Thank you for your patience while we retrieve your images.

Home»Trip Report Albums»Banff National Park»Mount Astley (Click to Load Album)

Following the popular trail along Lake Minnewanka from the parking lot.The Cascade River as it makes its way down to Lake Minnewanka.A favorite flower of mine - the Calypso Orchid.This is where the Stewart Canyon trail is washed out by the drainage that we wish to ascend. I'm not sure if the trail continues past this point or not.The debris was fairly easy to navigate around considering how bad it could have been! I think the flood in 2013 flushed the creek out for the most part.Hiking the access canyon SW of Astley.This rope was partially pulled down - the other end is dangling high on the face.Looking back down the drainage you can see that these bolted climbs aren't easy (on the right).Getting higher the drainage opens up again.Sheep detritus.It's not all fun and games - there is more debris above the choke point / narrow canyon.Almost at the split now - notice the drainage going left just ahead, this is the one to take.We go left ahead.Raf thought Mount Astley was that peak that's already far behind us. This is why he promised me a short / easy day out... ;)Looking ahead at the alpine bowl and Mount Astley at the end of it.Steven worked his way up these cliff bands and then out of sight to the summit on upper right.We made our way over to an obvious scree / slab gully leading to the west ridge high above.IMHO you don't want a large group on this terrain for obvious reasons.Note Eric at lower right? The terrain is much steeper than it looks on this wide angle photo.Eric looks small in the terrain as we gain a ridge beside the gully - we traversed climber's right when the strata through a cliff band and some steep slabs at us.
© Vern Dewit Photography
Powered by User Agreement