It's been awhile since I've done any peaks in the Rockies. It seems that once you settle into a mountain valley in the Kootenays it gets harder and harder to leave, especially just to go to an area that is busier and more crowded.The Saskatchewan Section's beginners' rock climbing weekend (a multi-year tradition) provided the excuse I needed this time, so I packed up the camper and headed east.
A friend of mine and myself offered to lead any participants who didn't want to do rock climbing the opportunity to scramble to the summit of a couple of peaks.Today's peak experience was Gap Peak, a small summit directly east of Grotto Mtn, featuring 1100 meters of elevation gain, some bushwhacking and a long, narrow ridge connecting to the summit. We left the parking lot at 8:30 am and were on the summit just before noon. Since it was a bit chilly, we inhaled our food and returned, finding a nice sunny spot on the way down for a short rest. This peak is not directly referenced in Kain's scrambles book, only as an extension of a long ridge scramble from Mt Fable. The route we took climbs up a ridge directly behind the BayMag plant on Hwy 1A east of Canmore. There were two major rock bands to get around, some of the usual Rockies scree to chew our way up and down, but the views were nice, the cool temperatures made the efforts of the ascent easier, and we found (so far) only one wood tick.
