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Home , Fifi hook, Fred Beckey, Mount Lefroy, Mount Walsh

362 THE AMERICAN ALPINE JOURNAL corner over grassy ledge to a step-around point to the left (F7). Ascend left toward an obvious inside corner facing right. At its top and to the right are belay ledges. 145 feet. 3rd ; Climb directly updike deli- cately because of its egg-shell composition. A rotten corner is passed on the way to the second overhang, which is surmounted with a high pin on the right. Clearing the overhang requires a rurp and tied-off knife-blade (A3). Belay at the first ledge. 130 feet. 4th pitch: The blankest looking pitch from the road had the most delightful F6 flake which rose past an inside corner facing left. Above, A2 nailing went left over the overhang, then up and back right to free beyond the third overhang to belay ledge. 120 feet. 5th pitch: and then a pin or two of aid allow entry into a shallow inside corner facing left. At its top, reach high to place a pin at the back of a down-sloping ledge. Step up in slings and free climb (F7) for 15 feet. Another aid step and F7 free move bring one to grassy ledges. 120 feet. 6th pitch: On the second ledge the prospect of a bivouac because of probable difficulties on blank slabs above induced us to traverse right, to rappel 70 feet and to traverse further in the Conn route. The direct finish would involve two slabs with two or three leads to the top. T. P. (SAM) STREIBERT

CANADA ‘Territory Mosmt Logan. From June 13 to June 29 Ron Johnson, Don Mech, Len Wallet-, Lee West, Hal Williams and I made an ascent of . Jack Wilson flew the party from Gulkana Airfield in via May Creek to near Base Camp at 8950 feet on the Quintino Sella Glacier on June 13. Unusually good weather saw us proceed up the Quintino Sella Glacier into the King Trough, with Camp I at 11,500 feet. Camp II was at 13,600 feet at King Co1 and Camp III above at 16,000 feet. We crossed an 18,200-foot pass to the plateau and Camp IV at 17,600 feet. From 10,000 feet up we followed the first ascent or traditional west route with the exception of bypassing the west summit at 19,000 feet to the north and proceeding directly to the 19,850-foot main peak, which Waller, Williams and I reached on June 25. were used to 19,000 feet! We were all back in Base Camp on June 27. HANS ZOGG, Motintaineers Meant Walsh. After walking across the head of the Hubbard, the Walsh and the Donjek glaciers from Divide Camp of the Icefield Ranges Research Project at 60’45’ N. and 139”40’ W. and receiving an airdrop at 10,000 CLIMBS AND EXPEDITIONS feet, Miller Myers waited in there while Alex Bittenbender, Dennis Draper, Dave Shaw and I made the third ascent of Mount Walsh (14,780 feet), climbing the west basin and ridge and reaching the summit on August 13. All of us then attempted from the east but failed to make the intervening “Four Glacier Dome” ( 14,250 feet) because of storms. Time grew short and so we walked out the Donjek Glacier, waded the Donjek River at the glacial snout and followed a long unused pack trail, well-named Wade Creek, and a mining road out to the Alaska High- way at Mile 1111. VIN HOEMAN

Attempt on Queen Mary; other St. Elias Peaks. As seasonal employees of the Icefield Ranges Research Project, Alex Bittenbender, Don Stockard and I dug snow-sample pits in record time to allow time-off for climbing. When Peter Dodds, Will Harrison and Alf Pinchak walked 60 miles up the Kaskawulsh Glacier to our Divide Camp at 8400 feet, we were able to join them in trying the second ascent of c. 13,000-foot Mount Queen Mary. Our route among the on went easily, but as luck would have it, we blundered our way to the wrong snow bump on the summit ridge in one of the few white-outs of the summer. Not realizing our mistake at the time, we held a happy psuedo-summit party at 4: 15 A.M. on July 14. After descending the ascent route, we made what we thought was the first ascent of a c. 10,750-foot satellite peak to the north of Queen Mary, traversing it from south to north. Later research showed we had made the second ascent of the “Gnurdelhorn” instead. (See A.A.J., 1962, 13: 1, p. 232, where the altitude was given as only 9500 feet.) Weather was amazingly good in the St. Elias last summer and so Alex, Don and I made the second ascent of c. 11,750-foot Donjek Peak on July 21. We ascended the central south rib, a new route, over mixed rock, ice and snow. Phil Upton (AINA) tells us that this is the name accepted by the Canadians for the peak climbed by the Japanese Dr. Takeo Yoshima and his wife Kikuko in 1965. (A.A.J., 1966, 15:1, pp. 151-2.) DAVE JOHNSTON

Mowat Alverstone, Northeast Face. During the closing days of a long spell of excellent weather toward the end of July, John Rupley, Henry Mather, George Lowe and I made the second ascent of Mount Alverstone (14,500 feet) by a completely new route on its north and east faces. From Base Camp, which we reached by helicopter from Kluane Lake, we snow- shoed with two relays to the head of the branch of the Lowell Glacier that fringes the summit walls of Mounts Kennedy and Alverstone. Near its PLATE 88 0 1967 Natronal Geo&wphic So

PLATE 89

Upper section of Northeast Face of A1verstnr.e ahowino 364 THE AMERICAN ALPINE JOURNAL

head was a large bergschrund, followed by three pitches of steep blue ice that required step-cutting and fixed ropes. From a camp at the pass at its top, we broke trail up slopes averaging 40”, hurried beneath a great ice cliff, and climbed to a picturesque campsite on a small bench between two crevasses, close to 11,000 feet in altitude. On J~tly 25 we climbed to the summit by a route, rather tedious at first, on which we followed a secondary ridge north and crossed a monotonous glacier basin to the final 2000 feet of steeper and at times quite spectacular climbing. Rupley and I, who did all the trail-breaking and step-kicking on the final day, found a most inter- esting route along the last 600 feet of the upper northeast ridge. After returning to Base Camp, we made the long march out to Kluane Lake in three hard days. FRED BECKEY

IVorthrwst Territories Logan Mountains. On July 7, Lew Surdam and I were flown to “Beaver Lake,” at the upper end of the Hole-in-the-Wall valley. On the same after- noon we packed up to a camp in the broad, grassy basin below the southeast face of “Caribou Peak.” Camp was barely set up when we were beset by storm, heralding the poor weather which was to plague our entire trip. After a couple of days, the weather cleared, and on July 11 we climbed “Caribou Peak.” After several pitches on the east ridge, we were stopped by a formidable and unlovely ceiling; we retreated and climbed the peak by a delightful variant of the original route, on the western edge of the southeast face. On the 14th we climbed triple-summited “Cerberus Spire” (Peak 7).’ Entangled ribs and couloirs led without difficulty to a point below the southern summit. A wide variety of tactics proved necessary in following the knife-edged ridge northward, bypassing the two lower sum- mits, to the main summit; route-finding was intricate, and a fixed rope was left over one rappel. On the return we briefly visited the two lower summits. The following day we arose in a leisurely manner and climbed “Foolscap Peak” (Peak 6)) the highest point in the immediate vicinity, by its long, sinuous southwest couloir, roping up only for a few exposed moves near the top. On July I6 we crossed the narrow co1 between “Caribou Peak” and “Mount Elysium” (Peak 8), crossed a small glacier and attacked the eastern buttress of “Elysium’s” north face. From a precarious posititon atop a narrow tongue of snow, a frightfully loose pitch led to the firm granite above. After half a dozen moderate, but pleasant leads up the broad face, we were forced to climb a SO-foot wall, liberally festooned with drip-

1 Numbers refer to the map I” A A.], 1966, I 5 I CLIMBS AND EXPEDITlONS 365 ping moss and slime. Then followed five more fine pitches up the slightly concave and narrowing face above - jam cracks, laybacks, flakes -finally placing us on top of a narrow pillar abutting on the final, smooth wall. Two splendid pitches on this wall brought us to the top of the last tower of the peaks long east ridge. There remained yet a few difficulties in sur- mounting the final portion of the ridge, and we climbed onto the spacious summit in time to be warmed by the last, ruddy rays of the setting sun. Fortunately, the descent by the south ridge was not difficult, and we were back at camp before midnight.

TWO days later we backpacked across meadows and rolling uplands to the pass leading west to the “Valley of Chaos.” After climbing the small peak which forms the southeast rampart of the pass, we descended to the west and then contoured around northward into the narrow, hanging valley below the towering eastern faces of “Mount Apollo” and “Mount Prome- theus” (Peaks 18 and 19), where a tiny plot of grass in the midst of jumbled boulders barely afforded a suitable campsite. Two days of rain intervened, and then we climbed “Apollo” on July 21. After surmounting a headwall to reach the co1 at the north end of our valley, we turned up the east ridge of our objective, eventually crossing the upper northeast face on a series of steeply-pitched ramps and finished the climb by the northwest ridge, gaining the spectacular summit monolith by means of a strenuous layback. The following day we climbed “Prometheus” by the great snow couloir cleaving its southern side, cutting onto the rock of its left wall for a couple of difficult pitches near the summit. Our final climb in this area was “Pandemonium Peak,” the easy, double-topped peak directly east of camp. On July 25 we packed up and started back to our original camp. Before reaching the pass, we left our packs, crossed a broad ridge to the south into a delectable basin containing a shallow tarn, and climbed “Mount Abraxas,” a fine outlying peak overlooking the Flat River. The route, utiliz- ing the north and east ridges, was relatively straightforward. We reached our old camp late that night; the rain which started before morning kept LIS tentbound for the next week. The weather finally cleared on August 2, and we moved camp to the lake-filled basin encircled by the “Zodiac Ridge.” However, more bad weather moved in, and our only remaining climb was an ascent of “Mount Aries,” slogging through over a foot of heavy, fresh snow. When we were flown out on August 16, deep snow was lying well down into the valleys, and it was clear that winter had already begun. WILLIAM J. BUCKINGHAM THE AMERICAN ALPINE JOURNAL

Coast Range of Sqzcamish Chiefs A number of new routes were made during the past year on the Squamish Chief. Tantulus Wall: In years of climbing on the Chief, we had always dismissed the sheer lOOO-foot Tantulus Wall as an unlikely area for a route. The upper third was cut across by a gigantic horizontal overhang, and above that, the cracks seemed minute and inter- mittent. Study with binoculars made us confident that a route could be forged through the spectacular wall. A number of us began exploring the lower pitches in mid-winter. The first serious pitch provided a clue to the climbing; there were 16 tied-off , most of them just tipped into a thin vertical crack, followed by a wild pendulum to the left. After three attempts, a was jammed into a new crack that curved up about 200 feet to the tip of “Yosemite Pinnacle.” Giant wood blocks and bongs paved the way up this long gothic curve. The final climb was pushed through on April 2 and 3, with a bivouac on a small brush ledge some 600 feet up the steep wall. Leif Patterson, Mark Fielding and I enjoyed a unique treat in this area: sunny skies and cool daytime temperatures. With rock dry for this time of year, we could tackle free climbing that would ordinarily be slick. The last portion of the long pitch to the base of the overhang had difficult pitoning, which led to a leader fall. From one of four hanging belays on the climb, the ceiling pitch went out seven horizontal feet with lucky pitons. The final pitch caused the most trouble, with bottoming cracks yielding only grudgingly to iron, An aid bush pulled out to cause a little slip, and some bolting was needed on the blank areas. We unwit- tingly created such a sensation that the Royal Canadian Mounted Police twice had to clear the highway traffic jam with sirens. Hours after dark they shone searchlights onto the wall, as I was finishing the groping for holds on the last few feet. NCCS V, F8, A3. 103 pitons and 11 bolts. Western Dihedral: The dihedral starts as a white, curving crack from the trees lining the western walls of the Chief and then rises straight as an arrow to the summit rim, over 1000 feet higher. The climb is NCCS V, with mostly hanging belays. Two previous attempts proved to us the difficulty of placing pitons and gave us a leader fall, but we did de-moss the second, third and fourth pitches. The removal of a vertical ribbon of moss and heather was immense effort for the leader; I tore loose one such 150- pound floating carpet, completely terrorizing Dan Tate, who was me. Those who follow on this now lovely route will never really know that horribly dirty dirt-removal work which was necessary to get iron into the solitary dihedral crack. Under a canopy of sometimes drizzling clouds, Tate and I did the ascent on June 3 and 4, spending the night on the only CLIMBS AND EXPEDITIONS 367 bivouac ledge. The first and third pitches took 14 pitons each, with a pendulum from a bush that may no longer exist; the second lead took 27 pitons. The very hard fourth pitch took 30 pitons, a fifi-hook and a belay ; the equally hard fifth took 29 pitons and three aid bolts on an over- hang. Beyond the bivouac, the lead took 11 pitons, one bolt and a rope- throwing tactic. Then came a superb free pitch with five pitons, an awkward flaring crack ( I4 pitons and two belay bolts), and a finale ending with classic aid on cracks with a geometric pattern (8 pitons). An un- expected joy of this rewarding climb was our total oblivion to the public: not a solitary tourist discovered us.1 Crescent Rump Route: After studying the western walls of the Chief, Eric Bjornstad and I felt that there were at least two possible routes up the area south of the Grand Wall, an area that appears from the road as a high-angle slab almost 1000 feet high. The name “Tantalus Wall” has now been accepted for this imposing stretch of steep, smooth granite. While a route to the tip of “Yosemite Pinnacle,” an exfoliation ending at about the 300-foot level, had been done, the logical conclusion had not been completed. Several climbing sessions in winter by numerous participants, including Leif Patterson, brought us to the tip of the pinnacle by a new crack line, mostly by difficult direct-aid. Icy con- ditions, bitter cold, and the inability to muster more than a continuous day of climbing prevented us from completing the route in one push. Bjornstad and I then climbed a sketchy suggestion of a route that curves leftward and up, blank in spots, to a ramp and finally to the top of ‘Crescent Flake” at about the 900-foot level. A major snowstorm forced a retreat, and so we had to complete the ascent on March 3 on a magnificent winter day. A final section of smooth granite, involving a difficult maneuver, ended the climb. This was the first rock climb of NCCS IV done in the winter in the Pacific Northwest. About 73 pitons, two bolts, and one key fifi hook were used on the route, along with many safety runners tied to shrub evergreens. Three routes orz Bzdlethead: Because of its similarity in shape, the 6OO-foot offset wall on the southern portion of the western faces of the Squamish Chief has been called Bullethead. Its flawless northern turret almost resembles Lost Arrow in Yosemite. No direct route of consequence had been completed before 1966. The three following routes, all direct lines to the top, roughly divide the face in thirds. The rock is excellent granite; the cracks are adequate for pitons, with occasional small trees and ever- green shrubs to augment safety. We used no bolts. Bullethead West: Prob- ably the most classic route, this climb follows the obvious twin cracks on the smooth upper face as far left as possible. Eric Bjornstad and I climbed it, using bushes, roots and trees to advantage on the lower section; we then THE AMERICAN ALPINE JOURNAL

found both exciting and difficult free and on the steep upper section. Though the route is shorter, the climbing and compares with that of the long west-face routes. We used 44 pitons. B&etbead Celztral: This route is virtually a great high-angle slab from base to top, interrupted by a conspicuous tree ledge beneath the final lead. It is one of the most consistently interesting ones in the area, with a fine variety of moves, from delicate free climbing to difficult and exposed direct aid. Craig Fritch and I began the route, but we were turned back by rain; later Dave Beckstead and I completed it. In all we used 52 pitons, about half on the striking, thin crack on the very smooth walls of the final lead. Bullethead East: This route is about 100 feet south of the central route. It follows crack systems that allow mostly free climbing with occasional aid. A most interesting final aid crack, following some hard free moves, required most of the 33 pitons used on the ascent. Jim Sinclair accom- panied me on this route. Calcuhs Crack: Just off the main highway leading into Squamish is the slabby 700-foot Apron, which runs a third the distance of the Chief’s Squamish buttress. Vancouver climbers have made some interesting routes on it, notably the “Snake” route, the Diedre and the “Vector” route. Bob Phelps and I climbed a route we named “Math Crack,” only to learn that it was not a new route but a direct variation of an estab- lished one. In late October Dave Beckstead and I found an entirely new line, called “Calculus Crack” to the top of the Apron. We used 15 pitons on this exposed but most enjoyable climb. For four pitches the route fol- lows a solitary crack with blank slabs on either side. Friction on the slabs, with minimum finger work into the crack, enabled us to do the route virtually free. FRED BECKEY

Mz&room Rozlte, Papoose Rock. The right half of Papoose’s front face, just above the Squamish-Woodfibre Ferry Dock, had not yielded a route until this two-pitch climb was done by Dave Beckstead and me in October. The climb scales a fairly difficult aid crack, bolts a blank wall and con- tinues on aid to the rim of the summit. FRED BECKEY

The Owls, Mozlnt Weart East Ridge. Two subsidiary peaks each about 9000 feet on the east ridge of Mount Weart in Garabaldi Park were climbed June 5 by Terry Stafford and me and nicknamed the Owls. Although the ascents via the south side from the Weart Glacier were not difficult rock scrambles, there was no evidence of prior ascents. KENN CARPENTER CLIMBS AND EXPEDITIONS 369

Correction. In A.A.J., 1966, 15 : 1, p. 154 it states incorrectly that Beckey and Patterson climbed Stiletto from the north-northwest. The route basically is the southwest face with approach from the west at Stiletto- Serra I col. Mowzt ve’re?zzdrye, East Face. The precipitous limestone cliffs of Mount Verendrye are among the more spectacular sights along the Kootenay High- way near Vermillion Crossing. The steep east face was unclimbed. From a camp at the head of the narrow valley at its foot, on August 16 Jerry Fuller and I climbed bush and talus slopes to the glacier beneath the wall. Once on the dark rock, we selected a minor rib on the face that kept clear of rockfall and patchy ice and led directly to one of the eastern summits of the peak. The rock was not always sound, and we were most thankful for what piton protection we could get on three of the harder pitches. We used a total of 20 pitons on the climb, all for safety. FRED BECKEY Barbican Peak, East Face. The farthest right in the grand lineup of majestic peaks in the Ramparts, Barbican Peak presents a great challenge of walls on the east and north. On August 25 Jerry Fuller and I climbed the steep snow and ice couloir between Geike and Barbican’s northeast flanks, then turned right and ascended the left side of the great face to the summit of Barbican. While an even longer wall lies farther north, this climb was as much as we wanted for one day. One pitch was very difficult, where melting fresh snow added to the treachery of the holds. Several times we were almost stopped by vertical bands but managed to locate thin traversing ledges to bypass the steepest portions. We had to climb a number of chimneys dripping with water, which added to the discomfort of a long wall climb. The final few hundred feet ascended a pleasant but- tress with a mixture of snow patches and fine, broken rock. We managed to get off the peak before dark but had to bivouac in the timber after hours of stumbling across meadows by starlight. FRED BECKEY Barbican. In mid-August Don Jensen, Frank Sarnquist and I climbed Barbican by the west ridge, a new route. From Tonquin Valley the ridge was gained via the right hand of two prominent snow gullies which lead up from the right side of the west face. The climb then followed the ridge crest, occasionally detouring onto the east face. Except for one pitch 200 feet below the summit, all of the climbing was done 3rd or 4th class. JOHN HUDSON 370 THE AMERICAN ALPINE JOURNAL

Stanley Peak, East Face. Nick Ellena and Heinz Kahl made the first ascent of the steep ice east face of Stanley (10,351 feet) on July 21. Roosevelt-Chrchill GYOUP), Northern Rockies. During late July and early August, Rich Gnagy, Barbara Lilley, Alex McDermott, Mike McNicholas, Marcia Wallerstein and I visited the group of unclimbed peaks west of Fort Nelson, British Columbia, and just south of the Alaska Highway. Except for prospecting, the area had apparently been first explored during the war since the only named peaks are Roosevelt, Churchill, and Stalin. Mount Stalin and several other peaks in the Wokpash Valley were climbed in 1960 by an expedition led by Capt. R. Jones of the Royal Fusiliers. (A.A.J., 1961, 12:2, pp. 390-l.) Prior to entering the mountains, Marcia and I made inquiries at Fort Nelson and flew a reconnaissance flight over the area. Thus the existence of a new copper mine, air strip and several cat roads was revealed. On July 23, all six were flown to the miner’s air strip on Churchill Creek by Bob Veale of Northern Air Services. The following day we set up a camp a few miles south of Mount Roosevelt, which we climbed via snowfields and an easy rock scramble. After a ride down to Delano Creek in the miners’ truck and a day of rain, we set up a side camp about three miles east of Peak 9381. The attempt to climb the peak the next day failed due to the combination of a late, wet start, a long route, and continuing snow showers. After a rest and showers at the miners’ camp, two food caches were placed by helicopter (cost: $130 per hour) and a camp was set up at a meadow near the pass between Churchill Creek and the Gataga River. During the next two days, peaks of about 8900 and 9100 feet, south and north of the pass were ascended by class-3 snow and rock routes. Camp was then moved to the second food cache just west of Mount Churchill (Marmot Meadows), from which Churchill was climbed via the easy slabs of the northwest ridge. The next six days were spent walking first south to the Gataga River and then eastward over a pass to Tuchodi Lake. From a camp ten miles west of Tuchodi Lake an attempt was made to climb a peak of about 9600 feet, but a late start after a night of rain and snow combined with continuing snow showers and the long distance to the peak proved to be too discourag- ing. On Friday, August 12, a float plane piloted by Steve Villers of Northern Air Services brought everyone out to Fort Nelson. A few com- ments on the area around Mounts Roosevelt and Churchill are probably in order since the area has not been visited by climbers from the American Continent before. There are still a number of worthwhile unclimbed peaks near the head of Delano Creek, Peak 9381, and in the area west of Tuchodi Lake. We found most of the peaks to be easier to climb and much safer CLIMBS AND EXPEDlTIONS 371 than are the rivers to cross. August or even September are preferable for travelling rather than June or July. Two geological points are worth noting. An enormous rockslide was discovered in the Gataga drainage about 20 miles west of Tuchodi Lake. It was reported to have come down in 1964, possibly as a result of the Good Friday earthquake. The numerous small glaciers in the area give a distinct appearance of stagnation. This is probably due to the combination of cold dry winters and cool wet summers resulting in low rates of both accumulation and ablation, GEORGE WALLERSTEIN

“Watermelon” and “SilffEez@ Peaks. Having packed in the previous day from the Jasper Highway via the Helen Creek trail over Dolomite Pass, on July 22 David Michael, Graham Matthews, Moses Goddard, Lynne Stearns, Rob Wallace and I made the first ascent of one of the higher unclimbed peaks of the Rockies. In a fit of absence of mind, I had carried a lo-pound watermelon to our campsite below Lake Alice. Judge Michael, being also of unsound mind, volunteered to carry this morsel ro the summit of the nearest unclimbed peak, which lay directly east of camp. Our route went north around the lake and via the glacier draining the co1 to the southwest of our peak. We easily reached the co1 on firm snow in four hours and an hour later were on the summit, having traversed the southwest ridge and western snow slopes to gain the last few hundred feet. The rope was not really necessary at any point. On July 23 we headed directly north from Lake Alice up a steep snow basin to attain a ridge that extends south from a second unclimbed lO,OOO-foot peak, which we called “Siffleur” peak. Step kicking in the snow was excellent and soon we reached the ridge only two hours from camp. Traversing northward along the crest, we suffered the usual torments of the “rotten Rockies” and were finally forced to place one of our ropes as a fixed line in order to descend 100 feet of poor rock. Having passed this obstacle, we scampered up the last 800 feet of snow and slab to the summit. WILLIAM LOWELL PUTNAM

Edith Cavell, Secolzd Ascent of the North Face. On July 30 Gray Thomp- son and I quickly climbed the first third of the 4000-foot face on firm quartzite, finding good holds all the way to the Angel Glacier. We roped below the glacier and after two steep ice leads, we trudged up the glacier, crossed a difficult bergschrund, and climbed continuously mixed snow and rock to the base of a 300-foot vertical buttress. I led the first pitch up wet rock on the right face of an inside corner; then Gray made an extremely difficult second lead, climbing F7 rock up a waterfall. We emerged at the 372 THE AMERICAN ALPINE JOURNAL

top of the buttress soaked but happy that the hardest was behind us. More , some of it after dark across steep ice, took us to a bivouac ledge 200 feet below the summit icefield. We had expected that the icefield would be an easy snow climb to the summit, but the next day we found that the snow was rotten and underlain by hard ice. We avoided the summit rocks climbed by the first-ascent party by traversing left and climbing ice to a rock outcrop directly below the giant cornices which festooned the summit ridge. The final lead began up snow which was at first underlain by rotten rock, and then by ice, and it ended in deep unstable snow, which let me know I would not fall only when I dug my ice-axe into the summit. When Beckey, Chouinard and Doody made the first ascent in 1961 (A.A.J., 1962, 13:1, pp. 53.6), the face was dry and they had heavy rockfall. We had no rockfall, probably because the face was still plastered with winter snow and the rocks were frozen in place. Under the right conditions, the objective dangers are not great, and it is certainly one of the great face climbs in . DENNIS EBERL

Hung&e, Winter Ascent. On December 20, C. Locke, C. Scott and I skied to the A.C.C. hut at Lake O’Hara to spend the night. The following morning we set out for Opabin Pass, where we cached our skis, intending to climb as high as possible and to bivouac. The conditions were little different from those in summer on the lower part of the ridge and we climbed steadily unroped to the big rock step. In the summer the route goes left and then over rock slabs to the ridge. We chose to traverse right to a couloir which appeared to lead back to the ridge. On the traverse we found a bivouac site. The next morning we climbed the couloir, generally on hard snow but occasionally on soft snow or icy rock bands. We put on 400 feet below the ridge. The crux was a 40-foot ice-filled chimney just below the ridge. Once up, a short level ridge took us to the top. Descent was by the same route. We reached Opabin Pass with the darkness and skied to Lake O’Hara by moonlight. BRIAN GREENWOOD

Mount Lefroy, First Winter Ascent. After snowshoeing across , the climb to Abbott Pass was hard trail-breaking. A cold, windy day kept us stormbound among the blankets of Abbott Hut. On March 24 Jim Madsen, Ron Burgener and I climbed Lefroy via the standard route. The howling, cold wind added zest. Crampons usually bit in well, although some powdery areas required careful belaying. FRED BECKEY CLIMBS AND EXPEDITIONS

Igloo OYZMount Rob.ron. The Edmonton Section of the Alpine Club of has completed the installation of a fiberglass igloo on . The hut is 14 feet in diameter and lies at 8400 feet on the south- southwest ridge above Kinney Lake, 100 yards below the tongue of the lower ice. Contents include a double-burner gasoline stove, Pots, dishes and utensils for a party of six. Furniture includes benches, broom, bucket and table. Selkirks Albert Icefield Area. A University of Wisconsin party visited this remote area for 21% weeks in August. From a base camp at the west edge of the Albert Icefield complex, we made ten first ascents of peaks between 8000 and 10,000 feet in height. Members of the party were Dr. Arthur Maki, Mr. and Mrs. Michael Petrilak, John Freitag, Tom Fiebig, William Taylor, Dr. and Mrs. Robert West, and Davy West (age 9) and Scott West ( 5 ), Major ascents included the unclimbed south peak of the Albert Group, and the large (9600 feet) snow peak at the head of the Albert Glacier. The lO,OOO-foot peak at the head of Bain Brook, climbed by Allen Carp6 in 1920, was reascended, by n new route, and Carpe’s 46-year-old record was found at the summit. In addition, an ice cave running for 400 feet underneath a large glacier of the Albert complex was explored. A full account of the expedition will appear in the Cunudian Alpine Jo~mal. ROBERT WEST

Adumdnt Mount&n. On August 1 George Bell with David Michael on one rope, Graham and Corky Matthews with Moses Goddard on another, and I with Rob Wallace on the third located a new route on Adamant Mountain and combined it with the first direct ascent of its westerly neighbor, Turret. Over many years past, attempts had been made to force a route through the crevasses of the Turret branch of the Granite Glacier, but always unsuccessfully. This year being one of a very late spring the snow conditions were more appropriate and we made it. The first cracks were passed on the Austerity side, although Dr. Bell and Judge Michael managed to struggle by them under Adamant. We crossed the bergschrund under the north face of Adamant and following a strenuous 400-foot lead across thin snow above the schrund, we attained the col. Here we had first lunch, about five hours from Fairy Meadow. It was only a few hundred feet up to Turret over steep but firm snow, which tended to surface slides in the warm sun. An hour later we recrossed the co1 on our way up to the north cliffs of Adamant. These, too, went easily and shortly after one P.M. we had another lunch on the main summit of Adamant. Yet another lunch 374 THE AMERICAN ALPINE JOURNAL

was eaten after we had crossed the many other subsidiary summits working our way to the east along some unusually interesting cornices. A previous attempt by Jo Kato’s party up the east ridge had failed because of the snow conditions but fortunately left tracks for us to follow down through the crevasses under the Stickle. We ended up back at Fairy Meadow after a 14-hour round trip. WILLIAM LOWELL PUTNAM Amterity Mountain. On July 27 Corky Matthews, David Michael, George Bell, Moses Goddard, Rob Wallace and myself went up from Fairy Meadow. Our route was a variation of the 1948 route of Sterling Hend- ricks, but because of the exceptional snow conditions of this year we bypassed Ironman, traversing below it on the east slopes to the Ironman- Austerity col. From this point to the summit we followed the classic route but found it different by virtue of the late spring and consequently greater amounts of snow. After we had traversed the summit to Turret col, we returned via the route of ascent. WILLIAM LOWELL PUTNAM Qz~&znt Spire. The first ascent of this summit was made on July 26 by Hans Gmoser with Jo Kato, Skip Merler, and Roby Fierz. From Fairy Meadow the usual route was taken over all the summits of Quadrant and thence along the ridge running easterly to the Spire. A second ascent of this summit was made on August 5 by David Michael and George Bell. Their route was via the north basin and north face direct. Much iron was used on relatively firm granite. WILLIAM LOWELL PUTNAM Pioneer Peak. Two new routes were made to this summit on August 3. The more elegant was done by George Bell and David Michael. An abrupt buttress rises to a point just east of the summit from the Stickle branch of the Granite Glacier. From Fairy Meadow they climbed snow to reach the base of the ridge via an ice gully. The route lay mostly on the western side of the 1500-foot a&e. A steep snow saddle a few hundred feet below the summit was not as severe an obstacle as it had appeared, though it was difficult to regain the rock on the higher side. Over 40 pitons were placed, some for direct aid. The round trip from the cabin took twelve hours. The other route was via the northeast a&e. A previous attempt had been made in 1963 but was turned back for lack of time. The suc- cessful party consisted of Corky Matthews, Moses Goddard, Rob Wallace and me. Approach was complicated by crevasses in the upper Granite Glacier, but we finally crossed the bergschrund in less than four hours from CLIMl?S AND EXPEDITIONS 375

Fairy Meadow. Ascending from the west side of the at&e to its crest was e only diff< part of the route, rope being required and several belays 8 ‘ecessary. From there we were mostly on the crest of the ar&e, where steep soft snow caused the only problem. Our route joined the one described above after the ridge had been attained. We took nine hours for the round trip, descent being hastened by thunderstorms. Both groups descended via the Gothics Glacier and Friendship Col. WILLIAM LOWELL PUTNAM Out@st. A new route was made to this summit on August 5 by Mr. and Mrs. W. V. Graham Matthews. From Fairy Meadow the northwest ridge was followed with minor variations onto the adjoining faces. Rope was used sparingly on a round trip of eight hours. WILLIAM LOWELL P~JTNAM Bugaboos Northpost Spire, North Faze. When studying aerial photographs, we noted that the north face of Northpost Spire, almost closer to the Bobbie Burns group than to the remainder of the Bugaboos, presented a long unclimbed wall above the terminus of the Vowel1 Glacier. Jerry Fuller and I traversed ridges from Cobalt Lake on August 20 and then descended moraine slopes to the lowest granite of the wall, some 2000 feet below the summit. Here we found climbing of moderate difficulty, often on down- slabbing rock, not as sound as the usual Bugaboo standard. We used 15 pitons for safety and probably would have placed more protection at awkward spots if there had been adequate cracks. FRED BECKEY Monnshers Mount Thor. A party led by me succeeded in the first ascent of this major peak in the Gold Range of the Monashees on August 7. O,ther mem- bers of the party were Graham Hollins, Chris Kopczynski and John Roskelley. Our approach was from the northeast via logging roads from Sidmouth to the vicinity of Pingston Creek, to a point 1/ mile east of the low point on the road to Coursier Lake. Earlier, we had established a trail southeast from this location, bridging Pingston and Thor Creeks. We fol- lowed this trail and then proceeded into the basin between the northeast and northwest ridges of Mount Thor, where we bivouacked at 7400 feet. The next morning we climbed a snow slope to a co1 at 8100 feet, then proceeded southeast up a rock ridge and down its far side to a co1 at 8350 feet below the summit ridge of Thor. After crossing to the top of a snow- field, we ascended the ridge, which proved a fairly steep scramble on solid THE AMERICAN ALPINE JOURNAL

rock. Some belaying was required but pitons were not used. The total climbing time from the road was lOI/;, hours for the ascent and 51/z ho s for the return. yi D. PARFITT, Alpine Cl& of Canada

GREENLAND Royal Navy East Greenland Expedition. A 12-man Royal Navy expedi- tion visited the Angmagssalik area of East Greenland between July and September. The main aim was exploratory in an unex- plored group of peaks of Schweizerland (66” 30’ N, 37” W.) about 50 miles inland from Angmagssalik and west of the prominent area of open glacier called Femstjernen. Geological work was also planned. These and various minor aims were achieved. A total of 31 first ascents were made, 15 of these in Schweizerland including the two highest points, P 2520 meters (8268 feet) and P 2500 (8202 feet). Owing to the difficulty of access in summer thaw conditions, it was decided to lay depots of food and fuel in the spring. Mike Banks and I did this using local dog teams and drivers between April 6 and 16. We travelled via the Rasmussen and Haabets glaciers and placed the main depot at 4625 feet at the southeast corner of Conniats Bjoerg. An intermediate depot with a man-hauling Nansen sledge was laid at the confluence of the Rasmussen and September 16th glaciers. We had intended to place the main depot further forward and our inability to do this meant that it was not possible for all the summer party to reach Schweizerland; about half the climbing was done in the Conniats and Devaux Bjoerg regions. The summer party of Stocken, leader, Wallis, geologist, Dilly, doctor, Keelan, Dearman, Agnew, Garden, Collins, Twigg, Rowe, Corner and Kirkpatrick reached the main depot on July 25. There they found the advance party of the Imperial College expedition, whose leader had broken an ankle. They had been on their way to Femstjernen to receive an airdrop, but since at least two of them were now tied to our base at Conniats Bjoerg, a mutually advantageous exchange of food and fuel was arranged. The expedition now divided and eight, led by Stocken, set out to prospect the route into Schweizerland while four remained to climb near Conniats Bjoerg. On August 4 Dearman of the Conniats Bjoerg party had a minor fall whilst leading and it was decided to return to camp. It was whilst escorting Dearman across the glacier back to camp that Garden fell through a bridge and was killed instantly. This shocking news greeted the rest when they returned to Base the next day. It was agreed that the