Trip Report by Martin Schwangler
Shadow Lake with Scarab Lake and Egypt Lake Extension, Banff National Park, June 26-29, 2021
The end of June and the beginning of the unrelenting heat-wave that swept over Alberta offered the opportunity to spend some quality time in the Rockies:
The goal was to get some mileage on the new hiking boots and to shake off the winter rust and fully transition into summer mode. Jordanne and I planned our annual hiking trip including her mom, Kathryn, to celebrate their birthdays. Pretty quickly we realized that booking a campsite is going to be a challenge. Being #43000 in line the day Parks opened up bookings, we were eventually able to get a spot for two nights at Shadow Lake campground.
We set out on June 26 for our three-day hiking trip. After dropping off a bike at Vista Lake parking lot for the eventual ride back to Redearth trailhead, we started the hike by venturing up the valley between Copper and Pilot Mountain. We leisurely arrived at camp around noon, just before the hottest part of the day. After setting up camp we walked the extra couple kilometers to Shadow Lake to cool off and go for a swim.
Nestled just underneath Mt. Ball we enjoyed stunning views from the lake, witnessing the mountains shedding their winter cloak in spectacular waterfalls and avalanches coming off the steep faces. Even though Jordanne and I are not your typical “hikers” we enjoy planning and preparing special backcountry meals for when we go on our annual trip with her mom. This time we brought some dehydrated tomatoes, onions, leek, sausage, and cheese to make ourselves some “fancy” Mac & Cheese. Although not being the lightest backcountry food it certainly is rich and satisfying after a long day on foot. We topped it off with some backcountry Apple Crisp before we crawled into the tent to hide from the thousands of mosquitos swarming us.
An early start on day two set us on our way over Whistling Pass to Scarab Lake and Egypt Lake where we had a short siesta with the obligatory dunk in the lake to cool off the heat-swollen feet. Along the way, we shared the stoke of being in the backcountry with fellow hikers, who didn’t need much convincing to join in on a spontaneous snowball fight to cool off and let go of the mental strains of the last months. Another cloudless day with unforgettable views brought us back to camp via Pharaoh Creek. Tonight’s dinner featured dehydrated bean and lentil stew with tropical cheesecake for dessert. Satisfied with the days past we again quickly hid from the swarming mosquitos to get sleep and be well-rested for the hike out the next day.
On day three we shuffled up Gibbon Pass to be welcomed by the best views of the trip (my opinion). Beautiful alpine meadows with flowers popping their heads up and sparse larch trees proving patches of shade with the rugged ridges of the Ball range in the background, truly awesome! We spent some time here before we walked down to the Lower and Upper Twin Lakes where the heat of the day literally lit a fire under our feet. One more push over another pass and down to Arnica Lake brought us closer and closer to the car. I finished the trip with the final 20 km on my bike down to Redearth constantly thinking about how fortunate I am to have just spent three amazing days with the best people you can wish for in one of the most beautiful places in Canada.
The next day our paths went different ways. Jordanne and Kathryn went on for some more hiking in Kananaskis Country and I had climbing plans with my friend Merrick. We only had loose plans on wanting to climb something bigger, maybe in the Sawback range, but with temperatures in the high 30’s, it was clear to us that we had to pick something high up and in the shade.
After some discussion about weather and snow conditions, I suggested the Greenwood/Jones route up the Northeast Buttress of Mount Temple and Merrick was immediately on board. However, just coming off a three-day hiking trip with 80 km put on my legs, I needed a “rest day” before we could give the route a try. So, we climbed the Goblin Arete on the south side of Lake Louise, a route that is in the shade for most of the day and offers some splendid quartzite climbing. The rest of the day was spent organizing gear and packing for the next day.
Climbing Mount Temple, Banff National Park, July 1, 2021
The 2:30 AM alarm went off and we crawled out of the tent. After a quick breakfast and strong coffee, we left the parking lot and hiked up Paradise Valley to Lake Annette and up the moraines where the route starts. With the sun rising, we roped up for a short step of steep quartzite and continued scrambling over some 4th class terrain for a couple hundred meters towards the base of the Northeast Buttress. Here we switched to rock shoes and simul-climbing.
I geared up and set off for my first lead-block of the day, mostly keeping to the steep edge of the buttress and working my way up some 5.7 terrain until I ran out of gear. Merrick quickly followed and took over for the next block of climbing. This continued for 250 meters or so where we were slowed down by some steeper climbing up an impeccable corner-crack through a roof. Merrick charged up and pulled through the intimidating-looking roof with ease. Soon after that, the rock turned rather chossy and we didn’t feel comfortable anymore simul-climbing over friable rock.
We started to pitch out the rest of the climbing from here. This section of the route required a strong head and the “Rockies touch” when climbing. Finding reliable gear was tricky and the belays needed extra care to be set up. After some more time-consuming climbing over crispy rock, we reached the “cave-like chimney” and we knew that we were close to the infamous ledge traverse that guarded the final headwall. After the ledge traverse, the rock quality improved drastically and gave way to superb climbing on dolomite and limestone above. It started out with a short section of 5.9 crack climbing which led to a red alcove of shattered dolomite. From here the route took us over sustained 5.9/5.10a ground out and left under a small roof, and up a stunning corner with excellent laybacking and stemming.
Halfway up the corner, a hanging belay marked the start of the last pitch. An improbable-looking traverse out right with jaw-dropping exposure of over 1000m got me to a perfect slab and the hardest technical climbing of the route. The slab is interrupted by two small roofs before I could exit out right at the contact between the black limestone of the Black towers and the underlying solid grey limestone. After that, we slogged up through some scree to where the East-Ridge route meets the phenomenal glacier ridge. We put crampons on and roped up for the final stretch to the summit always staying as far away as possible from the edge of the overhanging cornice.
When we reached the summit I, for the second time this trip, felt a great sense of satisfaction and thought to myself how fortunate I am to be able to spend my time like this. The hike out concluded this 5-day trip to the mountains, and I can say, boots are broken in, the rust has been shaken off and summer is here.
I hope you all have a great and safe summer.
-Martin Schwangler, ACC Edmonton Section Safety Chair, July 2021
