The Blue (Ice) Canadian Rockies Part 1

Spring is really the best time to go ice climbing in Banff. There is more daylight than the winter months, warmer temperatures, and very few people. In fact we climbed nothing but classics and saw only one other party the entire trip, never put on a belay jacket, or turned on headlamps. It was perfect.

After getting a good avalanche forecast for the Icefields Parkway, we decided to climb Kitty Hawk, a classic WI5, to start things off.



The climb went down in two pitches. Typically there is a WI3 pitch at the bottom which we climbed solo. Also, there is a final WI3 pitch at the top which we skipped. The final crux pitch starts out on ice mushrooms which aren't normally part of a WI5's repertoire but are standard ground on harder climbs. The ice was great and the mushrooms were stable, but it made the climb seem much steeper. Here Chad finishes off the first pitch.



After driving 5 hours to-and-from Kitty Hawk we needed a closer objective. Spray River Falls fit the bill. We knew there was a boot-track in place. However, the snow was completely baseless and it was a miserable approach. The climb is avalanche threatened so we were paying close attention to the conditions. A snow squall came in and we rapped off the climb. Then the snow squall left and we went back up, just to end up bailing before the final curtain. Its a great climb, but best done before snow falls so you can approach easily.



After two hard days with lots of driving and approaching we needed a real low commitment day. Haffner Creek is a ten minute walk in and the climbs are all one pitch so you can bail very easily. Here's Kyle tackling one of the hardest climbs in Lower Haffner.



Me on not the hardest climb in Lower Haffner.