Group Starting out at Mt Muir Trailhead

Last week a group of 7 of us completed The Elk Highline, an exciting and challenging hike that closely follows the Elk Range section of the Continental Divide. This is the section just south of the Highwood Pass in the most southern part of Kananaskis Country.

Carnarvon Falls

There were 4 Yam clients plus myself, Maria Cashin and Alf Skrastins, effectively 3 guides, all of us fascinated with what the route might bring and looking forward to the adventure.

It turned out to be every bit as good as we expected with the new portion north of Loomis Lake (we had checked out the southern section 2 years ago) even better than expected. Every night we camped at a different lake, starting with Carnarvon Lake in the south and finishing at Running Rain Lake in the north with Lake of the Horns and Loomis in between.

Carnarvon Lake - D. Begg

Linking the lakes we followed mostly game trails at or near treeline that took us across the ridges that radiate from the Divide, to spice it up there was also a peak ascent, a scree slog and some bush bashing. The views were fantastic and there was very little sign of the trails being used by other hikers for the most part.

Several of us are enthusiastic fly fisherman and great fishing in the lakes each evening were a nice bonus.

This was a unique trip that was at times very strenuous and challenging. For folks that are in great shape and like being well off the beaten trail it’s a great opportunity. I’d encourage anyone interested in joining us on this or a similar trip next year to get in contact with us immediately so that we can gauge whether or not the interest is there to include it again.

Chilling out at top of Mt Muir - D. Begg

For the full trip slideshow visit David’s album on Picasa.

“Each year we show our support for the Alpine Club of Canada and the Association of Canadian Mountain Guides by sponsoring this event that celebrates those guides who have completed their certification testing” says Len Youden, Yamnuska’s General Manager. “This year Yamnuska’s senior guide Grant Meekins will be recognized for having completing the highest level of certification and we couldn’t be more proud”.

In addition to our sponsorship we have donated a spot for our summer 2011 Intro to Mountaineering to the silent auction. We hope you can join us for this fun evening at the Rim Rock where Patron Pat Morrow will be honored for his lifelong commitment to climbing and the mountain environment.

-

At a recent board meeting, Len Youden, Yamnuska’s General Manager has been appointed to represent the Activities segment of Tourism Canmore and Kananaskis. Tourism Canmore Kananaskis is an action oriented Destination Marketing Organization (DMO), accepted and respected in travel and tourism circles provincially, nationally and internationally.

“I am looking forward to helping develop and execute on the marketing strategy for this incredible part of the world” says Len. “Yamnuska has been a member of Tourism Canmore for many years and I think our company represents the high caliber of activities and attractions that are available to residents and visitors. We epitomize ‘mountain adventure’ and as custodians of the mountains we can responsibly promote our products to people all over the world”.

In the upcoming annual strategy session, Len is looking forward to being an advocate for an increased web presence for Tourism Canmore and actively promoting the activities of our region.

Vincent and Dinah at Bow Lake Trailhead

Crossing the River on a chockstone.

I’ve never seen so much snow on the glacier at this time of year. It means that the crevasses are well covered and travel over the snow is very easy. I anticipate great conditions for the rest of the summer. In addition the Alpine Club has renovated both Bow and Peyto Huts which are very comfortable and clean.

Crossing the Glacier between Bow and Peyto Huts

Our guests, Dinah who’s from Ontario and Vincent from here in Canmore did really well and enjoyed the adventure we had. The pictures I’ve included tell the story!”

Looking down at Peyto Lake from the Hut

Last day, hiking out from Peyto Hut

We are pleased to announce that we have signed an agreement with Outward Bound Canada as the logistical support provider for their Rocky Mountain Wilderness Adventure and Rocky Mountain Wilderness Discovery programs.

To be partnered with a strong and respected brand is an honor for us at Yamnuska. Our experience with this age group is unmatched as we are the western Canada adventure trainer for the army cadets in addition to running our own Youth Mountaineering Program. Anyone who has taken our programs knows our logistical expertise in planning mountain adventures and we look forward to providing the highest quality logistical support for these distinguished Outward Bound programs.

Wow! What a combination for our first summer mountaineering program!

We hosted Vancouver 2010 Olympic Snowboarding Gold Medalist Maelle Ricker for our May 22nd/10 Snow and Ice Long Weekend Program. We paired her up with Yamnuska’s Associate Director and Master Alpinist Barry Blanchard to take on Mt Athabasca and you can guess what happened from there! That’s right, we’d expect nothing else but a summit from these two world class athletes. With Barry as her mentor, we think this outstanding young Canadian is headed for success as an Alpinist. Here is Maelle’s blog about the weekend and we look forward to climbing with her again!

2010 Olympic Snowboarding Gold Medalist Maelle Ricker on the Summit of Mt. Athabasca

Road tripping across BC fill up some of my favorite memories in the past decade. I love camping and exploring right at my doorstep, especially when I’m finished a crazy year of travel abroad. Sitting still at home is just not in my blood; however, being in the mountains is. When I’m not on my snowboard I try to get out and about in the summer months. I’ve done some backpacking with friends over the years and now I’m yearning to go deeper, higher, whatever… the next step. I also love backcountry free-riding as well when I’m not racing down a snowboardcross track.

Last summer I got my first taste of “mountaineering” when some friends took me up Mt. Rainier. I absolutely loved it and realized it’s something I want to do more of, and wished I had some knowledge to be out there with a clue! So this May long weekend I decided it was time to do something about it, and why not start with an introductory course from the experts. My teammate Rob and I filled up his car with all sorts of fun toys for a good couple of weeks on the road. We left Squamish and drove to the Columbia Icefields campground to meet up with the other participants and guides of the Yamnuska Snow and Ice Long Weekend Course.

Saturday morning was filled with the usual formalities of signing waivers and getting gear together. There were 18 of us taking the course but the three guides, Barry, Andrew, and Matt did a fantastic job “herding the kittens” and teaching us the ropes. We started off with some exercises around the camp area, learning how to get roped in and familiarize ourselves with walking around being linked up to one another. After a quick lunch break, we headed out to a snow slope to learn some self-arrest techniques with the ice axes and got started on crevasse rescue. Day one finished with some chilly snowstorms and good times around the campfire with new friends from the course.

Day two was just as fun and even more informative as the first day. By this point we got to start working on the North Glacier of Mt. Athabasca. I was lucky enough to have been in a team of 6 instructed by Barry Blanchard. I was quite happy to listen to every lesson and story told by Barry, hoping his expertise and experience would somehow seep into me via osmosis or some equivalent.

The last day was the big day of climbing Mt. Athabasca. I love the early morning starts, especially when I wake up in a cozy tent in the mountains. The fresh air is always nice, even at 2am. We got going by about 4am and ascended the mountain by mid morning. The views were incredible and the company was fantastic. I had a great time making my way up the glaciers to the peak. Luck was on our side as we had sunny skies and little wind on the summit… perfect for enjoying the view and lunch before making our way back down. I would be lying if I said I wasn’t a bit disappointed I didn’t have my snowboard for the ride out. The conditions were perfect for a nice cruise down to the cars below. I’m sure I wasn’t the only one with this mindset, as I watched Rob and Andrew picking out lines!

I absolutely loved the course and hope to take part in more of Yamnuska’s programs in the future!

Maelle

Ferrosi Hoody from Outdoor Research

I am finding this the jacket that I get the most use out of in year round activities. The Ferrosi is a lighter weight breathable soft shell fabric with shoulders and arms made of cordura and lycra. The rest of the jacket is a blend of abrasion resistant, ripstop and spandex. This equates to a thinner but durable soft shell jacket that moves with you. The Hoody is water repellant and wind resistant and really breathable.

The Ferrosi has a decent zippered radio pocket on the chest and two zippered hand pockets. The front zipper is offset at the neck to prevent rubbing on the chin.

My only negative points are that I am not really a hoody kind of guy. The hood did come in handy however last fall while climbing in the desert when the afternoon winds came up and my hat was back in camp. The weight of the jacket is just an ounce shy of a pound (427 grams) which, in my opinion, is a tad on the heavy side for shells, buts that’s a minor point given the versatility of this jacket.

I use this jacket ski touring, rock climbing, mountain biking and also for everyday use. I have had a lot of use on my jacket and it still looks good.

I chose this jacket for our 2010 guiding staff as it is a durable, functional Jacket with a pretty darn, good price point. Check it out!

Dave Stark

http://www.outdoorresearch.com/site/m_s_ferrosi_hoody.html

I hope you had a great long weekend and got outside. Congrats to our Snow and Ice Long Weekend guests who topped out on Mt. Athabasca on the weekend – well done.

Climbing Techniques on the Snow and Ice Long Weekend

I had an inspiring weekend which started at the TEdx Canadian Rockies conference at the Banff Center which I would like to share. Then I read stories and blogs about the many Everest Summits that happened over the past 72 hours and that always gives me pause for reflection.As many people are planning their summer vacations I encourage you to do something different and go outside of your comfort zone. Instead of sitting on a crowded beach (which yes I did do once and it was ok for the first 30 minutes) put on some boots, throw only what you need in a pack, and head for the mountains with us. You’ll be amazed at how you feel physically and emotionally. ‘Self Propelled’ vacations as we call them are the most fulfilling. Along the way, take time to reflect on your environment and within yourself. When you go back to work you are bound to have tired muscles but you’ll be way more relaxed, feel better about yourself, and be more creative. That cool beverage at the end of the trip will be especially well deserved and I bet you even have a few new friends.

Exploring the wonders of the Canadian Rockies

You’ll learn technical skills on our adventures and that’s what most people sign up for. However, a majority come home talking about what they learned about themselves and feel like their accomplishments were significant because they weren’t sure they could even do the trip (I won’t mention the beautiful scenery because that is a given). Accomplishment is always more meaningful when it is achieved under some level of adversity – and that adversity doesn’t have to be climbing Everest. This summer I encourage you to find your own Everest and hike it, ski it or climb it….but do try it.

Join us for a backpacking, skiing or climbing adventure. I bet you’ll be glad you did.

Len

Grant training up the next generation!

To book a private trip with Grant or to join one of our scheduled trips he is leading, give us a call.

Again, congratulations Grant!

Sunrise on Mt. Athabasca - Snow and Ice Long Weekend

Continuing our cross-Canada Adventure Show journey, we will be in Vancouver April 24^th and 25^th at the Vancouver Outdoor Adventure and Travel Show in the new convention center. The mountain culture is firmly embedded in British Columbia and we are excited about seeing past and prospective Yamnuska alumni. Just like in Calgary and Toronto we have excellent prizes to give away. Stop by our booth for a chance to win an OR Jacket, a Deuter pack and a world famous Yamnuska Outdoor Rock Intro Weekend course. We look forward to showcasing our piece of Canada’s West to our friends in British Columbia.

We are also pretty excited about what we see as an excellent summer in 2010. We had to add spaces for our Snow and Ice Long Weekend courses in May and our Intro to Mountaineering programs will certainly fill also. It’s great to see people pumped about getting an early start to the summer season. For those looking for an exclusive mountaineering experience, our Women’s Intro program starts July 18 and our Youth Intro (ages 14 – 17, parents welcome) starts July 31 – talk about summer camp for cool kids!

Believe it or not we have also started Rock Climbing in the Bow Valley this week. Yup, you could have rock climbed and ice climbed on the same day! Many of our guides have spent the past few days tuning up those rock skills and with 20+ degree weather coming this weekend none of us will be inside, that’s for sure. We hope you get to do the same and we’ll see you in Vancouver.

Len