more Lyell Peaks

Soft evening light bathes peaks 2 and 3, as seen from peak 1. It had been a long day and it got longer. We stumbled back to camp by headlamp at 1 a.m.  I was wearing my prescription glacier glasses the whole way because I had forgotten my regular ones in camp. No moonlight, dark sunglasses and by midnight, boy, was it dark out!

Peaks 4 and 5 as seen from near peak 3. These two peaks can also be combined in a long day from camp. We ascended the snow arete at right of photo to Peak 4, the highest, and traversed the connecting ridge to Peak 5. I still remember my crampons grating on the sections of bare rock.

Ascending the snow arete at the north end of Peak 4. The weather? Crappy.  An electrical storm developed while we traversed to Peak 5, but luckily, we were not zapped. 

After the successful traverse of Peaks 4 and 5, a rest to enjoy the view before the 2 hr walk back to camp. Peak 2 is at right of photo, Peak 3 at centre.

These are just a few pictures showing what you would encounter on a mountaineering trip to Lyell Peaks in the Canadian Rockies.  Looks like fun, eh? Sure beats mowing the lawn. My next big adventure that year was an attempt on Goodsir Peaks, a few hours south in Yoho National Park. This was before I even new that the American Rockies peaks like Long's Peak were actually higher than our Canadian Rockies. Higher, and way less technical too, a fact not lost on me as I age...

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"Heel!"