We climbed Grassi Ridge on Wiwaxi Peak above Lake O'Hara yesterday in
absolute solitude and beautiful weather. There is still some snow to deal
with, about 8 steps of traversing each on the approach and descent, but
both worked reasonably well for us not carrying ice axes. I haven't done the
route in 5 years or so and I was pleasantly surprised to find a few sparsely
and wisely placed bolts, largely at the belays and rap stations , which make
the climb a whole lot safer. We avoided the last bit (about 100 vertical
meters) of descending through the dreaded "ball bearing" dirt couloir by
sticking with the treed rib just descender's right. This descent variation
seemed lightly travelled and weaves nicely through small treed cliff bands
typical for the quartzite geography of the Rockies. It eventually joins the
hiking trail just before it heads into the avalanche path above the lake.
On a general note, looking at the higher glaciated terrain, the current
residual snow coverage appears more typical for late July than late June:
Bare spots are starting to show on the glaciers, the Huber Ledges are snow
free and so is largely the "All Souls" hiking traverse below the NE Face of
Mt. Shaeffer.
Have a great summer!
Jorg Wilz
Mountain Guide (ACMG / VDBS / IFMGA)
OnTop ltd.
www.ontopmountaineering.com
+1 403 678 2717 or 1-800-506-7177
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