Mount Collembola - Canadian Rockies

2023-11-25

Mount Pigeon (winter hike)

The North Peak of Pigeon Mountain offers a strategic vantage point, presenting an extensive panorama of the Canadian Rockies and numerous well-known peaks visible from this location. From the North Summit, you can see a broad array of peaks including: The views of nearby Mount McGillivray and Skogan Pass are particularly remarkable, offering a unique perspective on these areas. The South Peak (with the weather station) is optional but offers some additional views. These expansive views make Pigeon Mountain a […]

2023-09-22

Old Baldy Peak via alternative route (solo)

This route to Old Baldy is mentioned by Andrew Nugara as a “shorter” approach (we did the “longer” one as a loop this spring, but were out of time and did not make it to the summit back then, only to the ridge, – still very nice, like on the photo above). Alternative route is indeed shorter than the official hike from Evan-Thomas Day Use Area, but it does not mean faster at all, – the route up to the […]

2023-09-17

Pigeon Mountain (solo)

After my off-trail Collembola solo I was exhausted, but sunny days with no wildfire smoke were literally a treasure this Summer, so next day I decided to ignore all knee pain and to take advantage of the weather and do something long enough for a nice day but easy and adrenalin-free. Pigeon Mountain totally fits this description: very moderate but steady incline, no scrambling, no loosing shit, no exposure, but very rewarding all the way to the summit once you […]

2023-09-16

Mount Collembola (South Route, solo, summited from 3rd attempt)

I tried to summit Mount Collembola two times before. My attempt via North route from Dead Man’s Flats failed because I could not find a safe way to climb up the summit block (23 m of elevation left but hiking solo this time, I was not comfortable with exposure and turned back with tail between legs). My second attempt via Marmot Basin and Fisera Ridge also failed because I could not find a safe way to climb down from the […]

2023-08-11

Fisera Ridge (Collembola 2nd solo attempt)

The original idea of this hike was to summit Mount Collembola using South-West approach which connects Allan and Collembola via Fisera Ridge. My previous attempt to summit Collembola via North Route was unsuccessful – I turned around at the base of summit block because I could not figure out a way to avoid exposure on this last scrambling push. Unfortunately my second solo attempt was also a miserable failure, but the reason was exactly the opposite: when I reached the […]

2023-08-05

Mount Collembola (solo attempt)

Because of BC wildfires smoke here and there I was not sure about a hike this weekend till the very last moment, and only when saw that Three Sisters are more or less visible from Bear & Bison Inn life cam, decided not to drive far but finally to try North Mount Collembola Route from Dead Man’s Flats. The original intention was to do the Collembola – Allan loop to avoid bushwhacking on the way back, but everything above 3000m […]

2023-08-04

Wind Ridge (angles)

There is a well maintained 12.7-km out-and-back trail to Wind Ridge near Dead Man’s Flats. Parts of Wind Ridge hike are closed from December 1 to June 15 each year for elk and bighorn sheep sustainability. Here are photos of Wind Ridge from different perspectives taken during our hikes. From Wind Ridge Trail From West Wind Pass From Windtower From Centennial Ridge trail at Dead Man’s Flats side From Mount Collembola North Route

2023-08-02

Wind Ridge

Wind Ridge Trail in Exshaw surprised us pretty much with everything: well maintained, not too long, challenging enough, with a little bit of scrambling fun, shady forest, almost no people, and most importantly, incredible views of our favorite Kananaskis peaks from totally unexpected angle, impressive and intimidating. We started early (we always do) and air was more or less clear in the morning, but then wind from the West started to bring lots of smoke from BC fires, and unfortunately […]

2023-05-06

Wasootch Peak

Wasootch Peak is one of not too many hikes which are doable all year round. Small trailhead parking is on the left side of HW40 if you are coming from Calgary, about 200m before Mt. Allan Drive intersection. We always come early, so if you too come first, park your car on the road side perpendicularly. We tried it as a winter hike but too much snow and wind made it very difficult and we turned back a few hundred […]

Mount Pigeon (winter hike)

Old Baldy Peak via alternative route (solo)

Pigeon Mountain (solo)

Mount Collembola (South Route, solo, summited from 3rd attempt)

Fisera Ridge (Collembola 2nd solo attempt)

Mount Collembola (solo attempt)

Wind Ridge (angles)

Wind Ridge

Wasootch Peak

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