Welcome!
Hi everyone. Welcome to our Wapta Traverse trip!
Please read the following information carefully. It should answer most of the questions you may have. There is a gear list at the end. If you have any questions the best way to get hold of me is by email.
If you get nothing else from this information package, please do the following:
Read and understand the guide waiver carefully ahead of time. You don’t need to sign the waiver now, you will do that once you arrive for the trip.
Have a look at the gear list and make sure you are able to bring everything on the list.
Let me know if you need me to provide any equipment for you.
RISK
It is important to understand that no matter how well prepared we are there is still an element of risk to backcountry skiing.
You will all need to sign a waiver when you arrive for the trip. Please read the waiver before the trip so you understand what the risks are and what you will be signing when you begin the trip.
Safety is our number one priority. You all trust the guides to be dialed in and to be able to rescue you in case of an accident, but it goes both ways. We need to trust you to be able to do the same for us! Our risk is shared, and if you prepare even just a little bit beforehand it is very helpful and the guide’s families thank you.
The most important person in managing your personal risk is YOU. There are a variety of ways you can manage risk on this trip:
Listen to the guides’ instructions and if you are uncertain of what is expected of you please ask!
Take an avalanche course with me! Click here.
Take the online avalanche course at the Avalanche Canada website. Click here.
Practice avalanche rescue prior to the trip. At the very least understand all of the functions of your avalanche transceiver and how to search for at least 2 burials. We would really appreciate if you practice with the entire kit before the trip: transceiver, shovel and probe. A full rescue practice where you work as a team and recover a couple of buried packs with transceivers in them would be best, but even working in the backyard doing a simple transceiver search, and making sure your shovel and probe are in good working order is helpful. Please practice before the trip, the safety of your fellow skiers and the guides rely on YOUR skills.
Speak up. If you see something you feel is hazardous, mention it to the group and/or the guides. If you feel uncomfortable with what you perceive is a risk, mention it to the group and/or the guides.
Skiing together as a group is all about trust in each other’s abilities. The more we trust each other the more fun we will have because that means that we can ski the most interesting terrain available to us with the current conditions.
Important dates and times – all times are Mountain Time
Day 1, 7.30 am – We meet at the Lake Louise Alpine Centre (hostel) to have a look through your gear and sign the waivers. Google Maps location is here. We should try to be heading out of town by about 8.30. We will be on the trail by mid-morning for the ski to the Whyte (Peyto) Hut.
Day 2 – Travel to Bow Hut. We will climb one of the nearby peaks along the way, weather permitting.
Day 3 - We ski over the Olive-St Nicholas Col, to the Balfour Hut. There is a possibility of an ascent of Mt Olive and/or Mt St Nicholas if time and weather permits.
Day 4 - This is the crux day, where we traverse the Balfour High Col to the Scott Duncan Hut. There is also a possibility of a peak ascent this day.
Day 5 - On the last day we ski over the Niles-Daly Col and then down the Sherbrooke Valley to the Trans-Canada Highway at the Great Divide Lodge.
Trip Information
The Wapta Traverse travels across various icefields, glaciers and cols to link Peyto Lake with the Kicking Horse Pass. Each day involves 300-700 m elevation gains and 6-15 km horizontal travel. The huts are comfortable but basic. They have all the cooking equipment that will be required and mattresses but we need to bring our own food and sleeping bags.
If you are interested in doing some research about the trip beforehand you can order a map of the Wapta Icefield here. Or you can buy Chic Scott's and my ski touring guidebook of the area here.
Delays
Although very unusual on this trip, there is always the chance that conditions will force us to spend an extra day out. We should be prepared for this bringing a bit of extra food.
Logistics
We will need to do a car shuttle and we can organize this by email a few days before the trip starts.
Check the gear list for what you need to bring. I supply the group gear for glacier travel (ropes) and food. We will share cooking and cleaning duties.
MEDICAL ISSUES
If any of you have allergies or medical conditions I need to know about, please let me know as soon as possible.
MOUNTAIN RESCUE
In nearly thirty years of guiding I have only had three evacuations from the field for minor injuries or illness.
There is a professional mountain rescue team on call in Banff National Park. If you have national park permits for your vehicles you will not be charged if you require a rescue or an evacuation.
Communications
I have a radio that can be used to contact rescue crews in an emergency only.
I will also be carrying an InReach device, which links to satellites and enables us to send messages and an emergency SOS.
The Bottom Line
Read and understand the guide waiver carefully ahead of time. You don’t need to sign the waiver now, you will do that once you arrive for the trip.
Have a look at the gear list and make sure you are able to bring everything on the list.
Let me know if you need me to provide any equipment for you.
Questions?
If you have any questions let me know!