These two peaks were combined on a day outing into the Enchantment Lakes area. We slept at the Stuart Lake Trailhead at the end of FS Road 7601. We slept well until awakened at 0400 by three climbers who jumped off at 0400 to climb Prusik Peak. We left camp at 0610 as we wanted to avoid the heat of the day for most of our elevation gain. There is an abandoned road that leaves from the parking area at the end of FS Road 7601. It is blocked by very large boulders. We walked up that road for about 1 mile until a huge washout/landslide 600 feet across is encountered.
We then went upslope SE toward the ridge of Cannon Mtn. This area was severely burned in the Rat Creek fire of 1994. We were thankfully in the shadow of the mountain for most of our climb as downed burned trees are your companion until 7,000 feet where green living trees above the fireline are met. We happened upon the foundation logs of an old cabin at 5,600 feet. Maybe it was the abode of the original Cannon. It had stunning views into Mountaineer Creek valley and across to Cashmere Mtn. We reached the ridge of Cannon Mtn but were about 1 mile away from the summit. We were able to travel along the NW slopes working through two gully systems without problems reaching the summit at 1100. The summit itself is rather unappealing as it is a 40 degree slab of granite which uncomfortably accomodates one person. Then we descending onto the Lost World Plateau to connect with Prusik Pass. Who of all people should I meet at the edge of the plateau but Tom D. with two of his friends. I knew he was going into the Enchantments for several days but didn't expect to see him. We followed the route to Prusik Pass which he had taken and connected with the east ridge of Enchantment Peak. Along the way we tanked up of some wonderful cold water draining from beneath a snowy gully of Enchantment Peak. This area on the map is marked as Enchantment Peaks. Once you gain the NE summit by climbing rounded granite terrain you will understand why. There is a SW summit of equal or greater height that beacons from 1/2 mile away. The map actually gives it one more contour line than the NE summit. It was adjacent to our planned route of descent so we rambled over there hopping on large granite boulders. The SW summit appears to be a two foot wide needle about 25 feet tall. I knew that in Peggy Goldman's book she says it is not a scramble but I didn't know if that meant rope was a necessity. We found a route along the south side of the SW summit which gave access to the top. It begins where the western portion of the summit block meets talus slopes. This mountain top was literally tagged as to stand on the two foot wide vertical slab of granite would have been foolhearty. It is Class 4 for a short section just beneath the top but should only be done by those readers who are diehard peakbaggers like Stefan. I talked with Randy who said he had also tagged this summit. It would be nice to have had a level to see if either the NE or SW was the highpoint as it is impossible to do with the naked eye. So we then descended along the same line and hiked over toward Aasgard Pass on sandy soil. We didn't connect with Aasgard directly as that would have added elevation gain and unneeded distance. We dropped down five hundred feet through a wide gully and met the trail beneath the pass. Along the way we were treated to witness six goats, three nannies and three kids, relaxing on the sandy ground. The route back to the car along this trail is getting monotonous as this is the third time in as many weeks that I have been on this trail. I planned this route though as it allowed for a circle loop. Car-to-car took 12 1/2 hrs.
Joined: 15 Dec 2001 Posts: 13775 | TRs | Pics Location: The Irate Roadwalker
Sun Aug 15, 2004 10:54 pm
Hey Mike, good seeing you on the edge of the lost world plateau. Go figure! We also did Enchnantment Peak and saw someone summiting that other high point when we were summiting Enchantment. Would have been fun to do that one too but we didn't have scramble beta so we opted to descend a steep gully taking us down to the plateau above Talisman. Fun route. Goats were out in force this weekend. Too much smoke and haze for good summit pictures but I have a ton of goat photos.
Here's Canon Mtn from the edge of the Lost World Plateau. Mike is a speck of blue in the left middle third of this panorama.
And a few more pics of the Lorelei Lakelets and Coney:
Super shots. Reminds me of a drive through Norway once, where the goats just sat in the middle of the road as if to say "I'm not moving and you can't make me!" Very international creatures they are.
You cannot post new topics in this forum You cannot reply to topics in this forum You cannot edit your posts in this forum You cannot delete your posts in this forum You cannot vote in polls in this forum You cannot attach files in this forum You can download files in this forum
