By Peter Austen The Columbia Ice fields lie on the border between Alberta and British Columbia in the Rocky Mountains of Canada. They can be deathtraps for the unwary or careless climber. Several people die each year on these ice fields because they did not use a rope or were careless in its use when traveling over the badly crevassed glaciers. Crevasses are cracks in the surface of the ice caused by moving glaciers. It was May, the best time for travel in the ice fields.
Days can be warm and the crevasses are bridged.
A few moments' carelessness almost cost me my life. John, my companion, was a beginner and was full of potential and enthusiasm. He was six feet tall, dark haired and had regular features somewhat like a skinnier Christopher Reeves, also known as Superman. This particular ascent should have been routine. We roped up and shouldered our packs in the early morning sunshine.