Canada - Return to my Nemesis - Midnight Peak
Posted: Fri Feb 26, 2016 7:14 pmThose with long memories will remember 2012 when attempting to summit Midnight Peak I took a nasty fall and was very lucky to get away with only minor injuries. For a year that mountain loomed over me as I travelled down highway 40, reminding me that it had thrown me off, so in July 2013 I finally went back and made the summit albeit via a different route. Today I returned once more and made the summit via the North-East route that almost got me in 2012.
Parking for the trailhead is simple to find, take exit 118 from the TransCanada Highway onto highway 40 south and travel approximately 15 km to a well signed 'Baldy Pass' parking area on the right hand side of the road.
For those who read my last post on the north face of Mt Baldy, you can just see that route and the knobbly gendarme blocking the ridge on the far left of this shot from the car park today.
The hike is very comfortable and easy going early on with hard packed ice and snow requiring micros for traction. I'm soon looking back down the pass toward Nakiska ski resort.
The pass suffered a massive change during the floods of 2013 and is still a tangle of bare trees poking through river rocks in many places
Soon the easy going steady climb changes to a more demanding ascent and in the deep shaded part of the pass the snow still lays deep on the north facing slopes, the south facing slopes beyond are snow free now...in February
For some reason I thought it would be a good idea to leave the well trodden pass trail and haul myself through deep snow with no trail as I ascended a long run off, the first 30 minutes was nicely over knee depth and really sapped my energy as it went on and on.
Mercifully the snow has melted in the upper regions where the warm chinook winds can blow past, after ascending a nice little scramble up a dry waterfall and a rocky nub I'm snow free.
Once out of the snow the ridge is just a pile of loose rock in an incredibly unstable boulder field and this is where the more steep ascent begins but the views over Mt Baldy and it's three peaks are wonderful
The final pull is very steep and loose requiring almost constant reassessing of the boulder field to pick out a pathway, well that was my excuse for stopping every 20 steps
Eventually I top out onto the low point of the summit ridge.
It's nice to be able to see over to the south now as spectacular views open up all around, there's a good looking ridge continuing south and Moose Mountain away on the horizon.
The view to the north along the edge of the mountains is beautiful, Mt Baldy with it's south and west summit ridges reaching toward me, directly over the top of those is Yamnuska, a mountain whose name translates as 'wall of rock' and way beyond, sticking out to enhance its own prominence is the unforgettable nub of Black Rock Mountain. It still seems incredible to me that I have stood on the summits of all of them and taken in the wonder of the Canadian Rockies all alone, every time
After standing on the lower end of the ridge regaining some energy I set out for that last little bump to the main summit, I confess I was really feeling it at this point, I could have sat here and called it a day
From the main summit the ridge to the south is inviting (or would be if I had the energy) though I don't actually know where the exit points are along the way, another one to look up I guess.
To the west along the ridge beyond the summit cairn is a wonderful array of mountains stretching infinitely. I settled down by the cairn for a while and filled out the summit register as usual.
Up and along the summit ridge shows the start of the north western ridge (right) that I will use for my descent. It's less steep than the ascent route and a little more stable
The evidence shot, despite the appearance it is very cold up here. I had a very quick bite to eat and set off on the descent after about 5 minutes.
A shot from the top of the descent ridge looking back at the summit
From the top of the descent ridge the view to the south along yet another ridge showing a good length of highway 40 is fantastic
On the descent, the route out is 2/3 of the way along this ridge then dropping down to the right
Off the ridge and into a long washout that leads back to the deep snow in the northern flanks of the forest where the last 300m or so to reach Baldy Pass trail was made through literally waist deep snow, it was awful and staggering through deadfall buried beneath it was even worse.
I was never so glad to see a flat, easy downhill trail as I was when I staggered out of the forest onto Baldy Pass, it was a tough day that got me out and up a nice lump as the snow continues to disappear....long live El Nino
Parking for the trailhead is simple to find, take exit 118 from the TransCanada Highway onto highway 40 south and travel approximately 15 km to a well signed 'Baldy Pass' parking area on the right hand side of the road.
For those who read my last post on the north face of Mt Baldy, you can just see that route and the knobbly gendarme blocking the ridge on the far left of this shot from the car park today.
The hike is very comfortable and easy going early on with hard packed ice and snow requiring micros for traction. I'm soon looking back down the pass toward Nakiska ski resort.
The pass suffered a massive change during the floods of 2013 and is still a tangle of bare trees poking through river rocks in many places
Soon the easy going steady climb changes to a more demanding ascent and in the deep shaded part of the pass the snow still lays deep on the north facing slopes, the south facing slopes beyond are snow free now...in February
For some reason I thought it would be a good idea to leave the well trodden pass trail and haul myself through deep snow with no trail as I ascended a long run off, the first 30 minutes was nicely over knee depth and really sapped my energy as it went on and on.
Mercifully the snow has melted in the upper regions where the warm chinook winds can blow past, after ascending a nice little scramble up a dry waterfall and a rocky nub I'm snow free.
Once out of the snow the ridge is just a pile of loose rock in an incredibly unstable boulder field and this is where the more steep ascent begins but the views over Mt Baldy and it's three peaks are wonderful
The final pull is very steep and loose requiring almost constant reassessing of the boulder field to pick out a pathway, well that was my excuse for stopping every 20 steps
Eventually I top out onto the low point of the summit ridge. It's nice to be able to see over to the south now as spectacular views open up all around, there's a good looking ridge continuing south and Moose Mountain away on the horizon.
The view to the north along the edge of the mountains is beautiful, Mt Baldy with it's south and west summit ridges reaching toward me, directly over the top of those is Yamnuska, a mountain whose name translates as 'wall of rock' and way beyond, sticking out to enhance its own prominence is the unforgettable nub of Black Rock Mountain. It still seems incredible to me that I have stood on the summits of all of them and taken in the wonder of the Canadian Rockies all alone, every time
After standing on the lower end of the ridge regaining some energy I set out for that last little bump to the main summit, I confess I was really feeling it at this point, I could have sat here and called it a day
From the main summit the ridge to the south is inviting (or would be if I had the energy) though I don't actually know where the exit points are along the way, another one to look up I guess.
To the west along the ridge beyond the summit cairn is a wonderful array of mountains stretching infinitely. I settled down by the cairn for a while and filled out the summit register as usual.
Up and along the summit ridge shows the start of the north western ridge (right) that I will use for my descent. It's less steep than the ascent route and a little more stable
The evidence shot, despite the appearance it is very cold up here. I had a very quick bite to eat and set off on the descent after about 5 minutes.
A shot from the top of the descent ridge looking back at the summit
From the top of the descent ridge the view to the south along yet another ridge showing a good length of highway 40 is fantastic
On the descent, the route out is 2/3 of the way along this ridge then dropping down to the right
Off the ridge and into a long washout that leads back to the deep snow in the northern flanks of the forest where the last 300m or so to reach Baldy Pass trail was made through literally waist deep snow, it was awful and staggering through deadfall buried beneath it was even worse.
I was never so glad to see a flat, easy downhill trail as I was when I staggered out of the forest onto Baldy Pass, it was a tough day that got me out and up a nice lump as the snow continues to disappear....long live El Nino
as always a fantastic set of images of a superb landscape 
