Hello ski mountaineers!
I just returned from guiding a successful
ascent of Mount Logan via the King Trench (May 26th-June 10th). Despite
mixed weather and various snowfalls we managed to climb to the main
summit on June 6th. Being there on the tail end of the season meant
that Logan was rather quiet. We saw 2 other people over two weeks, it
felt like we had the mountain to ourselves. That being said the spring
ski mountaineering season was busy and successful this year with many
parties reaching the main summit.
Conditions on the King Trench
seemed normal this year. Temperatures hovered in the -5C to -10C during
the day but often plummeted down to -30 at night, particularly higher
up. The snowpack was well settled and stiff with a few very hard crust
layers in the upper 100cm. Over 60cm of new snow fell during our two
weeks there, most of which stayed dry and provided good powder skiing
conditions above 4000m. This new snow generally bonded well to the
previous surface (May 30th interface). We did not see any unusual
natural snow avalanches however we saw many ice avalanches from active
serac areas.
The snow coverage on the glaciers was greater than
200cm with deeper protected areas measured at well over 300cm. The
icefall above King Col (Queen Icefall @ 4200m) was more complex this
year, the top crevasses provided only one way through. The crevasse maze
leading to the football field (4900m) was best tackled on the climber’s
right side near the southern edge of this feature. A few handy wands
left in place from previous parties helped us get through this area more
efficiently, thanks! The combination of hard upper snowpack, cool temps
and new snow help maintain adequate crevasse bridges throughout our
trip. All in all we had a great trip. Our small group and experience
guests made for a fast trip up and down the mountain.
Of note,
we access the mountain from the west (Alaska side). We flew to the
Alaska/Yukon border from Chitina by ski plane with pilot Paul Claus of
Ultima Thule Outfitters. This access adds an extra 9km to the regular
Canadian itinerary but is a good option with a more predictable and
timely access. Chitna was actually the starting point for the 1925 King
Trench first ascent expedition to Mount Logan by Albert H. MacCarthy and
crew. Folks have been climbing Logan with Paul’s assistance from the
west for many decades now.
Unlike previous years, it was very
difficult this year to get pre-approval to enter into Canada from the US
at this uncensored border crossing. It sounds like Canada Border
Services Agency (CBSA) is tightening the rules around this and it may
not be possible to legitimately do this sort of remote crossing at all
in the future. This is a bit disconcerting considering the number of
other peaks that lie along the Alaska/Yukon & BC border that require
similar access (Mount Fairweather, Devils Thumbs, etc.). If you are
planning a trip in these areas, I would recommend checking-in with CBSA
as soon as you can. I am planning on further investigating this issue
for future trips.
Let’s hope this is just a glitch in the system
and that the Canadian government will see the value in allowing remote
border crossings privileges for the purpose of mountaineering.
Time to put the skis away and go rock climbing, finally! Have a great start to the summer season!
David Lussier
acmg mountain guide
www.summitmountainguides.com
