Winter 2012 Gazette - The Alpine Club of Canada

Vol. 27, No. 3 | Winter / hiver 2012 

Ice Climbing 

World Cup page 6 

La Coupe mondiale 

d’escalade de 

glace page 8 

Canadian skimo duo 

clocks fastest-known 

Wapta time page 24 

publication # 40009034

“I’M NOT ESCAPING FROM REALITY, 

I’M ESCAPING TO REALITY.” 

MEC is a proud partner of 

The Alpine Club of Canada.

The Alpine Club of Canada 

What’s Inside... 

Publications Mail Agreement No. 40009034 

Return undeliverable Canadian addresses to: 

The Alpine Club of Canada 

Box 8040, Canmore, AB 

Canada T1W 2T8 

Phone: (403) 678‐3200 

Fax: (403) 678‐3224 

info@alpineclubofcanada.ca 

www.alpineclubofcanada.ca 

Executive Committee 

Peter Muir President 

Gordon Currie Secretary 

Neil Bosch Treasurer 

vacant VP Access/Environment 

Zac Robinson VP Activities 

Carl Hannigan VP Facilities 

Isabelle Daigneault VP Mountain Culture 

David Foster VP Services 

Marjory Hind Honorary President 

Lawrence White Executive Director 

Publication 

Lynn Martel Gazette Editor 

Suzan Chamney Layout & Production 

Marie-Andrée LeBlanc Translator 

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Submissions to the Gazette are welcome! 

For submission guidelines, please e-mail 

the Gazette Editor with your ideas at 

gazette@alpineclubofcanada.ca 

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Mountaineering / Climbing 

6 Ice Climbing World Cup—from 

impossible to inevitable 

8 La Coupe mondiale d’escalade de 

glace 

10 Ottawa and Toronto climbers join 

Calvin’s Calabogie Caper 

12 Cochamó is how we spell paradise 

14 Challenges, personal bests met in 

Peruvian Andes 

18 MEC U25 Camp about climbing— 

and more! 

22 TNF Winter Course serves up 

lessons, camaraderie and powder 

24 Canadian skimo duo clocks fastestknown 

Wapta time 

Facilities 

5 Major upgrades benefit Club’s huts 

Mountain Culture / Science 

19 Book ends 

29 Geoff Powter receives 2012 Summit 

of Excellence 

What’s Outside... 

Cover photo: 

Inset photo: 

Members 

26 Mon bénévole préféré : Rick 

Checkland 

26 ACC Funds and Grants Program 

27 My favourite volunteer: Rick 

Checkland 

27 Nominate a volunteer 

28 Adieu Rick Collier 

28 Phyllis Hart 

28 Victor Henry Heller 

29 Richard Guy, 95 summits Ha Ling 

Peak 

Editorial / National News / Awards 

4 Short rope 

13 Quick draws 

20 Recherche d’itinéraire 

21 Route finding 

21 Executive Committee slate 

26 ACC Funds and Grants Program 

29 Nominate a volunteer 

30 À ciel ouvert 

ACC member Kendra Stritch cleaves flesh and stone with steel and bone 

in the Hall of Justice area at Ouray Colorado. Photo by Carter Stritch. 

Canadian Ski Mountaineering Team member Melanie Bernier sets the 

stiff track up the Balfour Glacier. Photo by Ian Gale. Story on page 24 

Corporate Partners 

The Alpine Club of Canada thanks the following for their support, and encourages you to consider them and 

the advertisers in this newsletter the next time you purchase goods or services of the type they offer. 

Corporate Sponsors 

Corporate Members 

Backcountry Access 

BanffHotels.org 

Black Diamond Equipment 

Devonian Properties 

Forty Below 

Jardine Lloyd Thompson 

Ortovox Canada 

Osprey Packs 

Outdoor Research 

Patagonia 

Petzl 

Rocky Mountain Books 

Scarpa 

Yamnuska 

Zaui Software 

Club alpin du Canada Gazette hiver 2012 3

Lynn cooks up the next issue of the Gazette on a 

spectacular eight-day backpacking trip in B.C.’s 

Mount Robson/Moose Pass area. photo by May Guan. 

Short rope 

by Lynn Martel 

One theme that plays out again 

and again on the pages of this 

Alpine Club of Canada Gazette 

is that of the differences between individuals’ 

perceptions, interpretations and 

enjoyment of their chosen mountain 

experiences. 

That, I find, is one of the most 

engaging things about the pursuit of 

mountain recreation, whether it’s trad 

climbing or backpacking, bouldering or 

ice climbing, ski touring, hiking, mixed 

climbing, scrambling, cutting-edge alpinism, 

sport climbing, mountaineering, 

busting new moves on plastic gym holds 

or on wacky ice climbing World Cup 

structures—there’s a mountain pursuit to 

attract and satisfy just about every desire 

and personality type. 

With that, one of the coolest and 

most enjoyable things about being 

Gazette editor is the incredible variety of 

stories submitted to me by Club members. 

Opening e-mails and the attached 

Christmas Ski Week Anyone? 

The lotteries for ski weeks at the Bill Putnam (Fairy Meadow) Hut and the 

Kokanee Glacier Cabin for winter 2013 are complete, but some space remains 

including the Christmas week (December 22-28) at both huts. In the winter months 

both huts are accessed by helicopter and the flights are included in the hut fee. If you 

are making plans for a backcountry skiing Christmas, you’re in luck. 

Spring Ski Week Anyone? 

The lottery for ski weeks covers Christmas to 

the end of April, but fantastic skiing often runs 

into mid June at both huts. The weeks after the 

lottery dates (May 4 onward) are now open to be 

booked by ACC members. 

Additionally, some space remains for ski weeks 

in January at Fairy Meadow Hut. 

Kokanee Glacier Cabin holds 12 in the winter, must be booked as a full hut, and 

costs $875 per person for the week. Fairy Meadow Hut sleeps 20, can be booked in 

twos, and costs $925 per person for the week. For all ski week bookings and inquiries, 

contact Rob Shears at 403-678-3200, ext. 104 or rshears@alpineclubofcanada.ca 

stories is definitely a lot like digging into 

a big box of chocolates—I never know 

what I’m going to get. Good thing I love 

chocolate! 

But whether those articles grew from 

suggestions I presented to members willing 

and keen enough to volunteer their 

time to write a story with a defined word 

count and strict deadline, or they arrived in 

my Inbox completely unsolicited—which 

I do NOT encourage because of space 

limitations—I never cease to be amazed 

and delighted by the range of mountain 

experiences ACC members from coast 

to coast to coast are so happy to share. 

Reading these stories reminds me regularly 

of how our country is truly a mosaic of 

people and cultures—including those of us 

gathered under the wide-reaching tarp of 

mountain enthusiasts. 

That’s another cool thing about being 

ACC members—as participants of General 

Mountaineering Camps, day-trips to local 

sport crags or long-weekend skills courses, 

we often share our mountain expeditions, 

adventures and even dreams with fellow 

members we don’t know very well, or often 

just met that morning in the parking lot. 

That is at once a rewarding, sometimes 

challenging but always fundamental element 

of the ACC experience, as we learn 

not only from those whose experience and 

skill set is better developed than our own, 

but also from those who are not as fast, 

as strong or as capable. Hopefully, that’s 

when we learn the most about ourselves. 

So, with stories in this issue being 

shared by World Cup athletes, weekend 

warriors, novice rock climbers, tireless 

volunteers and the ACC’s seasoned hut 

renovating team, I’m hoping all readers 

will be entertained, inspired and, once in 

a while, as gobsmacked and thoroughly 

delighted as I am. 

4 Alpine Club of Canada Gazette Winter 2012

Major upgrades benefit Club’s huts 

Bill Putnam (Fairy Meadow) Hut 

Abbot Pass Hut 

Sydney Vallance (Fyratt) Hut 

Above: Kokanee Glacier Cabin | Below: Conrad Kain Hut 

by Keith Haberl 

Operating and maintaining the 

largest network of backcountry 

huts in North America is a 

large undertaking. The Alpine Club of 

Canada’s huts are mostly remote alpine 

shelters which are spread across multiple 

mountain ranges in two provinces. 

Summer is our chance to service the 

huts—that means replacing outhouse 

barrels, refilling the firewood supply 

and generally making sure they are all 

in proper condition. We also use the 

summer season to make upgrades or 

otherwise improve the huts. These larger, 

capital projects are planned through the 

winter and then executed between June 

and September. 

In the summer of 2012, the ACC 

maintenance team completed one of 

the most significant summers of capital 

projects in the Club’s history carrying out 

five major hut upgrades. 

In June the big projects began with a 

major face lift to the Conrad Kain Hut 

in the Bugaboos. All of the windows and 

doors were replaced and new siding was 

installed. The weather largely cooperated 

and the team finished the project in 

time to open the hut for the Bugaboo 

climbing season. This project was made 

possible by a very generous donation 

from All Weather Windows of Canada. 

July was a productive month with two 

capital projects mixed in with routine service 

work in the Kootenays and Rockies. 

The Kokanee Glacier Cabin (all three 

stories) received two coats of exterior 

staining all around. 

Also in July, the Sydney Vallance 

(Fryatt) Hut in Jasper National Park 

underwent a large interior renovation, 

including a new rubber floor, new kitchen 

and furniture as well as a modern outhouse. 

By the middle of the summer the ticklist 

was growing smaller and the upgrades were 

being completed on schedule. 

August saw continued good weather 

for two projects in the Selkirks. Bill 

Putnam (Fairy Meadow) Hut was up 

first and received new interior furniture, 

which had been built in our shop in 

Canmore through the winter, plus a new 

sauna, which was constructed on site. A 

new oven in the kitchen completed the 

upgrade. Also in August, a completely 

new woodshed was built at the A.O. 

Wheeler Hut at Rogers Pass in B.C.’s 

Glacier National Park. 

As September arrived, the tight 

schedule was progressing as planned with 

one major project remaining. Abbot Pass 

Hut, built in 1922 on the Alberta/B.C. 

border between Lake Louise and Lake 

O’Hara at 2,926 metres, the Club’s 

oldest hut and a National Historic 

Site of Canada, had a leaky roof. The 

requirements in renovating a Class 

One National Historic Building are 

significant, as are the logistics of roofing 

at 9,600 feet in the Rockies. From 

September 12 to 16 the ACC maintenance 

team and professional roofers from 

Canmore battled high winds and mountain 

weather to return the Abbot Pass 

roof to form. 

The ACC’s hut system, with 26 huts 

servicing more than 40,000 users every 

year, is North America’s largest. The huts 

are used as bases for some of the greatest 

mountain recreation in Canada and 

as emergency refuges for all mountain 

travellers. They are a proud symbol of the 

ACC and an enormous part of our Club’s 

past, present and future. 

The capital projects completed in the 

summer of 2012 made our hut system, and 

our Club, stronger. The ACC extends its 

sincere thanks to the maintenance team, 

the contractors, cooks and more than 

50 volunteers who made this summer’s 

projects successful. 

In addition to being the author of Alpine 

Huts: A guide to the facilities of the 

Alpine Club of Canada, Keith Haberl 

is ACC Marketing and Communications 

Manager. 

Our sincere thanks to All Weather 

Windows of Canada for generously 

supplying the new windows installed in 

the Conrad Kain Hut (left). 


Ice Climbing World Cup—from impossible to inevitable 

by Gord McArthur 

The practice of climbing with 

metal objects as sharp as knives, 

swinging them around like lunatics, 

doesn’t seem like a smart idea. It’s 

like watching a juggling act at the circus, 

where the juggler tosses a set of knives 

into the air catching every one of them 

oh so perfectly in hopes of not slipping 

or screwing up. It doesn’t make logical 

sense. Ice and mixed climbing is sort of 

the same idea; every swing counts, with 

an axe or the front point of a crampon. 

There’s little room for error. But there’s 

just something about it that creates a 

certain energy inside that leads you to 

want more. 

Technical ice climbing has been 

around for decades, mixed climbing 

not as long, but both continue to grow 

steadily. Whether weekend warriors or 

enthusiasts who manage to get out almost 

every day, there’s a shared level of psych 

every fall when you smell winter in the 

air. For me, mixed climbing is where my 

dedication lies. I do like ice climbing, but 

there’s just something about “monkeying 

about” on steep terrain, leaping from hold 

Russian competitor Alexi Dengin makes his move 

on one of the wacky man-made obstacles that 

comprise the Ice Climbing World Cup route at 

Saas Fe, Switzerland. 

photo courtesy of Gord McArthur. 

Gord McArthur concentrates on his next move while competing at the Ice Climbing World Cup event at 

Saas Fe, Switzerland. photo courtesy of the UIAA. 

to hold with a set of tools in my hands 

that gets me so psyched. Taking it one 

step in a different direction, I love the art 

of mixed competition, climbing on futuristic, 

spaceship-like structures all over the 

world. 

Competing at Ice Climbing World 

Cup events is like nothing I’ve experienced 

anywhere else. The style of 

climbing movement required is essentially 

non-existent in North America, and 

the terrain on which such movement is 

performed is as foreign as one can comprehend. 

Imagine being blindfolded then 

removing the blindfold and suddenly 

there’s a spaceship in front of you and 

you’re told to climb the spaceship. Crazy 

in all its forms! 

For years the ice climbing competition 

scene has been dominated by the 

Euros, Russians and a few noteworthy 

South Koreans. Their level of athleticism 

has been unprecedented and hardly 

matched—as expected. Their level of 

training (sport-specific) is at a height 

that’s unheard of in North America. 

Their dedication and determination 

is of such commitment it’s no wonder 

they continue to dominate the podium. 

They have access to more funding, sportspecific 

terrain (i.e. World Cup-like 

structures), coaching staff, support staff 

and travel isn’t far. Unfortunately, if you’re 

from North America you begin with a 

higher handicap. Most North Americans 

have wondered, what’s the point? That 

was until Will Gadd and his wife, Kim 

Czismazia, showed up in 2000—and 

won. That changed everything. No longer 

did such a level of competition belong 

to those across the pond. A barrier was 

broken and soon other fellow North 

Americans followed. 

Several years ago I was asked if I had 

any interest in going overseas and competing 

on the Ice Climbing World Cup 

circuit. At first the idea of performing 

on such a stage made me cringe, but the 

thought of experiencing such an opportunity—heck, 

why not? And what an 

exhilarating and humbling experience I’ve 

endured. 

Travelling around the world is no easy 

task. Packing a couple of suitcases that 

you’re forced to live out of for weeks upon 

weeks is not for the faint of heart. But 

climbing and competing for Canada on 

World Cup structures—that experience 

is worth every minute! It’s not, however, 

all fame and glory. Always on planes, 

busses, travelling in cars for hours, hotels 

and beds that aren’t ideal, food that’s 

out of your comfort zone, different languages—and 

then, of course, the actual 

competitions. 

World Cup competitions require 

such a level of focus that without it, your 

competitive chance is over in seconds. 

The mental and physical capacity required 

is at a level that can only be acquired 


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by further commitment of that specific 

nature. After my second full season competing 

at the World Cups, paying close 

attention to how my fellow competitors 

move, their technique and strategies, 

things are starting to come together. 

Committing my climbing to the 

competitive side is something I’m fully 

excited about. Learning the mental state 

that’s needed to compete has been a long, 

but great journey that’s heightened my 

passion for climbing to a level I didn’t 

know existed. It’s been a tough journey 

too. Just when you think you’re strong 

enough, you’re not. When you think 

you’re on your way to the chains, you fall. 

Sometimes trials and tribulations trump 

reason. Often you question yourself; 

what’s the point? And that’s when you 

dig deeper, try harder, train longer, build 

more circus-like structures in your backyard 

to learn more, to perform better. You 

need to want it—I mean truly want it— 

to go forward, to go higher, to clip the 

chains. I believe, for me; and it’s certainly 

not over. It’s been proven before that 

anyone is beatable, anything can happen. 

Some of the top competitors are 

strong. They are very experienced and 

they may have an advantage with how 

they train, the facilities they have access 

to, and more money. But we have the 

advantage of being Canadian, and 

Canadians are known for taking the 

impossible and making it the inevitable. 

Canadians have desire. It is the essence 

of our soul, the secret of our existence. 

Absolutely nothing of human greatness is 

ever accomplished without it. Desire fuels 

our ability to turn dreams into reality. 

Canadians stick together and passion 

often trumps logic. 

With a goal such as the Ice Climbing 

World Cup, to be great you need support. 

Team Canada needs support. We can’t do 

it on our own. Whether through funding, 

training, support staff (ie. coaching), we 

need your help. We need to grow this 

force to become a force to be reckoned 

with. 

The Euros and Ruskies (the Russians), 

along with a couple of sturdy South 

Koreans, have proven worthy of an elite 

strength, performing at a level once 

seemed unthinkable. Their training is 

clearly on the right track, and their results 

on last year’s entire tour reflected that. 

Although disheartening at first, as we all 

paid close attention we soon understood 

how and what it would take to rise to the 

occasion—move faster, pull harder, kick 

higher. Train more efficiently to the style 

that is required. Focus on speed with bigger 

movement. Check, check, and check. 

“So many of our dreams at first seem 

impossible, then they seem improbable, and 

then, when we summon the will, they soon 

become inevitable.” 

—Christopher Reeve 

Alpine Club of Canada member Gord 

McArthur, 32, lives in Cranbrook, B.C. 

A psyched ice and mixed climber for the 

past seven years, he’s been competing for 

four years; internationally for three. He 

can smell winter coming. 

Vancouver Island member 

Lindsay Elms send his regrets 

for not submitting another 

excellent profile of an ACC member 

who has made a historically significant 

contribution to the Club because he 

was too busy climbing this past summer! 

Look for Lindsay’s next piece in 

the Spring 2013 Gazette. 


La Coupe mondiale d’escalade de glace 

—De l’impossible à l’inévitable 

par Gord McArthur 

À 

première vue, l’idée de grimper 

tout en faisant voler autour 

de soi des tas d’objets aiguisés 

comme des couteaux, ne semble pas une 

très bonne idée ! C’est un peu comme 

au cirque, lorsqu’on regarde un jongleur 

lancer des couteaux en l’air et les rattraper 

sans faille les uns après les autres, 

en espérant qu’il ne se trompera pas. 

Logiquement, ça n’a aucun sens. Pourtant, 

c’est à peu près ce que l’on fait en escalade 

de glace et en escalade mixte; car que 

ce soit avec un piolet ou la pointe d’un 

crampon, chaque mouvement compte, 

et il y a peu de place à l’erreur. Mais tout 

cela est si énergisant qu’on ne veut plus 

s’arrêter. 

L’escalade de glace technique existe 

depuis des décennies, l’escalade mixte 

depuis un peu moins longtemps, mais 

la popularité de ces deux sports ne cesse 

de croître. Que l’on soit un grimpeur du 

dimanche ou un passionné qui réussit 

à grimper presque tous les jours, nous 

partageons tous la même excitation quand 

nous sentons qu’il y a de l’hiver dans l’air. 

Pour ma part, j’ai choisi de consacrer mes 

efforts à l’escalade mixte. L’escalade de 

glace me plaît bien, mais pour moi il y a 

quelque chose d’unique à aller « jouer » 

sur une pente raide et sauter d’un appui 

à l’autre, outils en mains. Et pour pousser 

plus loin, j’aime pratiquer l’art de la 

compétition mixte, où l’on grimpe sur des 

structures futuristes qui ressemblent à des 

vaisseaux spatiaux. 

Participer aux compétitions de la 

Coupe du monde d’escalade de glace est 

une expérience qui ne ressemble à rien 

à de ce que j’ai vécu auparavant. Cette 

technique d’escalade n’est, pour ainsi dire, 

jamais utilisée en Amérique du Nord, et 

le type de terrain où elle se pratique est 

complètement différent de ce que nous 

connaissons. C’est un peu comme si on 

vous retirait un bandeau que vous aviez 

sur les yeux, et que vous vous retrouviez 

soudain devant un vaisseau spatial à 

escalader. C’est complètement fou! 

Pendant des années les Européens, 

les Russes, et quelques Sud-Coréens 

exceptionnels ont dominé le milieu de la 

compétition d’escalade de glace. Comme 

on pouvait s’y attendre, leur degré 

d’agilité dépassait tout ce que l’on avait 

vu auparavant, et était rarement égalé. 

Ces grimpeurs s’entraînent à des niveaux 

inimaginables en Amérique du Nord 

et font montre d’une détermination et 

d’un engagement exceptionnels. Il n’est 

donc pas surprenant qu’ils continuent à 

dominer le podium. En plus de recevoir 

du financement, ils ont à leur disposition 

des terrains consacrés à l’escalade mixte 

(ex. : de structures comme celles de la 

Coupe du monde), des entraîneurs, et du 

personnel de soutien. Et ils habitent près 

des lieux de compétition, ce qui élimine 

les longs voyages. 

Gord McArthur donne son meilleur coup à la 

Coupe du Monde d'escalade de glace à Saas Fe, 

Suisse. photo gracieuseté de Gord McArthur. 

Malheureusement, pour les Nord- 

Américains, le handicap de départ est 

plus élevé. La plupart d’entre eux se 

disent donc : à quoi bon essayer ? Enfin, 

telle était la situation jusqu’à ce que Will 

Gadd et son épouse, Kim Czismazia, se 

présentent à la Coupe du monde d’escalade 

de glace en 2000 et remportent 

la compétition. Cela a changé la donne. 

Dès lors, la victoire aux compétitions 

de haut niveau n’était plus réservée aux 

résidants d’outre-mer. Une barrière avait 

sauté et, rapidement, d’autres alpinistes 

nord-américains ont suivi. 

Il y a quelques années on m’a 

demandé si j’étais intéressé à me rendre 

outre-mer pour participer aux compétitions 

de la Coupe du monde d’escalade de 

glace. J’ai d’abord hésité, mais j’ai ensuite 

réalisé qu’il s’agissait d’une occasion 

unique et je me suis dit : « Ma foi, pourquoi 

pas ? ». Ce fut non seulement une 

expérience exaltante, mais aussi une leçon 

d’humilité. 

Voyager à travers le monde n’est pas 

chose facile. Vivre pendant plusieurs 

semaines à partir du contenu de quelques 

valises est une véritable épreuve, mais 

grimper sur les structures de la Coupe 

du monde et représenter le Canada 

est une expérience fantastique dont 

chaque instant vaut la peine d’être vécu ! 

Toutefois, il n’y a pas que la gloire et les 

honneurs, mais aussi les avions, les bus, les 

longs voyages en auto, les lits et les hôtels 

qui laissent parfois à désirer, une nourriture 

souvent bien éloignée de notre zone 

de confort, les diverses langues et puis, 

bien sûr, par-dessus tout, les compétitions 

elles-mêmes. 

Celles de la Coupe du monde exigent 

un niveau de concentration extrêmement 

élevé sans lequel les chances de victoire 

s’évaporent en quelques secondes. Les 

exigences physiques et psychologiques 

de cette compétition ne peuvent être 

atteintes que par un engagement exceptionnel. 

Après avoir terminé ma deuxième 

saison complète sur le circuit de la Coupe 

du monde et observé attentivement les 

techniques, les stratégies et la façon de 

bouger des autres grimpeurs, tout commence 

à se placer. Je suis enthousiaste 

à l’idée d’intégrer la compétition à ma 

pratique de l’escalade. Le chemin parcouru 

pour atteindre l’état psychologique 

qu’exige la compétition fut long, mais 

extraordinaire. Il a porté ma passion pour 

l’escalade à un niveau que je n’avais jamais 

cru possible. C’est un cheminement 

exigeant. Juste au moment où l’on se croit 

assez fort, on manque de force. Juste 

comme on se croit sur la bonne voie, on 

tombe. Il est parfois difficile de donner 

un sens à toutes ces difficultés. On se 

demande souvent : à quoi bon continuer 

? Mais lorsque cela se produit, on réfléchit 

encore plus, on redouble d’efforts, on 


de Saint-Boniface 

La structure d'escalade Coupe du Monde promet des défis formidables pour les concurrents à 

Cheongsong, Corée du Sud. photo gracieuseté de Gord McArthur. 

s’entraîne plus longtemps, et l’on construit 

dans la cour arrière de sa maison d’autres 

structures bizarres comme au cirque, pour 

apprendre plus de choses et améliorer 

ses performances. Il faut vouloir, vouloir 

vraiment, pour pouvoir aller plus loin, 

grimper plus haut, et se clipper aux 

chaînes. Moi, j’y crois, et ça n’est pas fini. 

On a déjà eu la preuve que personne n’est 

invincible et que tout peut arriver. 

Parmi les meilleurs participants à cette 

compétition, on retrouve des athlètes 

exceptionnels. Ils possèdent une longue 

expérience. Leurs méthodes d’entraînement, 

leur équipement, et leurs moyens 

financiers constituent un avantage certain. 

Mais notre avantage à nous est celui 

d’être canadien, et les Canadiens sont 

reconnus pour leur capacité de transformer 

l’impossible en inévitable. En tant 

que Canadiens, nous avons le désir de 

réussir. C’est notre âme, le secret de notre 

existence. Rien de ce qui fait la grandeur 

de l’être humain n’a jamais été accompli 

sans désir. C’est le moteur qui permet 

de transformer les rêves en réalités. Les 

Canadiens savent se tenir les coudes et, 

pour nous, la passion l’emporte souvent 

sur la raison. 

Mais si nous visons la Coupe du 

monde d’escalade de glace nous aurons 

besoin de soutien. Nous ne pourrons 

réussir seuls. L’équipe Canada a donc 

besoin de votre aide. Alors, que ce 

soit sous forme de financement, d’entraînement, 

d’équipes de soutien (ex. : 

Festival et compétition 

entraîneurs), accordez-nous votre aide. 

Nous devons améliorer la force que nous 

possédons pour qu’elle devienne une force 

avec laquelle il faut compter. 

Les Européens, les Russes, et quelques 

Sud-Coréens particulièrement forts ont 

montré qu’ils faisaient partie de l’élite. 

Leurs performances atteignent des 

sommets autrefois inimaginables. Les 

résultats qu’ils ont obtenus tout au long 

de l’année dernière prouvent que leur 

entraînement va dans la bonne direction. 

Au début, leurs performances nous ont 

découragés, mais en les observant attentivement 

nous avons vite compris ce qu’il 

fallait faire pour atteindre ce niveau : 

bouger plus vite, tirer plus fort, lancer la 

jambe plus haut, s’entraîner plus efficacement 

dans le style requis, et se concentrer 

sur la vitesse en augmentant l’amplitude 

de nos mouvements. Pour chacun de ces 

points, nous disons : compris ! 

« Au départ, nos rêves semblent impossibles, 

puis improbables, et en invoquant 

notre volonté, ils deviennent vite 

inévitables. » 

—Christopher Reeve 

Gord McArthur a 32 ans et vit à 

Cranbrook, en Colombie-Britannique. 

Membre du Club alpin du Canada, il 

pratique avec enthousiasme l’escalade de 

glace et l’escalade mixte depuis environ 

sept ans. Il fait de la compétition depuis 

quatre ans, dont trois au niveau international. 

Il sent qu’il y a de l’hiver dans 

l’air… 

d’escalade sur glace | Ice climbing festival and competition 

February 

15, 16 & 17 

février 

Festival et 

compétition 

d’escalade sur 

glace 

Ice climbing 

festival and 

competition 

www.cesb.net 

Partenaires / Partners 

Section Saint-Boniface du 

Club Alpin du Canada 


Ottawa and Toronto climbers join Calvin’s Calabogie Caper 

Story and photos by Calvin Klatt 

Having lived in Toronto for many 

years, I recall the difficulty of 

finding climbable ice every 

winter. I remember bumming a ride off 

other Alpine Club of Canada members, 

climbing in the back seat in the middle 

of the night, then waking up two 

hours later—at sunrise—for a hurried 

breakfast. From there we’d continue for 

another hour or two in search of ice. The 

return drive—at night, in winter, while 

exhausted—was terrifying. Don Collier 

(Toronto Section) once calculated the 

number of winter kilometres driven per 

metre of ice climbed—a shocking number! 

The ability to drive long distances in 

dark wintry conditions remains an essential 

skill for Toronto area ice climbers. 

Fast-forward 15 years; I’m comfortably 

residing in Ottawa, with good ice climbing 

at several places within about an hour 

from my door. Not only that, I have a car 

with heat! At the 2011 Toronto Section 

AGM, I proposed a trip that would help 

Section ice climbers do their thing while 

hopefully not dying in automobile accidents. 

The idea was that they would come 

to Ottawa on a Friday night (four and a 

half hour’s drive) and stay at my home 

over the weekend. They could climb on 

both Saturday and Sunday before the 

long drive back to Toronto. 

Kitty Thompson belays her fellow Toronto 

Section member Rob Ramirez on an ice curtain at 

Calabogie, near Ottawa. 

This doesn’t seem like it would be 

difficult to arrange, but it was. I wanted a 

co-leader from Toronto, mainly to organize 

car pooling, but the willing helpers 

were all booked. Eventually I just picked 

the best weekend I could and the Ottawa 

climbing coordinator entered it in the 

surprisingly full calendar as “Calvin’s 

Calabogie Caper”. 

At this point things grew ugly. I had 

scheduled the trip on top of a “women’s 

only” event and was immediately 

informed of my incompetence. In an ugly 

e-mail battle I refused to move the event 

or change the dates, but I gave up all 

hope of using the ACC equipment cache. 

I told everyone to rent crampons and ice 

axes and to bring equipment to set up top 

ropes. By way of contrast, as word spread, 

several people stepped up with offers to 

help, including a number of experienced 

Ottawa Section climbers who proved to 

be a huge help. Many people offered to 

host visitors if my house became too full. 

Other offers poured in. 

On the Friday of the event a snowstorm 

hit Ottawa, leading me to think 

that our visitors would cancel. Instead 

they were blissfully unaware, departing 

Toronto in the rain. In the end I hosted 

six overnight visitors, while a few others 

stayed with family in the area. Some of 

them had never climbed ice, and the 

rest had not done so recently. At the last 

minute I was offered half the ACC gear 

cache, which was a godsend as renting 

didn’t always work out. We’d planned 

to climb in a couple of different local 

areas, but warm weather and the group 

size dictated otherwise. This became a 

Calabogie-only caper, since Calabogie has 

the most reliable ice and can handle the 

biggest groups. 

On Saturday, we had about a dozen 

climbers; half from Ottawa, half from 

Toronto. The fresh snow made Calabogie 

look like a winter wonderland. The ice was 

only in fair condition due to the warm 

weather, but everyone had lots of fun. They 

had such a good time that a few people 

insisted on climbing right to sunset. 

Saturday night was party time with 

everyone invited to join us for beer and 

pizza. At 10 p.m. I started worrying; we 

had a good party going but the house 

full of people also had to get up for an 

8 a.m. departure! The party died down by 

10:30 and soon we were back at Calabogie 

climbing. On Sunday we had colder 

weather, but an even bigger group of 19. 

After the sun climbed high enough to 

warm us up the day was perfect. 

At the end of the event the Ottawa 

folks were saying the Toronto Section 

is much more fun, while Toronto folks 

were telling me how much friendlier the 

Ottawa Section is. A rock-climbing trip 

was being planned for Toronto climbers 

to visit Ottawa in the summer (for which 

I was told my house would be “perfect”). 

In turn I expect to get local help with a 

future Ottawa Section trip to the crags of 

the Northern Niagara Escarpment. 

For Calabogie Caper footage, visit 

http://youtu.be/VrKvyh2BAYg 

Host extraordinaire Calvin Klatt 

belongs to the ACC’s Toronto and Ottawa 

sections. 

At its height, the Ottawa Section’s Calabogie Caper boasted 19 climbers from the Ottawa and Toronto 

sections.

Adventure. 

Whether you think about it, read about it or live it, the 

new explore is Canadian adventure at its very best. 

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award-winning writers, editors and photographers. 

Join us for the time of your life. 

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Cochamó is how we spell paradise 

by Inga Petri 

I 

remember in my bones what 

it felt like to hike to, be in and 

leave Cochamó Valley, a northern 

Patagonian gem that my partner, Jan 

Riopelle and I discovered during semana 

santa, the holy week between Christmas 

and New Year’s. 

We learned about Cochamó from a 

guide we met while trekking in Torres 

del Paine National Park. He said, “If 

you want something different, go to 

Cochamó. The trekking there is an 

experience unlike any other.” The only 

way in was a five-hour hike. 

We had been trekking in Peru and 

Bolivia during October and November 

and were spending December in Chilean 

Patagonia to enjoy the southern hemisphere’s 

endless days of summer. 

To reach Cochamó we could have 

flown from Punta Arenas to Puerto 

Montt, but instead opted for the slow 

way—embarking on the Navimag ferry in 

Puerto Natales. This four-day excursion 

through Patagonian fjords and open 

Pacific Ocean is used by two kinds of 

people—backpackers and truckers ferrying 

livestock and other goods. We rested, 

admired glaciers, dolphins and shipwrecks 

and met backpackers undertaking all 

manner of journeys. It was worth the 

time. 

Inga Petri makes use of a fixed rope as she climbs 

beneath huge alerce roots on a steep granite 

slope. photo by Jan Riopelle. 

Steep granite walls rise high from the floor of Cochamó Valley as photographed from Arco Iris. 

photo by Jan Riopelle. 

We arrived in Puerto Montt on 

Christmas Eve just in time to stock up 

on food and wine before stores closed 

for the holiday. We purchased tickets for 

the local bus ($4 each) for the two-hour 

ride to Cochamó. Our bus driver and his 

assistant’s unbridled enthusiasm for our 

destination startled us. We had intended 

to find a local ride from the village of 

Cochamó to the trailhead, but instead our 

excited driver let us off several kilometres 

past the village at the beginning of the 

six-kilometre gravel road leading to the 

trailhead. 

After we disembarked, the bus 

disappeared in a plume of dust down 

the dirt road leaving us at an unremarkable, 

empty intersection in Northern 

Patagonia’s Lake District. We had a snack 

and water and shouldered our 45-pound 

backpacks. 

There was no traffic. We passed a few 

farm houses and beekeepers. The last 

house on the road was said to serve drink, 

food and have space for camping. We said 

hola to the owner. Due to the holiday he 

was out of supplies but invited us to stay 

on our return. 

Soon we were hiking on part of 

the storied Gaucho Trail connecting 

Argentina’s Lake District across the 

Andes with the Pacific. It had been 

raining hard, so we encountered copious 

amounts of mud as we hiked deeper into 

the valley. The trenches, forged through 

cattle drives and some as deep as two 

metres, were filled with puddles of uncertain 

depth. River crossings featured logs 

with few man-made supports, if any. We 

were glad to wear gaiters and waterproof 

boots despite the summer’s heat. 

Progressing from sea level near the 

Reloncaví estuary, we hiked through 

dense native forests with glimpses of the 

crystal Cochamó River. Huge bamboo 

shoots appeared as we proceeded through 

Patagonian rainforest. Suddenly, the vista 

opened toward La Junta, our destination, 

with its pampas grassland surrounded by 

sharply rising 1,000-metre granite domes. 

We settled into camp ($4 each per day) 

with its central cook house, outhouses, 

information board and a handful of tents 

and roaming horses. 

Following the path to the rustic 

cable car crossing—powered by human 

effort alone, so it’s best to have a friend 

along especially because the return is 

slightly uphill—we introduced ourselves 

at Refugio Cochamó. All were here to 

climb, hike or toboggan the waterfall 

slides. Without exception, they referred to 

Cochamó as paradise. 

The next day we hiked to the base of 

Trinidad Mountain through thick, steep 

rainforest. The trails were obviously cut 

as approach trails to big wall climbs, 

demanding and at times spectacularly 

exposed. Fixed ropes are installed where 

necessary to ensure upward movement, 

not to provide comfort. 

The following day, Arco Iris (1,668

Continuing RMB’s long tradition of authoritative 

updates of our bestselling guidebooks, 

Summits & Icefields 2: Alpine Ski Tours in the 

Columbia Mountains is written by legendary 

alpinist Chic Scott, with certified mountain 

guide Mark Klassen. Together with Summits 

& Icefields 1: Alpine Ski Tours in the Canadian 

Rockies (RMB, 2011), these guides will 

continue to be the bibles for ski mountaineers 

looking to experience the grandeur of 

western Canada’s mountains. 

Completely revised and updated, this new 

edition features both classic and new tours, plus 

a variety of information that has been greatly 

expanded or freshly redone, including the 

ever-popular sections on Rogers Pass and the 

Bugaboos / Rogers Pass Traverse. With stunning, 

full-colour photos throughout and digital 

maps prepared from satellite imagery, these new 

editions will set a unique standard for 

ski guidebooks in North America. 

Think outside. 

metres) was our objective. This trail was 

cut by machete as Cochamó’s first valley-to-peak 

trail in 2007. Native forest 

gave way to massive 3,000-year-old 

alerce trees, rainforest and then the first 

magnificent views across the valley. The 

most unusual trail feature might well be 

the fixed rope leading steeply up a granite 

slab beneath massive tree roots. Or maybe 

it was the wild granite ridge above tree 

line. From the snow-capped summit 

hikers enjoy awesome views over the 

valley and surrounding mountains, the 

Reloncaví estuary and distant volcanoes. 

The next afternoon we hiked out in 

order to reach the famed coastal city of 

Valparaíso for New Year’s celebrations. We 

had planned to camp at the trailhead and 

catch the bus the next afternoon. When 

we arrived two locals told us the owner 

had been taken to hospital. Reluctantly, 

we hiked the additional six kilometres to 

the main dirt road, then started toward the 

village. A couple of kilometres in, a lovely 

woman in a pickup truck offered us a ride. 

We gladly jumped on the back in our 

seventh hour of hiking. She didn’t want 

payment and instead dropped us off at her 

brother Ruben’s private camp ($5 each). 

With gorgeous views of the glaciated 

Yate Volcano across the estuary, we had 

the meadow to ourselves and enjoyed a 

perfect camp stove dinner while the sun 

set across the Pacific and dabbed the 

clouds overhead in shades of red. Since 

this was the last camping meal of our 

three-month South American trek, we 

left our fuel with Ruben. 

For more information, visit 

www.cochamo.com 

Ottawa resident Inga Petri joined the 

ACC in 1998, and currently belongs to the 

Ottawa and Montreal sections. Read her 

blog at www.talkingtrails.blogspot.com 

Quick draws 

Compiled by Lynn Martel 

McColl takes top spot at World Championships 

With delegates from the International Olympic Committee looking on, Alpine 

Club of Canada member Sean McColl carried on his solid winning streak for 2012 by 

claiming top spot at the climbing World Championships which took place in Paris 

September 11 thru 16. Coming on the heels of two consecutive World Cup podiums— 

third place in Innsbruck in May, followed by second place at the Teva Mountain Games 

in Vail, Colorado in June—McColl placed second in lead climbing, fourth in bouldering 

and set a new personal best in the speed event. This Canadian Bouldering champion is 

now World Champion too! Congratulations Sean! 

Read his blog at http://seanmccoll.com 

UIAA backs Rio+20 resolution on sustainable development 

The UIAA Mountain Protection Commission declared its support of a United 

Nations resolution highlighting the urgent need to commit to sustainable development 

in order to protect a planet that is under attack on multiple fronts including climate 

change and out of control growth. 

The draft resolution recognizes the benefits derived from mountain regions as 

essential to sustainable development, including the crucial role mountain ecosystems 

play in providing water resources to much of the world’s population. It also notes that 

fragile mountain ecosystems are particularly vulnerable to the adverse impacts of climate 

change and deforestation, and that alpine glaciers around the world are retreating and 

thinning with increasing impacts on the environment and human well-being. 

As well, the resolution states that mountains are often home to communities, including 

indigenous peoples who have developed sustainable uses of mountain resources, 

but that these communities are often marginalized. The resolution calls for efforts to be 

made to address poverty, food security, social exclusion and environmental degradation 

in these areas. 

For more info visit www.theuiaa.org/commissions_mountain_protection.html 

Sochi 2014 Winter Olympics update 

UIAA Ice Climbing president Pavel Shabalin returned from a reconnaissance trip 

Sochi, Russia, site of the 2014 Winter Olympics. In 2011, the Sochi 2014 Organizing 

Committee and UIAA, along with the Russian Mountaineering Federation, initiated 

the inclusion of Ice Climbing in the games as a cultural event. 

Shabalin reports that he reviewed different sites with the help of the Sochi-2014 

Organizing Committee and a venue for the ice climbing wall was chosen at the Gorky 

Gorod ski centre. The wall will be located between two lifts about 200 metres from 

central ski station. The resort will be home to the main Olympic Media Center and 

Olympic Media Village, which will host about 2,000 journalists. 


Challenges, personal bests met in Peruvian Andes 

by Leo Bezman 

I 

climbed my first 6,000-metre peak 

on an Alpine Club of Canada trip 

in 2010. That success opened new 

thoughts and plans in my never-ending 

passion for mountains. I returned home 

to Montreal with a desire to offer other 

climbers the same chance of discovering, 

and eventually enjoying, high altitude 

mountaineering. 

That’s how a long-time dream, Peru’s 

Cordillera Blanca came on stage. This 

compact range of mountains with 25 peaks 

above 6,000 metres is well suited to a wide 

spectrum of climbing skills and experience 

levels. It’s one of the best places for an 

introduction to high altitude mountaineering 

or serious technical climbs. 

I began planning mostly alone, last 

October. I presented the trip to the ACC 

Montreal Section in December, then to 

other sections. Eventually nine ACCers 

joined from Montreal, Ottawa, Toronto 

and Outaouais. As a fellow Club member 

once said to me, climbing with people we 

don’t know well or sometimes barely at 

all is a fundamental element of the ACC 

experience; from all nine, only two knew 

each other before and only one had ever 

climbed above 5,000 metres. 

The trip was conceived as an introduction 

to high altitude mountaineering 

for people with good climbing skills on 

ice and snow. The schedule included a 

generous acclimatization period, two 

5,500-metre introductory summits and two 

technical summits above 6,000 metres. 

We all flew to Lima from where we 

bused to the charming, colourful city 

of Huaraz. In Huaraz and around we 

spent three days acclimatizing before 

travelling to Ishnica Valley base camp. 

Easily reached from Huaraz and with 

a nearby alpine hut, the base camp is 

famous for being crowded, but was rather 

lonely during our nine-day stay. At 4,400 

metres, the challenges of high altitude 

become very real, so we began negotiating 

our new reality. 

On day seven, the alarm rang at 

2 a.m. All nine of us started up a steep 

and rocky ridge, each walking alone for 

a long while, fighting the night and the 

cold and wondering if we might reach 

the top. Regardless of experience, it’s 

probably the same for the first climb of 

every trip. Regrouping after two hours 

we counted the first bail-out. One hour 

later as we crested the glacier at 5,000 

metres, the second bail-out ensued, so 

only seven roped up to continue. With 

just a few crevasses and moderate snow 

slopes to negotiate, at 8:30 a.m. we 

reached the 5,420-metre summit of Urus 

Este—a personal record for six ACCers. 

Overwhelmed by emotions, as always 

after a long time away from mountains, I 

sat a few minutes and enjoyed the beauty, 

the purity and the untouchable. Those 

indescribable minutes that make sense 

of all the efforts and the sacrifices; those 

minutes only very few can understand. 

Back in camp by early afternoon, 

we found one trip-mate in trouble with 

acute mountain sickness symptoms. As 

The ACC Eastern sections team is all smiles on the 5,420-summit of Ishinca. 

From left, back row, Josiane Ruffa, Alain Turgeon, Geneviève Lefebvre and François De Léan. 

Front row, Benoit Mayer-Godin, Leo Bezman and Ryszard Tokarczyk. photo by Valentin Jaumouille. 

the situation deteriorated, we arranged 

an emergency evacuation using burros 

and one arierro (burro driver) plus a taxi 

from the trailhead. He returned to safety 

in Huaraz, but it took him several weeks 

to fully recover and we learned once 

more that not everybody acclimatizes 

at altitude. Although I felt sorry for my 

distressed friend, I was happy to see the 

remaining group well acclimatized and in 

good spirits. 

Two days later at 2:30 a.m. under 

a bright full moon, we left camp for 

the summit of Ishinca. With a longer 

approach, more crevasses and steeper sections, 

our entire team of eight made the 

5,530-metre summit in wonderful sunshine. 

Ishinca gave legacy to our trip and 

successfully concluded the introductory 

portion. Back in camp by mid-afternoon, 

another altitude record for seven ACCers 

was good reason to celebrate—albeit 

somewhat anxiously with our thoughts 

already to more serious climbs ahead. 

The next morning we moved to high 

camp at 5,000-metres to climb 6,032- 

metre Tocllaraju, which impressively 

dominates the valley. In cold thin air, that 

evening we decided to seize the weather 

opportunity and climb the next morning, 

as I believe people well acclimatized at 

4,500 metres should be able to climb at 

6,000 metres after very little or no additional 

time at 5,000 metres. Moreover, a 

good weather day should not be traded 

for unnecessary rest or acclimatization 

time. That decision, however, would come 

under fire the next day as at least one of 

us questioned whether more acclimatization 

time at the new altitude would have 

put us in a better position to summit. 

I don’t do a 6,000-metre mountain 

every year, so my night was full of emotions 

with very little sleep. We headed out 

at 2 a.m. with three and four climbers, 

respectively, on two 60-metre ropes. 

Saving weight, we carried no additional 

long ropes, thus making the teams 

dependable on each other for at least the 

descent rappels—a logistical oversight 

with serious implications. 

Seven hours into the climb, and 

finally into the sun, 400 metres below 

the summit, the unthinkable, and still so 

predictable, happened. One climber was 

exhausted and unable to continue. This

Following the huge success of his expert-level 

Snowshoeing in the Canadian Rockies (RMB, 2011), 

Andrew Nugara has now written the ultimate 

guide for those just getting into the sport. 

A Beginner’s Guide to Snowshoeing in the 

Canadian Rockies describes over 40 great 

routes for new snowshoers. The trips range 

from scenic Waterton in the far south to the 

breathtaking Columbia Icefield in the north 

section of Banff National Park. Stunning 

colour photos, maps and detailed route 

descriptions are provided for each route, as 

well as level of difficulty, objective hazards, 

additional equipment requirements and handy 

listings of combined routes and family trips. 

Whether you are looking for an easy day on 

flat terrain amid beautiful surroundings or 

something slightly more challenging, you will 

find it in this new guidebook. 

Think outside. 

was quite dramatic since the rope shortage 

and missing bail-out strategy would 

force us all to withdraw. Furthermore, 

hesitation in communicating the crisis 

made the situation even tenser, and 

the decision to retreat more difficult to 

accept. We were six ambitious climbers 

with a strong desire to reach our first 

6,000-metre summit in full view only a 

couple of hours away. The first goal of the 

trip, that everyone should return safely, 

was forgotten for a blip of a second, 

and the responsibility on my shoulders 

became unbearable for the first time. 

We retreated with broken hearts 

and broken team spirit, but found the 

energy to spend another night at our 

5,000-metre camp to gain more acclimatization 

for our remaining big mountain. 

I was heartbroken too. I bear the heavy 

responsibility of not trying to conciliate, 

regain confidence and the next day, 

make a second attempt that would have 

had a reasonable chance of success, I 

now think. We descended to base camp 

instead, returning to Huaraz the day 

after for a good rest, good food and team 

reconciliation. 

We spent two days in Huaraz preparing 

for Chopicalqui, at 6,354 metres one 

of the highest, most beautiful peaks in the 

range—the final, most desired objective of 

our trip. We reviewed strategy and decided 

to proceed with faster teams of two 

climbers carrying two 60-metre ropes and 

enough pickets and screws to independently 

descend from any point. To match 

everyone’s ability, fitness and dedication, 

we hired three professionals—one guide 

and two assistants, increasing the team to 

10 climbers, four porters and a cook. 

With lots of gear and food, we 

crowded into a van and drove to trailhead 

in the Llanganuco Valley, then 

hiked directly to Morena Camp at 

4,900 metres. For the first time on the 

trip, bad weather grounded us there an 

additional day. With clear skies the next 

day, we eagerly climbed to high camp 

at 5,500-metres, navigating fields of 

crevasses with half-collapsed bridges and 

numerous hanging seracs. Although in a 

tense mood, everybody felt well and ready 

for the challenge. 

Fifteen lights lined up Chopicalqui’s 

first steep slope at 1 a.m. Three Peruvians 

and two Germans joined our group of 

seven ACCers and three local guides. 

Climbing with the lead guide in the first 

team, I quickly realized fresh snow from 

the previous day’s bad weather would 

make our climb more difficult. With that, 

climbing at night on an unfamiliar glacier 

was not an easy task. Focused on my own 

work, I didn’t notice as the Germans, then 

Peruvians and two Canadian teams turned 

around, leaving only four ACCers and two 

guides on the mountain after sunrise. 

Gaining altitude, we ran into more 

technical terrain but also reached the 

warmth of the sun and the splendour 

of the views; the Cordillera seen from 

the steep slopes of 

Chopicalqui was 

breathtaking. I was 

finally living the dream. 

Soon we reached the 

final ridge before the 

summit mushroom, 

subject of a famous 

Chopicalqui picture 

that obsessed me for 

Peruvian guide Felix Silva 

and Leo Bezman set the track 

as they approach the summit 

mushroom on 6,354-metre 

Chopicalqui. 

photo by Ryszard Tokarczyk. 

years. On a sunny and rare windless day 

and overwhelmed by emotion, I reached 

the 6,354-metre summit of Chopicalqui, 

10 hours after leaving camp. The minutes 

on the summit were profoundly rewarding; 

the views and feelings again beyond 

belief. In such moments, my thoughts 

flew to the ones far away I love the most, 

the ones who missed me so much this 

year and to whom I dedicated the climb. 

Another ACCer and guide reached 

the summit shortly after me; two other 

Canadians stopped at 6,200 metres, less 

than one hour from the top. We all had 

climbed higher than ever before and 

enjoyed the clear day and astonishing 

views from the heights of Chopicalqui. 

With many thanks to fellow climbers: 

Ryszard Tokarczyk (ACC Ottawa 

Section), Alain Turgeon (Outaouais), 

Geneviève Lefebvre (Montreal, 

Outaouais), François De Léan 

(Outaouais, Ottawa, Laurentian), Benoit 

Mayer-Godin (Montreal), Manel Nitu 

(Montreal), Josiane Ruffa (Toronto) and 

Valentin Jaumouille (Toronto). 

Leo Bezman belongs to the ACC’s 

Montreal Section.

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MEC U25 Camp about climbing—and more! 

story and photos submitted by Andrew Abel 

I’ve always been into the outdoors— 

climbing, hiking, scrambling, 

backpacking, you name it, I would do 

it. I reached a point where I really wanted 

to start getting more serious about the 

outdoors and join a culture and a group 

of people who love to do what I love to 

do. I also wanted to learn from those who 

had been doing it for a long time. 

So, in 2012, I joined the Alpine Club 

of Canada and the first newsletter came 

and I was amazed at the opportunities 

available. I found the MEC Under 25 

Climbing Camp while reading the 

Gazette and thought to myself, why not? 

My main reason was I wanted to meet 

people around my age range who love to 

do what I love to do. I’ve had a hard time 

finding people who are interested in the 

outdoors like I am. 

I really wasn’t sure what my expectations 

were going into the camp, since 

I had never participated in, or ever 

thought of signing up for a camp like the 

MEC Under 25. 

I won’t lie; I believe my expectations 

were a little skewed, a bit grandiose in 

my mind, of what we would learn to do. 

I had thoughts of being able to go from 

top-roping to multi-pitch climbs in a 

couple of days, and that after the camp 

we could go climb anywhere. 

Overall though, the camp exceeded 

my expectations as I learned how work, 

knowledge and safe practice is what it 

takes to really master rock climbing. We 

learned about safe rope handling technique, 

sport climbing, cleaning anchors, 

short introduction to multi-pitch sport 

climbs, and a brief overview of trad 

anchors. 

The things I wasn’t expecting to learn 

though, really had to do with the community 

that is rock climbing. It was hard 

for me to understand at first that there 

is a community of people who love to do 

what I love to do, and dedicate a lot of 

their time, talents and money to make 

what I do possible. Some of my best 

memories weren’t necessarily the climbs, 

or the techniques learned, but truly the 

time that each of us had to interact with 

and get to know one another, and also to 

have the amazing opportunity to learn 

from Jen Olson and Sonnie Trotter. I 

believe without them the camp would not 

18 Alpine Club of Canada Gazette Winter 2012 

have been the same. It was amazing for 

us who are younger to be able to talk with 

them, learn from them. To bounce ideas 

and thoughts off of them was truly the 

highlight of the camp in my mind. 

One of the things I truly learned from 

the camp was that rock climbing isn’t 

about climbing as much as it is about 

being with others who love to do what 

you love to do, spending time with them, 

having fun and being safe. I’m very glad 

I signed up because now I have gained 

some friends I can climb with, and from 

the camp we started those friendships. 

I would highly recommend this camp. 

Just the information, the skills you learn, 

the rock you get to climb, the scenery, the 

relationships and the guides and people 

you meet make it all worth it. Everything 

from accommodations to the food we 

were given was above and beyond my 

expectations. Everything was arranged 

and the guides helped everybody; no 

matter the skill level everybody learned 

something and was able to climb something 

they thought maybe they couldn’t 

at the beginning of the camp. Afterward, 

I felt my abilities and knowledge gained 

were far higher than before. 

I also realized from the guides that 

the outdoors is always about learning and 

changing, and you never really know it all. 

It’s about constant discovery, of yourself 

and the outdoors. 

Andrew Abel is a 21-year-old ACC 

Edmonton Section member who is currently 

working to save money to embark on a twoyear 

mission for his church. 

Top: Andrew Abel unclips from an anchor during 

the 2012 MEC Under 25 Climbing Camp. 

Middle: Andrew Abel fine-tunes his rappelling 

skills while participating on the 2012 MEC Under 

25 Climbing Camp. 

Bottom: MEC Under 25 Climbing Camp instructor 

Sonnie Trotter shares some beta on proper rappel 

technique with participant Nick Dimopoulos at 

Lake Louise.

JLT SPORT one-third page vertical ad.pdf 1 

Book ends 

Compiled by Lynn Martel 

John Clarke: Explorer of the Coast Mountains 

by Lisa Baile 

This fascinating biography provides a detailed portrait of 

John Clarke, the man who became British Columbia’s most 

EXPLORER of the COAST MOUNTAINS 

renowned mountaineer by doing it his way. Uninterested in 

“trophy climbs”, Clarke never did ascend many of B.C.’s highest 

peaks. What he did accomplish in the most impressive and 

admirable fashion was to explore more virgin territory and 

rack up more first ascents than any other climber. Covering his 

remarkable life through his own words and photographs as well 

Lisa Baile 

as those of many of his friends, this well-researched book reveals 

the spirit of one of the very few mountaineers to receive the 

Order of Canada. 

An active ACC and B.C. Mountaineering Club member who co-founded the 

Wilderness Education Program with Clarke, Baile’s writing beautifully captures a 

modest man who dedicated his life not just to exploring the numberless, nameless peaks 

of the Coast Mountains, but to tirelessly working on environmental and conservation 

education to preserve that unique landscape. 

Published by Harbour Publishing www.harbourpublishing.com 

Kananaskis Country Trail Guide Volume 4 

Sheep/Gorge Creek/North Fork 

by Gillean Daffern 

What began as the only guidebook to Alberta’s cherished 

Kananaskis Country has blossomed into five individual publications. 

Exhaustively researched and meticulously designed, 

just like all of Daffern’s signature guidebooks, K-Country 

Guide Volume 4 provides definitive trail information for the 

region’s eastern river valleys, sinuous ridges and rolling foothills, 

encompassing the Sheep River and Gorge and Threepoint creeks 

area. This “true explorer’s paradise” features hidden waterfalls, 

alpine tarns and bucolic meadows. Coordinates for GPS users, 

camping, hunting, road closures and river crossing info, plus a generous collection of 

modern-day crisp colour photos and equally clear colour topo maps, index and easy-toread 

route diagrams all round out another outstanding Daffern guidebook. 

Published by Rocky Mountain Books www.rmbooks.com 

C 

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Banff Rock: A Guidebook to Rock Climbing in 

Banff National Park Canada 

by Chris Perry 

Bursting with more than 500 pages, this beefy guidebook 

weighs as much as a rope, but for climbers living in or visiting 

the Banff area, it’s equally indispensable. With 400 ultra clear 

photos revealing well-defined rock features, this self-published 

volume shows careful attention to little extras such as 

rounded corners and meticulously drawn route topos. Written 

descriptions are comprehensive, indicating whether the route 

is bolted or requires trad gear, followed by pitch-by-pitch 

beta, up-to-date info on anchors, rappel stations, approaches 

and descents. The extensive history section, written by Rockies writer and climber, 

Brandon Pullan, is an essential component, beginning and ending at the Bow Valley 

landmark, Mount Louis, first climbed in 1916 by legendary Austrian guide Conrad Kain 

and famed ACC member Albert McCarthy. 

Published by CIMATECH PRESS. To purchase your copy visit 

www.alpineclubofcanada.ca/store 


Recherche d’itinéraire 

par Peter Muir 

Le 15 juin 2012, grâce au travail 

fantastique des sections du Manitoba 

et de Saint-Boniface du Club alpin 

du Canada, une petite plaque a été placée 

à l’endroit où a eu lieu la première réunion 

du CAC en 1906. En tant que président du 

CAC, j’ai prononcé un petit discours à cette 

occasion, dont voici une version abrégée. 

Il est à la fois amusant et ironique 

que le Club alpin du Canada soit né à 

Photo: Lynn Martel 

Photo: Sean Isaac 

Alpine Club of Canada 

MOUNTAIN ADVENTURES 

Photo: Jasmin Fredette 

Photo: Felix Camire 

NOW BOOKING 

Incredible winter memories start here 

Winter 2013 Adventures 

7 unique, fully-guided 

winter adventures 

Only with Canada’s national 

mountaineering club 

Winnipeg. Mais rappelons que, pendant 

la majeure partie de son histoire, 

Winnipeg a été l’une des villes canadiennes 

les plus influentes d’abord par 

son emplacement géographique, puis par 

son développement : au début, les fleuves, 

puis les chemins de fer. Son infrastructure 

de l’époque montre bien l’influence 

importante exercée par l’immigration, 

l’économie, et la culture. 

Mid-Winter Ice Camp 

Wapta Traverse Fairy Meadow Powder Week 

Feb 16-18 $695 Mar16-23 or Apr 7-14 $1,695 

March 30-April 6 $2,195 

www.alpineclubofcanada.ca/adventures 

adventures@alpineclubofcanada.ca 

Frustré par le peu d’intérêt que 

soulevait alors la création d’un club 

alpin canadien, le cofondateur de notre 

Club, Arthur Wheeler, a commencé à 

réfléchir à l’offre du docteur Charles 

Fay de créer une section canadienne à 

l’American Alpine Club. Mais avant de 

se résoudre à cette solution, Wheeler 

a décidé d’écrire aux principaux journaux 

canadiens pour demander que 

l’on soutienne la création d’un club 

alpin canadien. L’un de ces journaux 

était le Winnipeg Free Press, journal 

très influent dans l’Ouest canadien 

en 1906. Le rédacteur en chef de ce 

journal, J.W. Dafoe, a remis la lettre 

d’Arthur Wheeler à une jeune écrivaine 

canadienne nommée Elizabeth Parker. 

L’histoire raconte qu’il l’avait choisie 

parce qu’elle possédait 18 mois d’expérience 

dans les Rocheuses canadiennes, 

mais aussi parce qu’il avait bien vu 

par les articles qu’elle écrivait dans le 

Winnipeg Free Press et dans le Canadian 

Alpine Journal qu’elle serait à la hauteur 

du défi proposé par Arthur Wheeler. 

S’appuyant sur le fait qu’il était 

inacceptable de se joindre aux 

Américains, Mlle Parker a écrit une série 

d’articles démontrant qu’il était possible 

de créer un club alpin canadien. Ses écrits, 

à la fois sans compromis, nationalistes, et 

prophétiques en matière d’environnement, 

ont inspiré la formation du Club alpin du 

Canada en mars 1906. 

Aujourd’hui, le Club alpin du Canada 

possède 30 refuges de montagne et 

compte plus de membres qu’Arthur 

Wheeler ou Elizabeth Parker n’auraient 

jamais pu l’imaginer, dans des sections 

qui vont de Terre-Neuve au Yukon, en 

passant par l’Île de Vancouver. 

Mais revenons à ce qu’écrivait 

Élizabeth Parker : « La réponse qui 

nous est parvenue de toutes les parties 

du Dominion fut une véritable surprise, 

contredisant tous ceux d’entre nous 

qui avaient déploré l’indifférence des 

Canadiens envers un sport pour lequel la 

nature nous a fourni un aussi vaste terrain 

de jeu, au cœur même de notre territoire. 

Nous étions sortis de notre sommeil et 

allions corriger la situation en créant 

une organisation de montagne des plus 

vigoureuses. » 

Vision accomplie ! 


Route finding 

by Peter Muir 

On June 15, 2012, after much hard 

work by the Alpine Club of 

Canada’s Manitoba and Saint- 

Boniface sections, a small plaque was placed 

in Winnipeg at the location of the ACC’s first 

meeting in 1906. As ACC President, I made 

a small speech; here is an edited version. 

It is an amusing irony that the Alpine 

Club of Canada began in Winnipeg. But 

for much of its history, Winnipeg was 

among the most influential of Canadian 

cities because of geography, and then 

development; first rivers and then railways. 

The city’s infrastructure from the 

time reflects its dominance of immigration, 

economy and culture. 

Our Club’s co-founder, Arthur 

Wheeler, frustrated by the lack of interest 

in a Canadian mountaineering organization, 

began to consider Dr. Charles Fay’s 

overtures to create a Canadian section 

of the American Alpine Club. As a last 

ditch effort, Wheeler campaigned by 

letter to major Canadian newspapers 

for support for a Canadian club. One of 

those newspapers was Winnipeg’s Free 

Press—in 1906 western Canada’s most 

influential newspaper. Its editor, J.W. 

Dafoe, gave Wheeler’s letter to young 

writer named Elizabeth Parker. Common 

history says he chose her because she had 

18 months’ experience in the Canadian 

Rockies. Her writings in that paper and 

in the Canadian Alpine Journal however, 

reveal he believed she would rise to 

Wheeler’s challenge. 

Ms. Parker launched a tireless 

Executive Committee slate 

In accordance with Alpine Club of Canada bylaws, a committee nominates a slate 

of Executive Committee members for a two-year term. The nominating committee 

proposes the following slate for the May 2013 to May 2015 term: 

President: Peter Muir 

Secretary: Gordon Currie 

Treasurer: Neil Bosch 

VP Mountain Culture: Isabelle Daigneault 

VP Services: David Foster 

VP Activities: Zac Robinson 

VP Facilities: Carl Hannigan 

VP Access and Environment: Wayne Campbell 

According to the Club’s bylaws, additional nominations may be submitted by a 

member provided the nominations: 

●● 

are accompanied by the names and signatures of at least 50 supporting members 

in good standing, and 

●● 

reach the Club’s National Office no later than December 1, 2012. 

If one or more such nominations are received, election ballots for the position(s) 

involved will be mailed to members in March. If not, the above slate will be declared 

elected and will assume office at the Club’s Annual General Meeting on May 11, 2013. 

campaign of articles about a potential 

Canadian club based on the unacceptability 

of joining with the Americans. Her 

words were uncompromising, nationalistic 

and environmentally prophetic, and 

they inspired the formation of the ACC 

in March, 1906. 

Today’s ACC boasts 30 mountain 

huts and more members than Wheeler 

or Parker could have imagined belonging 

to sections from Newfoundland to 

Vancouver Island to the Yukon. 

In Parker’s words: “The response from 

all parts of the Dominion was a surprise, 

and ought to have been a rebuke to us 

who had loudly lamented Canadian 

indifference to a sport for which Nature 

had provided so vast the playground on 

our own immediate territory. We had 

awakened out of sleep, and would redeem 

the past by a vigorous mountaineering 

organization.” 

Vision accomplished. 

Recycle this Gazette 

Leave it on Santa’s lap 


TNF Winter Course serves up lessons, camaraderie and powder 

The North Face Winter Leadership Course participants practice efficient transition in -25 C temperatures. 

story and photos by Matthew Smith 

It was a great week of learning, 

camaraderie and even some excellent 

skiing. 

I’m talking about the Alpine Club of 

Canada’s 2012 The North Face Winter 

Leadership Course, which I had the 

opportunity to participate in last January. 

Excited, we met at the Alpine 

Helicopters hangar in Golden, B.C. and 

boarded the Bell 407 to fly into the early 

morning sun and the amazing panorama 

of the Purcell and Rocky mountains. The 

approach to Mistaya Lodge followed the 

stunning Wildcat Creek valley before 

settling onto the pad beside the beautiful 

wood lodge set in a magnificent cirque 

surrounded by 3,000-metre peaks. Not 

your standard alpine hut, Mistaya is quite 

luxurious with hot and cold running 

water, toilets, electricity, a wood stove, and 

even a wood fired sauna! 

I was impressed, as usual, with the 

diverse nature of my fellow ACC participants—they 

came from Alberta and 

British Columbia, of course, but also 

Ontario, Quebec and the newly formed 

Yukon Section. 

Lead instructor for the course was the 

legendary Cyril Shokoples, who kept us 

engaged with his wealth of experience 

and entertained with his repertoire of 

stories from the field. Mistaya’s owner 

and resident mountain guide, Dave 

Birnie, assisted with the guiding and 

made sure we were well taken care of. 

Hut custodian and chef extraordinaire 

Grant Coughlin kept us well fed with 

outstanding organic homemade meals. 

The days started early with careful, 

professional-standard recording of morning 

weather observations by headlamp. 

Then over coffee we discussed our findings 

and formulated a weather forecast. 

That was followed by the morning 

“guides meeting”, where we evaluated the 

avalanche hazard, did a stability evaluation 

and discussed the plan for the day. 

We spent most of each day in the field, 

evaluating terrain, practicing safe travel 

techniques, perfecting transitions, discussing 

group management and making 

route finding decisions. 

In the afternoon we returned to 

enjoy some delicious après ski courtesy 

of Grant—including one afternoon, 

fresh, homemade sushi. Then it was an 

afternoon lecture, a delicious dinner and a 

continuation of the lecture until 10 p.m., 

when we retired for the night until the 

6 a.m. wake up call. The course included 

an AST 2 avalanche certification, so there 

was considerable lecture material to cover, 

but Cyril kept us engaged. 

We were able to witness the typical 

spectrum of Rockies weather—from 

splitter blue sky and high pressure, to 

heavy snow, brutal wind and extreme cold. 

The temperatures presented a challenge 

for most of the week, as the thermometer 

rarely rose above -20 degrees C; one night 

I recorded a low of -34 C. 

Despite the cold temps and strong 

winds, we achieved most of our objectives, 

including route finding in complex terrain 

and poor visibility en route to the summit 

of West Peyto Peak (2,896 metres), 

the full AST 2 field work, and a surprise 

full-scale avalanche rescue scenario from 

a simulated serac fall complete with 

multiple burials, some deep, some shallow. 

This was an excellent demonstration of 

Participants on the 2012 The North Face Winter Leadership Course show off their spiffy new TNF jackets 

with their instructor, Cyril Shokoples (fifth from left). 


the necessity of practicing tactical avalanche 

triage; in this scenario, spending 

excessive time digging out a deep burial 

could negate the chances of rescue for a 

shallow burial that could be easily rescued 

with proper allocation of resources. 

Snow accumulation was minimal for 

the week we were there, but on the last 

day, thanks to Dave’s excellent terrain 

knowledge, we enjoyed some spectacular, 

knee-deep fresh stuff, despite the fact that 

there hadn’t been a dump in two weeks. 

A ski tour to Mohawk Ridge yielded 

run after run of beautiful powder in a 

perfectly spaced coniferous forest, and the 

hoots, hollers and sparkling trails of cold 

smoke floating through the trees had me 

wishing I could spend another week there 

enjoying the amazing terrain. 

Thanks to the ACC Ottawa Section 

for giving me the opportunity to attend; 

to Dave and Grant and for being 

such gracious hosts; to Cyril for his 

excellent instruction; and to my fellow 

course participants for the learning 

opportunities and memories: Mark 

Isaacs (Prince George Section), Yves 

Gobeil (Edmonton), Patrick Leclerc 

(Laurentides), Jennifer Eakins (Yukon), 

Charles Stuart (Yukon), Harold Steiner 

(Vancouver Island), Gerald Levac 

(Okanagan), Alexis Guigue (Vancouver), 

Mina Inamori (Rocky Mountain), 

Matthew Smith (Ottawa), ACMG mountain 

guide Cyril Shokoples, ACMG ski 

guide David Birnie and backcountry chef 

Grant Coughlin. 

Alpine Club of Canada member 

Matthew Smith is a flight paramedic and 

ski patroller living in Ottawa who plays in 

the mountains whenever possible. 

Photo: JIMMY ChIN 

Meru BiB 

Shaffle Jacket 

JS1001123_ACC_tNF_1/3_PAGE_WINtER_2012.indd 1 

Karl Nagy Memorial Award 

ATHLETE 

TESTED. 

EXPEDITION 

PROVEN. 

radiSh Midlayer 

9/27/12 5:06 PM 

The Karl Nagy Memorial Award was established in 2001 to assist amateur leaders 

and guides in the development of their leadership skills. Until his death in 

2000, Karl set an outstanding example as a mentor in the mountains and was 

well known for his leadership, safety and success. 

This award provides an opportunity for Alpine Club of Canada (ACC) aspiring 

amateur leaders and Association of Canadian Mountain Guides (ACMG) candidates 

to participate at the ACC General Mountaineering Camp. 

Alpine Club amateur leaders and ACMG candidates are given priority in alternating 

years; 2013 is set for an ACMG aspirant guide. All applicants must be current 

ACC members. Deadline for applications is January 31, 2013. For more information, 

visit www.alpineclubofcanada.ca/grants/ 


Melanie Bernier glides across Sherbrooke Lake en route to completing the classic Rockies Wapta ski traverse in the fastest known time. 

Canadian skimo duo clocks fastest-known Wapta time 

Story and photos by Ian Gale 

The trip didn’t start well. It was 

4:30 a.m. and we were running or 

stumbling down to Peyto Lake 

through 70 centimetres of isothermal 

snow, swinging from branches through 

short broken sections of cliff. Our mission 

was a one-day speed traverse of 

the Wapta Icefield from Peyto Lake to 

Sherbrooke Lake, and in my over-excitement 

I thought I was guiding through 

an open glade that would eliminate a 

Melanie Bernier scrambles up the bare moraine 

in Peyto Canyon en route to gaining the icefield 

above, Mount Habel (formerly known as Rhondda 

North) in the background. 

few switchbacks. Now all I could do was 

shrug, apologize and keep the bushwhack 

moving. 

Mel Bernier and I have raced together 

for the Canadian Ski Mountaineering 

team for a few years and have shared 

enough adventures in the mountains to 

know we’re a well matched team. With 

the Alpine Club of Canada’s support 

we have had the honour of representing 

Canada at multiple World Cup and 

World Championship races across North 

America and Europe. In countries such 

as France and Italy, ski mountaineering 

(skimo) is wrapped in history, originating 

from world wars where soldiers would 

patrol the high Alps, pioneering routes 

for now classic grande courses, including 

the Patrouille des Glaciers, Mezzalama 

and Pierra Menta. 

On the first day of the 2010 World 

Championships in Andorra, Team 

Canada and 20 other nations paraded 

through the principality’s capital, 

Andorra la Vella, shutting down its main 

street for hours. Throughout the World 

Championships, winning racers from 

French, Italian and Spanish teams made 

the front pages of the national papers, 

like hockey players would in Canada. It’s 

a whole ’nother league over there. 

It doesn’t take long after seeing the 

speed and comfort ski mountaineers have 

in the Alps to start looking at our own 

Canadian classics and wonder what could 

happen if you just changed your tactics 

and mindset a little bit? What if, instead 

of a 70-litre pack, you carried a 20-litre 

pack, and instead of 180-centimetre 

powder skis and four-buckle boots, you 

wore two-buckle, 500-gram ski slippers 

on each foot and stepped into 160-centimetre 

carbon skis weighing 700 grams? 

Include glid-y mohair skins cut just 

behind the heel... Imagine the freedom of 

movement! 

After a few failed attempts to do the 

traverse in years previous, Mel and I had 

our eyes on conditions spring 2012. When 

things looked like they’d shaped up all it 

took was a quick text on Thursday and 

Saturday’s mission was on. 

All teams face challenges and luckily 

our stoke and caffeine levels were 

high enough that it was going to take 

more than 120 metres of isothermal 

bushwhacking to hold us back. Once at 

the lake we easily made ground on the 

supportive crust through the canyon, 

moraines and onto the glacier. 

Above 2,440 metres a breakable 

crust gave way to fresh blown snow and 

20-centimetre ski penetration. Finding a 

sustainable pace, we swapped leads back 

and forth powering through the kilometres. 

At the Saint Nicholas/Olive Col 

we congratulated ourselves on making it 

half way in a bit over three hours. Seeing 

tracks out to Vulture Col, an alternate 

route to the base of Mount Balfour, we 

were doubly happy to know we’d have a 

set skin track up to the Balfour High Col, 

pleased to be done with tiring, slower trail 

breaking. 


Kode 30 1_3SQ EN AC Gazette.pdf 1 9/13/12 2:47 PM 

Three and a half kilometres of rolling 

glacier descent gave our legs a needed 

rest as we watched the scenery meander 

by. Unfortunately, once we reached the 

moraine below Balfour Glacier our 

hearts sunk. Our trail breakers had 

C 

chosen a different route, leaving us to 

punch the 550-metre route to the Wapta M 

high point. 

Y 

At this point Melly stepped up and 

showed why she’s one of Canada’s fastest 

racers. Throwing on the rope, she pinned 

it through the broken bottom half of the 

route, giving me time to down a few gels 

and drink some sports drink mix before 

K 

she stepped aside for me to take it to 

the col. Satisfied with making the high 

point of the traverse, we took a moment 

to absorb the day and appreciate where 

we were and what we were doing. I also 

took the time to absorb a caffeinated gel, 

electrolyte tabs and some ibuprofen. 

Snow conditions were superb down 

to the ACC’s Scott Duncan Hut, a supportive 

crust carried us to a set track over 

to the Niles/Daly Col and we enjoyed 

firm safe conditions on the ski out to 

Sherbrooke Lake. We skated across the 

lake, racing for the start of the monkey 

trail/luge track and the waiting car 

beyond. 

Clicking the watch confirmed our 

time of 7 hours, 35 minutes. With that 

three-year project complete we were 

content to sit back and ponder the whole 

purpose of the ski, not for the competitiveness, 

but for the feeling of freedom 

we get from time in the mountains, the 

feeling of uninhibited movement and the 

potential of where your legs can take you. 

Team Canada would like to thank 

the ACC for its continued support of 

competitive ski mountaineering in 

Canada. To learn more about Canada’s 

other national ski team, please visit 

www.skimocanada.org 

Golden, B.C.’s Ian Gale is a member of 

Kicking Horse Mountain Resort’s mountain 

safety team who enjoys exploring 

the Dogtooth Range, Rogers Pass and the 

Rockies on both skinny and fat skis. His 

summers are spent biking, mountaineering 

and working as a firefighter, not necessarily 

in that order. At press time Ian and his wife, 

Shauna, were awaiting the birth of their 

first child. 

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Reservations stRongly recommended... 

Adam Greenberg PHOTO 

200, 50 Lincoln Park, Canmore | 1-866-678-4164 

kitchen@yamnuska.com 

yamnuska.com | canadianrockieshiking.com 

At Yamnuska, we know that 

food is a critical part of any 

trip to the backcountry. 

That’s why we now offer 

the same delicious and well 

balanced food served on our 

programs. 

Why buy mass-produced 

freeze dried meals when 

you can have a tasty custom 

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• Full meal packages or 

dehydrated dinners. 

• Packaged and prepared in 

our commercial kitchen. 

• Experience developing 

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meals. 

• We can ship anywhere in 

Canada, or you can pick 

your order up at our office 

in Canmore, Alberta. 

• We cater to individuals, 

groups and expeditions. 

Contact us for more details 

and let us focus on the food 

while you focus on your trip. 


Mon bénévole préféré : Rick Checkland 

par Lil Lezarre 

Rick : On m’a demandé d’écrire cet 

article, alors je devais le faire ! 

J’ai écrit précédemment un article dans 

la section d’Edmonton du bulletin Breeze, 

et Rick m’a dit que j’avais exagéré, ce qui 

montre bien le genre de personne qu’est Rick 

Checkland. 

J’ai rencontré Nick pour la première 

fois il y a cinq ans pendant le cours 

« Summer in the Mountains » 

organisé par notre section. Lorsqu’on 

nous a présentés, je lui ai dit que j’assistais 

au cours pour pouvoir emmener mes 

enfants en montagne de façon sécuritaire. 

Il m’a alors invitée à participer à 

un voyage qu’il ferait avec sa famille ce 

weekend-là. Rick possède un énorme 

bagage de connaissances sur toutes les 

activités que l’on peut pratiquer dans 

l’arrière-pays : ski, alpinisme, escalade, 

voyage en terrain glacé; et il aime communiquer 

son enthousiasme à tous ceux 

qui l’entourent. Au cours des 44 dernières 

années, il a donné les cours d’introduction 

aux cours « Winter in the Mountains » 

et « Summer in the Mountains » et était 

presque toujours présent aux weekends 

d’activités reliés à ces cours. Je l’assiste 

depuis quatre ans et j’apprends quelque 

chose de nouveau à chaque cours. Cette 

année, Rick a constaté qu’il serait utile 

d’organiser un SIM plus court. Il a donc 

conçu et dirigé un cours accéléré, qui 

comprend un exposé et un weekend 

d’activités. 

Rick se tient au courant de toutes les 

nouveautés en matière de techniques, 

technologies, équipement, et informations 

sur la sécurité. Il connaît toutes 

sortes de détails, comme la façon dont les 

différents motifs cousus ont un effet sur 

les vêtements de duvet, les changements 

physiologiques subis par le corps lorsqu’il 

doit s’adapter à la température, la façon 

dont la composition des tissus affecte les 

vêtements, et ce qui fonctionne le mieux 

dans certaines conditions. Sa plus récente 

responsabilité en tant que bénévole consistera 

à diriger le cours « Winter on Ice » 

de notre section. Tous les ans au cours du 

weekend de l’Action de Grâces, il nettoie 

et prépare pour l’hiver le refuge Wates- 

Gibson à Jasper. Au printemps dernier, 

lorsque Parcs Canada a demandé de l’aide 

pour refaire le sentier menant à ce refuge, 

Rick a immédiatement répondu qu’il irait 

et a offert d’emmener des passagers. 

En voyage, Rick est la personne la 

mieux préparée que j’aie jamais vue; il 

apporte un double de tout. Ainsi, au 

cours d’une randonnée d’escalade, il a 

offert d’enlever les cordes. J’ai donc décidé 

d’alléger ses bagages. J’ai commencé 

à enlever des choses de son sac, pour 

ACC Funds and Grants Program 

Through the generosity of many donors, the Alpine Club of Canada has established 

funds to support mountaineering related projects and initiatives. The 

deadline for submission of grant applications is January 31, 2013. Grant recipients 

will be announced mid-March 2013. 

The Environment Fund – provides support that contributes to the protection 

and preservation of alpine flora and fauna in their natural habitat. The focus of 

the Fund is wilderness conservation. 

The Jen Higgins Fund – promotes creative and energetic alpine related outdoor 

pursuits by young women. These projects should demonstrate initiative, 

creativity, energy and resourcefulness with an emphasis on self-propelled wilderness 

travel, and should provide value and interest to the community. 

Jim Colpitts Fund – encourages young climbers between the ages of 17 and 24 

to participate in mountain related courses and programs such as wilderness first 

aid, avalanche training, rock/crevasse rescue and mountain leadership training. 

For complete info and application forms visit: www.alpineclubofcanada.ca/grants or 

call the ACC National Office at 403-678-3200 ext. 108. 

Rick Checkland se bénévole pour tester les 

conditions de neige. | Rick Checkland volunteers 

to test snow conditions. 

réaliser que le mien se remplissait tellement 

que je ne pourrais plus le porter, 

mais que cela n’avait presque rien changé 

au sac de Rick. Demandez à n’importe 

lequel de ses étudiants : si une personne 

a un problème avec ses skis, elle peut 

compter sur Rick pour les réparer. Son 

numéro de cellulaire est public, et il 

répond régulièrement aux questions de 

ses anciens étudiants. Son poste le plus 

récent : webmestre de notre section. Ce 

n’est pas sa spécialité mais, pour lui, c’est 

simplement une autre façon d’aider le 

Club. Je sais aussi, entre autres, qu’il aime 

faire de la voile et est très actif au Grant 

MacEwan University Club. Au fil des 

ans, Rick a reçu de nombreux prix du 

Club alpin du Canada et il a toujours 

été un atout important pour la section 

d’Edmonton. 

Merci encore, Rick, pour tout ce 

que vous faites pour notre Club. Nous 

sommes très, très nombreux à bénéficier 

de votre passion pour la montagne et 

de votre désir de partager vos vastes 

connaissances avec tous ceux qui vous 

entourent. 

Mais si vous parlez de tout cela à 

Rick, il vous dira qu’il fait tout simplement 

ce qu’il aime faire. 

Lil Lezarre est la nouvelle directrice de 

la section d’Edmonton du Club alpin du 

Canada. 


My favourite volunteer: Rick Checkland 

by Lil Lezarre 

To Rick: please know I was requested to 

write this article so I had to do it. 

I originally wrote an article for the 

Edmonton Section Breeze newsletter and 

Rick told me I went overboard, which is 

a true testament to the kind of guy Rick 

Checkland is. 

The first time I met Rick was five 

years ago at our section’s annual 

Summer in the Mountains 

course. During my introduction, I said 

my reason for attending was so I could 

take my kids into the mountains safely. 

Rick invited me to join him on a family 

trip that weekend. Rick is a wealth of 

knowledge on everything in the backcountry—skiing, 

climbing, scrambling 

and ice travel, and he shares his enthusiasm 

with everyone. He has taught Winter 

in the Mountains and Summer in the 

Mountains introductory courses for the 

Nominate a volunteer 

past 44 years, attending almost all the 

course weekends. For the past four years 

I have helped, and I learn something new 

every class. This year he noticed a need 

for a shorter SIM class, so he designed a 

one-class plus one weekend compressed 

course that he taught and led. 

Rick keeps up-to-date on all the 

latest techniques, technology, gear and 

safety information. He’s knowledgeable 

about details such as different stitching 

patterns and how they affect down 

clothing; the physiological changes 

the body goes through when trying to 

adjust for temperature management; 

how different fabric compositions affect 

clothes and what works best in different 

conditions. His latest volunteer position 

will be running our section’s Winter 

on Ice course. Every year he does the 

fall clean-up/winter preparation of the 

Every year, the members of the Alpine Club of Canada’s Awards Committee 

volunteer their time to sift through numerous nominations to determine the 

recipients of the Club’s Volunteer Awards. 

Nominations are now open for outstanding Alpine Club of Canada volunteers of 

2012. The following awards recognize and celebrate ACC volunteers for their contributions 

to the Club and its members: 

l A.O. Wheeler Legacy Award 

l Honorary Membership 

l President’s Award 

l Silver Rope for Leadership Award 

l Distinguished Service Award 

l Don Forest Service Award 

l Eric Brooks Leader Award 

For details on how to nominate a volunteer and nomination forms, visit 

www.alpineclubofcanada.ca/awards or call the ACC National Office at 

(403) 678-3200 ext. 108 to receive the information by mail. 

Deadline for nominations is December 31, 2012. 

Wates-Gibson Hut in Jasper over the 

Thanksgiving weekend. Last spring, 

when Parks Canada sent out a call for 

help rebuilding the path to the hut, Rick 

immediately posted that he was going 

and offered to take passengers. 

On trips, Rick is the most prepared 

person I’ve ever seen, carrying a spare 

everything with him. On one climbing 

trip he offered to help take down the 

ropes, so I thought I would help lighten 

his load since he’d be carrying two ropes. 

I started taking gear out of his backpack 

to realize my pack filled to the point I 

wouldn’t be able to carry it, while I didn’t 

put a dent in his pack. Ask any students 

who have been on courses with him; if 

anyone has a problem with their skis they 

can count on Rick to repair them. His cell 

number is public and he regularly answers 

questions from past students. 

Rick’s latest task is Section webmaster. 

It’s not something he specializes 

in, just another area for him to help 

out the Club. These are just the things 

I know about; he enjoys sailing and is 

also very active in the Grant MacEwan 

University Club. Rick has received 

various awards from the ACC over the 

years and has been a valuable asset to the 

Edmonton Section. 

Thank you again, Rick, for everything 

that you do for our Club. Many, many 

people have benefitted from your passion 

for the mountains and from you sharing 

your wealth of knowledge with all of us. 

But, as far as Rick’s concerned, he’s just 

doing what he enjoys. 

Lil Lezarre is the new Chair of the ACC 

Edmonton Section. 

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Adieu Rick Collier 

1941 – 2012 

Alpine Club of Canada members were saddened to hear of the untimely death 

of long-time Club member, prolific Canadian Alpine Journal contributor, 

committed social justice and environmental activist, and mountain explorer 

extraordinaire, Rick Collier. A long-time Calgary resident, Collier was in a league of 

his own, having climbed more than 1,300 mountains. In addition to being the second 

person to summit the 54 Canadian Rockies peaks above 11,000 feet (3353 metres), he’s 

the only person to have climbed every one of the nearly 600 peaks listed in Glen Boles’ 

classic 1973 Climber’s Guide to the Rocky Mountains of Canada South guidebook. He 

also climbed all the named summits on the continental divide between the US border 

Recycle this 

and Saskatchewan River Crossing, and all the peaks in the 2006 edition of Alan Kane’s 

Scrambles in the Canadian Rockies. During his travels he summitted Mount Gazette Logan 

and Aconcagua and also made eight first ascents. It was on Mount Geikie Pass in it Mount on to 

Robson Provincial Park, in the Tonquin Valley area shared by Jasper National your belayer Park that 

Collier died on August 15 when the section of rock face he was climbing on gave way 

underneath him. A full obit will appear in the 2013 CAJ. Happy trails, Rick! 

Rick Collier enjoys the view from the summit of 

Junction Mountain in Alberta’s Highwood Pass 

area during the likely first-ever Dogtooth traverse 

in June. photo by ACC member Julie Muller. 

Phyllis Hart 


Alpine Club of Canada Life 

Member Phyllis Katherine 

Hart was born on March 

7, 1915 in Stettler Alberta, and grew 

up in nearby Gadsby. She began 

her career as a school teacher, then 

proceeded to work as a telegraph 

and then teletype operator for the 

Canadian Pacific Railway, working 

in Medicine Hat during the winter 

and the Chateau Lake Louise in the 

summer. According to her family, her 

happiest years were at Lake Louise 

where she climbed just about all the 

area’s peaks with the CPR’s Swiss 

Guides. She finished her career at the 

CPR as a communications instructor 

and customer liaison in Calgary. 

Following her retirement, she enjoyed 

travelling to many international destinations, 

hiking in the mountains 

she loved and also volunteering in 

her community. She participated in 

the Alberta Wilderness Association’s 

annual tower climb, which now presents 

the Phyllis Hart Award to the 

oldest female climber. As an ACC 

member, Phyllis is fondly remembered 

as an active mountaineer and also for 

her generous donation to the rebuilding 

of Fay Hut. Phyllis Hart died at 

the age of 97 on April 9, 2012. 

Victor Henry Heller 


Alpine Club of Canada Life 

Member Victor Henry Heller 

passed away Sept. 8, 2012, one 

month shy of his 94th birthday. Born 

in Vancouver in 1918, Heller attended 

college in Bellingham, Washington and 

learned the logging trade. Beginning 

with his father’s newspaper plant, he 

worked in that business much of his life. 

During World War II he served in the 

Royal Canadian Air Force in Canada 

and overseas. His passion for skiing 

and climbing took him to Austria and 

Switzerland several times, but his real 

loves were the mountain ranges of B.C., Alberta and the northwestern U.S. Heller is 

survived by his wife, Alma, and one sister, Geraldine Carmichael. 

Photo: www.twomanntent.com 

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affordable rates, the Alpine Club of Canada’s 

Clubhouse is the perfect venue for intimate 

mountain weddings. We pride ourselves in being 

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www.alpineclubofcanada.ca | 403-678-3200 ext. 1 


Geoff Powter receives 2012 Summit of Excellence 

A 

hearty congratulations goes 

to Canmore-based climber, 

author and former editor of 

the Canadian Alpine Journal for being 

named recipient of the 2012 Summit 

of Excellence Award. Powter has been 

writing about climbing, mountain culture, 

personalities and adventure for three 

decades, earning 10 National Magazine 

Awards for his talents. During the 15 

years he edited the Canadian Alpine 

Journal (1992 – 2007), he expanding its 

breadth to include thought-provoking 

reflections on the philosophical side of 

the climbing experience. As author of 

Strange and Dangerous Dreams: The Fine 

Line Between Adventure and Madness, 

Powter melded his writing prowess with 

his skills as a clinical psychologist to 

explore the motivations behind some of 

Richard Guy, 95 summits Ha Ling Peak 

Starting up the trail of the well- 

recognized peak that overlooks 

Canmore at 4 a.m. on June 30, 

it took the group six hours to reach 

the summit, by Richard’s estimate his 

20th to 25th time up the mountain. His 

last time was three years ago with his 

wife, Louise, for whom the Louise Guy 

Commemorative fund for ongoing amateur 

leadership training at the General 

Mountaineering Camp is named; he 

was 92, she was 91. This summer’s special 

climb was planned to commemorate 

Louise, who died in 2010 at the age of 92. 

The group, the youngest of whom was 51, 

returned to the parking lot at 6 p.m. after 

a remarkable 14-hour effort. 

the most intriguing adventurers the world 

has ever seen, examining the psychology 

of their risk-taking exploits with respect 

and genuine introspection. 

Add to that, he’s put up 50 new climbing 

routes in the Rockies and participated 

in 13 Himalayan expeditions. In gratitude 

for all he felt that region of the world 

had given him, he served seven years 

as president of the Canadian Himalaya 

Foundation. And regular attendees of the 

Banff Mountain Book Festival are familiar 

with Geoff Powter as the engaging 

host of his Voices of Adventure series 

of intimate interviews with such mountains 

legends as Charlie Houston, Royal 

Robbins and Yvon Chouinard. 

Well done Geoff! 

To learn more visit 

www.banffcentre.ca/mountainfestival 

At far right with ski poles, 95-yearold 

Richard Guy smiles proudly on the 

summit of Ha Ling Peak surrounded 

by friends who helped him accomplish 

the demanding 14-hour climb. From 

left, Jane Lancaster (ACC Calgary), Rex 

Westbrook, Chic Scott (ACC Rocky 

Mountain Honorary Member) and Ken 

Baker (ACC Calgary). Photo by Paul 

Gray (ACC Calgary). 

Be sure to read about Richard and 

Louise Guy’s inspirational lives in 

our newly published Young at Heart 

written by Chic Scott. Available at: 

www.alpineclubofcanada.ca/store in 

the Summit Series section. 


À ciel ouvert 

par Toby Harper 

Y’a de l’or dans ces collines là. 

Pardonnez la métaphore cliché, 

mais qu’il s’agisse du granit 

qui borde l’un de nos trois océans, des 

couleurs d’automne dans des régions 

moins escarpées du pays, ou encore de 

la médaille de champion du monde que 

Sean McColl porte autour du cou... le 

Canada est vraiment le filon! 

Le Club alpin du Canada est censé 

répondre à la communauté de montagne 

du Canada, quoi que cela signifie 

pour vous, et je peux dire que cela signifie 

un éventail de choses très différentes 

pour différentes personnes. Je suis 

également convaincu que ce n’est pas 

là où vous êtes au Canada qui définit 

votre participation à notre communauté 

de montagne, mais bien là où vous êtes 

dans votre vie, et ce que vous voulez 

en faire. Notre as de l’Himalaya vient 

du Québec, notre champion national a 

grandi à moins d’une heure de route de 

Squamish, des têtes grises de Toronto 

sont éprises de la chaîne Selkirk et s’y 

rendent chaque été, et le rédacteur en 

chef du vénérable Canadian Alpine 

Journal est un gars qui porte une queue 

de cheval, des skinny jeans et des lunettes 

de soleil ridicules. 

Les travaux du CAC soutiennent une 

communauté de montagne colorée et 

dynamique; nous essayons donc d’offrir 

des services qui comptent pour chacun 

de nos membres. Cela signifie que 

certaines personnes peuvent bénéficier 

photo by Ciara Raudsepp-Hearne 

de subventions d’expédition (tels que le 

Fonds Jen Higgins), que d’autres profitent 

tous les weekends des sorties de parois 

courtes (ou d’un 5 à 7) de leur section 

locale, alors que d’autres se voient déjà 

en compétition aux Jeux Olympiques de 

2020. 

Nous sommes loin de l’époque où 

seule l’escalade de montagne permettait 

de se qualifier au CAC. Souvenonsnous 

qu’il y a seulement 25 ans, les gens 

se disputaient pour décider si le Club 

devrait être impliqué dans l’escalade de 

compétition (de nos jours, l’adhésion 

au Climbing Escalade Canada du CAC 

couvre des provinces où nous n’avons 

même pas de sections traditionnelles 

!). Nous avons des milliers de membres 

dont l’interaction quotidienne avec leur 

communauté de montagne comprend 

tout simplement des histoires et vidéos 

partagées sur la page Facebook du CAC. 

Combien d’entre vous ont choisi de lire 

cette Gazette dans son édition web? Si 

vous ne l’avez pas encore fait et voulez 

économiser des ressources en vous passant 

de la version «papier », completez le 

formulaire à www.alpineclubofcanada.ca/ 

gazette/egazette.html et nous vous enverrons 

un courriel avec un lien vers chaque 

édition web dès sa sortie. 

En tant que membre d’un club 

national, dans un grand pays diversifié qui 

compte plus d’un siècle d’histoire, vous 

faites des pont politiques et culturels, et 

vous aidez à définir ce que signifie être 

Canadien dans un sens 

contemporain. Que 

vous soyez membre du 

CAC pour préserver 

le caractère sauvage 

du glacier Jumbo, 

participer au prochain 

Tour de Bloc, ou vous 

faufiler vers un supplément 

de 10 percent de 

réduction chez MEC, 

je vous remercie pour 

votre adhésion. 

En tant que directeur 

responsable des 

services aux membres, 

je suis toujours à 

l’écoute de vos commentaires 

... Qu’est-ce 

que le Club pourrait 

améliorer selon vous? Lancez-moi un 

tweet sur @alpineclubcan ou un courriel 

à tharper@alpineclubofcanada.ca 

Allez!.. en toute sécurité. 

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NOTICES 

Upcoming Meetings 

Executive Committee meeting: 

●● 

April 20, 2013 in Canmore 

Board of Directors meeting: 

●● 

May 11 - 12, 2013 in Canmore 

Annual General Meeting: 

●● 

May 11, 2013 in Canmore 

Canadian Alpine Journal 

Submissions 

Deadline for submitting articles for 

the upcoming CAJ is February 1, 2013. 

For more information, visit: 

www.alpineclubofcanada.ca/caj/ 

guidelines.html 

ACC NewsNet 

To subscribe to the ACC NewsNet visit: 

www.bit.ly/ACCnewsnet 

Classified Ad Rates: 

$25 plus $1 per word + taxes 

E-mail your ad to: 

ads@alpineclubofcanada.ca 

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Flirting with danger requires a good opening line. 

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2008 June / Heavy snow pins the team to the 

wall for days. On day 18, the team gets within 

100 meters of the summit, but no further. 

A two-day rappel brings the team to safety 

2009-2010 Insights during ferocious storms guided 

innovation as Conrad, teammates and 

The north Face engineered a complete 

kit for Meru conditions 

2011 

October / Conrad in the Radish Midlayer, 

featuring longer sleeves and thumb loops 

for fluid climbing, balaclava hood that 

goes under the helmet, and chest pocket 

so Conrad’s glasses are always at hand 

October / Staying warm on the summit 

in the Meru Shell and Shaffle Jackets. 

expedition leader Conrad Anker and 

team claim the first ascent that 

eluded over 30 previous expeditions

Winter 2012 Gazette - The Alpine Club of Canada

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