Robertson Glacier, Kananaskis Country (Feb 13)
Went for a walk with our skis on up the Robertson Glacier yesterday.
Fast travel with a packed trail to the toe of the glacier then
horrendously slow travel up the glacier itself. Snow depth ranged from
4 to 40 cm, depending where in the well-formed sastrugi you decided to
probe. Near the top we found depths up to 140 cm. The small ice cliff,
half-way up the glacier on climber's right, appears to be quite active
since there is a bunch of ice debris scattered about.
Luckily, we had a premonition to pack ski crampons because we needed
them to ascend the steeper roll two-thirds of the way up. Ski crampons
on a north aspect in mid-February--who would have thought! Obviously,
ski quality was poor, unless bashing sastrugi moguls and skittering
around on bare glacial ice is your thing.
Sean Isaac
ACMG Assistant Alpine Guide
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