Mount Stanley North Face Kootenay BC Ice Snow Climb
Roy, Kevin and I along with guide Mark Klassen and assistant Kris Irwin did the North Face (Kahl route – alpine Grade III) on Thursday. Solid day as we left the bivy at 2:30AM and were on top by 8 AM. Good conditions as schrund was easy and only two pitches of easy ice just above the schrund. Double kick on the step kicking on the upper half was lots of work and would not have wanted to be up there later. There were ski tracks from 2-3 weeks ago and a soloist from Chile went by. Summit was just at base of clouds so limited view of bigger things like Ball but felt good. We went down the ridge which was a little more complicated and slower than expected but safe. The lower gully back onto the glacier is east facing and looked sloppy and then would still have to get by lower part of glacier.
Down the ledges above the waterfall(Nemesis) to bivy at 2 PM and out to car by 4PM for a solid 14 hour day.
Mark did a great job planning and executing the day and the 2 AM start was crucial to summit success. Very good guiding by both guys which made for a great fun day without the stress.
Pictures at Stanley North Face Full screen slideshow works best.
Mark’s website Alpinism
