Sorcerer Lake Lodge (May 2002)
After an 8-day ski traverse from near Mt. Argentine, we spend at week at Sorcerer Lake Lodge.
Days Nine and Ten
The storm (which was quite large to our east and shut down the Calgary airport) continued on these two days, so we skied modest slopes, familiarizing ourselves with the terrain. After avalanche rescue practice, we did a run on the Perfect Glacier, then climbed up and through White Russian Col and down the front side back to the lodge. Next day we headed up the Escargot Glacier to the little col at its head, but the wind kept us from looping through the “Khumbu” Icefall, and we just came back down and went through White Russian and down Perfect in the reverse of the previous day’s route. Skiing conditions were quite good, and the Montanans were good skiers and climbers.
Robson’s mother Marg was also a very strong skier and climber and had no trouble keeping up.
The Escargot Glacier is named after the rocky bump called Escargot, which looks just like a snail and dominates the view from the lodge.
On the first run of the trip I tried a 6-foot cornice jump. It broke under me and I basically fell over it; I needed more speed! My skiing was okay, but I fall occasionally and at one point my sunglasses fell out of my jacket and I did not notice. Robson picked them up and put them on and tried to get my attention at a rest stop. I did find it curious that he had the same nose guard on that I had been using!
Day Eleven
The sun returns, so we headed up to the skiers’ Nordic Summit, which is the westernmost peak of the three-summitted Nordic Mountain. This allowed us to get high, evaluate the post-storm snow conditions and stability, and get some good skiing in. The ski down the face was super, and then Tom and some others headed back to the lodge while Robson and the traversers and Brice and Steve headed over to Merlin Peak (a run known as Critical Thursday). This had some rock-climbing at the end to get a minor summit of Merlin. Also, on the way up, Robson used his probe to check for snow depth among the crevasses. There was some very steep skiing down. Indeed, this was the best run of the trip so far, and compared very favorably to the long and steep ski runs we have done at other lodges. Several runs in this area are 3000-foot drops or more, in excellent north-facing snow. Indeed, the bowl of Nordic Mountain and its glacier are a skier’s paradise!
While we were having fun, Tom and Kellie were checking out the Heinous Traverse, and they reported that it would be fine for travel. That surely meant we would try Iconoclast the next day, weather permitting.
Back at the lodge, Bob asked Marg Gmoser if she knew anything about the incident this past January in which a skier was killed by a mountain lion near Banff. As it turned out, Marg was the one who found the body, and she related the harrowing details to us.
Another story of note: Simon Bew reported that two strong skiers skied the Bugaboos -> Rogers Pass route in three days, going very, very light. Incredible. It took our group 14 days in 1990.
Day Twelve
We have an early breakfast (7 instead of 7:30) and all head towards Iconoclast. The going is easy and the weather is good. The Heinous Traverse was well prepared by Tom and Kellie and was easy to cross. But that raised an amusing grammatical issue: Last night Brice raised the issue of whether the “h” in “heinous” is silent. I had never heard of such a thing. But Robson provided an amusing interpretation as, when he and Simon followed the traverse at the back end, they tried some butt-sliding down the steep slope just for fun. So for some I guess it really is the “anus traverse”!
We got onto the Iconoclast Glacier, at which point Tom asked: “Well, should we make an attempt?” He was slightly concerned because he had some information that there was bare ice on the route, and that would be a problem. But it all looked good and we were keen, so we asked him to try it. We put our skis on our packs and followed his steep steps for a couple hundred feet. Then the going got harder (looser snow), and Tom headed for the rocks, kicking steps in a snowy gully. This was quite steep, but easy to follow and at the top of the gully we who were following were pleased to see Tom donning his skis again. From here it looked like, and was, a very easy skin to the summit. At the decision point Robson had gone down with some members of the party, but when he saw the route was good, he and Simon came back up and quickly followed it, arriving at the summit a half-hour after we did.
Sadly the visibility disappeared at this point, making the descent tricky. And there were avalanche concerns, but it turned out to be stable and we all got down the 1000-foot steep face safely. This 1000-foot section measures at 41˚ from the map. Of course, visibility then improved. We did a small side trip towards Benedict Creek, then climbed back and retraced to the lodge. In fact, it was not a long day at all. In good conditions, Iconoclast is a relatively easy ascent from the lodge.
Day Thirteen, Thursday
Still good weather, so we headed up the Escargot Glacier to the summit of Escargot for lunch. Then to a spot under the high ridge of Nordic’s broad west peak for a great ski down. What next? We had all been eyeing the awesome looking slope descending right from Nordic’s true summit, and Robson headed toward it. We threaded around some crevasses and started to zigzag up the 1000-foot slope. After 500 feet we had to shoulder our skis and follow Robson’s 500 feet of very steep steps. And I mean steep. We used the poles to steady ourselves as parts of the ascent route were over 45˚, with lots of little rolls to make some of us a little concerned about skiing down. And of course there were firm little cornices at the top.
But the time of day and clarity of air made for a superb summit. We had tremendous views of everything, especially the gigantic south face of Sir Sandford twenty miles to the north.
Some of us, including me, were a little concerned about the ski down. It turned out to be not so bad— the snow conditions were good—except that small sluffs would start at each turn on the steepest section. Well, not so small, in the sense that they were enough to throw me off. Jonathan did a big three-somersault tumble. We will need the videotape to understand exactly how spectacular this was! I got down with one or two small falls only. Bob observed that this was the best slope he had ever skied in Canada. We later learned from Randy Heppell that this run is called The Ultimate. He had guided some people to it from Black Russian Col. Possibly it has been skied only twice. As always we are grateful to our guides for taking us to these fabulous spots. Combining observations using an inclinometer, poles, the map, and our gut feeling, I would say that the upper 500 feet of the ski descent was 45˚.
Day Fourteen, Friday
A pretty mellow day with a tour up to Black Russian Col, which we had not yet visited, and a ski down the front side, and then a tour to a point on the ridge north of the west summit of Nordic and an excellent ski down the Khumbu Icefall. Katie tweaked her knee on the first run, so took the second half of the day off. A low-key day to end the trip. And Rob broke his binding early in the day and had to return to the hut for a repair. So Rob wins the vertical prize for the entire trip as he had an extra 200 feet on Day 2, an extra 300 feet on day 14, and an extra 3200 feet on day 15.
Tom Raudaschl had brought his Austrian Roulette game to the hut. The record (2600+) had been set by Kurt Klemper of Breckenridge the prior week at Battle Abbey, but Bob Portmann blasted to a new record of 2830.
Day Fifteen, Saturday
Bob and Rob go out early for 3200 feet more, including a steep pitch with excellent skiing that they had been eyeing all week, and we all leave by helicopter at noon on schedule. On its way in it brought in three loads of firewood by sling. At the landing we met Tannis Dakin and also saw guide Randy Heppell again, and of course we exchanged much information with both. The van ride back to Calgary was smooth and so a great trip ends.
