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| Uto elevation: 2927m approach: Illecillewaet campground ascent route: southwest ridge - 5.1, PD descent route: southwest ridge elevation gain: 1700m (car to summit) time: we turned back early on |
Sir Donald elevation: 3297m approach: Illecillewaet campground ascent route: northwest ridge - 5.4, D descent route: northwest ridge elevation gain: 2075m (car to summit) time: 16.5h Matt, 30h Steph (read on) |
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The Sir Donald group lies near Rogers Pass, just south of the Trans-Canada
in Glacier National Park.
The northwest ridge of Sir Donald is a well-known alpine rock route
which I had partially ascended with Greg Squires
in August 2000.
Matt and I intended to hike up the approach trail to the bivouac site
below Sir Donald, leaving camp gear and food there, and to continue
on to climb the southwest ridge of Uto on the same day. After spending
the night below the col, we would climb the northwest ridge of Sir Donald
on the following morning and descend back to the car. On the morning of July 31, we reached the bivouac site in increasing cloud cover. After setting up the tent and making soup to wait out the weather, we decided to give Uto a go. Shortly after starting the climb, the weather worsened and we returned to the tent for the afternoon. On August 1, we rose to mostly clear skies and climbed Sir Donald, reaching the summit just after 13:00. On the descent, at about 2800m, Steph took a 15m fall, resulting in some serious injuries including two broken wrists, two skull fractures, and a broken nose. With 300m of climbing remaining down to the col and Steph's hands no longer functioning, he was unable to descend and required a helicopter rescue on the morning of August 2. One week later, Steph was released from Royal Inland Hospital in Kamloops. |
