the north, to facilitate the climb, staying out of the bushy forest. Being a fantastic snow year, the north path was skiable with some trees still sticking out here and there. By following a broad shoulder leading to the Abbott Ridge, we avoided the Abbott Prohibited Area to the North.

We continued along the shoulder, offering efficient travel. While trying to break a consistent trail in the deep snow and impress Kaitlin with my uptracking wizardry, I face-planted when a pillow collapsed under my weight. Sometimes, you shoot and miss! We laughed it off. I was secretly embarrassed.

Eventually, the broad shoulder led us to a vast bench below the Abbott Ridge headwall. We traversed underneath the large overhead feature, spacing out to minimize our exposure to potential avalanches. I wouldn’t be there if the risk of natural avalanche activity lingered. With the warmer-than-normal temps heating the headwall’s surface snow, we voted against completing the final bootpack up the headwall to the ridge and transitioned on the bench, lined up with the south path.

We chatted for a moment before dropping into the line, also admiring the Sir Donald Range across the valley. We determined that the quality skiing would be on the path’s north-tilted (right) flank or at its center, whereas the south-tilted (left) flank would have a buried sun crust. We followed our plan to the letter, and the skiing was phenomenal. We skied the line one at a time, cruising over pillows and buried stumps bordering the path. What a blast! The bottom portion offered adequate skiing even if the snow was a little moist due to the warming temperatures at the valley bottom.

We landed right back where we began the ascent, on the west bank of the Asulkan Brook. We retraced our steps, side-stepping through steeper sections occasionally. We glided most of the way back to the parking lot. While the Abbott East Slidepath isn’t the best ski touring route Rogers Pass has to offer, it’s still a convenient option when you’re looking for a short day (1000m vertical) and grand views of the Sir Donald Range across the valley.

Route Info

5-6 h	1020m	8.3 km	1200-2175 m

The post Abbott East Slidepath: Stellar Powder On A Hot Date appeared first on The Uptrack.

Related: Skiing Avalanche Crest: Rogers Pass’ Top Run?

Report from January 3, 2024

We glided along the Asulkan Rail Grade at a gentle warm-up pace and veered onto the Sir Donald Trail blowing past the ever-so-popular Avalanche Crest Trail. Within an hour, we were breaking trail across the base of the Practice Slopes below the Overlook. Interestingly, the “Practice” Slopes are no practice at all, being part of two large avalanche paths extending high into the alpine terrain. The trim lines cut into the surrounding forest are evidence of the past natural avalanche cycles, a stark reminder to stay sharp in light of our exposure to large overhead slopes. Bulldozing through unusually open creeks and alder patches, we made it to the bottom of the Vaux Moraine.

We struggled through the steep, eroded, bushy slopes below the glacial moraine. This section of the Vaux Moraine route is a test of will at the best of times, even in a deep snowpack. We made it up the tricky slope with the help of small trees and a thousand kick-turns. Eventually, we emerged from the trees and into the alpine terrain below the sheer west face of Mt Sir Donald, an immense rock slab commonly rappeled in the summer months.

Michael set the trail and the pace ahead of us. He made good use of the convoluted terrain and quickly reached the ridge separating the Uto South Bowl and the Overlook Bowl. Within a half-hour, we were peering over the ridge’s edge, looking into the steep entrance to the Overlook Bowl. Up high, a guided group was summiting Eagle Peak, fixing ropes as they scrambled along the exposed south face.

Within a half-hour, we were peering over the ridge’s edge, looking into the steep entrance to the Overlook Bowl. Up high, a guided group was summiting Eagle Peak, fixing ropes as they scrambled along the exposed south face.

I dug through the small cornice to get a clean line into the steep, convex slope, terminated by a small cliff. Nick inched across and above a cliff, testing the snowpack for potential wind slabs. Michael followed suit. Thankfully, the snow was glued on.

We continued down the Overlook Bowl, skiing through 20-25cm of high-quality, well-settled powder. We dodged some old tracks and skied the bowl’s right side which was terminated by a large cliff band. We contoured to the left above the cliffs and skied another excellent planar pitch finishing in a boulder field close to the treeline.

From the bottom of the bowl, we contemplated our options: contour south into the Practice Slopes and ski out through the Sir Donald Trail or head north towards Avalanche Crest. We opted for the second option which would offer an epic descent to the parking lot. We contoured north around the Eagle SW ridge, cutting a trail through the dense forest. After some minor bushwacking, we bolted out of the trees into the base of the Avalanche South Bowl.

We broke trail in the looker’s right portion of the bowl and linked up with an existing uptrack. Legs burning, we inched up until halfway up Avalanche Crest, reaching an elevation of 2250m. We took a quick break, switched to downhill mode and skied down the classic run. Unfortunately, the slope was completely tracked out, a resort mogul field. A lengthy drought and a busy weekend at Rogers Pass made short work of the fresh snow sadly. That’s fine – nothing like mogul training in the backcountry!

With an aching body, we crawled back to the parking lot sliding along the flat snowbank bordering the highway. While we didn’t get our pristine powder on Avalanche Crest, we completed a beautiful, 17-km loop through seldom-visited terrain and skied Overlook Bowl, our main objective for the day!

Route Info

8-9 h	1700m	17 km	1200-2450 m

The post Overlook Bowl Via Vaux Moraine: The Roundabout Way appeared first on The Uptrack.

Related: The Ravens: A Burly Line For A Burly Storm, Lookout Col: The Scenic Way To The Ravens

Report from December 3, 2024

Jye and I rolled into the Illecillewaet parking lot around 7:30 AM, with a few cars strewn across the flat area. The owners were staying at the Asulkan Cabin since more folks avoid the Illecillewaet and Asulkan Valleys this early in the ski touring season. We glided along the Asulkan Trail and veered left onto the Great Glacier Trail.

Within an hour, we arrive at the Illecillewaet Moraines, a convoluted arrangement of gullies, pillows and narrow shoulders leading up to the glacial toe. The early season conditions were on display here. We scrambled over alders and followed an uber-steep uptrack to the toe at 2040m. There was no convenient way to get up there – it was an act of brute force!

With much effort, we made it to the toe of the Illecillewaet Glacier. It’s always more of a slog than I remember but it’s all worth it. To our right, we could see the Glacier Crest E face and the dogleg couloir, in good shape for early December. We decided to traverse east under the toe since the “standard” uptrack seemed very crevassed. This route would allow us to establish new ways onto the glacier.

Jye, fit as ever, broke trail for most of the ascent. We navigated the successive benches under the toe and eventually spotted a possible way through the glacier bound by two gnarly-looking crevasse fields. We roped up for the ascent – 12-15m apart with multiple stopper knots across the stretch of rope. We took all the safety precautions since we’d be crossing multiple crevasse bridges with little information about the depth and density of the snowpack.

We probed a snowpack depth ranging from 160cm in scoured areas to 250cm in wind-loaded zones with about 100cm of hard snow above ground. While those aren’t ideal crevasse bridging conditions, it’s good enough for travelling roped up and probing for big holes. We were through the crevasse field and onto the Illecillewaet Neve, the nearly flat top of the glacier.

We set a track up the rest of the glacier to the Ravens Ridge, circumnavigating around Lookout Bowl. We reached the ridge by noon. The views of the Asulkan and Youngs Glacier were amazing incredible and quite insightful. The 7 Steps of Paradise run was not in great shape. Rocks peppered the last two rolls above the valley bottom. We could also see the Asulkan Cabin in the distance, granting you access to this beautiful alpine terrain.

We transitioned for the descent. Due to an alpine temperature inversion, the light winds and mild temperatures were quite comfortable, even at 2540m where we stood. We poked around the leeward side of the ridge, on the hunt for reactive wind slabs. The mellow terrain would allow us to assess the wind slab hazard in the steeper sections. We found no signs of reactivity, only some old wind-affected surfaces that made skiing variable and challenging.

We followed the loaded slope and found a way across the rocky ridge onto the west aspect. Navigated by satellite imagery, we located the first entrance to the Lookout North Couloir. Peering into the void, we could see the whole line below us. While thin and rocky, there was a way clear descent route. We opted for the first and more serious line since the wind slab hazard was non-existent. Instead, we found 20-30cm of faceted snow.

Jye led the first half of the descent as I was taking photos. The couloir had previously avalanched and offered variable hard snow as well as blower powder. The skiing was challenging, resulting in slower-than-expected progress. Fortunately, we didn’t hit any rocks! We skied one at a time to manage our sluff and exposure.

Midway down the couloir, I took the lead and was met with variable conditions – the run had slid not so long ago. We railed some turns down the exit fan and exited into Lookout Bowl. The snow was exceptional, 40-50cm of low-density, faceted blower.

After celebrating the awesome run, we glided into the bowl’s gut and traversed back to the Ravens’ west slope. It’s worth transitioning for the uphill to make that move. Another lap of blower powder later, we connected with the Asulkan Valley Trail which we followed to the parking lot. It was a slog but we made it.

Route Info

7-9 h	1410 m	16 km	1200-2540 m

The post Lookout North Couloir: A Nifty Loop Joining Two Valleys appeared first on The Uptrack.

• The A.O. Wheeler Hut
• The Asulkan Cabin
• The Sapphire Col Hut

Related: Ski Touring In Rogers Pass, BC: All You Need To Know

The A.O. Wheeler Hut

Photo: Alpine Club of Canada

The A.O. Wheeler Hut is a backcountry hut located in the Rogers Pass frontcountry. As Park Canada puts it: “The Wheeler Hut is one of the most historic, aesthetic and accessible huts in the ACC hut network. The hiking, mountaineering and winter backcountry skiing are world-class.” You’ll find below some details about the hut.

Recommended Ski Touring Routes

The Asulkan Cabin

Photo: Alpine Club of Canada

The Asulkan Cabin is located near (you guessed it) the head of the Asulkan Valley, nestled between the Asulkan and Youngs Glaciers. This ultra-scenic location provides panoramic views of the towering mountains and expansive glaciers populating the Asulkan Valley. The hut sleeps 10 comfortably and has a fully stocked kitchen as far as remote backcountry huts go in Rogers Pass.

Recommended Ski Touring Routes

The Sapphire Col Hut

Photo: Alpine Club of Canada

Established in 1964, the Sapphire Col Hut is Rogers Pass’ highest backcountry hut, at 2567m. It’s an uninsulated tin box anchored to the rock with thick steel cables. And, it’s for good reasons. The col is typically hammered by bad weather and gale-force winds. The hut doesn’t offer any heating or cooking equipment. It does however have plywood sleeping shelves and a rickety door. You’ll have to bring all your overnight gear except for a shelter.

Recommended Ski Touring Routes

How Do I Book A Backcountry Hut In Rogers Pass?

First and foremost, the Alpine Club of Canada offers regular hut booking rates for non-members and a discounted rate for members of its organization. The relatively cheap yearly subscription helps support the organization, providing heavily discounted guided trips, courses, and community events if that’s what you’re into. As with most backcountry huts in Canada, you can book a hut using their user-friendly, online platform. ACC members can book a hut 180 days in advance while non-members are limited to 90 days in advance.

Disclaimer

Access to most of the backcountry huts in BC, specifically Rogers Pass, requires terrain knowledge, avalanche awareness and (for the Sapphire Col Hut) glacier travel skills. While the initial access can be trivial for some huts, the terrain it opens up is very hazardous. Please hire a certified ACMG guide to take you through our mountainous terrain when in doubt. They facilitate your trip organization, introduce another layer of safety, ensure your well-being in the mountains, and often will know the ins and outs of the area. They might teach you a thing or two while you’re at it! As always, stay safe out there and see you on the slopes.

The post The Backcountry Huts of Rogers Pass: Cozy Up And Shred appeared first on The Uptrack.

The Avalanche Hazard Of Couloir Skiing

A fair warning: couloir skiing is prime avalanche terrain which sheds often. The feature is essentially a large terrain trap with no escape, in other words, a funnel for avalanches. In some situations, you can climb a ridge to enter the couloir. This is the ideal situation since you’ll be able to assess the snowpack at the top of the line where conditions are usually more hazardous. Wind-loading is typically much more prominent at the top and the snowpack is shallow and rocky which makes it easy to trigger. A safely executed ski cut might do the trick. However, this isn’t always possible. Bootpacking up the feature may be the only way to its top. The only solution: assess the snowpack at the bottom of the couloir. The conditions at the top remain a wild guess at the best of times.

Pay close attention to the couloir’s aspect. North-facing lines tend to have much wind loading while south-facing lines are exposed to solar warming, both potential triggers. It’s also easy to be surprised by cross-loaded wind slabs triggered below the rock walls lining the couloir’s flanks. Some days, it came down to skiing a minefield of wind slabs, carefully monitoring for snow density changes below your skis. In retrospect, I should have chosen a more conservative objective instead. Live and learn!

As a rule of thumb, I don’t bootpack up a couloir if I’m forecasting natural avalanche activity or poor visibility. I prefer to see the surface wind effect and blowing snow at the top which gives me an idea of the wind loading. I’ll wait for fair weather, reducing the unknowns. I’m also continuously looking for surface instabilities (wind/storm slabs) as I plant my ice axe or poles in the snow. Sometimes, I tour up to a couloir’s exit fan and notice it has slid recently. On one side, the skiing will most likely be horrendous. On the other, the avalanche instability has been triggered naturally. One less problem to deal with…

For Pros: Avalanche NW Couloir

The Avalanche NW Couloir has some of the best and steepest couloir skiing in Rogers Pass. Its 55-degree top pitch funnels you down a winding choke that opens up into the vast Kors-Thomas Bowl and further down, the lower slopes of Avalanche Crest. Accessed from the NRC Col and the crevassed Avalanche North Glacier, an exposed but short-lived bootpack takes you to a col, nestled between the two summits of Avalanche Mountain, granting you panoramic views of the Avalanche Glacier and the Sir Donald Range.

As an option, you can also ski the south face of Avalanche Mtn from the col. Don’t forget your boot crampons and ice axe. The snow at the top of the couloir is often wind-affected (think wind slabs) and rock-hard. Good luck!

For Experts: Grizzly Couloir

The Grizzly Couloir is a classic of the Connaught Creek area. Often one of the first lines to be skied after a storm cycle (or during), it’s hard to get some freshies in this one. Fortunately, you can access its entrance by uptracking Teddy Bear Trees and scrambling on the Grizzly SW Ridge to the summit of Grizzly Mountain. It’s possible to ski cut the entrance effectively to test conditions.

The couloir itself widens at the top and is terminated by an often rocky choke at its base, a textbook terrain trap in case of an avalanche. Keep in mind, that the skier’s right is often cross-loading by prevailing winds and the line is south-facing. Solar warming is a serious problem during most of its skiable season. Once you exit the couloir, you get to ski the epic Grizzly Bowl down to Connaught Creek. The choke below Grizzly Bowl is often in rough shape. It’s best to cut skiers right into Teddy Bear Trees. In any case, Grizzly couloir is high on the list of the best couloir skiing in Rogers Pass.

For An Appetizer: Christmas Couloir

It’s hard to describe the Christmas Couloir. Is it a couloir, a face, or a half-couloir? Take a look at terrain photos yourself. You might find an answer. The south-facing couloir/face is flanked to the left by the headwall of Ursus Major Mountain. It’s accessed by continuing past Balu Pass into the Ursus Major South Bowl. While I prefer to keep skins on and uptrack along the nose of the face, I’ve also bootpacked the couloir in its entirety when conditions allow.

In good condition, it’s a scenic line that isn’t as committing as some of the other ones mentioned in this post. As with any south-facing couloir, solar warming is an issue. It certainly was during one of my worst close calls with an avalanche on this very feature. For a more involved line, I’ve scrambled the Ursus Major Ridge toward the summit from the top of Christmas Couloir and skied its north face into the Bruins Valley.

For A Ski-Mo Classic: Swiss Couloir

Swiss Couloir is a definite ski-mountaineering classic. A 2000m ascent through bushy forest, alpine meadows and vast glaciers takes you to its entrance. There’s no way around this one: you’ll need to bootpack 250m from the Swiss Glacier. At the top of your perch (3100m), one of the highest in the region, you’ll get jaw-dropping views of the Selkirk Mountains, seeing much further than Glacier National Park.

Given its high elevation, the snow conditions are often wind-affected, making for some challenging skiing. The ski quality tends to improve as you descend on the Swiss Glacier and the Lizard Moraine, a prominent alpine feature. When the weather is cooler, you can get some great skiing on the steep pillow lines lining the slopes of the Hermit drainage.

For A Shorter Day: STS Couloir

STS Couloir is a notorious beast of a line, and easily accessible as far as it goes for a ski-mountaineering route. The route offers 700m of epic north-facing couloir skiing with an average slope angle of 45 degrees. A mellow (but exposed) ascent along Connaught Creek takes you to Balu Pass where you continue on the Cheops West Ridge. Depending on conditions, reaching the couloir’s entrance might require a bootpack on the wind-hammered ridge. The couloir is commonly rappelled into (5-10m max.) to get past or cut the large cornices that build upon its crest. Once roped up, you can safely ski-cut the top.

Keep in mind the couloir is a heavily wind-loaded feature and the skier’s left flank harbours cross-loaded wind slabs. During your descent, you’ll be exposed to the large overhead cornices lining the Cheops West Ridge. There’s no doubt about it: it’s a scary place! Given its ease of access, after the cornice has been cut, the trip can be completed in under 5 hours and can be linked with Nikki’s Notch, a tasty appetizer to preceed STS Couloir.

For Tight Turns: Banana Couloir

Banana Couloir is a wonderful objective that’s hard to access and seldom skied. I’ve completed the line in blower powder conditions on the Sir Donald to Macdonald Traverse. The narrow, north-facing feature winds its way down the SW ridge of Mt Macdonald and terminates into the Crossover Bowl. While it can be bootpacked, the most elegant approach is through the NRC Col and the shallow, rocky Macdonald South Face. Keep in mind that the face always has a rotten snowpack with questionable avalanche stability. This route makes for a great traverse from the NRC parking lot to the Hermit lot.

To enter the couloir, a 10m rappel is often needed. With a deep snowpack, you can sneak through a choke at the top avoiding the need for rope work. The couloir is 4-5 meters wide at most. Large enough to link some precise, tight turns but not too narrow to force a jump turn. Once you exit the Banana Couloir, you’ll be exposed to the large overhead slopes lining Crossover Bowl but you’ll find some excellent, wide-open skiing. When it comes to the best couloir skiing in Rogers Pass, the Banana Couloir is a not-so-known bonus line.

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