# The Selkirk Mountains/Chapter 2

CHAPTER II. PEAKS, PASSES, AND VALLEYS REACHED FROM GLACIER.
GLACIER (4,093 ft.).
Glacier Park. Name: In relation to Glacier House and Glacier station. Location: This mountain park reserve extends from Mt. McNichol at the north of the Hermit Range to Battle Creek, south of Purity Range; and from the upper roadies of the North Fork of the Spiliimacheen River east of Bald Mt. to Corbin Pass near Tllicillewaet Station. It includes all the well-known ranges reached from Glacier House and covers an area of 576 square miles. Glacier is the name of the station on the C. P. Railway, in the alpine heart of the Selkirks, 1 1/6 miles from the Illicillewaet Glacier. The appellation is obvious.
Location:—Glacier Station is situated on the western slopes of the Selkirks near the summit of the Range, which is crossed by the railway through Rogers Pass (4351 ft.). On leaving the summit of the pass, the railway travels a little east of south for two and a half miles. It then describes a U-shaped curve, doubling back on its previous course for some distance before again assuming a westerly direction. At the most southerly point of this curve is Glacier Station (4093 ft.). (See Wheeler's Topographical Map, Vol. II., "Selkirk Range.")
Mountains and Places of Interest that may be Reached from Glacier. How to Reach Places of Interest.
Swiss Guides—Since 1899 not less than two properly accredited have been stationed here. They are engaged by the Railway Company and are charged for at the rate of $5.00 each per day.
Glacier House—The hotel so happily named has an atmosphere of the old-fashioned inn. The narrow glen is a tranquil place save for about half an hour twice a day, when the train stops to allow through-passengers to dine. Then there is a stir of human sound and movement as sudden as that ancient uprising from the ground in the Scottish mountains in answer to the shrill whistle of Roderick Dhu. And as sudden is the quiet of the Canadian glen resumed as when the chieftain waved his hand and the highland garrison disappeared in hill and bush and broom. The engine shrieks, the people are all aboard, and the train vanishes in the folding mountains westward.
Mine hostess, Mrs. Young, welcomes the coming and speeds the parting guest in the old way of hospitality; takes a practical, helpful interest in his excursions, climbs, and scientific pursuits; and provides a menu that tastes like things one eats at home. Everything in the hotel, which can accommodate 150 guests, is orderly without being mechanical. Rates: $3.50 per day and upward (American plan). Special rates to parties prolonging their visits.
Showing Loop from Mt. Cougar. (Mts. Sir Donald, Uto and Avalanche on left)
Glacier House
​silvery ribbon-stream falling. falling forever from its high source beyond hidden alpine meadows ju>t over the edge of the topmost pines: owing also to the turf sprinkled with crimson-tipped daisies all about the chalet, and the rainbow playing on a fountain when the sun is high in the blue. (Jlacier is a choice recruiting ground for all tired pilgrims from pitiless cities.
A special interest attaches to the place, too, in that mountaineering as a sport began here in 1888. and several seasons of climbing went into history long before the Lake Louise, Yoho, and Ice River regions became popular.
The accompanying notes state what climbs and expeditions require either Swiss or native guides. The Swiss guides have been carefully chosen by the Railway Company, and have, with one or two exceptions, always been reliable and competent men of high standing in their own country. And this is why so very few accidents have occurred in the Canadian Alps. Every man on the staff is a competent and trustworthy guide. Edward Feuz, Sr., who came to Glacier in 1800 and is growing grey in the Company's service and in Canadian mountaineering, is the father of the craft. His two sons, Edouard. Jr., and Ernest, and his nephew Gottfried, are employed at different climbing centres in the Mountains. These three boys have each spent one or more winters in the Rockies. Though affectionately termed boys in the craft, both Edouard and Gottfried are married. Gottfried and his wife spent the winter of 1910-11 at Mt. Stephen House. Field. They are all general favourites, many climbers regarding them as personal friends.
Outfits and ponies—Mr. Sidney H. Baker is the company's out-fitter at Glacier. He is a man of distinct character, well informed and well read, an interesting companion, a keen mountaineer, a member of the Alpine Club of Canada and of the Royal Geographical Society. He has on hand twenty well-trained and perfectly safe saddle and pack-ponies and two pony guides, ready for any short or long expedition that may be desired by his patrons. You are lucky if you can secure his personal attendance, but, as he cannot be with all, he gives his best supervision to parties sent out in charge of his subordinates.
Tariff:—
| Illecillewaet Glacier and return, time allowed 2 hours | $1.00 |
| Asulkan Glacier and return, time allowed 4 hours | 2.00 |
| Marion Lake and return, time allowed 3 hours | 1.50 |
| Overlook on Mt. Abbott, time allowed 6 hours | 3.00 |
| Cascade Summer House and Avalanche Basin, time allowed 3 hours | 1 .50 |
| Caves of Cheops (Xakimu Caves) via the Loop and Cougar Brook returning by the same route, or over Baloo Pass and Rogers Pass | 4.00 |
If the limits given above are exceeded, 50 cents per hour is charged.
Raincoats and luncheon bags are provided free to riders.
Pack-outfits can be organized at any time for distant expeditions, but a month's work must be guaranteed. In such cases Mr. Baker's personal attendance is given.
In connection with his outfitting business Mr. Baker has a curio ​department where photographs, post cards, guide books, souvenirs and mountain literature may be purchased.
A carriage drive from Glacier House to the Caves in Cougar Valley, it is hoped, will be completed by the end of the season (1911). It is proposed to build the road to within fifteen minutes' walk of the caves. All other expeditions must be made by pony or on foot.
The various climbs, expeditions and places of interest are noted in alphabetical order. Altitudes are in feet above sea-level; distances in miles and fractions of a mile. Going time only is given, unless otherwise stated. As a general rule two-thirds of going time should be allowed for return.
Mt. Abbott—Name: After H. Abbott, an official of the C.P.R.
Altitude: 8081 ft.
Location: South of the railway between Asulkan and Loop Brooks. Its summit, a high point of the Asulkan Valley, is reached by a path starting up the mountain immediately behind the hotel where the wing and annex join.
Distance: The distance is about 4 miles and the time required from 3½ to 4 hours. For novices one guide is necessary.
View: The summit of Mt. Abbott commands a very fine view of the Asulkan Pass (a snow pass), the Illecillewaet Névé, the. entire west face of the Sir Donald Range, the narrow defile of Rogers Pass, and the south face of the Hermit Range; looks directly into the valley of Cougar Brook and, turning to the left, takes in the east face of Mt. Bonney. It is one of the most comprehensive view-points of the entire range. The expedition is an easy one and well repays the exertion. On the way Marion Lake is passed and the path leading to Observation Point (see under M and 0).
Ponies can be taken to the alps below the final rock-ridge, whence the climbing is all rock.
Just beyond Marion Lake a path branches to the left leading for three-quarters of a mile southerly along the mountain side and terminating at a vantage spot from which there is a perfect bird's-eye view of the Asulkan Valley and the glacial amphitheatre at its upper end, very striking in contrasts, and showing the slow stupendous achievements of the Glacier. Here the merest layman may read the testimony of the rocks concerning glaciers as erosive factors. The path to this interesting spot is not much used and has been neglected.
The expedition to the Abbott Alp is one of the easiest and most satisfactory that can be made in a day from the hotel. Those not wishing to climb can leave out the ascent to the rock-ridge and its traverse to the summit, taking instead the two by-paths to Observation Point (see under 0) and to the unnamed point overlooking the Asulkan Valley and Glacier.
Abbott Ridge—Name: In relation to Mt. .Abbott.
Altitude: 7,300 to 8,000 ft.
Location: Extends northerly from the summit of Mt. Abbott. The route is the same as to Mt. Abbott. The extreme north end of the Ridge is known locally as the Abbott Overlook. It presents much the same view as that from the Abbott summit, but with a difference. The lower elevation, while curtailing the views south and west, enhances the grandeur of the surrounding peaks and enables you to
Panorama from Mt. Abbott.
​look into the depths of the valleys. The prospect from this point has been likened to that from the Gorner Grat in Switzerland. It is especially noteworthy for the excellent view it gives of Rogers Pass Valley and the railway creeping through its line of snowsheds; of the long, dark valley of the Illecillewaet and its tributary, Loop Brook Valley, the silver paths of their rivers winding through the rich-hued green; and, in minutest detail, the west face of the Sir Donald Range and south face of the Hermit Range with their perennial snows gleaming white between the gray and blue, and the great amphitheatre holding the glaciers of Mt. Swanzy, Mt. Bonney and Mt. Green. In every direction peaks rise above the general elevation and innumerable glaciers lie between.
Mt. Afton—Name: By Messrs. Phillip Abbott, 0. E. Fay and C. S. Thompson. The initial letters of their names are the key of the word.
Location: Adjoining Mt. Abbott on the west side of the Asulkan Brook. The first ascent was made by Messrs. H. A. Perley, W. H. Rau and Miss Macleod in 1893: the second ascent by Prof. Charles E. Fay in 1894. Mt. Afton is reached via the Abbott Ridge.
Time required: 4 hours. For novices one guide is necessary.
Climb: Rock, ice and snow.
View: From the summit there is a magnificent view of the Swanzy-Bonney-Green amphitheatre, the immense precipices of the north wall of Mt. Bonney and of the wide reaches of the Bonny Glacier, 3,000 ft. below. To the south and west, immediately below, is the Lily Glacier, one of the sources of the Loop Brook.
Albert Canyon—Name: By the Rev. Principal Grant for Albert Rogers, nephew of Major Rogers, discoverer of Rogers Pass.
Altitude: 2,350 ft.
Location: On the Illecillewaet River, 2 miles east of Albert Canyon Station and 20 miles west, as the railway runs, of Glacier Station. The river here is restricted by the tilted rock strata and pours through a very narrow gorge with tremendous impetus. The rocks ascend almost vertically on either side from the water's edge to a considerable distance above the railway track whose bed has been cut out of the face of the precipice and in places overhangs, on trestles, the gulf beneath. Right above the chasm a platform has been erected by the Company and during the summer months day-trains stop five minutes to enable passengers to survey the canyon. From the railway the depth of the rushing water beneath appears much greater than it really is, the actual distance being 147 ft. The scene is one of grandeur and beauty and well repays a special visit. The easiest way to reach the canyon from Glacier House is to take the train to Albert Canyon Station and walk eastward up the track for two miles.
Albert Creek—Name: By the Topographical Survey, with reference to Albert Canyon Station where the creek crosses the railway. Albert Creek is a wildly flowing stream issuing from glaciers ten miles or more south-east of Albert Canyon Station. It flows through a deep V-shaped, heavily timbered valley whose sides are lined with pocket glaciers, and joins the Illecillewaet River three-quarters of a mile north-west of the station. A pony-trail leaves Albert Canyon Village and zigzags to the crest of the ridge immediately east of ​the stream, then descends to the floor of the valley and leads to a mine (silver-galena) near its upper end.
Albert Peaks—Name: By the Topographical Survey in relation to Albert Canyon.
Altitude: Albert Peak, south. 9,998 ft.: Albert Peak, north, 9,562 ft.
Location: Six and seven miles south of Albert Canyon Station, the north peak being nearest the railway. The first ascent of S. Albert Peak was made by R. R. Copeland and H. Siegfried in 1909; the second ascent by G. L. Haggen and W. A. Aldritt in 1909.
Route: These peaks are reached most conveniently and easily from Twin Butte Station, ten miles west of Albert Canyon Station. Follow the railway track eastward to the trestle-bridge crossing Twin Creek. Here descend to the stream and take the slopes on the east side opposite the junction of the two branches of the creek; then follow the ridge. Both ascents are easy rock climbs and are best made from the small glaciers at their base. The North Peak may be climbed in one day. For the South Peak it is better to make camp at timber-line in the Aalley leading from the glaciers. For novices one guide is necessary.
View: From the north Peak there is an excellent view of Clach-na-Coodin Snowfield and the many summits surrounding it. From the south Peak, looking south and east, is disclosed a wild panorama of snow-clad peaks, icefields, glaciers, deep forested valleys and rushing torrents, all unknown. Directly east, in the near foreground, are the Albert Glacier and Snowfield. In the Canadian Alpine Journal, 1910, Mr. Copeland gives an account of the first ascent of north Albert Peak by himself and Mr. Siegfried, without a guide. About 1.30 p.m. they made the attack on a shoulder of the mountain which touches the railway half a mile east of Twin Creek, reaching its plateau at dusk after a climb of about 4,000 ft. Here they bivouaced for the night, having some lively diversion with a bear, "a huge, lanky, old silver-tip." At 5.30 next morning they started across the meadows to the foot of the glacier which terminates on an upper step of a natural winding stairway reaching to the valley below. They kept to the step immediately below the glacier's snout and ascended the face of the arete on the far side, a troublesome but interesting climb of 800 feet. Once on the firm arête "an exhilarating scramble of 2,000 feet brought them to the summit." For over twenty hours of the climb they had no water. And Mr. Copeland points out how and why they did not suffer from thirst: '"With a calm mind, the actual craving need be little more than a slightly unpleasant experience." Do not think about it. Thus does mind triumph over matter.
In 1901 Mr. A. O. Wheeler made his topographical survey station on the slopes of the Albert massif at an altitude of 8,033 ft., being 6,050 ft. higher than the railway. This station is called North Twin.
Albert Canyon Station—Name: By C.P.R. Co., in reference to Albert Canyon.
Altitude: Rail level, 2,227 ft.
Location: 22 miles west from Glacier by the railway. The village of Albert Canyon is picturesquely situated on a small flat on ​the east side of Albert Creek, its close boundaries being high wooded mountain-spurs and frowning cliffs which rise to snow-clad slopes and snow-capped summits. The population is about 50 ur 75 persons, some of whom do a little farming. Here the Railway Company keeps several heavy engines ready to push overburdened trains up the steep grade to Rogers Pass. From the village a path leads through the forest of giant fir and cedar, devil's club, skunk cabbage and other thick underbrush, up a slope south of the track for half a mile to a warm spring said to contain mineral properties. The water has a temperature of from 75 to 80 degrees and the spring is used as a public bath.
Alder Creek—Name: By the C.P.R. Co., from the growth of alder bushes along its margin.
Altitude: 2,(580 ft. at railway crossing.
Location: It joins the Beaver River 7 miles south of Beaver-mouth station.
Asulkan Brook and Valley—Name: By W. .Spotswood Green with reference to the wild goats seen on the pass at the head of Asulkan Glacier. (Asulkan. Indian for wild goat.)
Altitude: 4,100 ft. rising to 6.600 ft.
Location: Asulkan Brook flows from the Asulkan Glacier about 4 miles south-cast of (ilacier House. A good trail leads up the valley terminating within a few yards of the ice. Saddle ponies can travel its full length. For 3 miles the grade is imperceptible, and for the remaining mile it is steep. Time required to the foot of the glacier and return, 4 hours. Unless one wishes to go on the glacier, no Swiss guide is required.
Route: The Asulkan Valley is a magnificent alpine glen. On the main path to the Illecillewaet Glacier about a quarter of a mile from the hotel, a sign-board points the way. The trail branches off, winding through a tall, close forest, whose bearded fir and hemlock and cedar, with luxuriant mulergrowth (blossoms and berries in their season and the bright green foliage of the Devil's club) make a perpetual tropic gloom. Leaving the forest the trail crosses Asulkan Brook by a log bridge and follows its eastern bank, now through woods of spruce high above its margin and now along its very edge, almost touching the turbulent waters. Frequently through the openings in the trees the sable walls of Mt. Abbott, the Rampart, the Dome, and the snowy heights of Castor and Pollux come into view overhanging the valley on the west, their snows showing white against the azure sky. in clear and cloudless sunshine. These snows are the fountain-head of a series of cataracts in sight at intervals, that fall in silvery spray down the mountain-side and over high precipitous ledges to the stream below. In one place seven may be counted, variously named—"Asulkan Falls," "Seven Falls," "Menotah Falls." It is an enchanted valley. "The cataracts blow their trumpets from the steep," and the sunlight is the light of no common day. The gloom and the glory of mountain beauty meet in the valley. This feeling is intensified by the continuous sound of rushing waters, now faint when the path enters the woods, now filling the air as the torrent sweeps by at your feet.
At the upper end of the valley the trail, rising high above the brook, has been cut from the mountain side. Here the tongue or ​snout of the Asulkan Glacier first comes in sight, partly buried in the piles of rock, mud, and boulders forming its terminal moraine, an accumulation borne down and deposited by the glacier through the course of ages. Above, to the right, are terraces of ice and snow, cracked and seamed in every direction by yawning crevasses; to the left rise the precipices of rock confining the Illecillewaet Neve, the snow cornices with which they are crested showing how ready is that lake of snow and ice to overflow its bounds. A feature of this upper part of the valley is the number of hoary marmots or whistlers (Arctoinys Columbianus) that make their homes here among the rocks. Their shrill whistle is very human, and startling to the unknowing, and they are oftener heard than seen.
At the head of the valley, looking down stream to the right of the central ridge, an isolated rock stands out prominently from a bed of snow. It has been named the Ichtliyosauras, not because of any resemblance of outline, but because that extinct marine monster came instantly to the mind of a visitor seeing it.
During the early spring of 1909 an avalanche came down the mountain side on the east, completely obliterating the trail and necessitating its being cut out through a wall of tangled tree-trunks. Here now lie trees more than 500 years old that have been snapped off at the roots by the force of the wind preceding the avalanche.
Asulkan Falls—Also known as The Seven Falls and Menotah Falls.
Location: On the west side of the Asulkan valley, about two-thirds of the way from Glacier House. They are nourished by the shrunken portions of the Asulkan Glacier lying below the Dome and Rampart. They fall about 300 ft.
Asulkan Glacier and Névé—Name: By W. S. Green with reference to the Asulkan Vallev.
Altitude: 6,000 to 9,000 ft.
Location: At the head of and along the west side of upper Asulkan Valley.
Area: From 3 to 5 square miles.
First Ascent: By W. S. Green and the Rev. H. Swanzy, 1888; by a lady, Mrs. Dr. Stallard, 1896. This glacier presents several spectacular groups of seracs: also a number of fine crevasses of great depth, lined with pendant icicles. They resemble cavernous jaws set with sharp, cruel teeth. The play of the sunlight on their walls of green and blue is well worth observing. Persons going on the glacier, unless skilled mountaineers, require a guide, and no person should go on the ice without being roped. The natural trough of the glacier leads to Asulkan Pass, distant one mile from its snout at the head of the valley and 5 miles from Glacier House.
Routes: (1) The west wall of the valley can be crossed from the Glacier, via Sapphire Col between Mt. Castor and the Dome. (2) A traverse of the Glacier can be made around the south end of the peak. (3) At the head of the Glacier to the right of the Asulkan Pass looking north, an ascent can be made of the "Snow Dome," returning to the hotel by the Illecillewaet Névé and Glacier. These are all-day expeditions, and unless the climber is skilled on both snow and ice, a Swiss guide is necessary.
​Patches of red snow of the Arctic regions are frequently seen on the Asulkan Névé and in many other places in the Selkirks. Professor Tohn Macoun, Dominion Botanist, says concerning it:—"It is not of rare occurrence high up in the mountains, but is seldom noticed, as it is most often green and only discolours snow. It is a unicellular plant, an alga, related to the sea-weeds and belongs to the lowest form of plant life. The scientific name is Protoccus nivalis (red snow). It grows on the surface of the snow and is only a state of the species named Protococcus Viridus, because it is green. The plant is most frequently seen as green slime on trees, old boards, etc."
Asulkan Pass—Name: By W. S. Green, with reference to Asulkan Valley and Glacier.
Altitude: 7,710 ft.
Location: The divide leading from Asulkan Valley basin to the Valley of the Geikie Glacier and Creek.
Distance: 5 miles from Glacier House; 1 mile from the foot of the Asulkan Glacier. Novices on ice and snow require a guide.
Time required: 3½ to 4 hours.
View: From the crest of the Pass the view is magnificent. To the left rises Mt. Fox, the summit a blunted cone partly covered by snow. Upon the side directly opposite, two hanging glaciers send their fragments to the ice-river below. Over the outline of Mt. Fox is seen the long drawn-out mass of Mt. Dawson with jagged rock-edges outcropping from perpetual snows only to be buried in clouds that almost continuously wrap it round. Looking still to the left, the white crest of Mt. Selwyn is just seen. To the right of Mt. Dawson, quite alone stands the sharp cone of Mt. Donkin, a huge natural observatory. Between is the snow-mantled Donkin Pass; and at their base the Dawson and Donkin Glaciers flow together. Directly below the Asulkan Pass flows the Geikie Glacier, an ice-river forming the main outlet of the Illecillewaet Névé on the south. The descent to it is 2,800 ft., the upper portion, over shale, snow and grassy slopes; the lower, down steep cliffs with projecting, sharp rock edges, that cut like a knife. The grass-land abounds in many varieties of alpine flora, and during the summer months is gay with bloom. As indicated by the name Asulkan (Indian for wild goat), the mountain goat (Haplocerus montanus) frequents the slopes on the south side of the pass and is occasionally seen.
Asulkan Ridge—Name: By the Topographical Survey.
Greatest altitude: 9,329 ft.
Location: On the east side of Asulkan Brook; forms the west limit of the Illecillewaet Névé. Glacier Crest (7,419 ft.) and Mt. Lookout (8,219 ft.) are at the north extremity of the ridge, and the Snow Dome (the point of greatest elevation) is at the south extremity, the latter forming the divide between the two Névés. A splendid mountaineering expedition may be obtained by a traverse of the ridge, beginning with Glacier Crest and terminating at the Snow Dome, returning via the Asulkan Glacier or Illecillewaet Glacier and the regular trails.
Time: A full day is required and a guide is necessary.
Augustine Peak—Name: By the Topographical Survey.
Altitude: 10,762 ft.
​Location: Easterly of the two highest peaks of the Bishop's Range.
First Ascent: By Prof. E. W. D. Holway, F. K. Butter.s and B Palmer in 1909, without guides. (For account of this ascent see Canadian Journal Vol. II., Xo. 2, p. 70.) It is described as a better rock-climb than Mts. Dawson, Sir Donald or Tupper.
Route: The members of the party crossed the Asulkan and Donkin Passes to Black Glacier, following it up until the first ice-fall on the left side. They then ascended a steep clay bank and reached the rocks above the ice-fall. whence they followed ledges, going up at every opportunity, chiefly over rocks but occasionally crossing ice or snow in the gullies until they reached the eastern end of the final arête. This arête was found extremely narrow, dropping for a great distance on both sides, and quite sensational in places, great gaps occurring, down which they had to climb and then up the other side. In one of these a spare rope had to be left in order to get back. Finally the last gap was crossed and they stood on the summit. An ascent of this peak may possibly be made from Bishop's Glacier on the opposite side of the ridge.
Time required: In either ease, three days are required for the expedition, camping two nights in Mitre Creek Valley below the Bishop's Glacier. Unless skilled mountaineers, one or two guides are necessary, according to the size of the party. When providing for the expedition, it must be remembered that Selkirk weather is very variable and that there may be delay from storms. All provisions and camp-equipment must be carried on the shoulders. Sleeping-bags, a canvas-cover or light silk tent, and condensed food-stuff's are necessary to reduce the weight to a minimum. You are here at the axis of the Selkirk Range and surrounded on all sides by glaciers and snowfields.
View: The view of the Purity Range immediately south, is alone worth the ascent.
Avalanche Mt.—Name: Owing to the numerous avalanches that sweep down the western sides across the railway which traverses along the foot of these slopes through a line of continuous snow-sheds.
Altitude: 9,387 ft.
Location: One of the peaks of the Sir Donald Range, directly above Rogers Pass. Its summit is on the east side.
First Ascent: By Major Rogers and party. 1881.
Route: It is reached from Glacier House via the trail to Cascade Summer House and Avalanche Crest, from whence it is an easy rock-climb. The ascent is made from the small glacier at the base of the peak. For novices one guide is necessary. Time allowed: 4 hours.
View: Mt. Avalanche commands an excellent view of the Beaver River Valley with Bald Mountain and the Prairie Hills rising above its western slopes. Avalanche and Eagle Glaciers lie on the east side of the Sir Donald Ridge, directly below.
Avalanche Crest—A rocky spur of ^It. Avalanche extending southerly. The Cascade Summer House trail leads to its foot. It is an exceptionally fine view-point, and easy of access. From the top one may gaze into the hazy blue distance of the dark Illecillewaet ​Valley with its shining serpentine river, bordered by an endless array of snow peaks. No guides are necessary.
Time required 2½ or 3 hours. The crest, which is partly alp-land, and the amphitheatre between it and Mt. Avalanche are of much interest owing to the cirque formation, to the abundance and variety of alpine flora and to the numerous whistlers (Arctomys Columbianus) and Parry's marmots (Spermophilus Parryi) that abound here.
Avalanche Glacier—Name: By the Topographical Survey in relation to Mt. Avalanche.
Altitude: 7,000 feet—8,500 feet.
Location: Its neve is in the cirque on the east side of the Sir Donald Range and it is enclosed by ilt. Macdonald, Mt. Avalanche, Eagle and Uto Peaks, and drains to Beaver River.
Area: About 2 square miles. It is an interesting snowfield seen perfectly from any of the summits named.
Route: Reached most easily from lacier House by following the trail to Avalanche Basin and crossing the col between Eagle Peak and Mt. Avalanche.
Time required: 4 hours. For novices a guide is required.
Bagheera Mt.—Name: By the Topographical Survey (Bagheera, tiger), with reference to Cougar Brook.
Altitude: 9000 ft.
Location: The most westerly of the two highest peaks on the north side at the head of Cougar Brook Valley.
Route: Reached by the trail to the Caves of Cheops (Xakimu Caves) and thence up the valley.
Distance: From (Gacier House 8 or 9 miles to the summit.
Time required: It is best to take 2 days for the ascent, spending one night in the cabin at the caves.
First Ascent: By W. S. Jackson who wrote an account of it for the Canadian Alpine Journal (1907). He describes the fine specimens of red snow (see (Glossary) found half-way up the mountain. "Midway up were found beautiful waves of red snow, varying from pink on the crests to crimson in the troughs." The climb is rock with steep snow-slopes. Unless climbers are skilled mountaineers, one guide is necessary.
View: Beside the Valley of Mountain Creek and its several branches, the summit of Mt. Bagheera overlooks a vast array of peaks reaching northwards; also the divide between Cariboo Creek and the north branch of the Illecillewaet River and part of the Illecillewaet Valley itself. North and west twenty glaciers may be counted, notably three on the north branch especially large and interesting. Out of the centre of the nearest one rises a sharp pinnacle of rock, which is seen prominently from many points. It has been named "Fang Rock."
Bain Brook—Name: Probably after some prospector.
Location: A tributary to Incomappleux river (Fish Creek) from the west, joining it a short distance below Jeopardy Slide.
Bald Mt.—Name: Local, owing to smooth grassy slopes lying along its crest.
Altitude: 7,663 feet.
Location: On the east side of the Beaver River, opposite Mts. ​Sir Donald and Macoun; stands low between the Summit Range of the Selkirks and the Dogtooth Mountains.
Route: Reached by trail from Bear Creek station. At the junction of the Beaver River and Grizzly Creek the trail forks, one path, now impassable owing to slides and fallen timber, leading up Grizzly Creek and its west branch to the divide at the head of the north branch of the Spillimacheen River; thence an easy opening ascent to the summit. The other path leads up Beaver River Valley from which it is a climb of between 3,000 and 4,000 feet.
Time required: It requires at least 4 days and a camp outfit to make this expedition comfortably. Mountain guides are necessary. Bald Mountain is of great interest. Its crest is composed of grassy slopes of considerable extent separated by transverse ridges. It suggests the likelihood that at some time, in a by-gone age, before the Beaver Valley was carved out, glaciers had swept across it and shorn off its crest leaving the ridges as dividing lateral moraines. The southern end is sprinkled with groves of shapely spruce trees, giving a park-like appearance.
View: The high tops of Bald Mountain present wonderful views of Mt. Sir Donald and the black precipitous wall of the eastern escarpment of the Selkirks' Summit. At the base of this great wall, high on the slopes of Beaver Valley, a long array of pocket-glaciers are in plain sight, and the glaciers of Mt. Sir Donald, Uto and Eagle Peaks; and the climber gets a peep into Glacier Circle, an alpine park of rare beauty set in the ice and snows of the Dawson Range. Bald Mountain furnishes first-rate hunting for such big game as cariboo, bear and goat. It is a paradise for the botanist, brilliant alpine flora following each other in quick succession; and for the photographer and artist, it is a rich and almost virgin field.
Hunters and climbers will find it a profitable outing to Bald Mountain. Mr. Wheeler has written of an expedition in 1902 from Glacier to Golden through mountain defiles by way of abandoned trails—trails which will be rebuilt and maintained for the pleasure of the public as soon as the rich Government can be persuaded to the enterprise. Of game on Bald Mountain he says: "It is a splendid place for game. Several bimches of caribou were seen and, a snow-fall occurring soon after our advent, it was a surprise to see a very net-work of foot-prints on the newly fallen surface: caribou, singly and in lots, grizzly and brown bear, fox, wolf, porcupine, martin, marmot, and all the small mammals. Truly, if one can only efface one's self in the apparent solitudes, it will be found that there is much going on around you."
Baloo Pass—Name: By Topographical Survey with reference to Bear Creek (Baloo, Indian for bear).
Altitude: 6,681 ft.
Location: At the head of Beaver Creek Valley, north-westerly from Glacier House, and leading to the Upper Valley of Cougar Brook.
Route: A pony trail up Bear Creek Valley leads over the Pass and connects with the trail in Cougar Valley near the Caves of Cheops (Nakimu Caves).
Selkirk Mts. above the clouds, from Dogtooth Mts.
Mt. Sir Donald from Bald Mt. An unfamiliar side.
​days, spending a night at the Caves. Owing to the varied and striking scenery along the entire route, the expedition is one of deep interest. It may be made either way: starting from Glacier and going to Rogers Pass, then up Bear Creek, over the Pass and return down Cougar Creek and the Loop-trail to Glacier: or vice-versa.
Distance: The route encircles Mt. Cheops and is about 15 miles long, as follows: Glacier to Roger's Pass, 3 miles; Roger's Pass to Caves, 5½ miles; Caves to Glacier, 61/2 miles. In hot weather Roger's Pass and Bear Creek: make the best going route, being cooler for the heat of the day.
A Swiss guide is not necessary but it is better for ladies riding the circuit to have a pony guide. To avoid trouble be sure to make an early start. On the north-west side of Baloo Pass a long easy shoulder of broken rock leads to an outlying peak of Mt. Ursus Major: on the east side an easy climb takes you to the crest of the north-west shoulder of Mt. Cheops, from which the summit is readily reached.
Baloo Pass is open alpland with outcrops of glaciated rock. It is bordered on its south-west side by forest. The alpine flowers follow each other: in season the ground being gay with pink and white heath; in August the east slopes are thickly covered with the large and delicate yellow dog-tooth violet (Erythronium gigantium) which flowers in the Selkirks from June to August according to the elevation. Near the summit of the pass, on its western slope is an excellent sheltered site for a camp, with plenty of wood and water near by.
Battle Glaciers—Name: Bv Topographical Survey with reference to Battle Creek.
Altitude: 5,700—9,500 feet.
Location: At the head of Battle Creek between Mts. Purity, Kilpatrick, Wheeler and Grand Mt. These are two unusual and very interesting glaciers, the western one flowing from immense snow-deposits lying between Mts. Purity and Kilpatrick, and the eastern one from like deposits between Mt. Wheeler and Grand Mt. They soon converge and form a broad stream of ice flowing down the valley for 2½ miles. Having no névés (snowflelds) at their heads and being fed by hanging glaciers, Battle Glaciers belong to the type called Piedmont. No other glaciers in the Selkirks afford so striking an example of this process of nourishment. The glacierettes feeding Battle Glaciers hang in fantastic confusion along the upper rock walls, those on the western walls of the valley being of marvellous beauty and wild irregularity of form. Owing to numerous flows of ice that come together not far distant from their heads, the main glacier presents three well formed medial moraines, which parallel each other for the entire length of the main flow. It is smooth and easily travelled below the convergence.
Distance: Two days' journey south-easterly from Glacier House.
Route: To reach Battle Glaciers, it is necessary to cross the Asulkan, Donkin and Purity Passes to the head of the western glacier. A second route is to ascend Bishop's Glacier from the foot of Donkin Pass and by way of the Deville Névé. then to cross between Mts. Wheeler and Kilpatrick.
​Time required: This expedition involves several nights out. Unless skilled in mountaineering, a guide is necessary.
Battle Creek—Name: Local, owing to a fight between a prospector and a grizzly bear.
Location: Tributary to Incomappleux River (Fish Creek) from the east. Its source is in Battle Glaciers.
Battle Spring—Name: In relation to Battle Creek.
Location: On the east side of Incomappleux River, about a mile south of Battle Creek. This is a curious spring of unusual size—about 20 feet across—with a bottom of disintegrated granite which the action of the water keeps boiling up, presenting a milky appearance.
Bear Creek—Name: Local, owing to the prevalence of bears in its valley-.
Altitude: 2.900—7,000 feet.
Location: From sources in Baloo and Bruin's Passes, Bear Creek flows Jiorth-easterly along the south base of the Hermit Range with Mts. Ursus Minor and Grizzly of that Range on the north, and Mt. Cheops on the south. It then flows through Rogers Pass between Mts. Macdonald and Tupper, and joins Beaver River about one mile south-east of Bear Creek Station on the railway. This part of the stream is through a narrow defile, rugged and awe-inspiring in the extreme. On the south Mt. Macdonald, riven by great scaurs banked with snow, rises a full mile above the railway track. On the northern or Tupper side, the railway passes along a shelf carved from the excessively steep slopes. Here for six miles consecutive snowsheds protect the line from avalanches which may descend from either mountain. Those from Mt. Macdonald are by far the most destructive, crossing the stream and rebounding up the steep sides of Mt. Tupper for a considerable distance.
Above Rogers Pass, Bear Creek Valley widens out in a wild and interesting landscape. Great precipices descend sheer from Mt. Cheops and enormous masses of naturally quarried stone lie at its base; darkly wooded buttresses extend from the mountains to the north, silver cascades slip from great heights to the valley below. In the floor of the valley itself stand prodigious islands of rock, whole brotherhoods of spruce growing out of the scant soil on their summits. Around their bases are caves once bear-dens, but since the advent of the tourist the home of the hoary marmot, whose sudden shrill resounding whistle with its uncanny human note is enough to make one's hair stand on end. Near the head of the valley are twin cataracts, smaller but resembling in grandeur the more celebrated Twin Falls of the Yoho valley.
Route: A pony-trail leads from Rogers Pass tip Bear Creek and over Baloo Pass to the Cougar Valley.
Bear Creek Station—Name: By C.P.R. Company, with reference to Bear Creek.
Altitude: 3,673 feet, rail level.
Location: The station is about one mile westerly from the eastern entrance to Rogers Pass, and the same distance north-westerly from the junction of Bear Creek and Beaver river.
Bear Falls—Name: By Howard Douglas, Commissioner of Dominion parks.
​Altitude: 5,500 ft.
Location: Immediately east of Goat Falls in Cougar Valley; a stream from Alt. Ursus Major and drops over the same ledge as the Goat Falls and flows to meet the waters of Cougar Brook where they emerge from the subterranean passage through the Caves of Cheops, They are very picturesque. (See Caves of Cheops.)
Beaver Mt.—Name: By Messrs. Huber, Topham and Forster, with reference to Beaver River.
Altitude: 10,644 feet.
Location: At the head of Beaver Glacier, source of the Beaver River; in the Battle Range and 17 miles from Glacier House as the crow flies. It is a fine rock peak still unclimbed (1911).
Route: Reached by pony trail up the Beaver River Valley to Beaver Glacier; thence ascending the glacier to the foot of the mountain—the distance by trail, 42 miles.
Time required: Several days' travel; for the round trip, at least 6 days of fine weather. A camp outfit is necessary.
Beaver Glacier—Name: By Messrs. Huber, Topham and Forster, with reference to Beaver River.
Altitude: 4,700—8,900 feet.
Location: At the head of Beaver River whose source it is. A peculiarity of this glacier is that at times of extreme melting a channel carries some of the water southward to the Duncan River on the opposite side of the Beaver-Duncan Pass. It was first ascended by Huber, Topham and Forster in 1890. It may be reached by the Beaver River trail but requires a camp outfit and several days of travel.
Beaver Overlook—Name: By Topographical Survey, from its magnificent overlook both up and down the Beaver Valley.
Altitude: 9,901 feet.
Location: On the west side of the valley at the head of Deville Névé.
Route: From Glacier House the route lies over the Asulkan and Donkin Passes, up the Bishop's Glacier and across the Deville Névé to its south-east corner.
Time required: Three days if both weather and snow are in good condition. Unless skilled in mountaineering, a guide is necessary.
First Ascent: By the Topographical Survey in 1902.
View: From the Beaver Overlook the entire Beaver valley is seen as though laid out on a map—meadows, forests and windfalls, with the green, glacial waters of the stream winding onward in serpentine loops. Also, there is a very fine view of Bald Mountain and the Spillimacheen Ranges.
Beaver River—Name: Local, from the great number of beavers that once inhabited the valley—no longer plentiful.
Altitude: 2,400—4,600 feet. Length from its source to its mouth on the Columbia hard by the railway, about 50 miles.
Location: Beaver River flows in a deep, wide valley immediately below the eastern escarpment of the Selkirk's Summit, which it parallels. Its primary source is from Beaver Glacier, described above. On the south side of the low pass at its head is the source of the Duncan River which flows south oppositely in a valley continuing the ​direction of the Beaver Valley. That is, the Beaver flows north-west, and the Duncan south-east. The two together form what is known as the Purcell Trough, extending for nearly 100 miles in a north-west and south-east direction parallel to the axis of the Selkirk Range. Beaver Valley is remarkable for its luxuriant vegetation and heavy growth of fir, hemlock and spruce. Devil's club (prickly alalia) and skunk cabbage grow in dense profusion. The beautiful forests on the floor of the valley are interspersed with open marshy meadows of bright green. These and the sinuous, milky river make striking though harmonious contrast in color. Much of the timber on the mountain slopes, where the valley is traversed by the railway, has been burned during construction days; and now nothing remains of these grand forests but an unsightly array of gaunt skeletons and fallen giants. Fires are the bane of the mountains. Since the advent of the railway, forests containing trees centuries old have been destroyed; and though a fresh growth may soon spring up, a generation must go by ere the desolate tracts are reforested. For 1,000 feet up these burnt slopes huckleberry bushes grow bearing prodigally in the season.
The Beaver joins the Columbia more than a mile from Beaver-mouth Station on the railway. Close by this point the railway swings out of the Columbia Valley and ascends the Beaver Valley, making an ascent of 1,000 feet in sixteen miles. It then turns up the valley of Bear Creek to cross the Selkirks by Rogers Pass. The first two miles up the Beaver is in a canyon, where the waters rush through a narrow gorge, known as a "box canyon." Here the strata are tilted in knife-edges and the river, foaming between the slabs, is wildly picturesque. Emerging from this canyon, the railway overlooks the valley as described above. In the early days of construction, first a pony trail and then a waggon road were built up this part of the valley, but are now fallen into disuse. From Beaver Creek Station to the source of the stream a good pony trail still exists, though frequently impeded by fallen timber. There are many places of striking interest, such as: The Gateway, Mountain Creek Crossing. Cedar Creek Crossing, Surprise Creek Bridge, Stony Creek Bridge. From mouth to source, however, is an endless galaxy of spectacular mountain effects that cannot be surpassed in the entire system. Should the Government or the Railway Company provide for the upkeep of suitable trails, it would be quite easy to go from the Beaver Valley on to the Prairie Hills and return by Grizzly Creek, making a round excursion, attractive and interesting and comfortable for persons unable for mountaineering.
Bishop's Range—Name: By Topographical Survey with reference to the contour of its two highest peaks. Seen from Donkin Pass, these peaks combine in resemblance to an episcopal mitre.
Altitude: 10,762 feet.
Location: Ten miles south-easterly from Glacier, immediately south of the Dawson Range.
Route: Reached via Asulkan Pass, Dawson Glacier, Donkin Pass, Bishop's Glacier.
Time required: Three days of good weather, two nights out. Route inaccessible to ponies; outfit must be carried. The two highest peaks are Cyprian (10,712 feet) and Augustine (10,762).
​First Ascent of Cyprian: By Messrs. Holway, Butters and Palmer in 1908.
First Ascent of Augustine: By the same party in 1909. (See Canadian Alpine Journal, Vol. II., Nos. 1 and 2.) Unless skilled mountaineers, a guide is necessary.
Bishop's Glacier—Name: By Topographical Survey, in relation to Bishop's Range.
Altitude: 7,000—8,500 ft.
Location: Flows westerly between the Dawson Range and the Bishop's Range, and is the source of Mitre Creek. A smooth easy glacier to travel over, very little crevassed. Between Cyprian Peak and Mt. Selwyn of the Dawson Range is the height of snow, and from that point easterly the glacier falls to the Deville Glacier of which it is a tributary.
Route: The route to the glacier is the same as to the Bishop's Range. Unless skilled in mountaineering a guide is necessary.
Black Creek—Name: By Topographical Survey, in relation to Black Glacier.
Location: Drains Black Glacier on the south side of the Bishop's Range; joins Mitre Creek and then Van Horne Brook, which empties into Incomappleux River (Fish Creek).
Black Glacier—Name: By Topographical Survey (formerly Dirty Glacier), owing to its surface being thickly covered by glacier-mud and morainal debris.
Altitude: 6,500—9,300 feet.
Location: Directly south of Bishop's Range, and formed by the confluence of two glaciers lying on the north slopes of Purity Range. It shows a well developed medial moraine. The pass at the head of the most easterly glacier leads to the Deville N§v6. It is directly below Mt. Kilpatrick.
Bonney Mt.—Name: By W. S. Green after the Rev. T. G. Bonney, F.R.S., Professor of University College, London, and at that time President of the Alpine Club (England).
Altitude: 10,205 feet.
Location: 4% miles south-west of Glacier.
First Ascent: By W. S. Green and the Rev. H. Swanzy in 1888. (See Green's "Among the Selkirk Glaciers.")
First Ascent by a lady: Henrietta L. Tuzo with guide Christian Bohren in 1904. (See Wheeler's "Selkirk Range.")
Route: The summit may be reached by two routes. (1) By Mt. Abbott: skirt Mt. Afton, cross the Lily Glacier, ascend Bonney Glacier to the col between Mt. Swanzy and Clarke's Peak; then follow the ridge over Clarke's Peak to the summit. (2) Follow the railway to Loop Brook; ascend that stream until opposite Green's Glacier; ascend Green's Glacier to the col and follow the ridge to the summit. When making the ascent by this route, Messrs. Green and Swanzy camped in the valley of Loop Brook. There is a prominent little sharp peak showing on the sky-line between the col and the summit of the mountain. Green and Swanzy experienced some difficulty in passing this point and pronounced it decidedly dangerous.
The second ascent (by a lady) was made by Gertrude E. Benham with guide Edouard Feuz, Senior, by the Green-Swanzy route. They ​spent one night out, being unable to make the hotel before the darkness fell. (See Wheeler's "Selkirk Range.")
Mt. Bonney is a very striking peak. On the north face it presents a bold precipitous rock-escarpment, often clad with ice; on the south side it is a snow-white mountain with a wide area of névé covering its entire surface. A third route: On this side it can readily be ascended from the valley of the Inconiappleux River (Fish Creek), but it is a very round-about route.
Time required: Miss Tuzo and her guide made the round ascent in 19 hours by the first route. The second route may involve a night out, as above.
Bonney Glacier—Name: In relation to Mt. Bonnev.
Altitude: 5,000—8,000 feet.
Location: On the north side below the great rock-escarpment of Mt. Bonney. It is very much broken and crevassed, with numerous groups of fine sêracs. It is the main source of Loop Brook, flowing into the Illecillewaet River at the famous C.P.R. loop of the railway in the Selkirks. It is a very pronounced form of the Piedmont type of glacier, being fed entirely by the snow falling on its surface and by ice avalanches from the cliffs of the cirque or amphitheatre surrounding it.
Bruin's Pass—Name: By Topographical Survey, in relation to Bear Creek.
Altitude: 8,150 feet.
Location: A pass in the Hermit Range at the extreme head of Bear Creek between Mts. Ursus !Major and Ursus Elinor and leads to a glacier on the north-east slopes of Mt. Ursus Major, which drains into one of the large southern tributaries of Mountain Creek.
The Camels—Name: By Miss M. Vaux. Peculiarly shaped rocks on the summit of Mt. Tupper resembling, when seen from Mt. Abbott, a string of loaded camels with their drivers beside them
Caribou Creek—Name: Local, from the deer of that species which once frequented the valley.
Location: A tributary of the Illecillewaet from the north-west, joining the river 10 miles west of Glacier House. The valley of Caribou Creek, the valley of Downie Creek still further north-west, and the valleys of Flat Creek and Incomappleux River south of the railway, together form one of the great lateral troughs traversing the Selkirk Range parallel to its axis.
Cascade Summer House—Altitude: 5,252 feet (above Glacier House, 1,200 feet). Built by the C. P. Railway Company at the point where the Cascade, directly opposite Glacier House, breaks over the edge of the Mt. Avalanche amphitheatre.
Route: A good pony trail leaves the railway track at a sign-post 200 yards from the hotel and zigzags through a beautiful climbing forest up the mountain side. About 700 feet up there is one of the best views in the region of the Illecillewaet Glacier, where you are looking on its front. About three-quarters of an hour from the railway track the trail divides, the lower fork leading to the basin, some 400 feet higher, the fine meadow with streams and already described as rich in alpine flora.
Views: The Summer House commands magnificent views of this ​great glacier once known as the Great Glacier of the Selkirks, of Mt. Abbott and of Mt. Bonney; and overlooks the Valley of the lUecillewaet for many miles. Although somewhat steep, this is one of the easiest excursions from Glacier House, and many times over repays the exertion. All visitors who can, ought to include it in the itinerary of the district.
Time required: For the round excursion, including Avalanche Basin, 3 hours.
Cascade, The, I.—Location: Opposite Glacier House. Fed by Streams from small glaciers below Mt. Avalanche (see above) and falls steeply 1,200 feet to join the river below. Throughout the stillness of the summer night music fills the glen, "a cataract blowing its trumpet from the steep," perfectly illustrating Wordsworth's familiar line. Once a lady tourist of uncertain age and temper, complaining querulously to the manager of the hotel, that the fountain in the grounds disturbed her sleep and must be turned off, he assured her that it was always turned off at night. "I shall try to-night," he added sympatheticaly, "to turn off the Cascade, the real disturber of your dreams." The lady's saving sense of humor was proved in the sequel.
Cascade, The. II.—Location: On the north side of Bear Creek Valley between snowsheds No. 3 and No. 4 on the railway. 2 miles from Bear Creek Station. Its source is in the snows of Mt. Tupper, and it rushes down under a stone bridge on the track.
Route: A two hours' tramp east on the railway from Glacier House and well worth a visit on hot days when melting snows swell its waters. The trail, which gives continuous beautiful views, leads over the snowsheds and through the woods as far as Rogers Pass Station.
Castor Peak—Name: By Messrs. Abbott, Fay and Thompson, with reference to Castor and Pollux of heathen mythology.
Altitude: 9,108 feet.
Location: On the west side of the Asulkan Valley between the Asulkan and Swanzy Glaciers.
First Ascent: By Messrs. Abbott, Fay and Thompson in 1895.
Route from Glacier: (1) By ascent of Mt. Abbott and a traverse of the western slopes of Mt. Afton, the Rampart, and the Dome.
Time required: 6 hours.
Route from Glacier: (2) By ascent of the Asulkan Glacier from the head of the Asulkan Valley.
Time required: 4-5 hours. In either case a return may be made by the alternative route. A rock climb. Unless skilled in mountaineering one guide is necessary.
View: The summit commands excellent views of the Asulkan Valley, Mt. Sir Donald and the south slope of Rogers Pass; to the west," the Swanzy and Clarke Glaciers and the blue depths of the Incomappleux Valley; and south, the Dawson Range with many spectacular effects.
Catamount Peak—Name: By the Topographical :surey, with reference to Cougar Brook.
Altitude: 8,956 feet.
​Location: Easterly of two high peaks on the north side of Cougar Brook near its head.
First Ascent: By Topographical Survey in 1902.
Route: (1) By Rogers Pass, Bear Creek and Baloo Pass, thence traversing high up on the slopes of Cougar Brook Valley.
(2) By Loop Trail, Cougar Valley Trail, past the Caves of Cheops, and thence ascending from directly below the peaks.
Time required: By route (1), a long day; by route (2) 3 hours from the Caves. The ascent can be made more comfortably by spending the night in the cabin at the Caves. Unless a skilled climber, one guide is necessary.
View: Notable views from this summit are Cougar Creek Valley and the southerly Valley of Mountain Creek.
Cedar Station—Name: By the C.P.R. Company, with reference to Cedar Creek.
Altitude: Rail-level, 3,188 feet. A station of the C.P.R. on the west side of Beaver River Valley, 13% miles northerly from Glacier.
Cedar Creek—Name: Local, with reference to cedars growing along its banks. A small mountain torrent joining the Beaver River close to Cedar Station.
Cheops Mt.—Name: By Otto J. Klotz, with reference to the Great Pyramid of Cheops, from the pyramidal form of its extreme peak.
Altitude: 8,506 feet.
Location: Immediately west of Rogers Pass summit, between Bear Creek and Illecillewaet River.
First Ascent: By S. E. S. Allen and W. D. Wilcox in 1902.
Route: (1) From Glacier House the route is generally straight from the summit of Rogers Pass. (2)—Another route is by Baloo Pass. (3)—And another is via Napoleon Shoulder.
Time required: Routes (1) and (3), 4 hours; route (2), 6 hours. Unless skilled climbers, one guide is necessary.
View: Owing to its central position and medium altitude, Mt Cheops commands the most superb all-round view in the vicinity. The climb is especially recommended to photograph hunters. In every direction magnificent scenes may be taken by the camera. It is to be remembered that the sights from very high altitudes are interesting, chiefly for their wide expanse over high ranges. Only in clear and sunny air does a vast chaos of high snowy peaks present delicate indescribable color; and the valleys are hidden far below. The most beautiful mountain landscape is always that seen from lower and medium altitude which disclose forest and stream and lake and the changing atmospheric hues of the lower valleys and wooded mountain-recesses.
In the immediate mountaineering district, Mt. Cheops is arbiter of the weather: and according to local tradition, there is no appeal from that arbitrament. A cloud up n this summit decides for rain. Once a young scoffer set out for Mt. Rogers in defiance of this omen and found himself short of its crest in a steady rain that lasted two days. He returned to the hotel soaked to the skin.
Clarke Peak—Name: By the Topographical Survey after Charles Clarke, a Swiss guide, stationed at Glacier in 1902.
Altitude: 9,954 feet.
​Location: A peak of the Boiiney Cirque lying between Mt. Bonney and Mt. Swanzy and belonging to the Bonney massif.
First Ascent: By the Topographical Survey in 1902.
First Ascent by a Lady: Miss Henrietta L. Tuzo in 1904.
Route: (1) Reached from Glacier via Mt. Abbott, the north slopes of Mt. Afton, Lily Glacier and Col, and Mt. Swanzy; (2) via Bonney Glacier and up the wall.
Time required: 17 hours. One guide is necessary. Climb: rock, snow and ice.
View: Exceptionally fine views of the Incomappleux Valley, of Bonney Amphitheatre and of Rogers Pass.
Clarke Glacier—Name: By Topographical Survey in relation to Clarke Peak.
Altitude: 6,500 feet—10,000 feet.
Location: On the west slopes of Geikie Creek Valley directly south of Clarke Peak; separated on the east from the Swanzy Glacier by a rock-ridge, partly snow-covered. It drains to Geikie Creek.
Area: About 2 square miles.
Route: Reached from Glacier Hotise by the route to Mt. Swanzy and Clarke Peak.
Time required: 5½ hours. Unless skilled in mountaineering, a guide is necessary.
Cougar Brook—Name: Local, owing to cougars or mountain lions by which its valley was said to have been frequented.
Altitude: 3,500 feet—7,000 feet.
Location: Joins the Illecillewaet River from the north, 3½ miles west of Glacier station. It is a valley of surpassing interest. It may be divided into the upper and lower valleys; the former a perfect speciment of a U-shaped, glacier-carved hanging valley; the latter of a V-shaped, water-eroded trough. For the first 2½ miles of its course, the stream fed by glaciers lining the valley's sides, races down in a series of cascades, and suddenly, without the slightest warning, disappears in the ground. Here are situated the Caves of Cheops (Nakimu Caves). From this point the course of the stream is underground, re-appearing at three intervals, for very nearly a mile. (See under Caves of Cheops). At the Caves the valley takes a sharp bend to the south-east. Here there is a very distinct step marking the change from the hanging A-alley to the sharp-cut water-eroded trough below. The stream finally re-appears from its under-ground course nearly half a mile below this step. Immediately above the step is a prominent rock, jutting out over space, known as Point Lookout, where there is a splendid view. Catamount Peak, Mt. Bagheera and McGill Peak on the north side of the upper valley are attractive mountains to the mountaineer. The cliff-glaciers lining the sides of the valley are of special interest to the geologist; also the rock-formation at its extreme head, where great slabs of white quartzite like quarried tombstones, are piled on one another in wild confusion. The flora of the upper valley is specially interesting as the species are numerous and lavish and make spectacular display of color.
Route: The trail begins near the hotel, on the north side of ​the Illecillewaet River following an old "tote" road, used in construction days. Passing through rich forests of cedar, fir and hemlock, it skirts the base of Mt. Cheops for 3 miles, touching the railway at the Loop and not again until near the water-tank at the entrance of Cougar Valley, when it winds high on the slopes of Mt. Cheops, east of Cougar Brook. Before reaching the Caves, the trail forks, one leading to Baloo Pass to meet the trail in Bear Creek.
View: All along the valley are wonderful views of far and near mountains and glaciers, changing with the winding of the high trail. None should miss a visit to this valley. A carriage drive is being built.
Time required: Should the excursion include Baloo Pass and Bear Creek, one day will suffice. S. H. Baker, the outfitter at Glacier, recommends the following route: Leave the hotel at 9 a.m., taking the coolest route in the heat of the day—Rogers Pass, through the woods of Bear Creek, over the wind-blown Baloo Summit, arriving at the Caves about 12.30; half an hour to stretch limbs: then lunch and a visit to the Caves, leaving by 3.30 p.m. and riding down Cougar Valley when the day is growing cool to reach the Hotel by 6.30, in plenty of time to dress for dinner. The round excursion with pony and guide (not Swiss) costs $4.00.
Cougar Mt.—Name: With reference to Cougar Brook.
Altitude: 7,882 feet.
Location: Immediately south and west of Cougar Brook.
First Ascent: By F. E. Weiss and Mrs. E. S. Weiss with guide Edouard Feuz, Sr.
Route: The ascent can be made from almost any immediate point.
Time required: The highest point can be reached in 5 hours from Glacier. Though a comparatively easy rock-climb, novices ought to take a Swiss guide. The mountain has a long serrated summit extending westerly to Caribou Creek. Its most interesting feature is the pyramidal face of smooth rock on its east side, conspicuous from many points of view.
Cheops, of Caves (Nakimu Caves)—Name: Original name by Topopgraphical Survey, with reference to Mt. Cheops within whose base they are situated. Subsequently, for some unknown reason, it was changed to Nakimu Caves, and the name has been adopted by the Geographic Board of Canada. The word "Nakimu" is said to be Indian, meaning "spirits," and to have reference to noises that issue from their subterranean waters.
Altitude: 5,100—5,600 feet.
Location: At the bend of Cougar Brook where the upper and lower valleys join. They extend into the south elopes of Mts. Ursus Major and Cheops and into the north slopes of Cougar Mt. At the point where the Caves are formed is a bed of crystalline limestone, which would appear to have been shattered by some seismic disturbance in a previous age. At a certain point in the valley the stream disappears under ground, re-appearing again some 400 or 500 feet farther on. The intervening space is called Gopher Bridge from the great number of little Parry marmots making their homes in the ground there. All about are their well-beaten trails, miniatures of the paths made by men and big game.
​The overground between a second disappearance and re-appearance of the stream is called Mill Bridge from the subterranean noises as of a gigantic mill in operation. The stream now appears at the bottom of a deep rut called the Gorge and finally disappears into the bowels of the mountain.
For half a mile the subterranean stream has carved out a series of passages, gradually sinking to lower levels and leaving a tier of galleries and winding corriders above. They are dark and wet and very difficult to travel, owing to débris dropped from the roofs to their floors; and they are intersected by precipices and dangerous cracks. No one can safely or possibly enter these underground passages without the official guide, who is employed by the Government to be here during the summer months. The rock is a marbleized limestone, varying in color from very dark blue, almost black, shot with ribbons of calcite, through varying shades of grey to almost white. There are no stalactites or stalagmites worthy of the name. Geologically these caverns are of much interest owing to the very marked pot-hole formation throughout.
Route: By the Loop and Cougar pony trail as described above. Time required: The expedition can be made easily in one day, including the excursions via Baloo Pass and Bear Creek. Those Wishing to make a thorough examination of the valley and the caves are advised to spend a night at the cabin, although the accommodation (1911) is not good. (See Monograph on the Caves.)
Cyprian Peak—Name: By the Topographical Survey after "Cyprian," Bishop of Carthage in the year 248; with reference to the Bishop's Range.
Altitude: 10,712 feet.
Location: The westerly of the two highest peaks of that range, Augustine, 10,762 feet, being the higher one.
First Ascent: By Messrs. Holway, Butters and Palmer in 1908. The ascent was made from the Black Glacier. A rock climb of no great difficulty. For inexperienced climbers a guide is necessary.
Route: Reached from Glacier House via Asulkan and Donkin Passes. The ascent may be made either from the Bishop's Glacier, or by crossing the western end of Bishop's Range from Black Glacier as in the present case.
View: From the summit there are very fine views of Purity and Dawson Ranges.
Time required: The expedition requires three days of fine weather and two nights out at a camp on Mitre Creek flowing from Bishops Glacier. All camp outfit must be carried on human shoulders. Porters are available.
Copperstain Peak—Name By the Topographical Survey with reference to traces of copper ore found among its rocks.
Altitude: 8,613 feet.
Location: On the east side of the pass at the head of the west branch of Grizzly Creek and north branch of Spillimacheen River. A long peak, easy of ascent, with a number of mineral locations staked out along its base, opposite the pass.
Corbin Pass—Name: In relation to Corbin Peak.
Altitude: 6,650 feet.
The Raceway and Flume. Caves
Looking down Cougar Lower Valley, Pt. Lookout on left
​waet River directly north-west of Illecillewaet Village. A trail leads from the village over the pass to the Corbin Mine, situated on the south slopes of Corbin Peak. (See "Among the Selkirk Glaciers," by W. S. Green, Chap. XII.)
Corbin Peak—Name: After a prospector from Illecillewaet Village.
Altitude: 8,892 feet.
Location: A sharp pointed peak between Caribou Creek and the North Fork of the Illecillewaet River. It holds several small glaciers on its western slopes, and furnishes a firstrate viewpoint of the surrounding district, particularly of Fang Rock and the innumerable snowfields and glaciers at the head of the north fork of the Illecillewaet River and of Downie Creek on the opposite side of the divide.
Dawson Range The—Name: From 'Mt. Dawson, its highest mountain.
Location: On the south side of the Illecillewaet Névé. Geikie Glacier, and Geikie Creek. The Dawson Range is a minor sub-range of the Selkirks. comprising ]Its. Fox, Selwyn, Dawson and Donkin, a bold group of mountains with splendours of snow and ice. A number of extremely interesting glaciers have their origin in this range, sending streams east to the Beaver River and west to the Incomappleux (Fish Creek). The Dawson and Donkin Glaciers form a striking example of the double cirque. The Donkin Pass is between Mts. Dawson and Donkin. From the Asulkan Pass, the range presents wildly spectacular effects, and photographers are recommended to this point of vantage.
Dawson Mt.—Name: By W. S. Green, after the late George M. Dawson, D.S., F.G.S., Director of the Geological Survev of Canada.
Altitude: 11,113 feet.
Location: The highest and central massif of the Dawson Range, comprising Hasler, Feuz, and Michel Peaks.
First Ascent (Hasler Peak): Bv Messrs. Fav and Parker in 1899.
Route: Reached from Glacier House via Asulkan Pass, Geikie Glacier, right moraine of Dawson Glacier, and east head-wall of Dawson Amphitheatre.
Time required: Two days, with camp one night at the foot of the moraine. The second day will be long and hard. It can be done more comfortably in three, with two nights out. The camp outfit must be carried on the shoulders. For inexperienced climbers one guide is necessary. As an alternative returning route, the ridge of Mt. Dawson may be traversed, passing from Hasler Peak over Feuz and Michel Peaks, and descending Donkin Glacier. In this case two guides are safer. Climb: rock and snow, with several ice-couloirs.
View: From the summit there is a magnificent view of the upper snow-world of the Selkirks. A chaos of shining snow fields and tumbling icefalls are everywhere. In his "Selkirk Range," Mr. Wheeler thus describes the sight from Mt. Dawson: "It is difficult to describe a scene of such immensity. The horizon plane cut clear above all other heights in the field. Snow peaks rose in every direction; but most prominent and attractive was the isolated and graceful form of Mt. Purity, some four miles to the south-west,
Panorama looking south from summit of Mt. Dawson
​ing a pure white peak from surrounding fields of snow. Every- where confluent glaciers sent their broken masses to the ice-rivers below. Jagged rock-walls, too steep to sustain a weight of snow, broke the monotony of white by their black outcrops. Peaks, glaciers, snow-fields, ridges and valleys reached to the furthermost distance, which was lost in a roll of billowy clouds."
Dawson Glacier—Name: In relation to Mt. Dawson.
Altitude: 5.500 to 10,000 feet.
Location: Between Mts. Dawson and Fox; falls steeply to join the Geikie Glacier, presenting a much shrunken snout covered with debris. The dry glacier is much crevassed. Near the lower extremity, it unites with the Donkin Glacier. A special feature is the long, symmetrical lines of its two lateral moraines, which like well-built levees confine its flow. Along the crest of these moraines are well-worn paths made by goats, which may frequently be seen trooping in single file to and from their feeding grounds.
Deville Mt.—Name changed to Selwyn (see Mt. Selwvyn).
Deville Glacier and Névé—Name: In relation to Mt. Deville (Selwyn).
Altitude: 5,300—8,300 feet.
Location: Between Mts. Topham and Selwyn and extending southerly along the great escarpment of the Selkirks Summit to Grand Glaciers.
First traversed by Messrs. Huber, Topham and Forster in 1890.
Route: Reached from Glacier (1) via Glacier Circle and Bishop's Glacier; (2) from Beaver River Valley via Glacier Circle and Deville Glacier. This glacier is of extreme interest, presenting a perfect example of the Forbes dirt bands on a large scale. Soon after leaving the névé the glacier flows over a precipitous ledge and is broken into wide crevasses extending the entire width of the flow. The enormous shove from behind brings the ice together again, closing these great cracks; but, owing to the more rapid flow in the centre of the ice-river, they now form circular joins where the dust blown over the ice, collects and gives the dry glacier a graceful and fan-shaped appearance, outlined by dark circles. This is seen to particular advantage from the summit of Mt. Fox. The névé is about three miles long and has several arms extending westward, in all about six square miles. It connects by easy snow-passes with Bishop's Glacier and Black Glacier. The southern extremity overflows to the Grand Glaciers. The rocky rim along its eastern margin, with Mt. Topham at the northern extremity and Beaver Overlook at the southern, furnishes comprehensive view-points for the Beaver River Valley, the Spillimacheen Mountains, Bald Mt. and the Dogtooth Range.
The Dome—Name: By Messrs. Abbott, Fay and Thompson on account of its contour.
Altitude: 9,029 feet.
Location: A peak of the western escarpment of the Asulkan Valley, between Castor and The Rampart.
First Ascent: By Messrs. H. B. Dixon, A. Michael. C. L. Noyes, C. E. Fay, J. R. Van Derlip, with guide Peter Sarbach, in 1897.
Route: (1) Reached from Glacier, via Mt. Abbott, skirting Mt. Afton and traversing the slopes of the Rampart to the foot of the ​Dome. A rock climb. Unless skilled in mountaineering, one guide is necessary. (2) A second route is by the Asulkan Valley, Asulkan Glacier and Sapphire Col. Unless skilled in mountaineering one guide is necessary.
Time required: 5 hours by the former route; 4 hours by the latter. The second route offers some good ice-work on the Asulkan Glacier.
View: North and east, Rogers Pass, Sir Donald, the Asulkan Valley and Glacier; south and west, the Valley of the Incomappleux (Fish Creek), Swanzy and Clarke Glaciers and the Swanzy-Bonney Massif.
Donkin Mt.—Name: By W. S. Green, after W. F. Donkiu of the Alpine Club (England) who was killed in the Caucasus during the year Mr. Green made his exploration and survey in the Selkirk Range (1888).
Altitude: 9,694 feet.
Location: On the west side of Donkin Pass; the most westerly peak of the Dawson Range.
First Ascent: By H. W. Topham in 1890. A fine conical peak of easy ascent from the Donkin Pass. Climb: rock and snow.
Route: Reached from Glacier via the Asulkan and Donkin Passes.
Time required: Two long days with one night out at the foot of Dawson Glacier. It can be done more satisfactorily in three days. Camp outfit must be carried on the shoulders. For novices, one guide is necessary.
View: Like Mt. Cheops, owing to its medium height and isolated central position, Mt. Donkin furnishes one of the finest panoramas obtainable. The view commands the Bishop's Range, notably the combination of its two peaks, Augustine and Cyprian, in their likeness to an episcopal mitre; also the Purity Range with a splendid view of the snowy mountain that names the range; and sweeps the valleys of Mitre Creek and Van Horne Brook showing Mt. McBean beyond to advantage. West and north are the Incomappleux Valley, the Bonney Neve and the entire Clarke and Swanzy Glaciers; and immediately east are the Donkin and Dawson Glaciers and Mt. Fox.
Donkin Pass—Name: In relation to Mt. Donkin.
Altitude: 8,556 feet.
Location: 13etween Mt. Donkin and Michel Peak of Mt. Dawson.
Route: The pass on its north side is difficult of ascent owing to an ice-wall and a heavily corniced crest. A traverse to the east side is the safest. The south face presents easy slopes of shale and grass.
First Ascent: By H. W. Topham in 1890.
Donkin Glacier—Name: In relation to Mt. Donkin.
Altitude: 6,700–8,000 feet.
Location: Below Donkin Pass on the north side, and fills the western portion of the donble cirque of the Dawson-Donkin Glaciers. It is much crevassed but easy of ascent.
Route: The same as for Mt. Donkin; from Geikie Glacier, ​low Asulkan Pass, follow right (east) moraine of Dawson Glacier and cross to Donkin Glacier near their junction.
First Ascent: By H. W. Topham in 1890. For novices, one guide is necessary.
Douglas Falls—Name: After Howard Douglas, Commissioner of Dominion Parks.
Altitude: 5.000 feet
Location: On the same stream as Bear Falls but lower down. Very picturesque owing to the curious pothole erosion in the lime-stone rock bed. (See Caves of Cheops.)
Duncan Mt.—Name: By Messrs. Huber, Topham and Forster, in relation to the Duncan Glacier directly below it, which is the source of the Duncan River.
Altitude: 10,548 feet.
Location: At the head of the Duncan River on the west side of the Beaver-Duncan Valley. A fine rock peak, still virgin (1911) and probably difficult.
Route: Reached from Beaver-Duncan Pass by way of Duncan Glacier. The expedition is made by pony trail from Bear Creek Station up the Beaver Valley.
Time required: This is an expedition involving a week or more and requiring a full camp outfit and ponies to carry it. The region is little known. The summit must command superb views, sweeping the Spillimacheen Mountains and the Duncan and Beaver Valleys.
Duncan Glacier and Névé—Name: In relation to Duncan River.
Altitude: 5.000—10,000 feet.
Location: On the east side of Mt. Duncan and the source of the Duncan River: situated in a bold rock-cirque with precipitous sides.
Duncan River—Name: Origin unknown, probably given by some prospector. It has its source in the Duncan Glacier on the west side of the Beaver-Duncan Pass. It flows south-easterly some forty miles to Howser Lake, which, in turn, empties into Kootenay Lake. The pony-trail up the Beaver Valley extends over the Beaver-Duncan Pass and down the Duncan Valley to an old mining camp named West Fork, where it turns and follows a tributary stream. Below this point, Duncan Valley is impassable, owing to extensive marshes.
Eagle Peak—Name: With reference to a rock on the southeast arête which, seen from Glacier Station resembles an eagle perched on the side of the Peak.
Altitude: 9.353 feet.
Location: 1% miles north-east of Glacier: the central peak of the Sir Donald Range.
Route: Reached by the Avalanche Amphitheatre, the trail starting at the north end of the platform at Glacier Sation. On reaching the crest of the amphitheatre turn to the right and proceed to the peak. This is a good rock climb.
Time required: 4 hours. For novices a guide is necessary.
View: There are excellent views of the Illecillewaet Glacier and Névé, Asulkan Glacier and Névé, the Asulkan Valley and its confining ridges, the Illecillewaet Valley, the Hermit Range: and ​westward, the lower Beaver Valley and Prairie Hills. Directly below on the east side are the Avalanche and Eagle Glaciers. Southward close at hand rises the sharp north-western arête of Mt. Sir Donald.
First Ascent: By S. E. S. Allen and W. D. Wilcox in 1893.
First Ascent by a lady: Miss Henrietta L. Tuzo in 1901.
Eagle Glacier—Name: By the Topographical Survey in relation to Eagle Peak.
Altitude: 5,000 feet—8,000 feet.
Location: Flows from the southern portion of Avalanche Né}vé; immediately north of the east arête of Uto Peak; on the western slopes of Beaver Valley, and draining to Beaver River. It is seen to best advantage from Bald Mt.
Route: The same as to Avalanche Névé.
Time required: 4½ hours. A guide is necessary for novices.
Fang Rock—Name: Bv the Topographical Survev.
Altitude: 9,302 feet.
Location: An isolated tooth-shaped pinnacle, rising above the ice of three surrounding glaciers on the west side of the north branch of the Illecillewaet River immediately adjacent to its valley.
Climb: Snow, ice and rock. It is most prominently seen from peaks of the Hermit Range, especially from Mt. Bagheera and Mt. McGill; also from Corbin Peak on the west side of Caribou Creek.
Feuz Peak—Name: By Professors Fay and Parker, after Edouard Feuz, Sr., of Interlaken, who has been employed at Glacier since 1899 and is now head guide (1911).
Altitude: 10,982 feet.
Location: The middle and second highest peak of Mt. Dawson.
First Ascent: By Edward Franzehn in 1908.
Route: (1) Reached by a traverse of Dawson Crest from Hasler Peak (for whole route see Mt. Dawson). (2) A second route is from Donkin Pass by ascent of Michel Peak and traverse of the crest to Feuz Peak. For novices two guides are safer. A rockclimb with several snow-couloirs.
Findhorn—Name: By the Topographical Survev.
Altitude: 9,501 feet.'
Location: Southerly of the two peaks of Mt. McBean. There is no record of an ascent (1911). (For route see Mt. McBean.) It is chiefly a rock climb.
Fish Creek (Incomappleux River)—Name: English for the Indian 'Tncomappleux." One of the main water-outlets of the district.
Location: The principal southern overflow of the Illecillewaet Névé is by the Geikie Glacier; the glacier-torrent from its snout is known as the Goikie Creek until its junction with Van Horne Brook, and then as Incomappleux River or Fish Creek. From Geikie Glacier the stream flows south-westerly. It then describes a great arc and flows due south for 30 odd miles, discharging its waters into the north-cast arm of Upper Arrow Lake. The upper course is in a deep, wild, and gloomy trough, providing some very impressive scenery. Just before the great arc is reached the stream pours through a box canyon with perpendicular walls.
Miss Canada
​have been much worked by prospectors and a pony-trail extends northerly thus far, but at the bend it passes up along Jeopardy slide and over Flat CreeK Pass to the railway at Flat Creek. There is no trail from the bend to Geikie Glacier, on account of the canyon; but the passage can be made by keeping above the canyon on the south side. The travelling is very bad. The valley is much frequented by bears: and the slopes above, by wild goat.
Flat Creek—Name: Probably by a prospector, owing to a grassy flat near the Flat Creek Pass on the north side.
Location : The stream, which is about 6 miles long, flows north-westerly to the Illecillewaet River. At the confluence close to the C. P. Eailway, a townsite was once laid out by the Government, owing to a mining boom in the Illecillewaet Valley. Only one cabin was erected, which was used as a store for miners' outfits. A pony trail leads up the valley on the east side and crossing Flat Creek Pass, descends Slick Creek and down the Incomappleux to Camborne. The valley is of little interest except as a route to the Incomappleux Valley and the valleys of Geikie Creek and Van Horne Brook.
Flat Creek Pass—Name: In relation to Flat Creek.
Altitude: 4,900 feet.
Location: Between the valley of Flat Creek flowing to the Illecillewaet River and the valley of Slick Creek flowing to Incomappleux River. A low wooded pass.
Fleming Peak—Name: By the Topographical Survey, after Sir Sandford Fleming, K.C.M.G., Hon. President of the Alpine Club of Canada.
Altitude: 10,370.
Location: One of the peaks of Mt. Rogers massif: adjoins Swiss Peak on the west.
Route: Reached by traverse along the crest from Rogers Peak over Grand Peak or directly from Swiss Peak. (For routes, etc.. see Rogers Peak and Swiss Peak.)
First Ascent: By Gertrude E. Benham in 1904.
Time required: From Rogers hut. 4 hours: from glacier. 7 hours. Usually a night is spent at Rogers hut in order to cross Rogers Glacier and Swiss Névé early while the snow is in good condition. For novices, one guide is necessary for a party of two.
Climb: Rock and snow. The round expedition can be made in a day. but a night at the hut is preferable, or a bivouac above the hut.
Fox. Mt.— Name: By W. S. Green, after Mr. Fox. a member of the Alpine Club (England) who lost his life climbing in the Caucasus during the year Mr. Green explored and surveyed the Selkirks around Glacier (1888).
Altitude: 10.576 feet.
Location: Most southerly peak of the Dawson Range, lying between Deville. Fox. Dawson and Geikie (Glaciers.
First Ascent: By H. W. Topham in 1890. Mt. Fox is a blunted cone, partly covered by snow. Upon the north side two hanging glaciers send their fragments to the Geikie Glacier below. These are quite remarkable examples and may be seen to excellent advantage from the summit of the Asulkan Pass.
Route: Reached from Glacier via Asulkan Pass. Geikie Glacier, ​right (east) moraine of Dawson Glacier; then up Dawson Glacier half a mile and a final climb to the summit over alpland and broken rock.
Time required: Two days with one night at the foot of Dawson Glacier; ascent from camp, 4 hours. The route could be made in one long day from Glacier. For novices one guide is necessary.
View: Mt. Fox commands a view of alpine splendour, the entire lllecillewaet Névé and Mt. Sir Donald rising at its northern extremity; westward sweeps the valley of Geikie Creek; and southward close at hand are the rock-precipices of .Mt. Dawson, rising 3,000 feet almost sheer.
Fox Glacier—Name: In relation to -Mt. Fox. Altitude: 6.000—9,000 feet.
Location: Between Mts. Fox and Selwyn on the east side; it joins Deville (Jlacier in Glacier Circle.
Gateway, The—Name: By Topographical Survey, owing to the formation of rock-strata.
Location: 2 miles westerly along the railway from Beavermouth Station; on Beaver River, nearly 1½ miles south-westerly from its junction with the Columbia River. At this part of its course the bed of the Beaver River is much contracted and the stream flows turbulently in a rock-channel, with many leaps and falls. The strata of which the rock-bed is formed are at right angles to the course of the stream and lie absolutely vertical. The rock is of a quartzoze nature and in places unusually hard layers stand out like fences. At the Gateway, the slabs of rock are only four inches thick and twenty feet high, while the gap between is less than twenty feet wide. Through it the river pours, a mighty sluice-way. The gap is bridged by a single tree-trunk. which is used as a crossing by the men of the mountains, but is not recommended to the ordinary traveller.
Geikie Creek—Name: In relation to Geikie Glacier, which it drains.
Location: The primary source of Incomappleux River. The name Geikie Creek applies only as far as its junction with Van Horne Brook. 2½ miles below the snout of Geikie Glacier (see also under Fish Creek).
Geikie Glacier—Name: Bv W. S. Green, after Sir Archibald Geikie. F.R.S.
Altitude: 4,200—8,000 feet.
Location: Southern outflow of the Illecillewaet Névé, and flows between Asulkan Pass and Mt. Fox.
Route: Reached from Glacier via Asulkan Valley and Pass. The glacier flows directly below the pass at a depth of 2,800 feet. For novices one guide is necessary.
Time required: One long day from Glacier; but it is better to take two days, camping one night at the foot of the Dawson moraine. The Geikie Glacier is a good specimen of an ice-river and shows markedly the points of similarity between its flow and that of an ordinary river moving over a steep bed. The lines of crevasses, curving slightly outwards, indicate the more rapid movement of the centre of the stream. "The Geikie Glacier, filling the bottom of the valley, presented the most wonderful appearance. I never before ​saw a glacier so completely broken up into pinnacles of ice by longitudinal and transverse crevasses crossing each other. It presented the appearance of some basaltic formation with blocks pulled a short distance asunder," (W. S. Green in "Among the Selkirk Glaciers").
Glacier Circle—Name: By Messrs. Huber, Topham and Forster, owing to the number of glaciers flowing into this hollow, encircled by peaks.
Altitude: 5,800—6,000 feet.
Location: Surrounded by Mt. Macoun on the north; Mts. Fox and Selwyn on the west, and Mt. Topham on the south. A narrow opening between Mts. Macoun and Topham gives access from Beaver Valley. The Deville Glacier and its tributary, the Fox Glacier, flow in from the south, then outward towards the Beaver Valley between Topham and Macoun. A number of glaciers also overflow from the Illecillewaet Névé to the Circle.
First visited by H. W. Topham in 1890.
Glacier Circle is a strategic situation for both geologist and moimtaineer. From a base-camp here, Mts. Macoun, Topham, Fox. Selwyn, Dawson, the Bishop's Range and the peaks surrounding the Deville Névé are all reachable. A camp-ground of sunlit parklands adorned with clumps of shapely spruce, with two green tarns reflecting the surrounding peaks, no more attractive place can be found for the study of glaciers of unusual interest.
Route: It may be reached from Glacier by ascending the Illecillewaet Glacier, traversing the full length of the neve to its southern extremity, and then descending to the Circle. In this case a guide is necessary for those unskilled inmoimtaineering. All camp outfit must be carried.
Time required: 8 hours. The best route, however, is by the Beaver Valley trail from Bear Creek Station where the camp outfit can be carried on ponies. Time required by this route, two days. A Swiss guide not necessary.
Glacier Crest—Name: By members of the Appalachian Club.
Altitude: 7.419 feet.
Location: A rock-ridge confining the Illecillewaet Glacier on the south-west; also, forming the northern extremity of the Asulkan Ridge.
Route: A path branches from the pony-trail up the Asulkan Valley a short distance beyond the first bridge and zigzags in a typical corkscrew trail to the crest of the ridge. It is too steep for ponies.
Goat Falls- Name: By Howard Douglas. Commissioner of Dominion Barks.
Altitude: 5,500 feet.
Location: A stream from the south slopes of Mt. Ursus Major drops over a ledge directly east oi the Caves of Cheops in Cougar Brook Valley at the junction of the upper and lower valleys. They drop perpendicularly 40 feet, disappearing under the ground and join the subterranean waters of Cougar Creek within the Caves. (See Caves of Cheops.)
Gopher Falls—Name: By the Topographical Survey.
Location: Two streams come tumbling down the steep slopes of Cougar Vallev from a glacier on the south-east face of Mt. Ursus ​Major, directly opposite the point where Cougar Brook disappears for the first time into the Caves of Cheops. Near the centre of Gopher Bridge—the roof of the first series of the Caves—the two streams meet and disappear in the ground, joining Cougar Brook in its first underground flow. The place of their ingress has been named the Gopher Hole. Gopher Bridge is so called from the number of Parry marmots (Spermohilus Parryii)—a little animal not unlike the prairie gopher—that have their homes there in burrows in the ground (See monograph on Caves of Cheops).
Grand Glaciers—Name: By Huber, Topham and Forster, on account of their spectacular appearance.
Altitude—5,000—10,500 feet.
Location: On the west side of Beaver River Valley, between Mt. Sugar Loaf, Grand Mt. and Deville Névé.
First Ascent: By Messrs. Huber, Topham and Forster in 1890.
Route: (1) From Glacier via Asulkan Valley and Pass, Dawson Moraine, Donkin Pass, Bishop's Glacier and Deville Névé.
Time required: Including return, 3 days with 2 nights' camp on Mitre Creek, below Donkin Pass. All outfit must be carried. (2) By Beaver River trail from Bear Creek Station. Time: 5 days. Requires camp outfit and ponies. To go by the first route, or on the ice of the glaciers, novices should take a guide.
The Grand Glaciers spring from separate sources on either side of a great isolated central mass of rock and snow and then flow side by side, divided only by a well defined medial moraine. The central mass has been named '"Grand Mountain." The glaciers are of exceptional interest, the northern one much broken and crevassed, showing wonderful'sêracs and icefalls. The huge mounds and terraces of snow, softly modulated in light and shadow, surrounding the upper extremities of their ice, are very beautiful. They are distinctly two of the finest glaciers of the entire range.
Grand Mountain—Name: By the Topographical Survey in relation to Grand Glaciers.
Altitude: 10,832 feet.
Location: On the west side of Beaver Valley between Beaver Overlook and Mt. Sugarloaf, at the head of the Grand Glaciers, which it divides by a long shoulder extending easterly. The well-marked medial moraine between the two ice-flows extends from the end of this shoulder.
First Ascent: By Messrs. Holway and Parker in 1910.
Route: Reached from the south end of Deville Nêvé by traversing westerly above the ice-fall: then ascending the south shoulder of Mt. Wheeler, and following the snow-ridge to the peak. Climb: snow and rock. (For route from Glacier see Grand Glaciers.)
Time required: 18 hours from a camp on Mitre Creek below Donkin Pass; 4 days from Glacier including return. It can most comfortably be made by Beaver River trail (See Grand Glaciers), and ascent of Grand Glaciers to Deville Nêvé. A guide is necessary unless skilled in mountain-work.
View: Magnificent views of Mt. Sugar Loaf, Purity Range, Battle Glaciers, Van Horne Snowfield. and snowfields and glaciers reaching westward as far as the eye can see. Eastward across Beaver Valley are the Spillimacheen Mountains.
​Grant Peak—Name: By the Topographical Survey, after the late Rev. Dr. Grant. Principal of Queen's University, Kingston, Canada.
Altitude: 10,216 feet.
Location: One of the peak.s of the Mt. Rogers massif; adjoins Rogers Peak on the east.
Route: (1) By traverse along the crest from Rogers Peak; (2) by direct ascent from the Swiss Névé. (For first part of route see Rogers Peak and Swiss Peak.)
First Ascent: By Gertrude E. Benham in 1904. Climb: snow and rock. For novices a Swiss guide is necessary.
Time required: From Rogers hut via Rogers Peak, 6 hours; via the Swiss Névé, 5 hours. From Glacier to Rogers hut, 3-4 hours.
Usually a night is spent at the hut in order to cross Rogers Glacier and Swiss Névé early while the snow is in good condition.
Green Mt.—Name: By the Topographical Survey, after W. S. Green, author of "Among the Selkirk Glaciers."
Altitude: 8,860 feet.
Location: On the west side of Loop Brook; the pivotal point of Mt. Bonney Ridge extending south-east and Ross Peak Ridge extending north-east.
First Ascent: By A. A. McCoubrey with guide Ernest Feuz in 1910, who climbed at the same time, the two un-named virgin peaks between Mt. Green and Ross Peak.
Route: Reached from Glacier via the railway. Loop Brook, and Green Glacier.
Time required: 2 days; one night in camp in the valley of Loop Brook. For novices a Swiss guide is necessary.
View: It commands inclusive views of the Hermit Range. Bonney Amphitheatre, and miles of the Illecillewaet Valley looking westward and all that lies beyond it.
Green Glacier—Name: By the Topographical Survey with reference to Mt. Green.
Altitude: 6.000—9,000 feet.
Location: West of Loop Brook, of which it is a source, between Bonney Glacier and Mt. Green. It is only separated from Bonney Glacier by a medial moraine.
Grizzly Mt.—Name: With reference to Bear Creek.
Altitude: 9.061 feet.
Location: A peak of the Hermit Range on the north side of Bear Creek, immediately opposite Mt. Cheops on its south side.
First Ascent: By the Rev. J. E. Bushnell and Dr. A. Eggers in 1901.
Route: Reached from Glacier via railway to Rogers Pass, from whence it follows the trail up Bear Creek to a point opposite the mountain. Here the bed of a water course like a stairway leads to the alps above, and an easy scramble over rock brings the climber to the summit.
Time required: From Glacier, 4 hours. For novices, a Swiss guide is necessary.
View: Good views of Rogers Pass Valley, the Sir Donald Range, the Illecillewaet Glacier and Névé; northward the summit overlooks ​the valley of Mountain Creek and its tributaries; also there is a distinct view of Mt. Sir Sandford so seldom seen.
Grizzly Creek—Name: Probably by a prospector with reference to girzzly bears, which at one time were very plentiful in its valley.
Location: Joins Beaver River from the east, 3Vo miles south of Bear Creek Station. About 3 miles from its mouth the stream forks, the east branch leading to a divide at the head of Canyon Creek, which flows into the Columbia River near Golden. The West Branch leads south-easterly to a divide at the head of the North Branch of the Spillimacheen River. Near the mouth of the creek on the north side, an abandoned miner's trail branches from the Beaver River trail and leads up the creek for 1½ miles, where it crosses by a dilapidated bridge and climbs the mountain slopes to a thousand feet above the valley-bottom : then following the West Branch, crosses the divide and goes down the North Spillimacheen Valley, thus giving access to several mining claims opened up at Copperstain Mt. So long in disuse, this trail can only be found with much difficulty. That portion from the divide down the North Spillimacheen is in the better condition. The route gives access to Bald Mountain.
Hasler Peak—Name: By Messrs. Fay and Parker, after the Swiss guide. Christian Hasler.
Altitude: 11,113 feet.
Location: The most easterly peak of Mt. Dawson.
First Ascent : By Messrs. Fay and Parker with guides C. Hasler and E. Feuz, Sr., in 1899. (For routes, etc., see under Mt. Dawson.)
Hermit Range—Name: In relation to the Hermit on Mt. Tupper.
Altitude: 10..536 feet.
Location: Parallel to the C. P. Railway on the north and west sides, extending from Caribou Creek to Moimtain Creek: lies between Beaver River. Bear Creek, Illecillewaet River. Caribou Creek and Mountain Creek. Also, it is the picturesque mountain range seen from Glacier House looking north. The north end of the Abbott Ridge commands a view of the entire range, except its eastern end which is hidden by the heights of the intervening Mt. Macdonald.
The Hermit Range presents a perfect alpine effect throughout the year. Above the climbing forests, between 30 and 40 glaciers line its crest and separate its individual units. It culminates in Rogers Peak (10,536 feet) of the Rogers massif. From this pivotal point, eight glaciers radiate like spokes of a wheel. Hermit Range dominates Rogers Pass and is one of the most attractive centres for mountain climbing and study in the immediate vicinity of Glacier.
Hermit Mt.—Name: By order in Council. Originally named "Stony Mt." At that time the present Mt. Tupper was known as Hermit Mt., so called with reference to a gendarme resembling a hermit on its western arête.
Altitude: 10,194 feet.
Location: Immediately east of the Rogers massif from which it is separated by a deep notch.
First Ascent: By the Revds. .1. C. Herdman. S. H. Gray and A. M. Gordon in 1904.
Route: Reached from Glacier House in one long day. It is ​
| Mt. Lookout and Illicillewaet Glacier showing the Ice Fall | Cougar Brook Valley. Sir Donald and Illicillewaet Glacier in background |
​best to spend a night at Rogers hut and get away early to obtain good travelling on the snow. From the hut the route leads up Swiss Glacier and across the névé to the foot of the peak; the ascent is made by the south wall and is a good rock climb.
Time required: From the hut 5 hours to the summit; from Glacier to the hut 3-4 hours. For inexperienced persons one guide is necessary.
View: Commands glorious views of the Beaver Valley, Prairie Hills, Dogtooth Mts. and of the Mountain Creek Valleys and the peaks lying beyond, including Mt. Sandford. On a clear day, to the far north-east are also seen the highest peaks of the Rockies: Mt. Columbia, 60 miles distant, Mts. Bryce, Lyall, Forbes and many others.
Hermit, The—Name: From its resemblance.
Altitude: 8,887 feet.
Location: A rock-figure on the western arête of Mt. Tupper, resembling a hermit with a dog sitting at his feet. The Hermit shows very distinctly from Rogers Pass Station and the summit of the Pass. Seen from the opposite side, the figure one might say has the dignity and the presence of a cardinal. When making the ascent of Mt. Tupper by the west arête it is necessary to skirt the base of this gendarme.
Hermit Crest—Name: By the Topographical Survey in relation to Mt. Hermit.
Altitude: 9,010 feet.
Location: A flat crest of the ridge extending easterly from Mt. Hermit immediately above the Tupper Glacier.
Route: Reached by traversing the Swiss and Tupper Névés.
View: A splendid view-point for the Beaver River Valley looking north.
Horne Creek—(See Van Horne Creek).
Hermit Glacier—Name: By the Topographical Survey in relation to Mt. Hermit.
Altitude: 5,500—7.900 feet.
Location: Immediately below Hermit Mt. on the north side; lies between the north-east arête of Hermit Mt. and the south-east arête of Mt. Shaughnessy.
Route: Reached from Bear Creek Station by following the railway to Stony Creek Bridge and ascending the gorge of the stream to near its source; then turning to the left (south) around the south-east arête of Mt. Shauglmessy. A pass at the head of this glacier leads to Mountain Creek Valley.
Ichthyosaurus—Name: From a fancied resemblance to that extinct genus of reptilia.
Altitude: 7,600 feet.
Location: An isolated rock rising at the head of the Asulkan Valley from the snows of the Asulkan Glacier near its northern base, east of the central timbered spur at the head of the valley.
Illecillewaet Glacier—Name: In relation to Illecillewaet River and Névé.
Altitude: 4,800-9.000 ft. It is a coincidence that the crest of the Illecillewaet Névé above the Glacier (8,400 ft.) and that of the Deville Névé (8,300 ft.) 5 miles further south are practically ​on the same level and in perfect alignment although separated by the deeply cut notch of Glacier Circle (5,700 ft.)
Location: South of Mt. Sir Donald and east of the Asulkan Valley, it lies directly along the great eastern escarpment of the Selkirks.
First Ascent: By W. S. Green and the Rev. H. Swanzy in 1888.
Area: About 10 square miles. The névé is a good example of a local ice-cap glacier. It is drained on the north by the Illecillewaet Glacier, and on the south-west by Geikie Glacier, these being the two principal outflows, although the névé also overflows to the Asulkan Valley on the Avest and to Glacier Circle on the south.
The Illecillewaet Glacier is in easy proximity to Glacier House, a walk of about forty-five minutes. An interesting and beautiful and comprehensive near view of the entire glacier is obtained from a point on the trail leading to Cascade Summer House and Avalanche Crest, just at the corner where the trail turns sharply to ascend the steep mountain-side. The ice-fall from this point shows like a great tongue lying wide-spread on its rock-bed. scored in every direction by a maze of crevasses sweeping outwards from the centre The soft undulating névé above, and the crinkled, corrugated glacier below, confined between parallel rock-ribs, flecked and spotted by layers of snow show through the nearer forest as in a land of magic which the Selkirks truly arc. Glacier Crest is another point from which the ice-fall is seen in minute detail.
From the crest of the neve to the base of the tongue, the fall is 3,600 ft. Seen from the station platform the great ice-walls rise steeply to the skyline, and thousands of people yearly view the wonderful sight from the daily trains stopping at Glacier. But to appreciate fully the magnificence of the spectacle it is necessary to study it; to see it under different aspects, in light, in shadow with the sun sparkling on its many ice-points, or covered by a soft mantle of fresh snow; to go up among its crevasses, to stand beside its seracs. to follow its snow-slopes to the sky-line and there gaze upon the dwarfed landscape below. Unless one is an expert mountaineer, it is not safe to go on the glacier or to travel across its névé without a Swiss guide. A day spent in such wandering will well repay those looking for pleasure and healthful exertion. The seracs themselves are worth the excursion.
Route: From the hotel a good trail leads to the bare moraine below the ice-tongue, through beautiful woods of spruce, cedar, hemlock, with underwoods of huckleberry bushes, alder, white-flowered rhododendrons, devil's club and many a delicate low-growing .shrub. Never far from the rushing Illecillewaet torrent, the path lies broad and well-beaten, and no guide is required to the foot of the ice.
Distance: 2 miles.
There are many superb views of surrounding mountains through openings in the forest as the trail proceeds Among the boulders of the terminal moraine are a number of rocks marked with red paint measuring the yearly retreat of the ice-forefront. Close and careful observations of this glacier's movements have been carried on for many years by the Messrs. Vaux and Miss Vaux. of Philadelpliia. (See under "Glaciers of the Selkirks").
​Illecillewaet River—Name: By Walter Moberly, C.E.; an Indian word, meaning "swift water."
Location: The northerly outflow of the Illecillewaet Glacier. It flows westerly for about 50 miles and empties into the Columbia River 2 miles south of Revelstoke. It is a typical glacial stream fed by numerous torrents conveying the run-off from hundreds of glaciers. The principal tributaries are Loop Brook, Cougar Brook, Caribou Creek, Flat Creek, North Fork (Illecillewaet River) Albert Creek, Silver Creek. Twin Creeks and Greely Creek. The Illecillewaet affords fair fishing in places; and the steelhead or Gairdner's Trout (Salmo gairdner) a very gamey fish, provides good sport. Two miles easterly from Revelstoke the river is confined in a box canyon—a narrow gorge with perpendicular rock-walls carved in a series of buttresses by the swirling eddies of the torrent. A wildly picturesque spot.
Illecillewaet Station—Name: By C.P.R. Company, with reference to the Illecillewaet River.
Altitude: 2,710 ft. (rail level).
Location: On the line of the railway, 6½ miles east of Albert Canyon Station and 15 miles west of Glacier. Here was once a busy mining hamlet: but when the boom burst that built it, the little settlement was practically abandoned. Though a few small mines of silver-galena are still in operation, it is little more than a collection of deserted, tumble-down shacks.
Incomappleux River (Fish Creek)—Name: By Kootenay Indians, moaning "Fish River."
Location: Rises in Geikie and Van Horne Glaciers and flows west and south to the north-east arm of Upper Arrow Lake. (See under Fish Creek.)
Jeopardy Slide—Name: Local name given to a tract swept by Avalanches.
Location: On the west side of the Junction of Slick Creek with Incomappleux River. The mining trail over the Flat Creek Pass follows the valley of Slick Creek, leaving it at Jeopardy Slide to descend to the bed of the Incomappleux River. The Slide is very steep and overgrown with alders and nettles. The trail traverses it in zigzags. It is not in the least dangerous when in good condition.
Jove. Mt.—Name: By the Topographical Survey, with reference to Castor. Pollux, and Leda Peaks.
Altitude: 9,176 feet.
Location: Part of the rock-ridge above the Asulkan Glacier on the south-west: the isolated mass of which the three peaks, Castor, Pollux and Leda form component parts. It is separated from the Dome by Sapphire Col. Pollux, the highest peak, is 9,176 feet.
Kilpatrick, Mt.—Name: By the Topographical Survey, after T. Kilpatrick, a popular local superintendent of the C.P.R. at Revelstoke. who has for many years been in charge of the railway through the Selkirks—a difficult division, owing to the very heavy snowfall.
Altitude: 10,624 feet.
Location: A peak of the Purity Range; adjoins Mt. Wheeler ​on the west. It is a hive-shaped mass entirely snow-covered on its north and east faces; the other faces are steep rock.
First Ascent: By Messrs. Holway, Palmer and Butters in 1909. Route: (1) Reached from Glacier House by the Asulkan Valley and Pass, the Geikie, Dawson and Donkin Glaciers, Donkin Pass'; thence, either by Bishop's Glacier and Deville Névé, keeping north of Mt. Wheeler, or by crossing the north end of the Bishop's Range and ascending Black Glacier to its head and working on to the west arête of Mt. Kilpatrick whence the climb is easy.
Time required: For this route, 3 days if the weather holds good. A camp is made on Mitre Creek Valley below Donkin Pass. All the outfit must be carried on the shoulders.
Route: (2) By the Beaver Valley to the Deville Glacier and Névé.
Time required: About 6 days with ponies and a camp outfit which can be taken to a point opposite Glacier Circle.
View: On the summit of Mt. Kilpatrick you are in the midst of the snow-world of the Selkirks; all around are glaciers and wide snowfields. The peak is immediately above the Battle Glaciers and the eye sweeps their full length. The wonderful maze of hanging glacierettes lining the sides of Battle Creek Valley and clinging to the north face of the Purity Range are seen to advantage. It is a magnificent spectacle and well repays the exertion of the expedition. Three miles distant, Mt. Purity rises, a splendid isolated cone of snow.
Leda Peak—Name: By the Topographical Survey, with reference to Castor and Pollux.
Altitude: 9,133 feet.
Location: The south peak of!Mt. Jove; rises directly above the Asulkan Névé on the west side.
Route: Reached from Glacier most readily from the Asulkan Pass, whence it is an easy ascent of rock and snow. A return can be made by the Asulkan Glacier direct; or by traversing the Swanzy Glacier, Lily Col, and home via the north slopes of Mt. Afton and the Abbott Ridge.
Time required: 4 or 5 hours. One guide is necessary.
View: Excellent views of the Dawson Range. Mt. McBean and the Incomapplenx Valley; northwards, of Asulkan Valley, Sir Donald and Hermit Ranges; westward, Mt. Bonney and the Swanzy and Clarke Glaciers are close at hand.
Lily Glacier and Névé—Name: Some have thought that this so delicate appellation for a river of '"thick-ribbed ice" came from the avalanche lilies (dogtooth violets) which follow the edges of the glaciers. And it is a pretty conceit. But the name was given by W. S. Green in honour of a daughter of the Rev. IT. Swanzy, his fellow-explorer "among the Selkirk Glaciers."
Altitude: 5,500—8,200 feet.
Location: Between Mt. Swanzy on the west, and The Dome, The Rampart and Mt. Afton on the east. One of the chief sources of Loop Brook and a very interesting glacier.
Route: Reached from Glacier via Mt. Abbott, the north slopes of Mt. Afton and a traverse along the slopes of the Rampart. Unless skilled in mountaineering, a guide is necessary.
| A well-known Alpine Climber, Val. A. Fynn | F. W. Freeborn on a Snow-cap (11,636ft.) |
​Time required: 5 hours. The expedition can be extended to Sapphire Col immediately south of The Dome, and a return made by the Asulkan Glacier and Valley, providing an expedition of great variety and interest.
Lily Col—Name: By W. S. Green, with reference to Lily Glacier.
Altitude: 8,228 feet.
Location: The snow col between Lily and Swanzy Glaciers. Very fine views in both directions.
First Ascent: By W. 8. Green and the Rev. H. Swanzy in 1888.
Lookout, Mt.—Name: Origin not known. A good lookout-point over the Illecillewaet and Asulkan Glaciers and Vallevs.
Altitude: 8,219 feet.
Location: A peak of the Asulkan Ridge, opposite and directly above the commencement of the ice-fall of the Illecillewaet Glacier: adjoins Glacier Crest on the south.
Route: Reached from Glacier House by trail to Illecillewaet Glacier and an ascent of the same along its west margin; thence a short rock-climb to the summit. A guide is necessary.
View: This is an excellent view-point for the Sir Donalrl and Hermit Ranges, the basin of Rogers Pass, the Asulkan N'alley. Glacier, and Névé, and the Abbott Ridge.
Loop, The—Name: With reference to the great curves described by the railway along the lower slopes of Mt. Abbott on the south, and of Mt. Cheops on the north, in order to overcome the very steep descent from Rogers Pass to the bed of the Illecillewaet River. The Loop is a lasting tribute to the genius and skill of Major Rogers, the chief engineer of construction. The distance being too short and the grade too steep to contrive an adjustment of the railway in a direct route between the summit of the pass and the bed of the Illecillewaet, the track along the base of Mt. Abbott was extended on very high trestles, in a good pear-shaped curve, up the valley of Loop Brook crossing and recrossing the stream, doubling back on Mt. Abbott and passing 125 feet below its first traverse; thence it was made to describe another wide curve, for the third time crossing Loop Brook, now close to its junction with the Illecillewaet River. The original trestle-bridges are now filled in, and the creaking timbers are buried beneath a mass of rock and earth, making a safe, permanent way.
Loop Brook—Name: By W. S. Green, with reference to the great double loop described above.
Location: Drains the Lily, Bonney and Green Glaciers, and joins the Illecillewaet River at the Loop.
Laurie Station and Mining Camp—Name: By Canadian Pacific Railway Companv, origin unknown.
Altitude: 2,961 feet (rail level).
Location: An abandoned mining camp 2% miles east of Illecillewaet Station, 12¾ miles west of (Glacier Station. Immediately west of Laurie there is half a mile of tunnels and snow-sheds, and a watchman is stationed here to guard against accidents from the falling rocks and other possible casualties; otherwise there is no use for a station. The mining camp was prettily situated in a little grassy flat on the opposite side of the Illecillewaet River. It ​consisted of a hotel, an office and manager's residence and a number of miner's cottages. The river was crossed by a bridge, and near the track was a concentrator equipped with the latest machinery. Perched high on the perpendicular face of the cliff is the bunk-house near the mouth of the main shaft. From this point the ore was carried in iron buckets along a steel wire cable to the concentrator 3,000 feet below. The cable was suspended over a deep, rocky gulch to an open woodwork tower erected on a projecting spur, midway between the bunk-house and the concentrator, to which it descended sheer. It was customary for the miners to ascend and descend in the buckets, a daily trip requiring much nerve. The ore is a rich galena but was never found in sufficient quantities to pay, and the concentrator and machinery have been sold and removed. The old buildings are rotting away and the bunk-house is now only inhabited by a myriad of mountain rats (Bush-tailed rat; the packrat: Neotoma cinerea).
Macdonald, Mt.—Name: By order in Council, after the late Right Honorable Sir .John A. Macdonald. a Canadian statesman, one of the fathers of the Dominion Confederation, and for many years Prime Minister. As such, he had much to do with the successful completion of the Canadian Pacific Railway, and in commemoration of this association and that of his confrére, the Hon. Sir Charles Tupper. the two portal-peaks standing guard over the gateway of Rogers Pass were named respectively Mt. Macdonald and Mt. Tupper.
Altitude: 9,428 feet.
Location: Most northerly peak of the Sir Donald Range; forms south wall of Rogers Pass. Climb: rock.
First Ascent: Names unknown.
Second Ascent: The late Rev. J. C. Herdman, D.D., with guide Edouard Feuz. Sr.. in 1903. Dr. Herdman and his guide made the ascent under the impression that it was a virgin peak. Having congratulated each other on their good fortune they were about to commence the descent. Immediately beside the Doctor was a great block of rock with a hole in its top-surface filled with water. Casually he bared his arm and dipped it into the hole when, to his amazement and dismay, he brought forth a rusty nail!
Route: Reached from Glacier House by an ascent of the great couloir 1¾ miles east of Rogers Pass Station.
Time required: 7 hours. One guide is necessary.
View: A firstrate view of the entire region. This peak has been seldom climbed, but is one that will best repay the mountaineer.
Macoun, Mt.—Name: By W. S. Green, after Prof. Jolm Macoun, Dominion Naturalist and Botanist.
Altitude: 9.988 feet.
Location: At the south-east corner of the Illecillewaet Névé, overlooking the Beaver River 'alley, the northerly peak confining Glacier Circle.
First Ascent: By the late Rev. .J. C. Herdman, D.D., with guide Edouard Feuz in 1902.
Route: Reached from Glacier via the trail to Illecillewaet Glacier, ascent of the rocks on the right side of the ice-fall to Perley Rock, and a traverse of the Illecillewaet Névé to the base of the ​peak. Ascend the face at the north end and traverse the ridge to its summit.
Climb: snow, rock and ice.
Time required: 7 hours. Of the climb Dr. Herdman writes:
"Next came a difficulty which I have never seen before or since in any mountain range: a crack, three to six feet wide, separated the shoulder we were on from the main mass and the walls looked perpendicular. This sharp cut into the mountain may have been limited but where we stood, because of the rough boulders, there was no way of getting past and I imagined for some moments that our climb was completely blocked." (See Canadian Alpine Journal vol. I, No. 1, p. 105.)
View: As a view-point Macoun is of great interest. It commands the entire Illecillewaet and Deville Névé: sweeps the Beaver Valley up and down, overlooks Bald Mountain and the Dogtooth and Spillimacheen Mountains and peeps into Glacier Circle. It is specially recommended as an expedition. But one must start early on account of the long tramp across the Illecillewaet Névé.
Marion Lake—Name: Bv W. S. Green, after his daughter.
Altitude: 5,660 feet.
Location: On the north face of Mt. Abbott above Glacier House.
Route: Reached by a good pony-trail starting directly behind the hotel.
Time required: 1 hour. Along the trail are some very fine views through vistas of forest. The lake is a sad-coloured little tarn of about five acres area, nestling in a rocky basin. At the southern margin is a rock slide, where a big slice has been detached from the Hank of Mt. Abbott and has come crashing down to the lake's basin. From this point a charming alpine landscape greets the eyes. Across its placid surface, and growing out of the bright emerald marsh grass, rises a fringe of straight and shapely dark-hued spruce, between whose high interspaces show the snowy mountains of the range opposite. Its charm is enhanced a hundred fold when the whole picture is repeated in miniature in the lake.
McBean, Mt.—Name: By Topographical Survey: origin unknown.
Altitude: 9,501 feet.
Location: Between Van Horne Brook and Incomappleux River.
Route: (1) Reached from Glacier via Asulkan Trail and Pass, Geikie Glacier and Creek, and Van Horne Brook. All camp-outfit must be carried. For novices one guide is necessary.
Time required: 3 days, camping for 2 nights in the valley of Van Horne Brook.
Route: (2) May also be reached via Flat Creek and Pass, Teoparuy Slide, and Incomappleux River. Ponies can be used by this route to carry the camp-outfit to the base of the mountain.
Time required: 5 days. A guide is necessary.
Climb: chiefly rock. The mountain is a very prominent one seen from the Asulkan Pass south of the great bend of the Incomappleux River. There are two important peaks: Findhorn, 9,501 feet and Tomatin Peak, 9,445 feet. On the east slopes are the Van Horne Glacier and Ne've', and a large unnamed snowfield draining westward.
​View: The views from either peak are very extensive and cover a wide territory of snow and ice. Across the Incomappleux River are numerous large snowfields and unamed impressive snow-clad peaks. No record exists of any ascent of either peak. (1911). (See also under Findhorn.)
McGill Peak—Name: By Dr. J. W. A. Hickson. after McGill University.
Altitude: 8.776 feet.
Location: The most south-westerly peak of the Hermit Range, in the northern corner between the Illecillewaet River and Caribou Creek, and adjoining Mt. Bagheera on the west.
First Ascent: By J. W. A. Hickson with guide Edouard Feuz, Jr.
Route: (1) Reached from Glacier via Loop trail, Cougar Brook trail and the pass at the head of Cougar Brook, above which it rises.
Climb: snow and rock. For novices one guide is necessary.
Route: (2) Can also be reached by following the railway for 10' 2 miles to Caribou Creek and ascending the shoulder at its mouth on the north-east side. The Cougar Brook route is the best, spending the night at the Caves.
Time required: From Glacier to the Caves 3 hours; from the Caves to summit of the peak, 4 hours. Excellent views.
McNicoll, Mt.—Name: After a Vice-President of the Canadian Pacific Railway Company.
Altitude: 8,745 feet.
Location: Immediately west of Beaver River between 'Mountain and Alder Creeks.
Route: Follow Mountain Creek for 3 miles from the railway where the ascent begins.
Climb: rock, after pushing through much fallen timber and brush.
View: Good views of the valleys of Mountain and Alder Creeks and of Beaver Valley.
Meeting of the Waters—Name: With reference to the junction of Illecillewaet River and Asulkan Brook.
Location: The point where the two streams meet about 200 yards from Glacier House.
Route: Reached from Glacier by following the trail to the Illecillewaet Glacier for about 75 yards to two seats in full view of the junction of the two streams. It is an attractive spot, especially at high water when the two turbulent glacial torrents come together furiously and scatter their crystal sprays. A rock juts into the main stream just below the confluence, where there is a good near view of the peak of Sir Donald with the two streams in the foreground.
Michel Peak—Name: By the Topographical Survey, after Friedrich Michel. a Swiss guide at Glacier.
Altitude: 10.034 feet.
Location: The western and lowest peak of Mt. Dawson: adjoins Donkin Pass on the east.
First Ascent: By Edouard Franzelin in 1908. Ascended most easily from Donkin Pass. (For full route see Mt. Dawson.)
​Mitre Creek—Name: By the Topographical Survey, in relation to Bishop's Glacier.
Location: Flowing from Bishop's Glacier between Mt. Donkin and the northern extremities of the Bishop's and Purity Ranges; joins Van Horne Brook about ¾ mile from its junction with Geikie Creek. About ½ mile from the snout of the glacier is a picturesque fall of some 50 feet, where the creek tumbles over a series of ledges. It is close to this cataract that parties climbing on the Bishop's and Purity Ranges and on mountains in that vicinity usually camp. Mitre Creek is well worth a visit for itself. (See route to Mt. Purity.)
Mountain Creek—Name: Local name, origin unknown.
Location: A large stream with many tributaries, joining Beaver River about halfway between Beavermouth and Bear Creek Stations on the railway; forms the north-west boundary of the Hermit Range. The source of the flow is in close proximity to the sources of the North Fork of the Illecillewaet River and of Uownie Creek. Two large tributaries have their sources immediately north-east of Caribou Creek, and are separated from its valley by a narrow watershed. Nearly all the summits of the Hermit Range command good views of these valleys and their streams. They are deeply trenched and covered with burnt timber. Several large meadows lie along the main stream. Northward beyond the parent stream, are several fine snow-clad and rock peaks: Mt. Iconoclast, 10,520 feet. Mt. Sorcerer,,11,000 feet, and others. There is no known trail up Mountain Creek or its tributaries. Or, if there be, it is unfit for travel (1911).
The railway bridge across Mountain Creek is of interest. It is a fine steel trestle or viaduct, consisting of 100 feet lattice trusses on steel towers, with 40 feet plate girders over the tops of the towers. Owing to the solid character of the hydraulic fill, the masonry-pedestals are built directly on the dump without resort to piles or artificial foundation of any kind. This modern bridge replaced a trestle structure with a Howe truss over the Creek, which was one of the largest wooden structures in the world.
Nakimu Caves—(See Caves of Cheops.)
Napoleon— Name: With reference to a prominent gendarme resembling the "Little Corporal."
Altitude: 7,737 feet.
Location: The south-east spur of Mt. Cheops. At the north end of the spur is a detached rock which, from the summit of Rogers Pass shows a striking resemblance to profiles of Napoleon.
Route: Reached from the Rogers Pass summit by a straight ascent through bush and brush and up easy rock-ledges. A guide is scarcely necessary.
Time required: 3 hours.
View: From its crest the views of the Rogers Pass Basin are very fine: and especially of the Sir Donald Range, the Illecillewaet Glacier, Mt. Bonney and Loop Brook Amphitheatre, and down the Illecillewaet Valley. (See panorama accompanying Vol. II. "Selkirk Range.") It is easy to reach the summit of Mt. Cheops from the Napoleon spur.
North Fork Illecillewaet River—Name: By Walter Moberly.
On the Asulkan Trail
Mt. Cheops and Napoleon (The Little Corporal)
​to Albert Canyon Village. It Hows in a deep, heavily-timbered valley with precipitous sides. A pass at the head leads to Downie Creek. A waggon-road from Albert Canyon Village crosses the river by a bridge and leads up the valley to its head. Some years ago a lot of mining machinery was taken over it to the Waverly Mine situated on Downie Creek. A large amount of money was spent at this time and on the road, but the machinery has since been taken out and the mine abandoned.
Observation Point—Name: By the C.P.R. Company with reference to the views.
Altitude: 5,750 feet.
Location: A point on the north face of Mt. Abbott, near Marion Lake. At the lake a trail branches leading in a few minutes to the place, about 100 yards off.
View: A glorious view down the Illecillewaet Valley shows the railway at the Loop and miles of winding, shining river; also Mt. Bagheera and Catamount Peak at the head of Cougar Brook. Turning to the north-east the Hermit and Sir Donald Ranges are seen in detail. Below, as on a map. lies Rogers Pass with its long lines of snowsheds protecting the railway at the base of Mt. Ava Janche. Person's unable to climb ought to make this excursion for the sake of the views.
Oliver's Peak (Mt. Oliver)—Name: By the Topographical Survey after E. Oliver Wheeler
Altitude: 8,379 feet.
Location: North of the Incomappleux River and immediately east of Flat Creek Pass. It is easily ascended from Flat Creek Pass in 2 hours.
View: Its summit gives excellent views of Incomappleux Rive; both up and down; and also commands the great south névé of Mt. Bonney. Also there is a very interesting and instructive view of the Dawson. Bishop's and Purity Ranges, showing at full length the glaciers between them, and the confluent glaciers that flow from the peaks of the Purity Range.
Overlook, The—Name: By Prof. ('. K. Fay, with reference to its position in relation to the Illecillewaet Glacier.
Altitude: 7,950 feet.
Location: A rock overlooking the Illecillewaet Glacier; extends southerly between Uto and Eagle Peaks. From it the glacier is seen in minute detail, crevasses, seracs and moraines, though somewhat dwarfed by the height above them.
Route: The Overlook is reached from Glacier House by ascending the east side of the trough of the first watercourse beyond the Cascade, from the Sir Donald trail. It is an arduous ascent but not technically difficult.
Time required: 3 or 4 hours. Except for novices a guide is not necessary.
Pearce Mt.—Name: By the Topographical Survey, after William Pearce, for many years connected with the Topographical surveys of Canada.
Altitude: 9,419 feet.
Location: On the west side of the Beaver River Valley, between Alder and Six Mile Creeks.
​Route: Reached by travelling some 5 miles up Alder Creek to the base of the mountain. There is no known trail up Alder Creek and the route would be arduous owing to thick brush and fallen limber. The views would probably be worth while.
Perley Rock—Name: By W. S. Green after H. A. Perley, the proprietor of Glacier House at the time of Mr. Green's expedition in the Selkirks.
Altitude: 7.873 feet.
Location: A prominent rock rising at the upper eastern edge of the ice-fall of the Illecillewaet Glacier.
First Ascent: By W. S. Green and the Rev. H. Swanzy in 1888. Perley Rock is separated from the mountain side by a tongue of glacier and may be termed a nunatak. There is a fairly level plateau on the top where Messers. Green and Swanzy placed a camp at The time of their first ascent to the Illecillewaet Névé.
Route: Reached from Glacier House by trail to Illecillewaet Glacier and ascent of rocks on the east side of the ice-fall.
Time required: 3 hours. Novices require a guide.
Pollux Peak—Name: By Messrs. Abbott, Fay and Thompson, with reference to Castor and Pollux of heathen mythology.
Altitude: 9.176 feet.
Location: The central and highest peak of Mt. Jove: on the west side of the Asulkan Glacier.
First Ascent: By Messrs. Dixon, Michael, Fay, Noyes and Van Derlip with guide Peter Sarbach.
Route: Reached from Glacier most readily from the Asulkan Pass, from which it is an easy ascent of rock and snow. (For route, time and views, see under Castor and Leda.) A fine view of the symmetrical snow-clad Mt. Purity may be obtained from its summit.
Time required: The summit of Pollux can be reached within the hour by following the arête from either Castor or Leda.
Prairie Hills—Name: Local name with reference to their grass-covered summits.
Altitude: A low range of hills, about 8,000 feet.
Location: They rise along the east side of the Beaver River Valley north of Grizzly Creek. On the Beaver Valley side they have for the most part been swept by fire and are now covered with fallen timber. Eastward they gradually merge into the greater elevation of the Dogtooth Range.
Purity Range—Name: By Topographical Survey, with reference to Mt. Purity.
Altitude: Highest peak. Mt. Wheeler. 11.023 feet.
Location: Extending east from Mt. Purity to Mt. Wheeler and south to Grand Mt. There are five peaks in the Range: Purity, 10.457 feet: an unnamed peak. 10.000 feet: Kilpatrick, 10.624 feet; Wheeler. 11,023 feet: Grand .Mt.. 10.832 feet. It is the most picturesquely arctic range of the Selkirks owing to the wild confusion of crevassed and broken ice-falls that radiate from it in every direction, and the great masses of snow lying along its crests. Twenty-five glaciers, including some of rare interest and beauty, Have their sources along this range. (For routes, times, views, etc., under Mt. Purity. Mt. Kilpatrick, Mt. Wheeler and Grand Mt.).
Mt. Purity from Donkin Pass
Battle Glaciers showing two Medial Moraines
​Purity Mountain—Name: By H. W. Topham who saw it from the Donkin Pass, a pure white cone shrouded in snow from base to summit.
Altitude: 10,457 feet.
Location: Most westerly peak of the Purity Range, situated between the headwaters of Van Horne Brook and Battle Creek.
First Ascent: By Messrs. Huber, Topham and Forster in 1890.
Route: Reached from Glacier House via the Asulkan trail and Pass. Geikie Glacier, Dawson Moraine, Donkin Glacier and Pass to a camp on Mitre Creek a short distance below Bishop's Glacier. The route from this rendezvous: cross the end of Bishop's Range to the stream from Black Glacier; then ascend to the most westerly glacier from Mt. Purity, follow its edge and ascend the steep snow-slopes to the summit.
Time required: From camp and return, a full day: from Glacier House. 3 days with 2 nights on Mitre Creek. The climb is chiefly ice and snow. Unless experienced in climbing, a guide is necessary.
View: Mt. Purity is a prominent and very attractive peak, isolated, pure white and shapely, rising out of snow fields as white. It is the pivotal peak of the vicinity and is surrounded on all sides by névés, no less than six glaciers radiating from it, the principal being Van Horne, Purity and the western Battle Glacier. Owing to its isolated position, the views are many and varied and magnificent, including such prospects as the amphitheatre of the Battle Glaciers, the Van Horne Névé and Glacier, Mt. McBean; and, across the Bishop's Range, the snowy heights of Mt. Bonney and the many glaciers flowing from its southern face. On every side there is a wilderness of snow and ice above the rich green forests of the valleys.
Purity Glacier and Pass—Name: In relation to Mt. Puritv.
Altitude: 6.800—9,200 feet at summit of the Pass.
Location: The glacier lies north and the pass north-east of the peak.
Route: The ascent is made from the valley of the stream flowing from Black Glacier by the moraine of the glacier lying east of the great north-west shoulder of the mountain. The pass is of snow and leads to the head of the western Battle Glacier.
Time required: 4 hours from a camp on Mitre Creek to the summit of the pass.
Rampart, The—Name: By Messrs. Abbott, Fay and Thompson with reference to its great rock-escarpment, rising sheer above the Asulkan Vallev.
Altitude: 8,476 feet.
Location: It constitutes part of the western wall of the Asulkan Valley between Mt. Afton and the Dome.
First Ascent: By Messrs. Abbott, Fay and Thompson in 1895.
Route: Reached from Glacier House by Mt. Abbott trail, the Abbott Ridge, and a traverse along the north and west slopes of Mt. Afton, rising gradually to the summit of the peak.
Time required: 4 hours. Novices require a guide.
View: From the snow col between the highest point of Mt. Abbott and Mt. Afton there is a fine view of the Rampart. Prof. Fay says of it: "From where we sat, the black unassailable precipices of that portion of the ridge resembled in form and shape ​the face of a gigantic breastwork, a mighty rampart over whostlop towered the tent-like .summit of Mt. Swanzy."
Rogers Hut—Name: In relation to Mt. Rogers.
Altitude: Near timber-line on the slopes below Rogers Glacier. The hut was built by the C.P.R. Company for the accommodation of persons making the ascents of Mt. Rogers, Hermit, Tupper and Sifton. By sleeping here an early start is possible and insures good going on the snows of Swiss Névé and Rogers Glacier. It is a mere shack primitive in the extreme, out of repair and very uncomfortable; the roof leaks and mountain rats (pack rat, bush-tailed rat) are very much in evidence. On fine nights, the climber is more comfort able outside.
Route: The hut is reached by a trail along the north side of Bear Creek. It is customary, however, to follow up the bed of the railway. A mile easterly from the station, the path begins t<' ascend and zigzags up the mountain side. Although very steep in places, ponies may be taken up.
View: The hut is set on a prominent place commanding a splendid view of the pass beneath and of the upper valley of the Illecillewaet; also, of the Sir Donald Range and Glacier, Mt. Bonney and the Bonny Amphitheatre. On the alps between timber-line and the glacier, alpine flowers follow each other in gay profusion according to their season. It is of such high, remote and rugged gardens—gardens of wild grandeur, that Victor Hugo was thinking when he said: "These huge old gloomy mountains are marvellous growers of delicate flowers; they avail themselves of the dawn and the dew better than all your meadows and hillocks can do it."
Rogers Mt.—Name: By Carl Sulzer. after Major Rogers, the discoverer of Rogers Pass.
Altitude: 10,536 feet.
Location: The highest massif of the Hermit Range, situated directly north of Rogers Pass summit, and consists of the following peaks, enumerated from west to east: Rogers Peak, 10.536 feet; Grant Peak. 10.216 feet; Fleming Peak, 10,370 feet; Swiss Peak. 10,515 feet, and Truda Peaks, 10,216 feet. Mt. Rogers is a fine snow and-rock mass of much serrated appearance. Seven glaciers radiate from it like the spokes of a wheel. It dominates Rogers Pass on the north side and is in full view from Glacier House, 8 miles away, where its glaciers and snowfields show picturesquely above the steep basal slopes covered by dark green forest.
Rogers Glacier—Name: In relation to Mt. Rogers, whence it flows.
Altitude: 7,200—8,800 feet.
Location: Immediately west of and below Rogers Peak; and occupies a central position in an amphitheatre of which Mts. Tupper and Grizzly are the outlying peaks, and Mts. Sifton, Rogers and Hermit the intermediate ones. There are three fairly good-sized glaciers and a small one tributary to the basin. It is evident that at one time they were united and filled the whole of it, flowing over the crest and down the slopes to the bed of Bear Creek. The old moraines at a considerable distance from the present forefeet of the glaciers and the rounded, ice-worn condition of the rocks furnish simple proof. The amphitheatre is of extreme interest owing ​to the abundant traces of glacial action that have been left The floor is ribbed by rock-ridges with deep grooves between them, scooped out by the ice of prehistoric glaciers. The sides of the grooves scored and polished in the direction of the flow, are very marked examples of glacial striation.
Route: Reached from Rogers hut over the alps in half an hour. Novices travelling on it require a guide.
Rogers Pass—Name: After Major Rogers, the discoverer.
Altitude of summit: 4,351 feet (rail level).
Location: Between Mts. Macdonald and Avalanche on the south and east, and Mts. Tupper and Cheops on the north and west, and traversed by the Canadian Pacific Railway.
First Ascent: By Major Rogers and party in 1881. The pass properly speaking, extends from the junction of Bear Creek and Beaver River to the Loop. For the largest part of this distance the railway line is protected by snow-sheds against avalanches. There are some 6 miles of snow-sheds on about 10 miles of track. East of the summit of the pass the gorge is narrow and the mountains tower a full mile on either side; west of it the valley broadens, but this is the most dangerous part owing to the many avalanches that sweep down the steep west slopes of Sit. Avalanche. A pony trail traverses the pass from Glacier House to Rogers Pass Station, and from the station to near the old tank, where it turns sharply and ascends to Rogers hut. The trail makes a delightful ride or walk, lying partly through beautiful forest and partly in the open. The views on all sides are superb. (For narrative of the discovery of the pass, see Historical Sketch.)
Rogers Pass Station—Name: By C.P.R. Company in relation to Rogers Pass.
Altitude: 4.300 feet (rail level).
Location: Half a mile east of Rogers Pass summit and 4 miles from Glacier House. There is a small railway village here, comprising besides the station a store, a small hotel, the houses of a few railway employees, and a "round house," where the heavy engines—the pushers—used to shove the trains up the steep grades to the sum mit are kept. At one time Rogers Pass Station was situated a mile further east, where the old tank now stands, but an avalanche came down the steep slopes of Mt. Tupper and swept it out of existence. When rebuilt it was placed at its present site, out of danger.
Rogers Peak—Name: In relation to Mt. Rogers of which it is the highest peak.
Altitude: 10,536 feet.
Location: Most westerly peak of Mt. Rogers.
First Ascent: By Messrs. Abbott, Thompson, and Little in 1896.
First Ascent by a lady: Gertrude E. Benham in 1904.
Route: Reached from Glacier House by trail from Rogers Pass Station to Rogers hut near timber-line on the slope below Rogers Glacier. The ascent from the hut is via Rogers Glacier and the southeast arête of the peak.
Climb: ice, rock and snow.
Time required: From the hut 5 hours; from Glacier 8 hours. It is usual and better to spend the night at the hut in order to get ​
| Swiss Guides in A. C. C. Camp | Climbing from Rogers Pass Camp |
​an early start and so secure good travelling on the snow. For those unskilled in mountain climbing a guide is necessary.
View: From the summit the views are wonderful. In every direction there meets you an ocean of rock and snow; an endless maze of valleys with glittering streams winding through. Immediately below is Rogers Pass, its southern slopes green in forest and meadow, and with its mark of humanity in Rogers Station and Village, that mark which is a part of Swiss mountain landscape, but almost never of the Selkirks. Nearby rises Sir Donald's sharp grey peak; and yonder is the Illecillewaet Glacier and the green Asulkan Valley leading to its own white Glacier; and farther yet the Dawson Range uplifts its splendid, snowy mountains. To the south, Mt. Bonney and its glaciers are clear in a bird's-eye view; west are the nearer crests of the Hermit Range; and north, the wooded valleys of Mountain Creek and its tributaries, and beyond them in clear summer weather, appear the great masses of Mts. Sorcerer and Iconoclast, and the snowy heights of Mt. Sir Sandford beckoning and challenging for conquest. Eastward, the Beaver Valley glances: and far off in a chaos of peaks the knowing climber hails Mts. Columbia, Bryce, Lyall. and Forbes, giants of the Rockies. In describing the sights seen from high altitudes, a vocabulary is wanting. The familiar words convey so little to those who have never gazed in wonder upon the splendours of immense and multiform mountain scenes reaching to the eye's utmost ken including forest and stream, valley and ravine, passes and peaks, glaciers and snowfields. It is because Mt. Rogers commands such superb sights of valleys that the whole immensity of view is so grandly varied.
To all beginners in the sublime and noble sport of mountaineering, the climb of Mt. Rogers is recommended. Of the first ascent Professor Little writes: '"Three hours of such clambering brought us to the summit . . . The sense of fatigue disappeared with the sight that greeted us. We had crossed the rock-rib that joins Rogers Peak to Swiss Peak and justifies Herr Sulzers use of Mt. Rogers as an inclusive term, and were now standing on the snow that covers the crest of the mountain like a thick fold of flesh. Mr. Abbott called me to its northern edge, saying: 'Look down and see what I have never seen before in Europe and America.' The sight was a fall of snow at least fifteen hundred feet in height that seemed perpendicular, as we cautiously peered over. From its base a glacier swept away over an ice-fall, marked by huge irregular seracs, into the valley beyond. To us, toiling for hours over blackened rocks, this sudden transformation of the peak into pure untrodden snow, rising from a foundation of glistening ice, was as startling as it was beautiful." (See Wheeler's "Selkirk Range" page 308-310.)
Ross Peak—Name: After James Ross, in charge of railway construction for the C.P.R. Company.
Altitude: 7,718 feet.
Location: On the west side of Loop Brook at its junction with the Illecillewaet River, 3 miles from Glacier House as the crow flies. First Ascent: By Messrs. C. S. Thompson and G. T. Little in 1896. It is a low peak showing some very interesting views. particularly of the Bonney Amphitheatre at close range. From it you look across the Illecillewaet River directly up the Cougar Brook ​Valley, and can see Goat Falls close by the Caves of Cheops, the falls which drop into a hole in the ground and join the subterranean flow of Cougar Creek. Eoss Peak gives too an excellent view of Rogers Pass as far as the village, and of the Loop which is immediately below.
Route: Reached from Glacier House by following the railway track to the end of the Loop and then ascending. Climb: rock. Time required: 6 hours. Novices require a guide. The two cen tral peaks of the ridge between Ross Peak and Mt. Green are, as far as known, still unclimbed.
Ross Peak Station—Name: By C.P.R. Company, in relation to Ross Peak.
Altitude: 4,300 feet (rail level).
Location: A siding on the railway, miles west of Glacier House and between Cougar Mt. and Mt. Green.
Sandwich Islands—Name: From their use as a stopping place for luncheon, when ascending the Illecillewaet Glacier on the Sir Donald side.
Location: Rocks rising from the Glacier immediately west of Perley Rock.
Sapphire Col—Name: By Prof. C. E. Fay.
Altitude: 8,488 feet.
Location: The snow pass between Castor and The Dome. Exact ly at the crest of the col is a pool of water, clear as crystal, lying in a hollow of the snow. From the summit of Castor it shows in the sunlight a deep transparent blue and sparkles like a sapphire on a bed of soft white velvet.
First Ascent: By Messrs. Abbott, Fay and Thompson, in 1895.
Route: Reached from Glacier by the pony trail to Mt. Abbott, starting directly behind the hotel; then via Mt. Abbott Ridge, the north side of Mt. Afton and a traverse of the west slopes of the rampart and The Dome to the crest of the pass.
Time required: 5 hours. A return may be made by descending the Asulkan Glacier and taking the Asulkan trail, requiring 4 hours: for complete expedition, 9 hours. Either route may be taken to reach the col. It is an expedition providing a variety of mountaineering work with splendid views, and ought to become a popular one. Unless skilled climbers, a guide is necessary.
Selwyn Mt.—Name: First named Mt. Deville by W. S. Green after Dr. E. Deville, Surveyor General of Dominion Lands. As a moun tain in the Van Horne Range has also been called Mt. Deville, thw name was changed to Selwyn, after the late Dr. Selwyn, Director of the Geological Survey of Canada.
Altitude: 11,013 feet.
Location: The most easterly peak of the Dawson Range, rising: directly above Déville Glacier.
First Ascent: By Messrs. Topham and Forster in 1890.
First Ascent by a lady: Gertrude E. Benham in 1904.
Route: Reached from Glacier House via Asulkan Pass, Geikie Glacier, the right moraine of Dawson Glacier, and the east head-wall of the Dawson Amphitheatre. On reaching the crest of the headwall of the Dawson Amphitheatre, the snow-ridge to the south is ascended to the summit of the shale-topped elevation midway between ​Selwyn and Hasler Peak of Alt. Dawson; thence, a descent across a short, sharp snow arête where the rope should be used, leads to the foot of the peak of Selwyn at its south-west base: finally a scramble up the southern slopes will bring the climber with little difficulty to the summit.
Time required: Two days, with camp one night at the foot of the moraine. The second day will be a long hard one. It can be done more comfortably in three days, with two nights out. The camp outfit must be carried on the shoulders. For inexperiencd climbers one guide is necessary.
View: Southward there is a fine view of the Déville Névés full length and of the snow peaks along its western side, and, close at hand, of the Bishop's Range and Glacier; eastward, the summit commands the country beyond Beaver River; north-westward, the snowfields and glaciers surrounding Mt. Bonney.
Sifton Mt.—Name: By the Topographical Survey, after the lion. Clifford Sifton, at the time when he was ^Minister of the Interior.
Altitude: 9,643 feet.
Location: A peak of the Hermit Range between Mts. Rogers and Grizzly, situated at the western extremity of the Rogers Amphitheatre.
First Ascent by a Lady: Gertrude E. Benliam in 1904.
Route: From Rogers hut ascend the alps and cross the glacier. From the ice, the route lies up the long arete which leads straight to the summit.
Time required: From the hut, 4 hours; from Glacier House, 7 hours; but it is more convenient to spend the night at the hut or on the mountain side in order to get an early start and good travelling on the snow.
View: Views of the Rogers Pass Basin, the Asulkan Basin, and the Sir Donald Range are very fine; westward, the upper parts of the Valleys of Bear Creek and Cougar Brook are clearly seen; and northward, the valleys of Mountain Creek and its tributaries and the Sir Sandford series of mountains lying beyond.
Sir Donald—Name: By order in Council, after Sir Donald A. Smith, now Lord Strathcona and Mount Royal, for years Canada's High Commissioner to England. Originally named Syndicate Peak by Major Rogers.
Altitude: 10,808 feet.
Location: Highest and most southerly peak of the Sir Donald Range; 2½ miles directly east of Glacier House.
First Ascent by south-west face and south-east arête: By Messrs. Huber and Sulzer of the Swiss Alpine Club, in 1890.
First ascent by southwest and southeast arêtes: By F. Leprince Ringuet and H. Cordes, with guides Christian Hasler and Edouard Feuz, Sr., in 1899.
First Ascent by a lady: Evelyn Berens and her husband, with guides Karl Schluneggcr and Charles Clarke, in 1901, by south-west face and south-east arête.
First Ascent by north-west arête: By E. Tewes, with guides Edouard Feuz., Sr., and Christian Bohren, in 1903.
Routes: There are three distinct routes to the top of this mountain, the most interesting and difficult peak contiguous to Glacier ​House. (1) Take the trail to the Illecillewaet Glacier and turn up the branch trail near the terminal moraine leading along the torrent from Vaux Glacier to the foot of the left lateral moraine; follow this moraine and glacier to the foot of the south-west wall which ascend to the south-east arête that leads to the summit.
Time required: 7 hours.
(2) Instead of taking the branch trail, continue to the foot of the Illecillewaet Glacier; ascend the right lateral moraine and rock along the north edge of the icefall to Perley Rock; now follow the névé north-easterly to the south-west wall, whence the ascent is as in route (1).
Time required: The Leprince Ringuet party occupied 12 hours. (3) Take the Illecillewaet Glacier trail to the watercourse below the Overlook, follow to the rear oi the Overlook, cross the snow-field to the col, and ascend by the north-west arete.
Time required: The Tewes party occupied 11 hours and 40 minutes.
Climb: Mt. Sir Donald is the most popular ascent from Glacier House and furnishes a splendid rock climb, varied in each route by ice and snow over the initial stages. While the north-west arête is the most difficult route, that by the Vaux Glacier was, until lately, the most interesting owing to a shallow couloir subject to volleys of falling stones, that had to be crossed willy-nilly. It can now be avoided by taking a rather difficult but not dangerous chimney discovered in 1909. The Leprince Ringuet route offers a distinctly diflBcult and dangerous piece of work where the south-west and southeast arêtes meet in the east corner of the cirque of the Vaux Glacier. This route has only once been attempted successfully, and unless very skilful in mountain work, two guides are necessary. On the northwest arête also two guides are required. On the stock route by the Vaux Glacier and south-west face, one guide to each novice is necessary. The mountain is subject to climatic conditions, and electric storms occur frequently. In short, it is a rendezvous for all the storms of its vicinity. Climbers may experience thrilling sensations when the rocks begin to buzz and the ice-axes to hum with electricity. The bergschrund at the base of the south-west wall is a variable quantity, during some seasons being a simple proposition and at others a very difficult and well nigh unsurmountable one. Notwithstanding, several ascents are made every year, often by novices; and, since the conquest in 1890, Sir Donald has been climbed fifty or sixty times, an appreciable number of climbers being ladies. (1911).
View: From its height and isolated position, the peak of Sir Donald commands extensive and superb views in every direction, indeed to ascend Sir Donald is only to "taste blood," so many glaciers and snowy ranges of the Selkirks are spread out before the climber. On the other hand, looking from Glacier House the mountain itself is a superb sight. It is stupendous in its influence, dominating the visitor. Wherever you wander through the thick woods or in the open places about the hotel, you are aware of the mountain's presence. On clear and sunny days, its sharp, grey pyramid pierces the soft azure sky, the azure showing deeper against the grey: high up on the face of its shoulder is packed the glacier whose thick wall shows icy-clear and vertical, while its lower left shoulder is clad with rich ​
| Miss Canada and Swiss Guide crossing the Couloir on Sir Donald | Menotah Falls, Asulkan Valley |
​green conifers. But it is under the cloud-balancings that Sir Donald is wonderful to watch. On a sunny morning early, you may look out towards the mountain and there, hanging over its head but not touching it, is a white cloud firm as some firm snowy texture and shaped like a monk's cowl with a cloak .spread solidly out in the blue. You may see it stay there for an hour or more with slow movements on its farther edge, poised like a bird over its nest, or, to change the simile, like a white, white arch in pure cerulean blue. You may spend a week of fine weather at Glacier House, and every morning watch the thin mist which gathers in the narrow valley at night lift in drift of thinnest violet-grey cloud and play idly about the close green forest spires and creep upward over rock to vanish under the sun's morning rays in the upper heights.
Sir Donald Glacier—Name: In relation to Mt. Sir Donald.
Altitude: 5.500—8,000 feet.
Location: Directly below the south-east arête on the Beaver slope. It flows between Terminal Peak and the Peak of Mt. Sir Donald and drains to the Beaver River, and is not to be confounded with the Vaux Glacier seen from the Hotel.
Sir Sandford, Mt.—Name: By the Topographical Survey after Sir Sandford Fleming, K.C.M.G., Hon. President, Alpine Club of Canada.
Altitude: 11,634 feet.
Location: A little west of north of Rogers Peak and 27 miles distant from it.
The first ascent has yet to be made (1911). Several attempts are on record and several partial ascents. In 1908 Messrs. Comstock and Palmer with Manuel Dainard, a local guide of Golden, all members of the A.C.C., made the first attempt, only reaching an altitude of t),500 feet at timber-line. The next year they returned to the attack, the party re-inforced by Prof. H. C. Parker also of the A.C.C., again failing. In 1910, Mr. Palmer, accompanied by Professors Holway and Butters, were again on the mountain and made some progress in its exploration, but failed of the summit. The same year the Rev. A. M. Gordon and Messrs. J. P. Forde and P. D. McTavish, all of the A.C.C., went in from Six Mile Creek via Sunbeam Lake; but owing to floods and disaster, they did not get to the base of the mountain. However, the reconnoitring and climbing done during these three seasons have added to a knowledge of the mountain and of the weather in its region. No doubt the giant so long defiant will fall beneath the tread of the mountaineers who have renewed the attack year by year.
Route: There are two routes to Mt. Sir Sandford.
(1) Starting from Six Mile Creek Station, twenty miles by railway east of Glacier House: ascend the ridge to the north and follow the "Esplanade" to the pass leading to Sunbeam Lake; then descend Spinster Creek to Gold Creek which flows below the mountain on the south side. (2) From Beavermouth: descend the Columbia River by canoe or boat to the mouth of Gold Stream and follow its valley to the base of the mountain. From Sunbeam Lake on the first route and from the mouth of Gold Stream on the second, all supplies and camp outfit must be carried on the shoulders.
Time required: Everything depends upon the weather, but a ​week or 10 days is required. Thick forest, tropical undergrowth and fallen trees impede travel and make the expedition an arduous one. Mt. Sir Sandford is a huge dome-shaped mass covered with snow. The ascent is not practicable from the south or east, therefore it is necessary either to cross its eastern outlying spur or to work up Novelist Creek, a tributary to Gold Stream.
Six-Mile Creek and Station—Name: Local, owing to its being crossed by the railway about 6 miles from Beavermouth.
Location: A siding on the C.P.R. Two large branches flow from the north-west in deep-cut, heavily forested valleys and unite about a mile from the junction with the Beaver River. At this point a primitive station has been built by the Railway Company and used only by watchmen and labourers on the track.
Slick Creek—Name: By E. B. Hermon, a surveyor, in 1898.
Location: Joins the Ineomappleux River (Fish Creek) from the north-west, immediately south of Flat Creek Pass. The pony-trail over Flat Creek Pass follows along its side to Jeopardy Slide.
Smart Mt.— Name: By the Topographical Survey, after James Smart. Deputy Minister of the Department of the Interior at the time the section in which it is located was surveyed.
Altitude: 9.517 feet.
Location: South of the railway, directly west of Mt. Bonney; a fine sharp-pointed peak rising from the midst of Interesting snowfields and glaciers. There is no record of an ascent, though it offers an interesting climb.
Route: (1) Reached most easily from the crossing of Flat Creek by the railway. From this point ascend the slopes on the east side to the shoulder of the ridge and follow the arête to the summit.
(2) Another route is via the Lily Col, Mt. Swanzy, Clarke's Peak and a traverse of the south arete of ^It. Bonney; then across Bonney Xeve to the Peak. This, however, would make a very full day and necessitate a night on the Flat Creek Ridge. A guide is necessary as the routes given are tentative.
Stony Creek—Name: Local, origin unknown.
Location: Flows from a glacier directly below the south arSte of Mt. Shaughnessy on the east side. The glacier lies directly north of Hermit Glacier from which it is separated by a high rock spur. Stony Creek joins the Beaver River 2 miles north of Bear Creek Station. It flows in a deep wild gorge spanned at the railway crossing by a gossamer bridge. This is the most remarkable bridge on the section, a steel-arch truss, having a span of 336 feet and a rise from the abutments of 120 feet. The height from the stream to base of rail is 296 feet. It was built in 1893 and replaced the highest wooden structure of its kind in the world at the time.
Stony Mountain—Name: The original name of Mt. Hermit (see under Mt. Hermit).
Sugar Loaf, Mt.—Name: By Messrs. Huber, Topham and Foster, with reference to its appearance.
Altitude: 10.7.32 feet.
Location: Between Beaver River and Battle Creek, immediately south of Grand Glaciers.
First Ascent: By Messrs. Huber, Topham and Forster in 1890.
Route: (1) From Glacier House take the trail to Bear Creek ​Station; then the Beaver River trail as far as the stream flowing from Grand Glaciers; follow this stream to their forefoot, and so up to the mountain top. The ascent is entirely on ice and snow.
Time required: 4 or 5 days, going time; for the round expedition 8 or 10 days. The camp outfit is carried by ponies—locally, a "pack train."
Route: (2) Take the Asulkan trail and Pass, the Dawson Moraine, Donkin Glacier and Pass, camping the first night in Mitre Creek Valley; the second day, cross the west end of Bishop's Range; the third day ascend the mountain from the west.
Time required: 3 days and 2 nights, going time; for the round trip, 5 days of fine weather. But always in the Selkirks the climber must provide for variable weather. By this route the camp outfit must be carried on the shoulders. For novices more than one Swiss guide is advised.
View: From the summit the views are of snowfields and glaciers cleft by deep-cut valleys filled with ice. Down their steep sides confluent glaciers tumble in wild confusion. Conspicuous among them and very striking are the Grand Glaciers, notably the northern one very much broken and crevassed, showing wonderful'séracs and ice-falls.
Mt. Sugar Loaf itself presents an impressively beautiful view at close range. Except the south-west face, almost the entire massif is covered with snow. The mass of the mountain rises from the most southerly of the Grand Glaciers, in huge mounds and terrace^ of snow. Like Mt. Purity, it is literally entitled to be called a white mountain, a mountain of driven snow.
Sunbeam Lake—Name: By P. A. Carson, a surveyor of the Department of the Interior. A picturesque tarn on whose margin climbing parties may bivouac en route to Mt. Sir Sandford, noted above. Ponies can travel this far, going in from Six Mile Creek.
Surprise Creek—Name: By the C.P.R. Railway engineers. At this point a splendid view of Mt. Sir Donald, apparently blocking the Valley of the Beaver, suddenly greets and suprises the traveller. Location: Flows to Beaver River between Cedar Creek and Stony Creek; crossed by the railway 3½ miles northerly from Bear Creek Station; heads in an amphitheatre on the north-east flank of Mt. Shaughnessy.
Leaving Cedar Creek, travellers going west ought to keep one eye on the time table and another on the rapidly moving landscape, watching for that sudden first fine view of the Selkirk glaciers close above the Selkirk forests. The train, so obliging at other points of interest, might well pause here for a few moments or slacken its speed.
Swanzy, Mt.—Name: By Messrs. Abbott, Fay and Thompson, after the Rev. Henry Swanzy. W. S. Green's companion in the Selkirks on his expedition of 1888.
Altitude: 9,562 feet.
Location: The most easterly peak of the Bonney amphitheatre, at the head of Loop Brook, between Mt. Bonney and the Dome.
First Ascent: By A. Michel and Sidney Spenser.
​Route: Reached from Glacier by the Mt. Abbott trail, Abbott Ridge, the north slopes of Mt. Afton and the Lily Col.
Time required: 5 hours. Unless skilled in mountaineering, a guide is necessary.
Climb: Rock, ice and snow. Magnificent views to north-east and south. From the summit of Mt. Swanzy the ascent of Mt. Bonney is simple. Follow the ridge, traversing the south side of Clarke Peak.
Swanzy Glacier—Name: By Messrs. Abbott, Fay and Thompson, in relation to Mt. Swanzv.
Altitude: 6,000—8,200 feet.
Location: On the south side of Lily Col; between Castor, Pollux and Leda on the north-east and the south spur of Mt. Swanzy on the west, and drains to Geikie Creek.
Swiss Peak—Name: Bv Carl Sulzcr of Switzerland.
Altitude: 10.515 feet.
Location: The central sharp peak of Mt. Rogers.
First Ascent: By Carl Sulzer in 1890.
First Ascent by a lady: Gertrude E. Benham in 1904.
Route: From Rogers hut traverse the alps to the forefoot of Swiss Glacier: ascend either the glacier or its south-east moraine; traverse the Swiss Névé to the foot of the peak and climb by the east snow-couloir and east arête.
Time required: From the hut 4½ hours: from Glacier House, 7 hours. But climbers are advised to spend the night at the hut, not necessarily in it. and secure good travelling on the snow before the sun touches it.
Climb: Alps, moraine, snow and rock. The snow-couloir is a troublesome bit owing to iced rocks, but much of it may be avoided by keeping to the rock along the sides. Unless skilled in mountaineering, a guide is necessary. The climb is one of the most desirable in the district and will well repay the effort.
View: Practically the same as from Rogers Peak. (See Rogers Peak.) Herr Sulzer says: 'The day was perfectly clear. As far as the eye could see were innumerable mountain peaks all around. In the southern foreground the ice-girdled central mass of the Selkirks with its northern marking stone, the bold and fascinating Sir Donald, appeared especially beautiful. In the east, beyond the lower Selkirk Peaks, the long row of haughty Rockies lay spread in partly rounded and broken shapes—a scene I shall never forget. Sharply outlined, dark rock masses interchanged with lofty snowtops, all showed clearly and glistened in the farthest distance, where fading, their faint outlines were lost in the horizon. The northern groups showed some particularly high peaks and immense snow and ice-fields. Stately mountain-chains in the west completed the scope."
Swiss Glacier and Névé—Name: By the Topographical Survey in relation to Swiss Peak.
Altitude: 7,000—9,900 feet.
Location: Below Rogers and Swiss Peaks on the south side.
First Ascent: By Carl Sulzer in 1890. The Glacier is drained by a wild and picturesque torrent breaking into falls and cascades ​and joining Bear Creek aVx.ut a mile north-east of Rogers Pass Station.
Terminal Peak—Name: By the Topographical Survey.
Altitude: 9,773 feet.
Location: Most southerly point of the Sir Donald massif; at the north-east corner of the Illecillewaet Névé.
Route: Reached from Glacier House by trail to Illecillewaet Glacier; then the rocks on the north side of the ice to Perley Rock; a traverse of the neve to the foot of the peak and ascent of the final pitch.
Climb: Rock, snow and ice.
First Ascent: By W. S. Green and Rev. H. Swanzy in 1888 For novices a guide is necessary.
Time required: 4 hours.
View: It commands fine views of the Illecillewaet Névé, the east side of the Asulkan Valley, the Dawson Range, and Beaver Valley both up and down; also of Bald Mountain, Prairie Hills, and the Dogtooth Mountains. Directly below to the north-east is the Sir Donald Glacier which is not to be confused with Vaux Glacier on the other side.
Tomatin Peak—Name: By the Topographical Survey, after Tomatin, a village on the Findhorn River, Scotland.
Altitude: 9,44,5 feet.
Location: North-west Peak of Mt. McBean; between Incomappleux River and Van Horne Brook.
No ascent has yet been recorded (1911). (For route, views, etc., see Mt. McBean.)
Topham, Mt.—Name: By the Topographical Survey, after Harold W. Topham. who explored in the Selkirks with Messrs. Huber. Sulzer and Forster in 1890.
Altitude: 9,478 feet.
Location: On the west side of Beaver Valley, directly south of Mt. Macoun. and east of Mt. Selwyn; the Deville Glacier flows be tween.
First A.scent: There is no record of an ascent (1911).
Route: From Glacier House there are three routes, viz: (1) By Asulkan Pass, Donkin Pass, Bishop's Glacier and Deville Névé. (2) By Bear Creek, Beaver River trail. Glacier Circle and D6ville Glacier. (3) This is the most direct and practicable route: Ascend the Illecillewaet Glacier and traverse the full length of its n6ve; descend to Glacier Circle and camp for the night; the next day ascend the peak via the Deville Glacier and spend the second night in camp at Glacier Circle, returning to Glacier House the third day.
Time required: For the all-round trip 3 tine days. All supplies must be carried on the shoulders.
Climb: Rock, snow, and ice. Unless an expert mountaineer, a guide is necessary.
The opening between Mts. Macoun and Topham forms the portal to Glacier Circle. Mt. Topham is a low-lying, elongated rock-mass, closely resembling Mt. Macoun. At one time the two mountains were joined, but the Deville Glacier in the course of its flow towards Glacier Circle, forced a passage-way between the two peaks, thus ​cutting through the mass of rock. Mr. Tophain was the first on record to visit Glacier Circle and to camp on its meadow.
View: The views from Mt. Topham are excellent of the Beaver Valley, both up and down; of the Déville Névé, of the Purity, Bishop's and Dawson Ranges; and of Mts. Sugar Loaf, Beaver and Dimcan.
Truda Peaks—Name: By the Topographical Survey, in recognition of the first ascent by a lady of Rogers, Grant, Fleming and Swiss Peaks—Gertrude E. Benhara.
Altitude: 10,216 feet.
Location: Three sharp peaks forming the eastern extremity of the Mt. Rogers massif. There is no record of any ascent (1911). When climbing Swiss Peak, Ilerr Sulzer traversed the south face of Truda Peaks below the summit.
Route: Reached from Glacier House by the route to Swiss Peak as far as the col between it and Truda Peaks, when you turn to the right.
Time required: From Rogers hut, 4 hours would bring you to the summit; from Glacier House, 7 hours. Just as for the neighbouring peaks, the advice is to bivouac at the hut or near by, and get an early start with good travelling on the Swiss Névé.
Climb: Snow and rock; an interesting and satisfactory expedition, not too difficult. For novices or unskilful climbers, a guide is necessary.
View: The views are the same as from Swiss and Rogers Peaks. (See Rogers Peak.)
Tupper, Mt.—Name: Formerly Mt. Hermit with reference to a gendarme on its west arête bearing a striking resemblance to a hermit with a dog at his feet. By Order in Council the name was changed to Mt. Tupper in honour of Sir Charles Tupper, one of the fathers of Confederation.
Altitude: 9,229 feet.
Location: On the north side of Rogers Pass directly opposite Mt. Macdonald.
First Ascent: By Wolfgang Koehler, with guides Edouard Feuz, Jr., and Gottfried Feuz, in 1906.
Second ascent and first by a lady: Jean Parker, with H. H. Worsfold and guides Edouard Feuz, Sr. and Jr., in 1908.
Route: From Rogers hut by the alps, the left moraine of Swiss Glacier, the west arête and south face of the mountain.
Climb: Mostly a good stiff rock climb, including a troublesome chimney, but the rock is unusually firm. Unless skilled in mountaineering, a guide is necessary.
Time required: From the hut, 4 or 5 hours; from Glacier House some 7 hours.
E. O. Wheeler, R.E.
​the weather was warm and doubtful; and I decided to be down the mountain before the storm came. At 3.25 I left my bivouac in the twilight and started off under the snout of the glacier and up the scree and snow-slopes, reaching the ridge joining Mts. Rogers and Tuppcr, at 4.15. I followed the ridge, keeping as much as possible to the snow, which was in good condition, until nearly at the gap south of the Hermit when 1 took to the rocks for good. Passing the gap, I swung out to the right below the Hermit, and up some ledges to the little chimney whose looks I did not like; and I swung again to the right on a ledge and up the face to a level plateau above the Hermit; and so to the final pitch, reaching the summit at 5.30."
The weather looked more threatening; and after 15 minutes, Mr. Wheeler hurried down by the same route, picking up his stuff at the bivouac and reaching Glacier House exactly at 9.10 a.m. in time to breakfast with Mr. Worsfold who, with Miss Parker, had made the second ascent. Mr. Wheeler's route and the earlier routes were practically the same except that he discarded the chimney. Dr. J. W. A. Hiekson also made the ascent in 1910.
No doubt this will become a stock climb on account of the brilliant rock-work it affords It was long considered an impregnably mountain. Its north side above Tupper Glacier still appears quite too formidable (1911) and remains to be conquered by some daring climber.
Tupper Crest—Name: By the Topographical Survey in relation to Mt. Tupper.
Altitude: 8,563 feet.
Location: Shoulder extending westerly from Mt. Tupper to Swiss Glacier. It is traversed en route from Rogers hut to the summit of Tupper.
First Ascent: By Carl Sulzer in 1890. Except for novices, guides are unnecessary. An easy rock climb with a short stretch of névé.
View: Tupper Crest commands a good view of the south slopes of Rogers Pass.
Tupper Glacier and Névé—Name: By the Topographical Survey, in relation to Mt. Tupper.
Altitude: 6,500-8,500 feet.
Location: Below the north face of Mt. Tupper and drains to Beaver River.
First Ascent: By the Topographical Survey in 1901.
Route: (1) Reached from Rogers hut via Swiss Glacier and Névé. (2) From Bear Creek Station by ascending the watercourse crossing the railway directly south of that point.
Twisted Rock—Name: By the Topographical Survey, from its strangely contorted strata.
Altitude: 9,345 feet.
Location: The terminal point of a spur from Mt. Fox, though really a part of the arête joining it to Mts. Dawson and Selwyn; at the eastern corner of the Dawson Amphitheatre and north-west of the end-wall.
The interior convulsion of the earth that upheaved this rock has caused the sub-strata of which it is composed to twist in an almost ​complete circle: and the eroding of the amphitheatre with the weathering of the exposed surface has laid the formation open to view. At the top of the peak, for it has the appearance of a peak seen from below, the strata stands nearly vertical. They then descend, describing a pear-shaped synclinal curve, and rise upward until they lie beside the original folds. The height is a little over 1,000 feet.
Ursus Major, Mt.—Name: By the Topographical Survey in relation to Bear Creek.
Altitude: 8,930 feet.
Location: A mountain of the Hermit Range rising at the heavy of Bear Creek, on the north side of Baloo Pass.
First Ascent: By the Topographical Survey in 1902.
Route: (1) Reached from Glacier House by trail to Rogers Pass and thence by trail up Bear Creek to the summit of Baloo Pass whence the remainder of the route is obvious.
Time required: From Baloo Pass, 1½ hours; from Glacier House, 5 hours.
(2) A second route to Baloo Pass is via the Loop trail and Cougar trail past the Caves of Cheops. Both routes require the same time.
Climb: nearly all rock. For novices a guide is necessary. From the summit there are good views of Cougar Valley, Bear Creek Valley and the Valley of Mountain Creek, and of the peaks to the north. The mountain carries glaciers on its north and south faces.
Ursus Minor, Mt.—Name: By the Topographical Survey in relation to Bear Creek.
Altitude: 9,026 feet.
Location: A mountain of the Hermit Range on the north side of Bear Creek, between Ursus Major and Mt. Grizzly. Most easily reached by trail to Rogers Pass and up Bear Creek.
Time required: 5 hours.
Climb: Chiefly rock. A guide is necessary for novices. View: Nearly the same as from Ursus Major. A small glacier is on its north face.
Uto Peak—Name: By Prof. C. E. Fay.
Altitude: 9,610 feet.
Location: A peak of the Sir Donald Range immediately north-west of Mt. Sir Donald.
First Ascent: By Messrs. Huber and Sulzer in 1890.
Route: Reached from Glacier House by the water-course lead ing to the Overlook; thence to the arête between Eagle and Uto Peaks and up to arête to the summit.
Time required: 4 hours.
Climb: rock. A guide is necessary fur novices.
View: Uto Peak commands excellent views on all sides except that next to Mt. Sir Donald whose near north-west arête shuts off the outlook in that direction. The view of Rogers Pass Basin is par ticularly good, and of the Beaver River Valley looking down; also of Avalanche Glacier immediately above which the peak rises on the south side. Of the view from the arête Herr Huber says: "We stood upon the mighty partition which, extending from north-west to south-east, confines the glacier lands of the Selkirks on the east. ​What a contrast! Ascending in a southerly direction towards the peak upon the precipitous ridge, we perceived at our left, gently sloping forms of wooded green heights, but at our right, peak after peak, black naked prongs, and ice-clad ridges pierced the blue sky, and between right and left stood the mighty mass of Mt. Sir Donald; altogether a picture of peculiarly rare beauty."
Uto Glacier—Name: In relation to Uto Peak.
Altitude: 5,300 feet—8,200 feet.
Location: On the south side of Uto Peak, between it and Mt. Sir Donald; and drains easterly to Beaver River.
Van Horne Nêvê and Glacier—Name: By W. S. Green, after Sir William Van Horne, a Director of the Canadian Pacific Railway, and general manager at the time of Mr. Green's expedition to the Selkirks.
Altitude: 5,300 feet—8,700 feet.
Location: Immediately west of Mt. Purity, and about 6 square miles in area. The névé is a very beautiful one, being terraced in every direction and broken by numerous nunataks. Directly at the north corner rises the snow-draped form of Mt. Purity. The glacier is extremely picturesque; from a nunatak' rising in the centre a well-developed medial moraine is built on a curve between its two ice-flows. On the west side it is fed by hanging glaciers on the slopes of Mt. McBean.
Route: Reached from Glacier House by the Asulkan trail and Pass, Geikie Glacier and Creek to its junction with Van Horne Brook, and following the brook to its source in the glacier.
Time required: It might possibly be reached in one day from Glacier House, but is more likely to take 2 days. All camp outfit must be carried on the shoulders.
Van Horne Brook—Name: By W. S. Green with reference to Van Horne Glacier.
Location: Between Mts. Purity and MacBean, flowing to Incomappleux River. A mile above the confluence it is joined by Mitre Creek, flowing from Bishops Glacier. On the west side Van Horne Brook is fed by the run-off from numerous hanging glaciers in pockets on the sides of Mt. McBean. These small glaciers are very picturesque. The stream flows in a deep, well-forested valley. Its confluence with Geikie Creek makes the Incomappleux River. Geikie Creek is the larger stream.
Vaux Glacier—Name: By the Topographical Survey, after the Brothers Vaux, of Philadelphia, who have taken a great interest in, and have done much good work in connection with the mapping, photographing and measuring of the Illecillewaet and Asulkan Glaciers in the Selkirks.
Altitude: 6,500 to 8,500 feet.
Location: A small glacier on the south-west face of Mt. Sir Donald; drains to the Illecillewaet River.
First Ascent: By Messrs. Huber and Sulzer in 1890. The stock route of Mt. Sir Donald passes up the centre of this glacier. It is a good sample of the "cliff glacier" and during the warm days of summer sends great showers of ice-blocks to feed the main body below.
​Wheeler, Mt.—Name: By the Topographical Survey after A. 0. Wheeler at that time in charge of the survey.
Altitude: 11,023 feet.
Location: The most easterly mássif of the Purity Range; at the south-west corner of the Déville Névé.
Route: Reached, from Glacier House by the Asulkan trail and Pass, Geikie Glacier, Dawson Moraine, Donkin Glacier and Pass, Bishop's Glacier and Névé; thence following the southerly arm of the névé between the Bishop's and Purity Ranges and ascending the snow-slopes to its summit.
Climb: Chiefly on snow.
Time required: 3 days with camp; 2 nights below Donkin Pass on Mitre Creek. All camp supplies must be carried on the shoulders. Unless skilled in mountaineering, a guide is necessary.
View: The summit commands an exceptionally fine series of views: South, lie the Grand Glaciers in a chaotic confusion of crossed crevasses and grotesque'séracs, the well-defined medial moraine from Grand Mountain showing clearly; while across the glaciers rise the snow-terraces and mounds of Mt. Sugar Loaf. East, the summit overlooks Deville Névé, the Dogtooth Mountains and the Spillimaclieen Moimtains beyond the Beaver Valley: and across the Dogtooth Mountains on a clear day can be recognized the peaks of Mt. Goodsir and the sharp point of Chancellor Peak. North, the view carries the length of the Déville Névé across to the Illecillewaet Névé with Sir Donald at its northern extremity; and includes the serried peaks of the Bishop's Range. West and south-west there is the long sweep of glaciers flowing north from between the peaks of the Purity Range and the snowy peaks themselves; next, there are the Battle Glaciers, their three medial moraines sharply defined and their confluent hanging glaciers lining the west side of the Battle Amphitheatre, those "glacierettes" which noiu-ish the trunk below.
Whistler Falls—Name: By the Topographical Survey, with reference to the number of hoary marmots (Arctomys Columhianus) found in the rocks about them.
Location: On a stream flowing from a glacier between Mt. Ursus Major and Catamount Peak. At the falls the stream comes leaping down the steep northern slopes of Cougar Valley and joins Upper Cougar Brook a quarter of a mile above the point where the brook first disappears into the Caves of Cheops.
Witch Tower, The—Name: By the Topographical Survey.
Altitude: S.080 feet.
Location: A fantastic group of rock-shapes on the north-western shoulder from the summit of Mt. Fox. It is situated immediately above the camp at the Dawson moraine. The configuration suggests a number of hideous old giant beldames leaning from the parapet of a rock-tower and scattering vituperation broadcast over the earth.
A. C. C. Cooks in Camp
Soles after a Week's Climbing