Forum Index > Trip Reports > Mt. Alberta, Japanese Route (V, 5.6). September 4-8, 2017
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xuanxier
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xuanxier
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PostMon Sep 11, 2017 10:08 pm 
Full trip report: http://stevensong.com/mount-alberta Famed to be the hardest, or at the one of the two hardest 11,000ers in the Canadian Rockies Mt. Alberta needs little introduction. In the Canadian climbing community this one is more influential than Robson although North America wise Robson is more famous. There's not much duplication I want to write here as all details on in my TR. If you are curious what is to climb one vertical mile of choss pile with a 2-day approach, grade V/5.6 then you're welcome to check it out.

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Gimpilator
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PostMon Sep 11, 2017 10:20 pm 
Thanks for the link! I've been trying to wait patiently.

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Fletcher
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PostMon Sep 11, 2017 10:43 pm 
That actually looks sort of insane.

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Gimpilator
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PostMon Sep 11, 2017 11:10 pm 
Wow. Really terrifying. eek.gif One of the scariest reports I've ever seen. Then again, we don't have that degree of choss in WA. Mount Alberta makes many of the toughest peaks in WA (speaking without personal experience), look a lot easier. I think my version of sketchy just expanded reading your report. Congratulations! You got the peak and you all survived. Most of us will never take mountaineering even half-way to that level. I have no desire. But it's incredible to get a glimpse of what it's like.

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awilsondc
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PostTue Sep 12, 2017 6:44 am 
eek.gif stun.gif Dang! That's a pretty sketchy mountain! Nice job getting 'er done. Looks difficult and scary.

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Malachai Constant
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PostTue Sep 12, 2017 8:23 am 
Remind me if I loose my memory to never do this climb eek.gif

"You do not laugh when you look at the mountains, or when you look at the sea." Lafcadio Hearn
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HermitThrush
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PostTue Sep 12, 2017 9:22 am 
Insane. Wow. Good job man!

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GaliWalker
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PostTue Sep 12, 2017 10:32 am 
hairy.gif Some really cool photos in there too. Especially "Jim and the Twins". up.gif

'Gali'Walker => 'Mountain-pass' walker bobbi: "...don't you ever forget your camera!" Photography: flickr.com/photos/shahiddurrani
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iron
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PostTue Sep 12, 2017 10:58 am 
that looked horrible. so much scree and gravel on downsloping exposed ledges. nutso!

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Pyrites
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PostTue Sep 12, 2017 1:35 pm 
Holy moley.

Keep Calm and Carry On? Heck No. Stay Excited and Get Outside!
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xuanxier
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PostTue Sep 12, 2017 10:43 pm 
Yeah it was super sketchy for sure although as a seasoned Rockies mountaineer we're already used to this type of choss fest. Just longer, rougher and more committing with a short time window than some other 11,000ers. About a dozen out of the 58 requires dangerous climbing similar to this one. Knocked a bunch of tough ones down this year but still have one big monster to go - South Goodsir supposes to have the worst rock quality in this 11,000ers list....

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Jim Dockery
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PostWed Sep 13, 2017 7:28 am 
Rockies choss is definitely an acquired taste (that I've lost). Glad I survived my youthful dalliances up there. The final pitch on the Super Couloir of Delta Form was a classic - last pro about 20 ft. down as I front pointed up potato chip flakes of limestone to an overhanging cornice, with the whole face dropping below my heels eek.gif Good job on Alberta, that big boy is a whole expedition up.gif

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Sepultura
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PostWed Sep 13, 2017 9:00 am 
Excellent trip report! The most thorough on The Japanese Route I have ever come across. Your site has a lot of great info and pictures on a lot of hard summits. You have been very busy ticking them off! That is a bold undertaking with the 11's in the Canadian Rockies. Reading your TR it's hard for me to imagine that Mt. Alberta see's guided ascents! Seems like a lot of difficult unroped terrain would be needed to pull off an ascent in a timely fashion.

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xuanxier
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PostWed Sep 13, 2017 10:15 am 
Nice to get a comment from you, Jim. Have read your Deltaform account earlier this year and hard to believe the push-through, especially back in the days before the internet information sharing. I'm not intending to go that technical haha. Probably move on to bigger ranges or start working more on the Coast and WA.

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xuanxier
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PostWed Sep 13, 2017 10:19 am 
We do see guided ascent of Alberta. We all wondered why. Nobody can pay me to go back up this peak again even though now I know all the details and I'm confident to lead the whole mountain. Just not worth to take this risk twice. I guess clients hire guides who actually haven't been up this mountain. So they kinda just climb as a partnership. Regarding unroped travel on Alberta, it's actually pretty basic. I don't recall having to solo much of 5th class. You do have to solo most of the summit ridge and the approach but those are mostly 3rd class if you talk about the individual hard moves, albeit with the size of exposure and the quality of the rocks it's still committing full-on. Deltaform on the other hand, we had to solo extensive climbing terrain. I remember 18 rappels in total for that trip (although shorter in length), not much pitched climbing.

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Forum Index > Trip Reports > Mt. Alberta, Japanese Route (V, 5.6). September 4-8, 2017
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