Most of you have read or heard recently about the move by the
government of British Columbia to protect part of the Flathead
region in the SE of that province.
If you have never been to the Flathead, but are now wondering
what all the fuss is about, this is your opportunity to experience
this wonderful, exotic, tranquil, and little-visited area.
But we should be clear at the outset: what is proposed for
protection as the Flathead Wildland is a very small fraction --
perhaps 1/12 -- of the area that comprises the full Flathead
region. We will be exploring and climbing in an area some
distance to the W of that proposed for protection, an area near
Cabin Pass on Bighorn Creek; in fact, I have 'secret' camp spot
that is one of the most delightful I have been in.
This camp spot will provide us with fairly easy access to a variety
of minor peaks. Let me clear here -- if you want high
mountains, with difficult alpine terrain, big walls, and glaciers
with huge crevasses, this is not the place to go. Very few of the
mountains are over 9,000', most are of fairly easy ascent (but
bushwhacking can be a concern), and there are no glaciers at all.
There is wildlife, and plenty of it, but few people and fewer
trails, although some logging has occurred here.
Peaks available for ascent from our camp area: Soowa, Swope,
Overfold, Doupe, Inverted Ridged, Hefty, Dally Hill, Couldrey
Ridge, possibly Broadwood and even the Galton Range.
It takes about 5-6 hours to drive from Calgary to the camp spot,
most of it on pavement or decent gravel (although high
clearance vehicles are strongly recommended), so the first and
last days are travel days.
If you like wild, unexplored places that are not overrun with
climbers trying to bag the 11,000ers, think about joining our
little group of Flathead fans.
Required Items to Bring:
Food for 5-6 days; camp stove; tent; extra clothes; helmet; hiking
poles -- this is a car camping trip, so pack accordingly
Recommended Items to Bring:
One high clearance vehicle for every 3-4 trip participants; extra
fuel for your vehicle.
How to Get There:
Event Directions:
Drive to Fernie, then on toward Elko for 13 km; turn left at Morrisey
Bridge; we will rendezvous here. From there we will need to
convoy to the Bighorn
Cancellation Policy If a participant is unable to attend a paid course or trip, there will be no refund unless the participant finds a suitable replacement that is acceptable to the trip coordinator. Acceptable waiting list candidates will have priority. It will then be the participant's responsibility to recover funds from the replacement. If the coordinator cancels an event, participants get a refund (less any non-recoverable costs). Note that ACC National does not refund hut fees due to weather, delay, closures, or any other reasons. The Calgary Section of the ACC is a not for profit club and we only charge attendees what it costs us to provide courses or trips.
Trip Feedback If you have any feedback, positive or negative, concerning this trip or any other, we want to hear from you! You can send any feedback you may have to the Section Chair.
Registration for this event closed on Friday, July 02, 2010 at 08:00 PM.